SalarySwishSalarySwish
Avatar

A_K

Lets Go Blues
Membre depuis
30 juin 2016
Équipe favorite
Blues de St-Louis
Messages dans les forums
6777
Messages par jour
2.4
Forum: Armchair-GM6 nov. 2023 à 17 h 19
Sujet: 10 Game Progress Report
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>mokumboi</b></div><div>This basically all made out in the worst possible light, if not blatantly false. Relax, man.</div></div>

I don't need to relax lol I'm chill. When they play well, I enjoy it. When they don't, I don't let it bug me, too many years of that and I'm too old for that now haha.

At 5v5 their goal share is 46%. xGF% 43%. They are keeping more shots out of the slot area but shot volume/share is still an issue. Even strength offensive zone time 37% vs 44% in their D zone. All those figures in 10 games are worse than they finished last season when they finished 6th in the central w 81 pts. Only thing better is their .936 5v5 SV%. Last season they finished with a .911 at 5v5. Obv the PP is not gonna go a whole season under 5%, but are you telling me they are a good team? Or are you just drawing optimism out of the most recent couple of games and throwing the rest away as some crazy outliers?
Forum: Armchair-GM6 nov. 2023 à 16 h 10
Sujet: 10 Game Progress Report
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>HolyJumpin81</b></div><div>Ok so I totally see your point. However, there is no way this team is a bottom five team. Blues hockey is not like most other teams play style. Locker room chemistry and the gelling of a team is arguably more important than point production. There are many issues with this team, yes and are they a playoff team, doubt it, but this season has showed me they are capable of being competitive. I would rather have trouble scoring yet play good defense and help out Binner and Hofer. I think Thomas has been the best forward this year and has taken some good steps. I think its still early and this team needs more time to gel. I think they're in a limbo spot right now but I see no reality where they embrace a deep rebuild.</div></div>

I'd argue that 8 games in they were playing like a bottom five team, and 10 games in they have given some hope that they can be better, but overall I think even if they mesh and find more scoring (how many guys are going over 50 pts, 3?), the defense is the same weak group as last year; and nobody should be surprised if the goaltending falls off the rails, it can happen to any goalie behind any team at any time. Blues have beat the Kraken, Pens, Flames - all off to concerning/slow starts - a tired/injured NJ, and a projected lotto team in MTL. On to the next 10 games where we'll get a better feel.
Forum: Armchair-GM6 nov. 2023 à 13 h 4
Forum: Armchair-GM6 nov. 2023 à 12 h 58
Sujet: 10 Game Progress Report
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>TheEarthmaster</b></div><div>Binnington has been impressive. I was critical of him last year. Obviously the defense was bad but I felt Binnington had to shoulder some of the blame. I don't know how much the new system changes have really affected the Blues' defensively- I still feel they're very porous and the metrics would back that up. But Binnington is papering over those problems in a way he wasn't the last two years. I gotta give him props. I still don't expect him to be a .920+ goalie for the entire year, but if he's above league average that's a very strong development for a goalie that they're paying above league average.

With the offense, I really do think people (maybe including the Blues' front staff) really bought into Vrana/Kapanen/Blais' end of season performances, and ignored the elevated shooting percentages. They were good low cost bets to bring in, but were they a replacement for what Tarasenko and O"Reilly and Barbashev might have brought? I admit even I thought Vrana would be playing a lot better than he has been. I think Hayes is still finding his way, but I do think he's a perfectly serviceable 3C. 3x3.5 for a 3C is not bad.

The big problem with Hayes is that his role is redundant on the team because Schenn is playing like a 3C himself, at least at 5v5. I love his energy, I love what he brings to the table, I think it was a slam dunk to make him Captain. But he's looked over-exposed in the 2C spot this season. I hope it's just a slow start. He's currently on pace for less than 40 points.

I think where the offense has really suffered has been Kyrou. Yes he's been snakebitten. But everyone screaming about how bad he was defensively (on a team with two goalies below .900 and one of the worst defenses in the league) I think failed to consider that if we go down that road with him he might just be a player that ends up good at nothing. His defense has been better, but it's not anything spectacular. And now he's also not scoring. Again, maybe he's starting slow (and he's playing a lot of minutes with Schenn). You don't add a new dimension to your game overnight. But if this holds all year- is it going to have been worth it to turn your 8million dollar 30 goal scorer into a mediocre two way player?</div></div>

IMO the major problem with Hayes is that there are 2 more years after this one. Even if he can find enough game to excel in the 3C role, is he going to be yet another immovable, declining asset holding the team back until 2027? Because the other "freebie" acquisitions are gone after this year (fingers crossed Army doesn't start another contract extension party). They aren't here and ready now, but Snuggerud, Dean, Bolduc all need to get NHL time in the next couple years and they have Dvorsky and Stenberg that should be ready soon after.

I tend to agree with you on Kyrou - it scares me how many people think he needs to be a Selke guy to be valuable - although I think there is a happy medium where he backchecks without sacrificing all of his offense solely because of his skating. He can get himself to a lot of spots on the ice to disrupt things and still get up the ice on attack. I think it comes down to the mental side, knowing where to be, where the puck is going, etc. - and maybe this is a dissenting opinion but I do think those type of things are teachable.
Forum: Armchair-GM6 nov. 2023 à 12 h 39
Sujet: 10 Game Progress Report
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>mokumboi</b></div><div>I need to run a few errands now (does bisuits and gravy count as an errand?), so I will comment more later... but bruh... climb down off the ledge and pull your head from the oven. They have a winning record and suddenly just remembered how to play Blues hockey this past weekend and a couple of their best players haven't even shown up yet. Bottom five is some major pessimism overload.</div></div>

Nah, I'm not on the ledge, I'm just calling it how I see it. They are extremely lucky to get 11 points from the first 10 games. They get outshot every night and can't score goals. They can't defend even when the entire gameplan is to play defense. One (really good) game vs MTL and the other vs NJ on a travel-heavy back to back with no Hughes or Hischier isn't enough to convince me they're good. On to the next 10 games.
Forum: Armchair-GM6 nov. 2023 à 11 h 35
Sujet: 10 Game Progress Report
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>xercuses</b></div><div>Dean simply isn’t ready
Him and Bolduc haven’t looked impressive in the AHL at all

They will be fine but I wouldn’t trade Hayes until we are confident they can take over

Also the Defense desperately needs a hanifin type dman to compliment Faulk and Parayko

I’d like to see but next season, Vrana, Kappy, Saad, Bortz, Krug, Leddy moved out and have the young guys start to take over
I’d like to keep blais and Alexandrov as our 13th 4th Fwds and Tucker as our 7th dman

Also we need a true shutdown guy in that 3RD role. Maybe a guy like Schenn</div></div>

Yeah I was really just showing what the team could look like if they do a hard sell at the deadline. Def wouldn't bring up Dean/Duc until then, if at all.

Buying out Krug and signing Hanifin would be a fun move if they think they can keep it going with this core. That's something I could see happening.
Forum: Armchair-GM16 oct. 2023 à 13 h 54
Sujet: Shuffle the Defense Deck
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>mokumboi</b></div><div>Okay, first of all, Krug has been god awful the first two games while Leddy has actually been fantastic. So I have no idea how this helps anything.</div></div>

Don't you "first of all" me! The only D who has been passable IMO is Parayko - he has been really strong back there. Really I can't believe they've kept 4-55 together after the atrocities they committed last season. I don't know why they think it has to be like that. Same with Krug-Faulk, they get the easy minutes and get to play mostly with the top F line and still don't know what to do. Long overdue for a changeup the way I see it.

The other weird thing is playing the bottom pair 10 min per game. I thought the simplest way to improve the D - since they didn't/couldn't change personnel - would be to spread out the 5v5 minutes a little more. It's early but they moved the other way so far...