I can't recall off the top of my head, but what were your thoughts on his last offseason? At the time, short of getting a #2 C, I thought it was pretty good.
Generally positive but to recap:
1- Brouwer - LOVED it. Exactly the kind of player we needed.
2- Hamrlik - Didn't like it. We need a more physical dman in that slot. Our only true mean physical D was Erskine and he is a 6/7
3 - Vokoun - Never a huge fan BUT at that price it was a no brainer. Good move.
4 - Ward - OK. Not as physical player as I wanted. Would have prefered a 3/4 line agitator type.
Overall not bad...BUT..
Didn't get a 2C and didn't replace Tinordi yet again.
How is a move that failed a good move? Just because it was a bargain price? Reasoning fail.
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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.
How is a move that failed a good move? Just because it was a bargain price? Reasoning fail.
Oh please. Just because it goes against your all-out crusade doesn't mean it wasn't a good move. It was unequivocally a good move to make. A quality veteran, workhorse goalie for $1.5M when all you have in goal is Neuvirth and a very green Holtby? It was a coup. It was bad luck that caused it not to work out.
Oh please. Just because it goes against your all-out crusade doesn't mean it wasn't a good move. It was unequivocally a good move to make. A quality veteran, workhorse goalie for $1.5M when all you have in goal is Neuvirth and a very green Holtby? It was a coup. It was bad luck that caused it not to work out.
Right. I meant it was a good move at the time. A no brainer infact.
Vokoun only has himself to blame for sucking and then getting injured to boot. This one was not on McPhee.
Oh please. Just because it goes against your all-out crusade doesn't mean it wasn't a good move. It was unequivocally a good move to make. A quality veteran, workhorse goalie for $1.5M when all you have in goal is Neuvirth and a very green Holtby? It was a coup. It was bad luck that caused it not to work out.
What all out crusade? The one where I point out the obvious and people hide their head in the sand? Maybe we should continue down the current road just to prove it to the clueless...
Was it a successful signing? Simple truth, no. Created a goalie controversy that ended with Vokoun calling out the coaching staff like Hamrlik. I never said the intention wasn't good, but it ended up in failure. You know what they say about people who blame luck for their misfortunes...
What all out crusade? The one where I point out the obvious and people hide their head in the sand? Maybe we should continue down the current road just to prove it to the clueless...
Was it a successful signing? Simple truth, no. Created a goalie controversy that ended with Vokoun calling out the coaching staff like Hamrlik. I never said the intention wasn't good, but it ended up in failure. You know what they say about people who blame luck for their misfortunes...
It was a great/great move, that happened to turn out poorly. It's not good luck or bad luck, just the way the world works. You cant judge it retrospectively. I would make the same move 10/10 times.
The only real bad move he made was signing Ward at that price. It's always dumb to put too much stock into playoff success. He just happened to get hot at the right time. Now we have an excess grinder signed for the next 3 years at $3 million per. That's not exactly good value, especially considering how overstocked we are with grinders.
Oh please. Just because it goes against your all-out crusade doesn't mean it wasn't a good move. It was unequivocally a good move to make. A quality veteran, workhorse goalie for $1.5M when all you have in goal is Neuvirth and a very green Holtby? It was a coup. It was bad luck that caused it not to work out.
Absolutely right. And I'm a long-time "fire McPhee" believer. You DO NOT pass on a veteran goalie with TV's stats at that price. You just don't.
And people wonder why McPhee has survived so long. The stink of excuse making and no accountability has permeated the fanbase. Why would Leonsis demand excellence when his paying customers dont?
Vokoun turned out to be what I feared, what Bryzgalov turned out to be this year. A guy who played well on a crappy team with no pressure, who came to a good team and folded. He gave up a softy most nights out. If his name was Kolzig, he would have been burned at the stake.
And people wonder why McPhee has survived so long. The stink of excuse making and no accountability has permeated the fanbase. Why would Leonsis demand excellence when his paying customers dont?
This is not some revolutionary new thought my friend. If you could check out posts from the OBs 10 years ago, the ESPN boards, 12 years ago and this site 8 or so years ago you would see a GREAT deal of people on the FIRE McFLy bandwagon.
But reality is that Ted is not going to do that. Instead of complaining about it its best to "work under the constraints of having GMGM" here.
Players/coach movement is possible and will likely happen. So we discuss that. No need discussing McPhee. He should have been gone a LONG time ago. But it is what it is. We live with it.
I was happy to hear George give Holtby the job last summer. Then a day later, heard we got Vokoun. I didn't know him well but seemed very respected. Everyone here seemed to love the move.
Then once the games started, he didnt get the first game?? Really? Then I hear that he has 5 hole issues??? Neuvirth seemed to struggle; then I hear Holtby was struggling in Hershey.
So early on I had my doubts and faced the typical, if the young player can't hack the competition blah blah blowback. It's not competition, it's a lack of confidence straight from GM.
While most fans and GM's would pounce on Vokoun, its easy to recognize a failed move. George addressed our tenders through the draft, and when all 3 were ready, brought in a vet instead.
Vokoun: .917 save percentage, carried the team for stretches early in the year, which essentially put them in the playoffs. Signed for one year at a bargain rate.
Bryzgalov: .909 save percentage, failed miserably in the playoffs, and is committed at huge salary for a decade.
And people wonder why McPhee has survived so long. The stink of excuse making and no accountability has permeated the fanbase. Why would Leonsis demand excellence when his paying customers dont?
Vokoun turned out to be what I feared, what Bryzgalov turned out to be this year. A guy who played well on a crappy team with no pressure, who came to a good team and folded. He gave up a softy most nights out. If his name was Kolzig, he would have been burned at the stake.
.917 save %.......1.5 million,....there`s a reason 95% of the league ( fans and writers) thought it was a steal of a deal.
I liked all the off season deals ....Brouwer, Vokoun, even Ward who was a little too expensive. I didn`t like Hamrlik but I was wrong about that one, he was fab in the playoffs.
What I didn`t like was Mcphee hanging onto Wideman at the deadline.
AGAIN...speaking out of both sides of your mouth. Well I've had enough petty infighting. I'll be back around the draft or when something of note happens with this franchise. Until then, I'll simply watch McPhee steer the Titanic a little longer.
.917 save %.......1.5 million,....there`s a reason 95% of the league ( fans and writers) thought it was a steal of a deal.
I liked all the off season deals ....Brouwer, Vokoun, even Ward who was a little too expensive. I didn`t like Hamrlik but I was wrong about that one, he was fab in the playoffs.
What I didn`t like was Mcphee hanging onto Wideman at the deadline.
Oh I'm not discounting that it was a bargain....and it was a bargain for a reason as we all found out.
How many pundits still think it was a great deal? Fact is, even though it was made at a bargain, it was still a failure.
Oh I'm not discounting that it was a bargain....and it was a bargain for a reason as we all found out.
How many pundits still think it was a great deal? Fact is, even though it was made at a bargain, it was still a failure.
Nope. Got us into the playoffs. Not a failure. Neuvirth sucked all year and Holtby sucked for the first half of the year. Without Vokoun's stellar play in the first half, the Caps would have lost out to the Sabres.
