Quote:
Originally Posted by damacles1156
You could see it in Tippets face, He knows PHX can't handle LA's size/speed/Relentless fore check.
How in the world has Sutter got these guys to be so Relentless on the puck ?
Has anyone on this board played Hockey like this ?>
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The Kings forechecking style reminds me a lot of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006, coached by Peter Laviollette. That year the Canes Cup run was founded on a relentless forecheck that gave the opposing defensemen no time to slow the game down. The Canes won pucks all over the ice and forced turnovers deep in the zone, leading to chances. Where many teams fall back and allow the opposing team time to pass the puck back and forth between defensemen, the Canes pushed two forwards into the zone and pressured every possession.
This type of a forecheck doesn't just result in a few more turnovers, but makes the defensemen constantly nervous. When you don't have time to even look up and find an open man, you tend to rush your passes and fail to clear the puck out of your zone. Soon you find yourself a step behind and paralyzed by the constant pressure. You end up on the wrong side of the puck.
This works really well against teams that don't have a top-flight, dominating defenseman. Players like Chara, Pronger, Weber can neutralize that kind of attack by retrieving the puck and physically denying the forechecker the puck. Players like Doughty apply little head fakes and find seams to move the puck up.