I think you make a lot of sense. Except when you get to the part about Carle's defensive game is terrible. That just isn't the case. Carle is solid in his own end. Is he a shutdown physical defender? No he's not. But he's solid in his read's ,solid in his coverages. And is a very good shot blocker. He uses body position to win puck battles, and is a very good transition player in getting the puck out the other way. Is he on the level of Timonen or Pronger. No he's not. But saying his defensive game is terrible, just isn't accurate
I've watched every Flyers game for the past four seasons and have missed about 20 games over a 10 year period. In all that time, Carle has been one of the worst defensive players I've ever seen on the defense. I mean, I've seen Janne Niinimaa, Michal Sykora, Nolan Baumgartner, Alexei Zhitnik, Freddy Meyer, Paul Coffey, Dan McGillis, Randy Jones, Jim Vandeermeer, Chris McAllister, Andy Delmore, Ulf Samuelson, Zarley Zalapski, Karl Dykhuis, Steve Duchesne, Dave Babych, Rob Rammage, Peter Svoboda, Kevin Haller, Michel Petit - type bad defense, but Carle is worse than those guys. Yes, he can shot block, but that's it. He can't check, his positional play is negated because he can't hold anyone up, and he cracks under pressure.
No, Carle is terrible defensively. But his tendencies aren't anything that can't be fixed. He's got a base to build on in terms of shot blocking and he understands the important of positioning, but he's just not strong enough to hold guys up. As well, he's smart with his stick. A little more physical strength would do Carle a world of good and would dramatically change his defensive game. Not only that, but a little extra strength would be good for his shot. He's going to have to become "the man" soon in terms of the point, so he better get a shot in place.
Honestly, I hope Carle succeeds because he seems to be well liked and he's appreciative of the fact the Flyers rescued him from Tampa Bay. I think if Holmgren and Laviolette tell Carle that they want him to really work on his defensive game and strength, he's going to respond to the challenge. I like that about Carle too. When challenged by the coach, he can really step up. He needs to do that all the time now.
I wouldn't characterize his D game as terrible or a just tad above. I would say it's a bit below average. Carle counts on skating and a good stick and employs these as his primary method of defense, which accounts for most of his blocked shots...however, in doing so, he sometimes gets caught watching/playing the puck and can get beat. Carle lacks physicality which, at times, makes him vulnerable to attacks by players coming over the blueline with speed and/or those with the skill to deke around his stick-check. His lack of physicality also, at times, manifests itself in weak coverage on the slot area and a lack of effectiveness along the boards.
With that said, I have seen some modest improvement in Carle's physical game over time, but not enough to close the hole in that part of his game. If the Flyers re-up Carle I hope he is able to show continued improvement in this area.
Note, there are some positives mentioned here, and in many of my previous posts.
It's even more complicated than that. Does securing Carle prevent us from making a run at Weber next season? This year, I'd rather have Schultz at Max ELC than Suter at 7M or Carle at 5M .Does Schultz not sign because we locked up Carle and he figures we won't have the playing time he's looking for?
Huh? Given both Timonen and Hartnell's contracts will be coming off the books next summer, we could have over $10M/yr to offer Weber for his extension, so resigning Carle is irrelevant to that discussion.
We could sign Carle at $5M and then Schultz at max ELC and make up the cap and roster room easily by ditching Gus and MAB and guaranteeing him a spot in the top 6. Done.
Nothing about signing Carle, or Suter for that matter, would preclude signing Weber - we have the cap room when Kimmo's gone and either Hartnell is gone or JVR or Meszaros is traded.
I still will be shocked if the Flyers sign Carle for "under market value" before July 1. I really dont care what Holmgren said, or didnt say or how it was interpreted.
I still fully expect Carle to test the market. Unless the Flyers overpay to keep him off the market.
I still will be shocked if the Flyers sign Carle for "under market value" before July 1. I really dont care what Holmgren said, or didnt say or how it was interpreted.
I still fully expect Carle to test the market. Unless the Flyers overpay to keep him off the market.
He assumed all of the risk of injury during his final season going into the UFA. If I were him, even if I loved Philly, I would at least take the opportunity I'd earned and listen to what other offers are out there. If I loved Philly, I'd take less to play there, but I certainly wouldn't let them take advantage of me relative to what else is out there.
He assumed all of the risk of injury during his final season going into the UFA. If I were him, even if I loved Philly, I would at least take the opportunity I'd earned and listen to what other offers are out there. If I loved Philly, I'd take less to play there, but I certainly wouldn't let them take advantage of me relative to what else is out there.
exactly. This his first opportunity to test the UFA market. I fully expect him to see what kind of offers are out there.
Hey folks! Just following the banter here. I noticed an article over at Bleacherreport where the author singles out Carle for criticism and though it might be of interest. Here's an excerpt and a link:
"it seemed like every time he was on the ice he was turning the puck over, letting his man by him in the defensive zone, standing still in the neutral zone (and in front of the net) and basically breaking every rule outlined in Defense 101. "
Hey folks! Just following the banter here. I noticed an article over at Bleacherreport where the author singles out Carle for criticism and though it might be of interest. Here's an excerpt and a link:
"it seemed like every time he was on the ice he was turning the puck over, letting his man by him in the defensive zone, standing still in the neutral zone (and in front of the net) and basically breaking every rule outlined in Defense 101. "
Hey folks! Just following the banter here. I noticed an article over at Bleacherreport where the author singles out Carle for criticism and though it might be of interest. Here's an excerpt and a link:
"it seemed like every time he was on the ice he was turning the puck over, letting his man by him in the defensive zone, standing still in the neutral zone (and in front of the net) and basically breaking every rule outlined in Defense 101. "
Ideally, Holmgren could deal Carle's rights to a bottom team for a very early second-rounder. I'd think Edmonton might be interested, given what an Achilles heel their D has been.
