SIMPLIFY AND DOMINATE

In recent weeks we have had great highs and terrible lows. The HABS performance seems as consistent as a senior’s bowel movements, and as a result Le Journal has been printing what comes out of a senior’s bowel movements.

With the trading deadline and the hype surrounding it, the players have been more than distracted and I can’t blame them for it. However with the standings the way they are and teams around us making charges, now is the time to get the gears grinding, and get this team back on track.

Our secret to our 0.750 winning average from earlier in the season was a simple one. Keep the game plan simple and frustrate the opponent:

[*]In the defensive zone the priority should get back to getting the puck out of the zone at any cost. By any cost I refer to dumping the puck off the boards and over the blue line, even if it means ending up with the opposing team’s defence and resulting in another attempt to break into our zone. Even if we can’t make a transition play at first, by continuously rejecting attempts to enter our zone, we can frustrate the opponent into trying new and fancy moves in the neutral zone and give up odd man rushes for our guys.

[*] On offense we should get back to keeping the puck deep in their zone, and fighting along the boards. In a similar fashion to the logic on defence, by continuously “wasting” the opposing team’s offensive line’s shifts chasing us along the boards, we can frustrate them and in the long run break down their game plan. With the exception of Kovalev’s line, all three offensive lines had great success grinding along the boards. Kovalev of course has had his best success prancing around the offensive zone, often travelling along and around the boards first, and then pulling some moves that make me wonder about his joints, or lack thereof.

The game plan has to be simple. Simplify, disturb the other team’s game plan, and frustrate them into breaking down. We have been on the receiving end of frustration and breaking down too often via giveaways as a result of trying to make a fancy play. Although they loko good on the highlight reel, this game remains the domain of those who grind on every shift and get their noses dirty.

I’ll be very curious to see our game play execution tonight and the following weeks. If the coaching staff and players have not had the paradigm shift to bring things back down to earth, we could be in for a few more rough games.