Boudreau is more of a lifer. He truly wouldn't be able to do anything else...it's what he does. In his case that's actually probably a problematic level of focus. Intensity without perspective is typically counter-productive. Boudreau was at least more of a thinker in terms of being at least somewhat pragmatic systematically.* For that reason alone I don't think Hunter will end up having staying power here. He'll get stale even sooner I suspect, particularly if there's little inclination to tailor personnel to his vision. At least in interactions with the media, Hunter comes across as a walking old school cliche.
Were he truly all-in wouldn't he have demanded more than a trial one-year contract initially?
lost in the silly minutes for beagle and hendricks was the god awful decision of laich to fight a guy with a 3-1 at home. what value was there to doing that?
@atlas-ted and mcphee "don't care all that much"?? thats rich.
Yeah, we did. Again, it's inarguable that we won the division 4 times and a Presidents Trophy.
And blah blah blah, the regular seasons doesn't mean ****...until it does.
As much as you despised his style, Bruce was a good coach and is still a good coach.
I too regard the Presidents' Trophy as an accomplishment worth celebrating. I understand the alternative position, so I doubt there is much need to respond with the standard "Cup is all that matters, because it is all that matters, which is because it is all that matters." The Cup is all that matters to you if you think it's all that matters to you, and that is OK with me. It matters a lot to me too. It bothers me that the Capitals have never won one.
But as long as the players have any incentive to win the Presidents' Trophy, which they do even if they don't care about the accomplishment of finishing first in the round robin tournament that is the regular season itself, it's not nonsensical to celebrate that accomplishment, and I do.
It used to be the case that the NHL permitted teams that finished first in the regular season to refer to themselves as Regular Season Champions or something like this. I think the Presidents' Trophy might have supplanted this rule though? I know there have been banners that said that hung in arenas at times, though.
I think the playoffs are really fun to watch, but one bad matchup and you're gone, you get only up to four different teams to play, and they are all probably going to be either pretty good or great teams. The regular season is a better indicator, really, of how good your team is, because it's got a bigger sample size and you're not restricted to playing only four teams or fewer.
So, I view the regular season as one tournament, which is followed by a different kind of tournament (the playoffs), and I don't really care what the rest of the world thinks, or at least I try to view it this way, while much of the rest of the world tries to browbeat me into thinking of the 82-game regular season as a mere method of seeding for a future tournament (which to me would suggest I probably shouldn't really be all that interested in the regular season). But, no, I like the regular season, I like watching every Capitals game, and I like the Presidents' Trophy, and I also like the Cup, and think the Cup and the Trophy are both pretty cool things. I'm really happy the Capitals have one of them. I doubt they'll get the other one anytime soon, and that's sad. But it's not nearly as sad as it would be if they never had either.
lost in the silly minutes for beagle and hendricks was the god awful decision of laich to fight a guy with a 3-1 at home. what value was there to doing that?
@atlas-ted and mcphee "don't care all that much"?? thats rich.
Always a mistake to do that. When you're team is a bunch of ******* who aren't wired for that kind of motivation.... Even more dumb.
Thats how I saw it too RE: Laich. The crowd was silent after the Jets scored.
Man I HATE the trap. I HATE line matching. I know alot of people were clamouring for it but what BB did made sense...throw your top guns out there as much as possible and force the other team to play their checkers the entire game.
It boggles the mind that Beagle, Hendricks and co. got more ice time than OV and Semin who was awesome.
Prevent defense. Playing scared. Junk hockey. We were dominating and had them on their heels and Hunter calls off the dogs and forces Beagle and boys out there the majority of the game.
I am sure all of us do not agree with this one bit.
Try living in Winnipeg right now. I've had my phone turned off since last night.
Ovechkins at his hottest and players like Beagle and Hendricks get more ice time? Stupid. Unacceptable. Why sit back with the lead? you have your foot on their neck, don't relinquish it and let them back in the game. How many times in the NHL do you see teams fight back being down 3 - 0? it happens a lot. Never let up. Hopefully lesson learned.
The two goal lead being the worst lead in hockey may have become the 3 goal lead. I thought I heard Locker say that.
Is it only Dale that eases up, or are there a lot of other coaches that are easing up off the gas as well? Or, do no other teams do it, yet somehow still blow the lead? I suspect it happens to all coaches, if even once a year.
Are all coaches dumb? I have always hated the prevent in all sports but think there is a reason the experts do it.
First place I probably hated it, Dean Smith and the 4 corners.
I dunno randy, but I definitely didn't see Bylsma do that when the Pens played the Jets early this week. He kept the pressure up and gave the Jets no chance for a comeback even though they scored some goals.
The two goal lead being the worst lead in hockey may have become the 3 goal lead. I thought I heard Locker say that.
Is it only Dale that eases up, or are there a lot of other coaches that are easing up off the gas as well? Or, do no other teams do it, yet somehow still blow the lead? I suspect it happens to all coaches, if even once a year.
Are all coaches dumb? I have always hated the prevent in all sports but think there is a reason the experts do it.
Ease up? If Winnipeg hadn't tied the game, the Capitals would most likely not have registered a single shot on goal in the entire period. Easing up?
The two goal lead being the worst lead in hockey may have become the 3 goal lead. I thought I heard Locker say that.
Is it only Dale that eases up, or are there a lot of other coaches that are easing up off the gas as well? Or, do no other teams do it, yet somehow still blow the lead? I suspect it happens to all coaches, if even once a year.
Are all coaches dumb? I have always hated the prevent in all sports but think there is a reason the experts do it.
rh, there's a difference between throttling back and shutting the engines down.
the caps didnt ease up. they took the puck moving players off the ice and replaced them with pluggers. the puck spent the entire time in the caps end of the ice. no beagle and company didnt give up a goal against but the helped wear out the goaltender and the defense while allowing the jets to build more and more momentum.
meanwhile the caps are no threat to counter attack. hendricks and beagle had a two one one in the 3rd period that didnt result at a play at the net much less a shot at the net much less a scoring chance. that was all they had to offer.
are you really standing up for that coaching, rh? at this point i am convinced you are just yanking my chain.
I don't quite remember the throttle at full blast ever being a problem for the Caps, it seems like all the greatest comebacks in Hockey history can be linked back to sitting back.
It isn't about turnovers or them playing bad. 17 shots in a half an hour period and intense cycling the whole period fatigues the goalie.
There's no excuse for this team to sit back. In Philly Ovechkin played 25 minutes, and it didn't effect his play last night. So you can deduce resting him isn't an exact need especially against a division rival.
Boudreau is more of a lifer. He truly wouldn't be able to do anything else...it's what he does. In his case that's actually probably a problematic level of focus. Intensity without perspective is typically counter-productive. Boudreau was at least more of a thinker in terms of being at least somewhat pragmatic systematically.* For that reason alone I don't think Hunter will end up having staying power here. He'll get stale even sooner I suspect, particularly if there's little inclination to tailor personnel to his vision. At least in interactions with the media, Hunter comes across as a walking old school cliche.
Were he truly all-in wouldn't he have demanded more than a trial one-year contract initially?
* This is no endorsement of him not being fired.
My thought is that Hunter is throwing his life into this team. He doesn't care what the media thinks, what we fans think, or what Bettman thinks. He only cares about winning hockey games. He only cares about winning the Stanley Cup.
It remains to be seen if he has what it takes to actually be a part of a champion but he is as serious as can be about making it happen in Washington.
Boudreau brings energy--but he isn't fact-oriented. He evades facts like putting Tyler Sloan into Game 5 against the Habs. That was Boudreau being arrogant. Hunter will never do that--he doesn't want personal accolades. He wants the Caps to win. I love it. I can't think of anyone in the history of Caps management who approached the job so purposefully. Abe, Poile, the Murray's, McPhee, Wilson, Ted, Cassidy (LOL!), Hanlon, Boudreau--none of them have this quality. Schoeny might have had it.
I don't say Hunter is the answer--it remains to be seen--but I obviously value this seriousness highly. The Caps organization needs this Steve Jobs-like obsession for greatness if they're ever going to win a couple Cups.
All the desire in the world can't overcome being in over your head...
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George McPhee....The Teflon GM. 15 years of failure and counting....
6 - Number of playoff series the Capitals have won since George McPhee took over as General Manager in 1997 (which makes him the third-longest-tenured GM in the League), three of which came in McPhee's first season on the job.
I literally have no idea how you're drawing any of these conclusions.
Sloan=arrogance. 20 minutes of Hendricks=dedication to winning at all costs.
I mean...I literally don't understand the way some people think.
Boudreau was definitely very stubborn, especially with his views of some players. Hunter may be stubborn in his own ways, but I think he at least doesn't have/play favorites like Boudreau did. Not that he's not doing a terrible job overall.
