Bulldogs built for open-ice marathon...
May 15, 2004 8:54:02 GMT -5
Post by M. Beaux-Eaux on May 15, 2004 8:54:02 GMT -5
...not post-season meat grinder
By Scott Radley
The Hamilton Spectator
As the autopsies now begin on the Hamilton Bulldogs' carcass, the prevailing sentiment is that the cause of death was Acute Redlightitis. Which is just a fancy name for a sudden and complete loss of offence, marked by an inability to find the back of the net with a compass, a divining rod and a Sherpa guide.
It's a simple assessment. Accurate too. After all, a team that scores just three goals in its final four games won't win anything, let alone an American Hockey League playoff series against a good team like Rochester. Not even with a goalie created from a mixture of DNA from Dominik Hasek, Jacques Plante and Vladislav Tretiak minding the fort. Unless he figures out how to put the puck in the other team's net, which seems rather unlikely.
So, yeah, a lack of goals is to blame.
But stopping there and declaring the diagnosis complete would be a mistake. Because this scoring drought was merely the symptom of a deeper problem. One that essentially doomed this team from the moment the tough sledding of the playoffs began.
More than a few skeptics -- myself included -- were surprised when the roster compiled by Andre Savard and the Canadiens' braintrust managed to win its division. And come within two wins of a 100-point season too. With the mass exodus of NHL-bound players from last year's team, many expected the results to be far worse.
But hiring Doug Jarvis as head coach was a stroke of genius. His low-key demeanour and defence-first style was the perfect fit for this group. He required responsible defensive play while giving his players free-enough rein to show their stuff on offence. As a result, they scored just as often as last year's team while cutting goals against by a few dozen.
However, everyone knows regular-season hockey and playoff hockey are two different things. It quickly became clear that this was a team built for the open ice of an 80-game marathon, not for the human meat grinder of the post-season.
As the space to skate got tighter, the Bulldogs became less effective.
You could see the first signs of it in the opening playoff series against Cleveland.
But against Rochester, it became brutally obvious that too many guys on this team had no appetite for the tough going. They were content to circle around in the safe areas of the ice and wait for the puck to come to them.
That doesn't work in the playoffs. When desperation and urgency and a willingness to sacrifice aren't there -- especially among the wingers and centres -- the team that scores by the bunches in the regular season suddenly goes cold in the playoffs.
Last year's squad was filled with forwards who reveled in the trenches.
Jason Ward, Michael Ryder, Raffi Torres, Jarret Stoll and others were happy to go into the corners and other difficult areas, remove the puck from an opponent and then create a chance for themselves or a teammate. Most important, they were talented as well as being tough.
Much of this year's crop didn't have the same fearlessness. A few made it clear over and over that even a minimal amount of physical play exerted on them was enough to keep them from competing hard. In fact, the next Bulldog forward who stands in front of an opponent's net and refuse to be budged will be the first. That's not the recipe for success in high-level hockey. And that's not the kind of commitment Jarvis wanted or needed from his team.
Of course, there were a few who were willing to pay the price. But they weren't particularly skilled with the puck. So even when they worked hard and got it, they couldn't do much with it.
Digging up a few players who combine those two skills between now and the beginning of next spring's playoffs is essential. Granted, finding them isn't easy. The good ones are playing in the NHL. The next-best batch are hot commodities in the AHL. But some must be unearthed.
Otherwise, we'll be starting next spring's post mortem long before the playoffs are over too. And once again lamenting the Bulldogs' unwillingness or inability to succeed at tough playoff hockey.
By Scott Radley
The Hamilton Spectator
As the autopsies now begin on the Hamilton Bulldogs' carcass, the prevailing sentiment is that the cause of death was Acute Redlightitis. Which is just a fancy name for a sudden and complete loss of offence, marked by an inability to find the back of the net with a compass, a divining rod and a Sherpa guide.
It's a simple assessment. Accurate too. After all, a team that scores just three goals in its final four games won't win anything, let alone an American Hockey League playoff series against a good team like Rochester. Not even with a goalie created from a mixture of DNA from Dominik Hasek, Jacques Plante and Vladislav Tretiak minding the fort. Unless he figures out how to put the puck in the other team's net, which seems rather unlikely.
So, yeah, a lack of goals is to blame.
But stopping there and declaring the diagnosis complete would be a mistake. Because this scoring drought was merely the symptom of a deeper problem. One that essentially doomed this team from the moment the tough sledding of the playoffs began.
More than a few skeptics -- myself included -- were surprised when the roster compiled by Andre Savard and the Canadiens' braintrust managed to win its division. And come within two wins of a 100-point season too. With the mass exodus of NHL-bound players from last year's team, many expected the results to be far worse.
But hiring Doug Jarvis as head coach was a stroke of genius. His low-key demeanour and defence-first style was the perfect fit for this group. He required responsible defensive play while giving his players free-enough rein to show their stuff on offence. As a result, they scored just as often as last year's team while cutting goals against by a few dozen.
However, everyone knows regular-season hockey and playoff hockey are two different things. It quickly became clear that this was a team built for the open ice of an 80-game marathon, not for the human meat grinder of the post-season.
As the space to skate got tighter, the Bulldogs became less effective.
You could see the first signs of it in the opening playoff series against Cleveland.
But against Rochester, it became brutally obvious that too many guys on this team had no appetite for the tough going. They were content to circle around in the safe areas of the ice and wait for the puck to come to them.
That doesn't work in the playoffs. When desperation and urgency and a willingness to sacrifice aren't there -- especially among the wingers and centres -- the team that scores by the bunches in the regular season suddenly goes cold in the playoffs.
Last year's squad was filled with forwards who reveled in the trenches.
Jason Ward, Michael Ryder, Raffi Torres, Jarret Stoll and others were happy to go into the corners and other difficult areas, remove the puck from an opponent and then create a chance for themselves or a teammate. Most important, they were talented as well as being tough.
Much of this year's crop didn't have the same fearlessness. A few made it clear over and over that even a minimal amount of physical play exerted on them was enough to keep them from competing hard. In fact, the next Bulldog forward who stands in front of an opponent's net and refuse to be budged will be the first. That's not the recipe for success in high-level hockey. And that's not the kind of commitment Jarvis wanted or needed from his team.
Of course, there were a few who were willing to pay the price. But they weren't particularly skilled with the puck. So even when they worked hard and got it, they couldn't do much with it.
Digging up a few players who combine those two skills between now and the beginning of next spring's playoffs is essential. Granted, finding them isn't easy. The good ones are playing in the NHL. The next-best batch are hot commodities in the AHL. But some must be unearthed.
Otherwise, we'll be starting next spring's post mortem long before the playoffs are over too. And once again lamenting the Bulldogs' unwillingness or inability to succeed at tough playoff hockey.