Longing for Alexei
In a post game interview with Isles' coach Ted Nolan, when asked about Jeff Tambellini's limited role thus far, Nolan remarked that he benched Tambellini for much of the latter part of last night's game because the Isles first line of Tambellini-Comrie-Gurein "couldn't get out of their own zone for half the game." This utterance highlights Nolan's one true accomplishment thus far this season: apportioning blame among those who are probably the least deserving. If Nolan actually wants to resolve the struggles of the Islanders, he need not look farther than his number one center: Mike Comrie.
With Mike Comrie's -3 performance last night, he is now in dead LAST in the league with a -14 plus/minus rating. I didn't think there could ever be a "number one" center on the Isles who could make me long for Alexei Yashin. At least Yashin was a plus rated player a year ago, finishing the season as a +6. Comrie also finds other ways to hurt the Isles, in addition to his inability to play defense. As of last night, Comrie has just about equaled the penalty minutes accumulated by Yashin in all of last season, during the Isles first 29 games. Further, Comrie's penalties are usually poorly timed and are often the result of laziness. Yet Nolan continues to reward Comrie with a regular shift (20 minutes last night), while Tambellini sees his time reduced on a continual basis.
Last week, Nolan claimed he recalled Tambellini because the Isles were starved for goals. However, he isn't giving him the opportunity to score, which makes you wonder if Nolan actually believes anything that comes from his own mouth. Why not play Tambellini on the power play--is that such an absurd idea? Why not demote Comrie to the 4th line after, I don't know, a long stretch of games filled with lackadaisical, foolhardy efforts? MAB was benched for ONE play early on this season. Comrie turned the puck over TWICE on the same play last week, and still received his regular shift. Nolan will proceed to lose this team if such obvious notions of favoritism continue.
There's no doubt that a player like Alex Yashin would help this team. At least Yashin was a capable power play contributor, was strong on the puck, and had a blistering shot (that is when Yash decided to play). So what it comes down to is that both of these enigmatic centers drift in and out of consciousness during the season, but I'd rather have a conscious Yashin over a conscious Comrie any day.
Did I really just write that?
Side notes: J Picker has finally fallen into the new Isles trap. For the first time this season, he fell asleep during an Isles game. All I can say is, welcome to the crew!
Posts
18 comments:
I agree with you about Comrie, he puts in zero effort, does not play defense and takes stupid penalties.
Tambellini has done nothing to warrant more ice time. He once again had ZERO shots on goal, and has not had a shot on goal in the last three games. I can't even recall one scoring chance he's had in the five games he's played. I don't think he's good enough to play on the top two lines. I don't think he'll ever be good enough for anything other than the third line. He's small, has average speed and is not very strong on the puck.
About the only positives that came out of last nights game were they scored 3 goals again, Bergenheim was the best player on the ice and easily played his best game of the season. The PP scored again and Berard finally got benched for his poor play.
Justin if you read over @ Newsday what MAB has been saying about being benched & his PP time, you'll see affirmation for what you wrote today. Nolan is starting to lose his players, with MAB being one of them. He's frustrated beyond belief, and who can blame him? Good summary of the problems with the Isles using most telling statistic in all of sports...+/-.
And MAB mentioned something else we all know to be true....with inconsistent playing time, his gaffes are going to be more frequent and obvious. Without getting into the flow of the season, everyone is going to be 'rusty' and make some errors. Apparently those glaring errors are enough to be benched for certain individuals.
I've always been a supporter of Nolan, and after last year, could not have wanted anyone else behind our bench. But, this season is a completely different story. His leadership approach is not working for these guys, who need tough love...as long as it is perceived to be fair.
Nolan's version of tough love is based on his personal relationships with players, and not with performance on the ice. Nolan is what leadership consultants like to call a "people leader"...that is, he leads through intensive relationships to breed loyalty, commitment, and hard work. Other coaches succeed with 'results leadership', or leadership based on hockey knowledge or acumen. Both approaches are fine, as long as they work for the players on the ice. I don't think this group of players needs a people leader however- they've demonstrated heart, commitment and emotion their entire careers. They need hockey smarts, and that is something Nolan does not have. Underachievers need Nolan (e.g. see Kozlov, Poti, Yashin etc etc), overachievers need results-oriented leadership (e.g. see Comrie, Hilbert, Tamby). The latter are players who have raw talent, but need coaching and systems to help them successfully put the puck in the net.
That being said, Nolan does not need hockey smarts himself to be successful. He needs to surround himself with talent that off-sets his weaknesses. Goalie & assistant coaches need to pick up the slack, and I would recommend replacing the current guys with serious hockey gurus. Nolan can keep doing what he's doing, but needs to defer hockey strategy to others.
I can imagine Nolan's style is VERY popular with Mr. Wang. Loyalty and personal relationships are exceedingly important to Wang, and Nolan isn't facing pressure because of this.
TSN is reporting the Flyers have signed Richards to a 10-12 year deal. I wonder if they/he will be subjected to same the ridicule that the Islanders and DiPietro have.
Not sure whether it has been due to my hectic finals schedule but last night's game was a perfect chance for me to catch up on some sleep. It was clear that after just a few minutes into the game that last night was going to be another stinker. I was surprised that the boys did get back into to make it a 4-3 game early in the third. Not only was that 5th goal the nail in the coffin last night but that Buffalo announcer maybe the most effective alarm clock I have ever had.
If Nolan and the rest of this team don't wake up and fix the most obvious of problems, we are all in for a long long season. It almost seems like Nolan is preaching one thing and then doing another.
One line I would like to see in the near future is Tambs-Vasicek-Bergs. I think this line could do damage and possibility wake this team out of its current poor play streak.
Let's just hope that Ricky is keeping his head on his shoulders and not burying it under the sand like everyone else.
shinkdew,
Maybe the fact that Tambellini has "done nothing" has more to do with that fact that his linemates consist of an enigmatic center who cherry picks and rarely plays like he cares and a 36 year old aging captain who clearly isn't what he was just one year ago. Are you ready to give up on him right now? Sound like you are. So I guess you would favor shipping Tambellini off for a 5th round pick, huh?
Just remember that previous Isles coaches have felt the same way about guys like Bertuzzi, Jokinen, etc. If you remember back when Jokinen was first brought here (via trade with LA just like Tambellini) he was seen as a waste of a first round pick who just wasn't producing. They said he wasn't quick enough, wasn't strong enough, and that he was therefore a bust b/c he wasn't putting up first line numbers in limited ice time. Jokinen scored 11 goals playing in all 82 games that season and was then shipped to the Panthers. The Panthers were rebuilding and gave Jokinen a ton of minutes, and they were rewarded 2 seasons later with a 36 goal year.
Now does that mean that would definitely happen with Tambellini? Of course not, they are different players. But my only point is that this season is perfect to give Tambellini a ton of minutes, to see if we can make a player out of him. I'm not sure why you (or Nolan) would be so against giving Tambellini an increased role. Do you think we will score fewer goals? (Last in the league in goals for). Do you think we will win less games? (1 win in the last 7 games). The reward of pushing a young player forward who has a ton of potential far outweighs the growing pains he might endure the franchise. This team is going nowhere fast and I'd like to see Tambellini get a fair shot. (Tambellini has yet to receive more than 11 minutes of ice time in 8 games thus far so I don't know how you or Nolan can judge what he's capable of). Is ONE FULL GAME TOO MUCH TO ASK? ONE FULL GAME WITH A REGULAR SHIFT. It must be hard to play well when you know if you don't score 2 goals on your first 2 shifts then you won't see the ice for the rest of the game.
Nyisles,
Great post. Garth Snow should fire all of Nolan's assistants. I'm still waiting for Snow to show his face. Nolan's loyalty to players like Comrie, Hunter, and Silinger surely need to be questioned. The rules need to apply to all players, and Nolan should not be picking and choosing when it's a good time to blame someone. If I were MAB, I'd be praying to be included in a trade--I'd be hoping for the opportunity to play for a coach who doesn't constantly turn me into the scapegoat of the team's struggles.
HMMMM. I see more and more guys coming over to my point of view about Nolan.
Almost all the posts I read on other Islander site start with "Ted is a great coach BUT..."
False, Ted is not a great coach. In fact, he is pretty awful. He may be a good guy for the players, but his coaching techniques leave plenty to be desired. He has failed to implement a strategy to counter what teams have done to neutralize DP's puck handling skills.
His team's preparation is abysmal.
How many times have we seen this team come out flat, fall behind and lose the game?
His abuse of young plyers is well documented here.
One of Milbury's worst moves was firing LaViolett. ....Bill
Your comparison to Joikinen is laughable. Olli actually showed flashes of being a good player. Tambellini hasn't done anything. Bergenheim was playing with Park and Simon and showed flashes of his ability. Tambellini has played with every line except the fourth and hasn't shown flashes of anything.
I agree about Laviolette, I told one of my friends when he left Boston that they'd regret him leaving.
shinkdew,
Jokinen was awful on the Isles, and he only received minutes in 2000 because the Isles had no players. I'm guessing you did not watch the Isles back then because Jokinen never showed flashes of being a good player while with us. He actually was viewed as lazy and unmotivated, which is why the Isles gave up on him so quickly. He was included as a "throw in" along with Luongo, in the trade that brought Parrish and Kvasha to the Isles after that season. But comparisons to Olli aside, please tell me what the Isles have to lose by giving an increased role to Tambellini?
Also, I agree with you about Bergenheim, he should also receive an increased role. His stone hands remind me of Jason Blake's toward the beginning of Blake's career. Yet somehow, with an increased role, the Isles made a 40 goal scorer out of Blake. I don't think it's unreasonable to hope for the same from Bergenheim. Let's just get his confidence up, although please never as high as Blake's.
I don't think they have anything to loose. I was just pointing out that he's done nothing to deserve an increased role on the team. And that he hasn't shown anything. I for one am pretty disappointed because I thought he was coming up to prove he belonged and has pretty much done the opposite.
Bergenheim really impressed me last night and I was happy to see Nolan gave him minutes in the third period. I doubt he'll ever score 40 goals, but I do agree his hands will get softer. He almost looks like his mind is moving faster than his hands. I think as he gets more comfortable with the pace of the NHL he will be more productive. I see no reason why he won't be a 20+ goal guy. He really could've benefited from playing the first 10-15 games in the AHL to get acclimated to North American hockey. Unfortunately, he would never have cleared waivers.
I wouldn't mind them sending Comrie to the fourth line with Simon. Putting Park with Tamby and Guerin and making that the "3rd" line.
Though I have my own reservations about Tamby's on-ice performance thus far, I hate to make assumtions about the guy as a hockey player playing in this system, ala Jokinen. Its akin (albeit this has yet to pan out successful for the Rags, and I'm not comparing the caliber of players) to what everyone said about Gomez on the Devils. The guy suppossedly has so much offensive talent (again...havn't seen it...HA!), but it was hidden playing in the defense first system of the Devs.
I have the same reservations about Tamby. As a junior player playing forward, he made his name scoring goals, so we know he can. All of a sudden, he is on a team where defense is valued more than offense (clearly too much at times), and he's lost. He's been sent down to B-Port enough to know that if he doesn't play defense first, he's a goner. In short, he has to learn to play a new type of hockey from the start, as Hilbert was forced to. I'd like to give him time to develop, but that a) deviates from the defense first scheme we have going right now and b) we don't have time. If we're going to compete this season, things need to happen now.
Teams can't make the playoffs in December, but they can certainly miss them in December. I'm not sure what giving Tamby more leeway to play offense at an NHL level will do for him or the team. I don't think we have time to "experiment" if we plan on playing in May. Not necessarily a knock against Tamby, but some players simply don't fit a team's scheme. Then again, thats not to say a team such as Anaheim wouldn't have use for a speedy goal scorer such as Tamby....
Tambellini got sent back to Bridgeport. Jackman was recalled to play on the 4th line. Fedotenko is back on the 1st line.
Well then all of this is now moot. I agree with both of you regarding Tambellini's play thus far, he was a disappointment. But why bring Jackman up???
What does that do for the Isles? He will play under 5 minutes tonight, guaranteed, and he fills the same role Chris Simon already fills. He does not add to the offense and basically is a waste of a call up. This goes to show how poor our farm system really is, that we have no players with offensive upside who we can insert into the lineup.
Tonight's game against the Coyotes will be very telling. They are a very weak offensive team, and with the Isles finally coming home after a poor road trip, nothing but a strong showing should be acceptable tonight. If the Isles find a way to lose tonight's game, I think it would be a safe assumption that the season might be on the verge of collapsing completely.
Here's to a win, and Wayne's demise.
I agree that it shows how poor our farm system is. Jaffe last night on MSG said we were in the process of rebuilding it. I don't even know how many guys in Bridgeport that are actually the Islanders property. Half of the guys, I've never heard of.
As for why Jackman was recalled, it's pretty much because he's not a prospect that would be losing ice time. Calling up Comeau, Regier, Walter etc to play 5 minutes or less on the 4th line or be scratched if they dress 7 d-men doesn't make sense. Jackman will never be anything other than a fringe 4th liner, there is pretty much nothing left to develop, unlike the rest of guys.
This franchise is a complete mess. They tried their best to blow the game tonight and only won because of DP.
Hilbert had at least 3 unobstructed shots on goal and missed them all.
How long do we have to suffer this?
Bring up Walter, Tambellini, Comeau and Neilsen and play them. all.
Dump Berard, Hilbert, Jackman and Simon.
Did you guys notice how young the Yotes are? They are going with youth and looking to rebuild. The team may be fragile, but they are learning to grow together. They will be a good team in the near future.
The Islanders are going in the opposite direction.
I keep seeing certain guys post here that the Bridgeport players are no good. Only a true test will determine that.
Let's see Walter with Tambellini and Bergy. It can't be any worse that the listles, heartless team that we all watch night after night.
Anybody see Garth Snow lately?....Bill
Robert Nilsson had 2 more assists tonight........Bill
Justin said
"This goes to show how poor our farm system really is, that we have no players with offensive upside who we can insert into the lineup. "
I disagree. How do you know that? Has any one of them been given a decent chance at proving themselves?
I believe that it is the management that is POOR. Stupid decisions about players abound.
And the GM has been KIDNAPPED !!
I know this because no one has seen him in weeks......Bill
I retract and rephrase: "this goes to show how poorly our management views our farm system."
Justin, Spoken like a true law student.......Bill
Post a Comment