Perhaps the Canucks goals were a bit flukey but the Oilers goals were just as flukey if not moreso. Hemsky made a nice play to score the first goal but the puck only got to him because of a very odd bounce off of the Yakupov pass and the Smyth goal was the garbage goal of all garbage goals although it was set up by a nice pass from Lander. My point is that if you are calling the Canucks goals garbage, you could say the same for the Oilers goals.
Also, the Canucks shots might have been from bad angles but that's what good teams do, they shoot from all over put bodies in front of the net and keep the pressure on the defense. That is the way the Canucks have always played (outside of the Sedins) and it has worked well for them over the years. The Oilers could learn a thing or three from the Canucks, the Oilers try way too hard for the perfect pass and it leads to a lot of turnovers and minimal time spent in the opposition zone. I wish that they would keep it simple, learn how to use the pointmen better and glide bodies towards the net to create traffic in front of the goalie. They have guys like Schultz, Petry and Whitney who are more than capable of getting shots through, i have rarely seen a team use their point guys so seldomly, it's maddening to watch.
Going to disagree here x2.
The Yakupov flip was the exact result he was trying for. Hemsky read it and made a lovely play on both Burrows and Luongo. The Smyth goal was certainly ugly and I noted that.
The Canucks gameplan shifted significantly after Hansen's goal. They saw what happened to Dubnyk and made the adjustment. Good teams in the modern NHL are the puck possession teams whose top lines especially set up strong plays on the inside portion of the offensive zone and get strong shots to the net. The teams that are continually trapped outside and randomly try to shoot through their opposition lose in a hurry. We just need to get back to taking the shots when guys like Hall and Eberle are in prime scoring territory. Only then will some of the passing plays and longer shooting lanes open up again. They're very closed at the moment. The third and fourth lines can be in the business of hail mary shots if they want.
You're dead on about our break out. Other teams do it to us every game. We never see anything but our standard pass up the wing for a simple zone entry, dump and chase, or turnover in the neutral zone. I'd like to see more stretch passes to a winger gaining the zone at full speed. That's how you take advantage of defensive errors on the opposing team.
For a 6 year player, Gagner has to be one of the worst centers at faceoffs.
His last 4 games have him getting 20 31, 40 and 30 percent in the draw. I'm sure somehow that's his linemates fault.
His last 4 games included games against the Canucks and Sharks. The Sharks are the #2 faceoff team in the league and have either been #1 or #2 in the last 3 years (maybe longer, but I only went back 3). With Sedin/Malhotra/Kessler, the Canucks are a great faceoff team historically as well. Oh, and he was over 50% against both of those teams earlier this year. The same team he went 30% against on Saturday, he was also 53% against on the Monday of the same week.
Over the last 3 years, he's been on par with guys like Ryan Getzlaf, David Backes, Mike Ribeiro, and Vincent Lecavalier in the faceoff circle. Yes, he needs to improve his faceoffs, but considering his first 5 years in the leage went 41.8%, 42.0%, 47.4%, 43.8%, and 47.6%, it looks to me like he's doing just that. Let's not go crazy over a 4 game sample here.
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His last 4 games included games against the Canucks and Sharks. The Sharks are the #2 faceoff team in the league and have either been #1 or #2 in the last 3 years (maybe longer, but I only went back 3). With Sedin/Malhotra/Kessler, the Canucks are a great faceoff team historically as well. Oh, and he was over 50% against both of those teams earlier this year. The same team he went 30% against on Saturday, he was also 53% against on the Monday of the same week.
Over the last 3 years, he's been on par with guys like Ryan Getzlaf, David Backes, Mike Ribeiro, and Vincent Lecavalier in the faceoff circle. Yes, he needs to improve his faceoffs, but considering his first 5 years in the leage went 41.8%, 42.0%, 47.4%, 43.8%, and 47.6%, it looks to me like he's doing just that. Let's not go crazy over a 4 game sample here.
It's not a 4 game sample.
This year he has games of 17, 29, 30, 40, 31 and 20.
Getzlaf this year? One game of 31.
Lecavalier? One game of 43 and 44 percent.
It's one thing if he's losing games 35-45. That's tolerable.
Don't compare him to those guys. Gagner is having games where he's destroyed.
This year he has games of 17, 29, 30, 40, 31 and 20.
Getzlaf this year? One game of 31.
Lecavalier? One game of 43 and 44 percent.
It's one thing if he's losing games 35-45. That's tolerable.
Don't compare him to those guys. Gagner is having games where he's destroyed.
I was comparing them over 3 years. Very different than the first 9 games of a season.
And as for Gagner having one-sided games, none of them have been as bad as Malhotra's (one of the league's top FO men over the last decade) 17% against the Blackhawks just one game before he played us last night.
I was comparing them over 3 years. Very different than the first 9 games of a season.
And as for Gagner having one-sided games, none of them have been as bad as Malhotra's (one of the league's top FO men over the last decade) 17% against the Blackhawks just one game before he played us last night.
But comparing the last 3 years doesn't do much in this discussion. It's the same with Hopkins. In a 48 game season, we need performance *now*...how Gagner did the last 3 years doesn't matter. Nothing in the past matters at this point except what the players on this team do now. I know it's a small sample size, but when he's getting beat up badly in half of the games in a shortened season, we need to talk about it.
And Malhotra? I'm not denying faceoff men have bad games, it happens, but if we compare Gags worst 5 games with Malhotra's worse?
Beiska's goal was also a fairly dramatic change in direction from being deflected off of Hall. Not what I would consider a weak goal.
Potter had a strong game. Out of position a bit but made up for it with a very active stick. Also I though his mobility on the blue line made him much more effective than Whitney has been this year.
Beiska's goal was also a fairly dramatic change in direction from being deflected off of Hall. Not what I would consider a weak goal.
Potter had a strong game. Out of position a bit but made up for it with a very active stick. Also I though his mobility on the blue line made him much more effective than Whitney has been this year.
