Bruce Boudreau's Major Flaw as a Coach

[MikeyD]

There are many good things to like about Boudreau's coaching and many of his system's designs tend to work with seeing a more exciting hockey style being played and some good opportunities to effectively see results, but it comes with a caveat...

 

And that caveat is that (to me anyways) it seems to be entirely dependent on how well the superstars of the team are playing. Now that in many cases, is pretty obvious and applies to any team in the league but here is why I think it is a flaw for our team and the way he chooses to coach:

 

Bruce Boudreau has consistently in the time he has been here has relied heavily on the guys who earn the big bucks, giving them large amount of ice time and major roles as normally they should be given. Now this isn't a problem, but one thing that is ultimately plaguing many of our core players who get paid these big bucks is consistency. Mainly it is a consistency in effort. We've seen guys like Miller, Bo, Brock and even Hughes take nights off where they just seem checked out and will give up on plays and not be 100% invested. Now one thing that we have learned is Bruce doesn't like it when guys aren't playing up to the caliber that they're capable of, and this is a good thing. If guys aren't on their game, I don't believe they should be given the massive amount of ice time as it's just not their night, however what baffles me is that he will bench guys who are not playing well but are putting in the effort but he won't bench players who are being paid big contracts that aren't even putting in the effort. There is a star player impunity that I think goes hand in hand with the lack of culture that this team struggles with. We're supposedly a country-club-run hockey team but the first thing we do is coach like it's a country club. I get that these players can get you points, but they also cost you points in return. There's a very definable reason as to why we have lost 4 multi-goal leads in a row and have established a new record for the National Hockey League. 

 

Last year we saw Petey get a reduction in his ice time because he was slumping with an injury, we've seen Garland be a healthy scratch because he's not at the top of his form, we've seen Hoglander be scratched because his "defensive game isn't up to par" (ironic with half the players on the team) and then we've already seen it multiple times this year where you have horses like Garland, Hoglander, and Podkolzin going in an putting in good consistent efforts and getting low ice time as where you have players like JT and Bo literally giving up on plays, doing fly-by's and getting over 20 minutes a game. He leans on his star players even when they aren't putting in the effort. You have players with negative corsi for % at even strength (indicating they aren't controlling play) despite getting more offensive zone starts consistently being launched over the bench but guys who are controlling the play are now being kept out of the lineup? 

 

So far this year there has been one player that has been rewarded for having good games and moved up the lineup and that has been Kyle Burroughs, and then he too became a victim of being scratched. These kinds of decisions on who to give ice time to are killing our chances for success. How are you supposed to win hockey games when the hardest working players who are busting tail to go retrieve the puck and keep it away from the other team not getting more playing time? I think it's sending the wrong message and is one of the many reasons why this team is so easy to play against. You don't have to work as hard as long as you can grab a point or two here or there. That is why this team's consistency is like a yo-yo. 

 

Building a culture is on the coach first, then the captains and then management. We can't keep rewarding those who are easy to play against if they're not being effective at being point-producers or generating scoring chances. 

 

Now with that said, Bruce is still a good hockey coach. We shouldn't panic. We should aim for consistency and part of being consistent is putting the work in. If guys aren't showing up and being professionals at game time, they shouldn't be getting game time. I still think we will make the playoffs but we won't make it unless we get a consistent buy-in, and that starts with coach.

[fecklund]

Somebody needs to splash white paint all over the statue of Lord Stanley, wrap a chain around it, hook it up to their battery powered Yugo, and pull it down. 
Then rename Stanley Park, Xwayxway Park, like was proposed 10+ years ago. 
Boom.
Curse over. 

#ModernLogic 

 

Edited October 19, 2022 by fecklund

[tas]

bruce was and is never going to be a long-term fit. he was the right guy last year because you needed an overwhelmingly positive voice to bring them back from the depths they were in. but the reality is, and I said it at the time last year, he doesn't have the systems and X's and O's smarts to be the guy.

 

that said this team appears to be a lot of bodies away from being where they need to be. bruce is far from the bottleneck for the group thus far. 

[ShawnAntoski]

Boudreau, knows and understands that his time will come, as well.  Based on last years, pressers.   

[wildwood12]

Calling his players mentally weak probably didn’t go over too well.

[Ghostsof1915]

6 minutes ago, wildwood12 said:

Calling his players mentally weak probably didn’t go over too well.

Truth hurts.

[Amebushi]

4 minutes ago, wildwood12 said:

Calling his players mentally weak probably didn’t go over too well.

I guess that depends on the mental stability of the people in the room. There is not much else to explain the results of the last 4 games. We can clearly compete and win if the players decide to try. How else are we consistently getting multi goal leads?  It is mental lapses, dumb giveaways, weak backchecks and poor execution on special teams that keeps leading to the end result of a loss. We can blame RHD and our lack if you want but how do you dominate for 20-30 minutes and then just give up?  They are mentally weak right now and I applaud the coach who will say it. Snowflakes are not going to like it and may care even less now, but I don’t mind identifying those types now and trading them for “future considerations” or whatever we can get. We should have no room for floaters and lazy players. 

[Angry Goose]

Its a complex situation imo. 

 

Bruce knows his players well.  He knows if they are tying or not.  Hes weighing what he knows about his players with trying to win.  

 

IMO a key thing he said is that when the team competes they are a hard team to beat.  And by “compete” I think he’s implying hard to play against.  What this team doesnt have enough of is that.  PA/JR need to look at improving that. If that means moving a skill guy or depth player that arnt getting the job done so be it.  The trickle down effect will help. I mean look at the Motto line last year-they didnt do that much offensively but they help create momentum and wear down opponents.  Canucks NEED that element in their line up so the top (performing) offensive players can do their jobs

 

 

 

[wildwood12]

16 minutes ago, Ghostsof1915 said:

Truth hurts.

It will be the coach who will be looking for a job in the near future. Not the players.

[Ghostsof1915]

3 minutes ago, wildwood12 said:

It will be the coach who will be looking for a job in the near future. Not the players.

Unless we're hiring Barry Trotz then it's just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

[Blue Jay 22]

I was gonna say holding a 3-2 series lead in the playoffs.

[Devron]

Pretty well thought out and accurate thread. No one is perfect and there is no perfect coach. I really like Bruce hope him and the boys figure it out asap

[-AJ-]

Just goes to show that no coach is immune to criticism. I recall that after the 2020 playoffs, I figured Green would start to be called out to be fired if we didn't succeed and got some people questioning me (thanks to our recent success at the time). Sure enough, later that year as we were struggling, many fans wanted him fired.

 

Just six months ago, it seemed unthinkable that anyone would question Boudreau as a coach, yet four games into the season, here we are.

[AV.]

All coaches have things about them that'll drive fans nuts.

I personally like Boudreau as the coach, but we haven't given him a chance to succeed at all.  That's on the players primarily, but management as well.

[Coconuts]

I like Boudreau, I advocated for him to be coach before Green was fired, and I don't lay the blame of what's happened thus far at his feet. I blame the players. 

 

That being said, no coach is perfect and he's doing his best. This isn't a Green lead coaching staff, that in itself is an improvement.

 

Boudreau was never going to be a long term option at his age but he's certainly good enough for now regardless of how the season plays out. 

 

But I don't disagree with you, every coach has their stuff. 

Edited October 19, 2022 by Coconuts

[kilgore]

To be fair, this is a situation with almost every NHL coach.  They want to win.  So they will play their highest paid players, which usually is also their potentially most productive players, the most.  Even when they are in a slump, they are always counting on them snapping out of it, and saving their jobs in the process. A better gamble that a great pedigree player will find his game again, if you keep putting him out there, than gamble on a plug who has likely reached their ceiling. Not to mention the risk of creating drama in the dressing room.

 

But there's another reason a coach will play higher cost players, and/or new acquisitions, over lower cost players, and that is they probably feel an obligation to their GM as well, after all he pays their cheque.  JR just paid out a second round pick for Stillman and signed Poolman to four year contract.  Imagine if Bruce benched either one, if they were perfectly healthy.  Neither deserved to play in front of Burroughs. Burz has earned his spot AFAIC.  He's not only physical, which is a rarity on our D. 

 

In fact, IMO, he's the best defensive defenseman on the team. At least with my eye test.  He usually can find the puck and make a pass out of the zone to an open teammate. He's calm and cool with the puck. Almost like Tanev was so underrated at the beginning years of his career simply because he didn't have an offensive flair. I find it bizarre that he seems to be so dissed by local media as an insignificant part of the team, and expendable.  If you take into account his cap hit, he is so valuable to the team for what he brings, and also for the space he leaves to sign more expensive talent. Stecher was also dissed like this for what he brought for his cap hit.

 

 

[PetterssonOrPeterson]

1 hour ago, wildwood12 said:

Calling his players mentally weak probably didn’t go over too well.

are players that sensitive now?

is there no accountability? 

 

because the head coach of the team calls them out for their piss poor inability to hold a lead, it's unacceptable for these pampered millionaires? 

[BarnBurner]

42 minutes ago, Blue Jay 22 said:

I was gonna say holding a 3-2 series lead in the playoffs.

Yeah, or holding a 3 goal lead in game 7 and blowing it in overtime. 

[higgyfan]

It's madness talking about firing a coach after 4 games.  It's an act of desperation by using Boudreau as the

scapegoat. The team has struggled to find their mojo: while dealing with some players playing with injuries;

some players still trying to get in game shape; several new players getting used to their new team; and last,

but not lease; a defence that only has 2 (and sometimes Myers) top 4 dmen (and one could arguably say top 5d).

 

So there's a lot of adjusting going on.  I say stay the course and give it 10-12 more games.  Of course, if a good

trade comes along that can correct the (huge elephant in the room) RD situation, then go for it.

 

We all know that Boudreau is not part of the management's future plans.  I fully expect him to be replaced by

(their boy) Mike Yeo next season (or maybe earlier if the team doesn't pull their heads out of the ground).

[MikeyD]

24 minutes ago, higgyfan said:

It's madness talking about firing a coach after 4 games.  It's an act of desperation by using Boudreau as the

scapegoat. The team has struggled to find their mojo: while dealing with some players playing with injuries;

some players still trying to get in game shape; several new players getting used to their new team; and last,

but not lease; a defence that only has 2 (and sometimes Myers) top 4 dmen (and one could arguably say top 5d).

 

So there's a lot of adjusting going on.  I say stay the course and give it 10-12 more games.  Of course, if a good

trade comes along that can correct the (huge elephant in the room) RD situation, then go for it.

 

We all know that Boudreau is not part of the management's future plans.  I fully expect him to be replaced by

(their boy) Mike Yeo next season (or maybe earlier if the team doesn't pull their heads out of the ground).

I don't believe he is a scapegoat. I think the players are responsible first and foremost. If the players performed well he looks like a genius. It's just something that isn't aiding the team, that's all. Like I stated in the post, when the big boys are rolling, this team is very difficult to beat but we are a team of Jekyll and Hyde because we rely on our big forwards to be point producers. We don't attack the fundamentals of playing hard and making the other team work. That rests on the players. But messages can be sent by staff to encourage such behaviour. Plays like JT giving up on plays or players not backchecking because they don't care should be zero tolerance.

 

I couldn't even get away with that in Div 1 sports, let alone at a professional level lol.

 

And now that I'm older, I've played on less competitive teams and I see what good teams who can make it to nationals do vs bad teams who can hardly win I realize just how important a good coach is towards establishing proper attitudes towards the game and how having accountability is absolutely hugeeeeee in sports.

 

It's honestly one of the most underrated aspects in team sports. 

 

Edit: typo

Edited October 19, 2022 by MikeyD