I think it takes more than taking up for another player. To play tough you have to give of yourself for the good of the team. Look at the stats:
Forwards:
Name Hits Blocked shots
Boll 63 10
Brule 36 6
Novotny 36 23
Fritsche 35 24
Chimera 31 8
Fedorov 30 12
Shelley 29 2
Peca 29 15
Zherdev 25 9
Nash 22 16
Malhotra 22 13
Vyborny 19 10
Defense:
Hedja 84 43
Klesla 62 55
OKT 53 12
Foote 51 86
Hainsey 27 45
Westcott 18 14
Russell 17 45
Nice work...I'm wondering how our forwards compare with Calgary, or any team that is considered tough...
I think it takes more than taking up for another player. To play tough you have to give of yourself for the good of the team. Look at the stats:
Forwards:
Name Hits Blocked shots
Boll 63 10
Brule 36 6
Novotny 36 23
Fritsche 35 24
Chimera 31 8
Fedorov 30 12
Shelley 29 2
Peca 29 15
Zherdev 25 9
Nash 22 16
Malhotra 22 13
Vyborny 19 10
Defense:
Hedja 84 43
Klesla 62 55
OKT 53 12
Foote 51 86
Hainsey 27 45
Westcott 18 14
Russell 17 45
I don't trust these stats.
How can you trust them when Brule and Shelley have more hits than Chim and Manny , yet playing time and points are vastly different. And how can you pimp OKT's hit stat versus Russell. You can't. Russell is clearly the better player, and now OKT is injured and maybe out for the season.
I still maintain: if we were better at FINISHING and putting the puck in the net, we would not be having this discussion about "toughness."
We are getting our chances at the net, we're just not converting. That's a skill issue, not a toughness one. Instead, because we are losing, we are once again "eating our own" with more dribble.
Nice work...I'm wondering how our forwards compare with Calgary, or any team that is considered tough...
Quote:
Originally Posted by JACKETfan
I don't trust these stats.
How can you trust them when Brule and Shelley have more hits than Chim and Manny , yet playing time and points are vastly different. And how can you pimp OKT's hit stat versus Russell. You can't. Russell is clearly the better player, and now OKT is injured and maybe out for the season.
I still maintain: if we were better at FINISHING and putting the puck in the net, we would not be having this discussion about "toughness."
We are getting our chances at the net, we're just not converting. That's a skill issue, not a toughness one. Instead, because we are losing, we are once again "eating our own" with more dribble.
These stats mean nothing without the comparison Robert mentions.
Nice post, JF. It's fair to assume that the counter-argument would be "We know the team has no skill, so they have to give opponents a beating." This is not without merit. However, I agree with you about scoring and winning more consistently possibly eliminating the need to have this "toughness" debate.
As I said earlier, I'm on board with criticism of the team for not standing up for a targeted teammate, but the "toughness" issue in general is relative. Presumably, the team doesn't have enough tough players. Well, it doesn't have enough skill players, either. I'll let folks decide which one I'd rather have more of.
__________________
"Every game, every point is a necessity." -- Ty Conklin, January 2007
"I'll have a chance to compete for the post of first issue. This is the most important thing." -- Sergei Bobrovsky, June 2012
The biggest disappointments. Malhotra got married and lost his balls. Vyborny had a great year where he played with an edge, think it was 2 seasons ago. Hainsey, laughable. Westcott, too many concussions. Nash needs to get angry.
What's that spelled across their backs? That ain't no English I ever seen.
It's Russian. Some of the characters look the same, others don't.
Two quick thoughts about team toughness and Ken Hitchcock.
1) You aren't going to "teach" toughness, as was suggested earlier in the thread. You either have it or you don't. For years, the Stars drafted grit and toughness as a 1st priority, and it was reflected in our lack of skill. Pick your poison, because, with a handful of very highly paid exceptions, most guys aren't both skilled and tough.
2) The only guys in Dallas who were regulars in the lineup when Hitch arrived and were still when we won the Cup were Modano, Hatcher, Nieuwendyk, Lehtinen, Carbonneau, Sydor, Matvichuk and Ludwig. 8 guys, and the transformation was only 3 seasons from start to finish. If you want team toughness, kick Scott Howson in the butt and make some personnel changes. There are probably some viable reinforcements in Syracuse, and there are many more at Bowling Green and Ohio State. Move the guys who don't have the minerals and replace them with ones who do.
The Dispatch likes to sell newspapers. I take everything they say about sports and the Jackets with a grain of salt.
Their Buckeye coverage is "feed the beast, slap the beast, defend the beast, feed the beast."
Sometimes I wonder why we care so much about the inner workings of the Jackets, hang on every quote, and why so many fans up here idol certain players. My father was a huge Yankees fan and followed the team just by reading the boxscore, and went to one game a year. I love the Indians, listen to the games on radio, and don't even know if they have a fan forum. I enjoy HF because fresh hockey news is not so easily found.
