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Ste_Catherine_Street

Membre depuis
19 juin 2019
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Canadiens de Montréal
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Forum: Armchair-GM11 août 2023 à 15 h 0
Sujet: oilers 24 25
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>Ste_Catherine_Street</b></div><div>Not sure why you bolded the fact I'm a Hab fan, but ok.
Your argument for more experienced 3rd pairing D makes sense for sure. I don't think you and I will agree on the quality of Kulak though. I dont remember the specific games, but I do remember he got turned and tripped over himself twice leading to goals last year. He is very bad in front of the net taking the sticks away (like he was in Mtl) and he gets outmuscled more easily compared to others. IMO it's a glaring mistake. Personally I don't think he's good enough but I can see why you would disagree.
A little more context, Mtl has had dmen that are horrible in front of their net. It cost us Price's prime and one of them was even at fault for his serious knee injury that ended his career. I notice that Edm and Mtl have the same weakness in developing their dmen to clear the front of the net.
But like I say, Edm fans don't agree with me ever.</div></div>
I bolded it to make sure that point wasn't missed as that's an entirely valid view to hold for a rebuilding team filled to the brim with young LD trying to make it in the league. No toxic double-meaning or anything :)

I don't see Kulak as being uniquely guilty of such mistakes. Does it happen? Absolutely. Does it happen at an irregularly high rate? Not in my extensive viewings of him. There were two or three times in a short span (at the beginning of the season IIRC) where he quite dramatically tripped over himself while pivoting and trying to chase an winger in full flight but those didn't end up being signals of a coming trend, but were instead isolated instances of poor choices/execution leading to dangerous chances/goals. On the whole, he's a genuinely good skater that typically does very well defending off the rush.

As for your comment regarding his net front defense, again I don't see it how you do. I saw approximately average ability in netfront battles. Maybe his time in MTL was different. However, given you employed all of Chiarot, Weber, and Edmundson within the timeframe that Kulak played in MTL, maybe your D corps was simply above average in that respect and, by comparison, he stood out as only average (or perhaps even below average). However, even if I were to accept your assertion that he's bad net front, that's not all there is to defending. Puck retrievals, puck battles on the boards, in-zone positioning, stick positioning (whether in-zone or one the rush), puck transitions, etc are all dimensions of defensive play that matter and Kulak tends to fare well in most of them. In fact, most statistical models and microstat trackers seem to align on Kulak's strengths being in his own end.

Regarding EDM's weakness netfront, I'm not sure how much is inability of EDM's defense and how much is coached. Prior to a change in mid-to-late January, EDM Dmen had quite a tendency to chase opponents behind the net more frequently than many other teams and there seemed to be something about it that was systemic. Swapping Barrie for Ekholm certainly helped, but even just calling up Desharnais made a significant difference so maybe it was a mix of personnel and system.
Forum: Armchair-GM6 juill. 2023 à 13 h 45
Sujet: Not Trading Girard
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>Ste_Catherine_Street</b></div><div>I don't think Girard/Byram can play right side in the playoffs. THey'll get crushed, and they both have serious injury past.</div></div>

This is a good point... I don't necessarily concern myself with injury history too much, because a lot of times injuries are freak things or whatever... but one thing that does happen when you play your weak side, is it makes every play along the boards an awkward play. Some players like TJ Brodie and MacKenzie Weegar are really good at making these plays, but for the most part it results in like an extra half second or so to move the puck... Which is often the difference between getting hit or not getting hit. Over the course of the year, and into the playoffs that takes its toll on the body.

One of the things Girard is really good at is making quick plays to avoid contact... which is crucial at his size... Forcing him to his weak side for extended periods is not ideal for that reason.