Video Gaming Nolan
Sometimes I feel like Nolan is completely mindless out there—as if his coaching decisions were based on a video game’s knowledge of the Isles. Hear me out…
1. In a video game, the PP lines and PK lines are predetermined. It doesn’t matter how many times a strategy fails or the players fail, the game still rolls out the same lines with the same strategy. Sounds a lot like Nolan.
2. In a video game, a player’s ability and skill will stay the same throughout a season. A Blake Comeau video game version could never be more than a 4th line player. However in real life, kids mature and improve and make a case to be considered for top line minutes. Yet Nolan still treats Comeau like a scrappy 4th liner.
3. Along the same lines, players’ abilities can deteriorate over a season in real life (although this doesn’t happen in a video game)—take Hunter for example. In a video game, Hunter (a former 25 goal man) would see top line minutes and ample power play time. Yet in real life, Hunter has lost his scoring touch and is now more of a checking line winger. Yet Nolan continues to employ his video game logic and continues to roll Hunter on the PP over guys like Comeau, Bergenheim, Tambellini, all who are young creative players that could help us score.
4. Lastly, in a video game, you have a depth chart, so if a defenseman goes down, the next defenseman in line will be called up. For the Isles, that defenseman in Aaron Johnson. At the beginning of the season, AJ was the 7th d-man waiting in the wings. Now it seems no matter what happens, AJ will always be the next man in, just as a video game would always insert the 7th defenseman. However, in reality, Drew Fata has proven to be a more effective choice yet is still further down than AJ.
My point is that many times throughout this season I have seen Nolan take the easy way out—making the mindless decision. His ability to get the most out of mediocre players is a great asset for a coach. His teams work hard and they mostly like playing for him. However, there comes a time when some basic hockey understanding needs to be considered. It’s pathetic that I would trust every AHL team’s 5 on 3 ability over that of the Isles.
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26 comments:
Bill's post from the last thread:
Bill said...Pitiful, just pitiful. No wonder Snow didn't want McCabe and dumped MAB for that choice 3 rd round pick.
ISLES PP.......Berard brings the puck up to the Rangers blue line. All the other Islanders stand still and watch him. Berard weakly dumps the puck in and the Rangers shoot it down the ice. Repeat as necessary.
Once again Snow the blunderer has left his mark on this team. With the parity in the NHL any team could make the finals. McCabe was just the piece of the puzzle that we needed and once again Snow overestimated his position by demanding Toronto's first round pick be included in the McCabe deal.
Bad coach, worse GM, crazy owner. Not much to look forward to....Bill
Bill...1000% right (not a typo)
Again Snow lowballed an offer just as he did last summer. Toronto's first round pick for taking an excellent offensive defenseman? That hardly makes any rational sense.
I am currently taking an Alternative Dispute Resolution class where we work on things like negotiations, mediations, arbitrations, etc. What I've learned is that when you offer an outrageously high/low offer, you have almost no chance to reach an agreement. It turns the other side off while insulting them at the same time.
How would it be any different with McCabe? Instead of Berard standing there waiting for the forwards to move, McCabe would be.
Comeau can't play on the first line. Hilbert is there so that somebody plays defense. I don't think it's an accident that since Hilbert has been put on that line, Comrie is pretty much even in the +/- department. It's not fair to stifle Comeau's offensive ability by putting him on the first line and making him the primary source of defense.
Shink, Your first line is supposed to be your scoring line. The idea is that your first line keeps the other team bottled up in their defensive zone. It is ridiculous beyond all reason that Hilbert is on our first line. If Andy Hilbert were declared a free agent he would bw lucky to get a job with an NHL team and would be playing for the minimum, if at all.
More likely he would be in the AHL or be a healthy scratch most nights.
McCabe had a goal and 3 assists last night.
Who needs that kind of production rom you D-Men? Apparently, not the Islanders.....Bill
I wouldn't be so quick to compare McCabe to Berard. In career +/-, McCabe is 130 points better than Berard. Berard wouldn't have made any other team's NHL roster.
Regarding what you said about Comeau/Hilbert, that's my whole point. Nolan made a decision that isn't working. The 4th line doesn't produce (b/c they don't play) and the 1st line definitely does not produce. That's precisely why Nolan has to change things up.
The Islanders could have Gonchar and McCabe on the point and the PP would still stink. It has nothing to do with who is on the blueline. Until the forwards starting moving, the PP is going to stink.
Bill you are right the first line is supposed to be the scoring line, but if the line is giving up more goals then they are scoring something needs to be done. I don't think Hilbert is a first liner either but both Comrie and Guerin have been more productive with Hilbert in the 15 games he's been on the line, than the 15 previous games.
Comrie 10 points in 15 games with Hilbert, previous 15 games - 4 points.
Guerin: 9 points in 15 games with Hilbert, previous 15 games - 6 points.
Shink,
I don't mean to burst your bubble here, but your idea that Comrie had 10 pts in his last 15 games with Hilbert intrigued me. The first part of your stat is true--Comrie has 6 goals and 4 assists in the Isles last 15 games. However, some quick research revealed that Hilbert was only on the ice with Comrie for half of those points. So the stat should read Comrie has 5 pts in his last 15 games when playing with Hilbert. Further, of those 5 pts, Hilbert only factored in the scoring on 3 of them. Not that impressive.
Why does it matter how many Hilbert factored in on? He's there to play defense, he allows Comrie and Guerin to take chances they wouldn't normally take because they know Hilbert will be back on defense. The fact is Comrie was -19 through 54 games without Hilbert and -1 through 15 games with Hilbert. And if you factor out the shorthanded goals, Comrie is probably a + player with Hilbert on the line.
SHINK SAID "The Islanders could have Gonchar and McCabe on the point and the PP would still stink."
Nonsense. If the points were getting shots on net, then the forwards would be in a position to bang home rebounds. The reason this PP stinks is because there is no QB. The point men are hesitating and thus can't get a shot through to the net. The PK players know that the Isles don't have a good point player and overload the pressure on the blueline.
If Gonchar or McCabe were blasting
pucks on net you would see how quickly the Isles PP improved.....Bill
The point men are hesitating because nobody is in front of the net, and they know it's worthless to just throw a puck on net. Gonchar and McCabe could blast away all night and unless they beat the goalie the Islanders wouldn't score. It's kind of hard to score with two guys on each side boards and one guy in the corner.
Justin, I see that you post on Logans blog. I just tried to and was sent a "the owner is holding your post for approval" message.
Are you experiencing the same thing or is it just because I posted an anti Nolan message?
Anyway here it is,
First off, I do not agree that Nolan is a great coach. In my opinion Teddy is all about Teddy. Nolan seems a lot more interested in having the hockey press sing his praises than he does about winning hockey games. He relishes the role of the "genius" coach that has nothing to work with, yet manages to keep the team in a playoff hunt.
He refuses to accept the fact that his "Nolan type players" are a bunch of talentless journeymen who cannot score.
He has some hungry young kids here and he plays them less than 10 minutes a game. Meanwhile a slug like Hilbert is playing on the first line. The same Hilbert who couldn't make the team in the rest of the NHL.
Nolan also refuses to change the PP when it it by far the worst in the league. Even so, he continues to go with the same dreadful approach, night after night. He also refuses to change tactics when his team give up short hander after short hander.
This is nothing more than sheer stupidity. If Teddy is such a genius why has he not come up with a plan to improve the PP and cut down on short handed goals?
If Gerrard Gallant was a batting coach, he would have been fired months ago, but does Teddy change the PP responsibilities?
Does he assume the duties himself?
No, he does not. Nolan is content to raise his hands and give you that "What do you want from me? I got lousy players" look.
Teddy is and always has been a me first coach. That's what got him fired in Buffalo and that's what has kept him out of the NHL for ten years.
His act is getting old. It's time to put up oe move on.....BillB&O
SHINK.......The point men are hesitant because they stink. The Islanders have no one who is a natural PP QB.
Perhaps if they were able to get a shot through once in a while, the forwards wouldn't have to stand at the half boards to bail them out all the time.
Since MAB was moved have you seen a single one timer from the point?...Bill
I'm with Shink...forwards aren't driving the net, and the current half-board cycle isn't there to bail out the point men, its there to bail out the other 2 cycling forwards who are being defended man-on-man!
Because our forwards spend 99% of the PP time on the boards, defenders can play man on man defense...totally negating the point of being a man up. Next PP just watch- we have 3 guys digging & cycling, they have 2 guys in the scrum with the 3rd right behind waiting for the puck to squirt out. I could defend that.
The PP needs to move the puck away from the boards, and force the other team to play man-down defense, where there is always an open player. Right now our open player is standing on the OTHER blue line, waiting for a pass that never comes, because it can't make it through 4 of their players.
When was the last time you saw us "set up" the PP? I can't remember...
And its not because there aren't shots going to the net: its because the cycle & digging we do is easily defended against. McCabe/MAB/Berard wouldn't help. Not even Neidermeyer & Lidstrom would be able to change that...
Either way, we're arguing strategy here... demonstrating clearly we all know more than Gallant & Nolan about PP. Any of the suggestions posted here would help solve our PP woes.
That said, who wants to start the FireGallant.com website???
Another hypothetical:
Lets say Nolan isn't here next year. Who would you guys want instead?
One of the main reasons the PP never set up, is because of the basic shoot the puck in and chase it philosophy used by Nolan and Gallant.
If you notice, the Rangers usually have Gomez or Straka carry the puck over the blueline and keep control of the puck. This eliminates the need to regain puck possession and allows the PP to spread out and pass the puck around.
The lack of a true puck carrier (AKA PP QB) is what kills the Islanders.
NYISLES...Tell you what. You get me Lindstrom and Neidermeyer and I guarantee you that the forwards will have twice the number of PP goals that they have now.
I know a lot about how a PP works because I spent many years on the bench watching it and an equal number defending against it. Man, I wish that would have been the other way around. LOL.........Bill
Shink,
Let's say I buy your Hilbert is out there to play defense so that leaves Comrie free to score notion. That doesn't change the fact that you said 10 pts in 15 games when it's actually 5 in 15. He wasn't even out there on the other 5.
5 in 15 is not that impressive and it's obviously not freeing up Comrie to do much of anything.
Bill,
No one posts more anti-Nolan posts as me (well maybe you do) but I haven't had problems. I post there to entice good fans to make the jump to B&O. That blog is too difficult to deal with and is constantly infested with Rags fans.
Everyone,
Great discussion. It's a combination of all things discussed hereinabove. The Isles forwards don't drive to the net and the point ment are not doing their job. Do the Isles really not have enough skilled players to attempt an efficient powerplay? Not a chance. This has to fall on Gallant and Nolan's shoulders, only because we see the same thing every game.
So, I guess we turn to rooting for a high draft pick now? We have a legit shot at the 3rd overall pick- only 3 points away.
Keep this effort up, and we should have no problem doing so.
Shoulda had a fire sale.
Flyers....4 PP goals. PP QB Timmonenn 3 assists
Isles..ZERO PP Goals. No PP QB. No assists.
Enough said........Bill
And Logan never published what I wrote about Nolan.
Seems Mr. Logan is not above censuring anything that doesn't agree with the party line....Bill
Why again did Bergenheim, Comeau, Tambellini, Coliton see less time than all other Isles forwards. How many more games do we have to lose for Nolan to try something new?
Those players were a combined +3 with 8 shots on goal.
Justin- was thinking the exact same thing.
WHY are they not on the PP? Just try it!
We have Hunter, Hilbert, and Park out there...why not try the guys who have been looking good?
The only line I can somewhat agree with on the PP is the V-cek, Tank, Hunter line. The last dozen games they look like a real strong 3rd or 2nd line, and have been getting chances from their forecheck.
Man if Hunter only learned how to go to the net, they'd be so much better....again last night I saw him skating slowly around the back of the net while V-cek had the puck on the halfboards...LOOKING for a centering pass.
Bill- I've had problems with Logan's blog as well, a while ago now. Nothing bad to say either- just didn't go through. I haven't gone over there in months now though; the admin/postings/level of hockey IQ is too ridiculous for me. You guys are much better to commiserate with...
Well, at least I won't have to scrounge up money for playoff tickets.
It's just a shame what has happened over the course of the season. The Isles have really taken steps in the wrong direction this year. We really resemble an expansion team, plucking off players from other teams that nobody wanted. And now we can all see why.
Turn out the lights, the party's over.
Nolan was making excuses tonight saying he didn't know if he was coach the Sound Tigers or the Islanders. Maybe that 2 for 46 PP confused him.
What is painfully obvious and disturbing to me, is that DP has quit on this team.
For a guy that is as competitive as DP, it has to maddening to go out there and lose as many games as he has. He looks like he is sick to death of playing with inferior players. Perhaps Brendan Witt is in DP's class of player but that's about it. All the rest are more than a cut below.
DP looks frustrated, mentally beat and totally out of it. If it is a physical ailment, then it is time to sit him down and treat whatever is wrong. There is no sense pushing him now that the season is lost.
However, if it is not physical, then Snow and Nolan have a real problem on their hands
Players who are so much better than their team mates can grow resentful of them very quickly when the team loses.
I hope I am wrong, but I don't think so. Ithink DP is tired of losing and tired of playinmg with a bad team. Thoughts?.....Bill
I was at the game, and I can't remember seeing a worse one. Ever.
Intersting to hear Nolan's post-game comments re: the Sound Tigers. Maybe he should play them more often...he put Walter out there on the kid line PP, and got a goal w/i 5 seconds. hmmmm... Walter might be better than Park & Hilbert? No way..
I dont think DP quit here. And I don't think he's wishing he were somewhere else- and if he is I don't feel bad for him. He made his own bed by signing a contract rendering him all but untradeable, so he must have realized that he's sticking with this team through thick & thin.
The entire team is frustrated; watching player reactions after every goal was quite telling. People were clearly blaming each other, and no one person was at fault- they all were, including DP.
I honestly think we'll only see one more year of Nolan. If we don't get past the 1st round next year, I think he'll be gone. Snow's future lies with this man, and while he may like the guy, I don't think Snow is willing to risk his GM career before he gets a chance to show what he can do.
BTW, did anyone else know Steve Stirling is the coach for Tampa's minor league team? That man was a hockey guru! (in comparison...)
I just noticed an intersting stat, confirming a lot of what we've been speaking about these past weeks.
Montreal has the league lead for goals scored (227), we are in the bottom 3 with 174...a difference of 53.
Thats it. 53 extra goals throughout the year would have us sitting in the league lead. I know I know, its not sound logic at all, but lets just go with that for a second.
53 goals were scored by Alexander Ovechkin by himself this year. If we pay him whatever is left up to our salary cap for his goals, we should be all set, right?
Or, had Guerin, Satan, Comrie, Sillinger, Hunter, and Tank all come through this year, we probably would have gotten 53 extra goals, right?
Or, if we had McCabe (or some other PP QB), our crappy PP would have scored at least some of those 53 extra goals, right?
My point is that while we limp out of 2008, the parity in this league is a lot more than I think we sometimes realize. Any given team appears only a few players away from making a deep playoff run...
Come offseason, I'm real intersted to see how Snow handles this. He can't sit on his haunches and allow teams to snatch the good players from under his nose. He tried with "nolan type" players, but we havn't seen a Nolan player in weeks- it doesn't work. Snow needs to make an aggressive move for a top offensive talent, and build a strong PP squad. We do have good defense, as long as they can stay healthly, but could use a stalwart or two.
We'll be getting a good pick this year, and hopefully along with KO & the other kids, we'll have a solid core for the next few years.
Either way, its make or break time for Snolang. Sitting back another few years will simply delay the Lighthouse project, and I worry what will happen then. Its now or never...unfortuantly
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