Missing Ron Wilson:
One of the by-products of ditching nearly half of our roster this past off-season was ridding the roster of many players coached by Ron Wilson. Love him or hate him, RW is a hell of a coach who preaches thoroughness in his players. As Marcel Goc and Patrick Marleau can attest to, RW harped on his players not to take penalties, to completely take out a player on the back-check and to clear the puck along the boards. Watching the game last night, it's clear that this is something players on the bottom two lines will need to learn.
Jed Ortmeyer:
He had a poor game and looked disengaged and incomplete on the rink. He let himself out of the play mentally on Ovechkin's second goal. That was completely his fault. I didn't like his game at all last night. He is on my radar now.
Manny in the Middle:
Despite being the subject of serious media scrutiny for his aborted clears against the Kings, MM is still trying to clear the puck up the middle on the PK. Unsurprisingly, it is not working. He did it again last night, the puck was caught and it was put directly on net. TM will knock this out of him.
Huskins' Adapting:
Much has been made by internet Sharks fans about how badly he has played. He had some nice passes last night and I don't think he is as awful as other Sharks fans are making him out to be but last night was surely a forgettable appearance in the Huskins household. As we know from last night, KH was responsible for the first goal. He was also the source of a couple near-misses and was one bounce away from being victimized for the hat-trick goal in the second period. I know he hasn't played in a year and that he will need time to adjust to the Sharks. That being said, if I were to pick a defenseman to send to Worcester, it'd be Huskins.
Penalties:
The Sharks have taken 35 penalties through seven games. Typically one of the most disciplined teams in the league, this is most unusual. I don't like it at all. Teams usually take penalties when they are lazy or slow. Like much about the Sharks, this concerns me.
Arguably the worst team in the NHL is currently being coached by the great Ron Wilson. I wouldn't give him too much credit.
ReplyDeleteAlso, while this comment comes two wins after the original post, Kent Huskins currently shares the lead in plus/minus on the San Jose Sharks at +5. At this point he looks better than both Doug Murray and Captain Rob Blake. You can't argue with the numbers.