Totes McGoats Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I realize yesterday was a loss, and I'm anything but a fairweather fan, so this isn't a "sky is falling" post. But - I'm starting to be concerned about WD's confidence, and his ability to make split second decisions. These are the things I'm noticing that are of concern: 1. Pulling the goalie. Every time he pulls the goalie, we're getting scored on because he hasn't given the team the time to set up in the zone. When you pull the goalie early, at say 2:30 left... you'd better be damn sure your team has possession. 2. Not using Time-Outs at key moments. For example, we got scored on 3 times in short order against San Jose the other day, and though he pulled the goalie, he didn't stop the team, and provide any sort of refocus. 3. Not adjusting to things when we are struggling. For example, last night against Arizona we're getting just KILLED down low. There wasn't anything there all night. And though I can understand that the Sedin's might not necessarily play a different style... It's on Willie to switch up the style of play that isn't working. 4. Not adjusting lines when necessary. For example, Dorsett/Horvat/Kenins played absolutely the best hockey of their year together. Dorsett was an integral part of that. Instead of keeping them together, he's throwing Dorsett out there with Bonino and Vrbata. I realize I'm not an NHL coach, so I am not saying that anything he's doing are "wrong" or whatever... I just am concerned at this growing trend of continuing the same things even when they aren't successful. The power play has been abismal all year and it's up to Willie to resolve that. The success that this team has had, is based around getting shots to the net, getting bodies to the net, and scoring dirty goals. If we rely on "Sedinery" every night... then we'll lose IMHO. It's also important that the "sedin effect" doesn't rub off too much on the rest of the team. Nobody does what the Sedins can do... and it's annoying as hell to watch the other lines all try to be the Twins. Coach needs to get them back "playing their game". What's everyone's thoughts on this? Is Willie just dealing with his first set of Adversity or is this going to be an ongoing problem? Back when we had AV, when we first got him he juggled his lines FAR too much for the first season. After that he settled down, and we had some success... I personally am hoping for a similar outcome with Willie, as I really love the guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-DLC- Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I think you've made some great points and agree with much of what you're saying. The thing that must be considered, though, is that you have the luxury of hindsight and seeing how things play out. Willie's doing it in the moment and on the fly, so decisions are made by him that he feels are right at the time, without knowing what the end result will be. You, yourself, have alluded to that with "split second decisions". They are just that and it's all a gamble at that point. Some things'll work, others will not. For us, in evaluating after the fact, it's a much different deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totes McGoats Posted March 6, 2015 Author Share Posted March 6, 2015 I think you've made some great points and agree with much of what you're saying. The thing that must be considered, though, is that you have the luxury of hindsight and seeing how things play out. Willie's doing it in the moment and on the fly, so decision are made by him that he likely feels are right at the time...whether or not they are isn't to be known at that point. For us, in evaluating after the fact, it's a much different deal. Oh, I agree, and I'm not in "fire the coach" mode or anything, I can't imagine how hard that job must be. But I feel like we're finally seeing "Rookie Head coach Willie" Rather than the superstar he was earlier in the year. I just think it's a bit concerning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-DLC- Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 It's never a bad thing to question..hopefully, they are just stumbling blocks and he'll adjust accordingly. I guess I'm still in recovery mode after Torts and anything's an important over last year. A good thread that you've started and, again, some great points raised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coryberg Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 #1- I feel like he did pretty well with his decision last night seeing as we tied it up with the empty net. #2- after changing the goalie we scored 2 to make it 3-2, would it have been 3-6 if he called a timeout? No way to tell but seriously doubtful. #3- the tying goal last night was as down low as it gets. "There wasn't anything there all night" might be the wrong choice of words. #4- Bo and kenins have great chemistry as 4th line energy guys. Pretty sure he wanted to get vrbata and bonino going so he added dorsetts energy to theirs. Might have helped seeing as vrbata got the equalizer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Horvatian One Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I agree with the time-outs thing as well, I was thinking during the overtime after 4,5 of those turnovers that maybe he should call a timeout to calm the team down, but he never seems to use it. Torts is the only coach here recently that I think used his timeouts regularly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totes McGoats Posted March 6, 2015 Author Share Posted March 6, 2015 #1- I feel like he did pretty well with his decision last night seeing as we tied it up with the empty net. #2- after changing the goalie we scored 2 to make it 3-2, would it have been 3-6 if he called a timeout? No way to tell but seriously doubtful. #3- the tying goal last night was as down low as it gets. "There wasn't anything there all night" might be the wrong choice of words. #4- Bo and kenins have great chemistry as 4th line energy guys. Pretty sure he wanted to get vrbata and bonino going so he added dorsetts energy to theirs. Might have helped seeing as vrbata got the equalizer. Again, I'm not specifically talking about last night, though there were issues last night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RonMexico Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Win games and all decisions are praised. Lose games and all decisions are questioned. It's just a function of a hockey mad market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babych Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 While I do see your point, I'm wondering if the issue is more that Vancouver has been exceeding expectations for most of the year and now are starting to play more like the team that a lot of people (including me) thought they would be at the start of the year. Honestly, the fact that we are still in a playoff position this late in the season with the line-up we have is pretty amazing. Sure WD will make mistakes but I'm guessing that he's smart enough to learn from them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coryberg Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Honestly, the fact that we are still in a playoff position this late in the season with the line-up we have is pretty amazing. this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithers joe Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 he may like all coaches make mistakes but imo he is a great coach or at least heading in that direction...i know that i can't judge him...if you make a decision and it works perfectly, your a genius, but if that same decision doesn't go your way, you become a bum.. i don't agree with that.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totes McGoats Posted March 6, 2015 Author Share Posted March 6, 2015 this We're not going to be in a playoff spot this time next week if they keep playing the way they are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
viking mama Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 I think you've made some great points and agree with much of what you're saying. The thing that must be considered, though, is that you have the luxury of hindsight and seeing how things play out. Willie's doing it in the moment and on the fly, so decisions are made by him that he feels are right at the time, without knowing what the end result will be. You, yourself, have alluded to that with "split second decisions". They are just that and it's all a gamble at that point. Some things'll work, others will not. For us, in evaluating after the fact, it's a much different deal. WD also knows the status of his players - like we may not. Are the players recovering, sore, or having one of those maintanence-type days or injuries that go relatively un-reported. But - I do agree when it's working stick-with-it, and when its not shake-it-up,...but dont go robbing a successful 'Peter' of his line-mates and ice-time,.. to play Paul to get him going. But, each team they will play has their different construction and make-up too. You do have to consider matching-up vs your opponent, in many respects, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyndall2 Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Why are we playing Glendening instead of Biega? He makes the simple plays, knocks guys down and isn't afraid to mix it up. Glendening is doing his Bieksa impersonation in front of the net trying to stick check guys and looking at the puck instead of removing players from in front of Lack so that they can't get second and third chances. Also, for WD set a goal for shots. Tell his team he wants 35 shots in the game and everyone crashing the net. Way too much fancy passing against a vulnerable team like Arizona last night. Shoot the puck from anywhere if there is not a clear path to the net. Vrbata is the only guy who constantly does this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRAZY_4_NAZZY Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Willie is a rookie coach in the NHL. He will learn the nuances and small details with more experience. I'm not surprised by certain decisions because most experienced coaches know when and when not to do certain things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-DLC- Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 WD also knows the status of his players - like we may not. Are the players recovering, sore, or having one of those maintanence-type days or injuries that go relatively un-reported. . Funny, that was my initial thought/argument but I got sidetracked. Exactly. We get the view from the outside looking in, but he knows more. Someone could have an ailment or something not visible to us and he has to work around things that we may not know about. Good point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coolboarder Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 When WD used Dorsett on the same line as Bonino and Vrbata, I need to question this decision. He is not a scorer, he provides energy on a 4th line. He is a great 4th liner but is not a skilled and he sometimes act like he is trying to pull some moves. On the injuried player coming back, we revert to the old style of play that they are playing uninspired hockey. Maybe it is the problem. If we let them go, we get some real culture change for the young player to gain the experience. The trick is identify which player is like a bad apple core and get rid of it. It is the slow start killing us in the game where we allow the first goal every game lately and that is on the coach. He need to find a way to employ the correct strategy if they are having a slow start and he needs to recognize that his team is having a slow start and adjust accordingly. As for the PP, Willie did not fully change the PP2 unit because Higgins is still on the line. I would try different winger, maybe Kenins. I like the idea of Horvat on it and Bonino is a good idea as long as he figure things out with the different wingers. Kenins has shown to display some skills to keep the puck possession so why not use him to control the PP2 unit? It does not hurt to try many different winger, just as long as Higgins is not in the unit. PP2 has not been working very well with Higgins on it for the season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gurn Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 TSN 1040, think it was Matt Sekeres said Willie doesn't like calling the timeouts too often as it can make the other team think the Canucks are in crisis mode. You view may differ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RonMexico Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Funny, that was my initial thought/argument but I got sidetracked. Exactly. We get the view from the outside looking in, but he knows more. Someone could have an ailment or something not visible to us and he has to work around things that we may not know about. Good point. I have often placed this kind of information under the fans don't need to know everything column. It just leads to more, usually false, speculation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coryberg Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 We're not going to be in a playoff spot this time next week if they keep playing the way they are. so the sky is falling? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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