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 Kr55
Messages: 9963
Registered: May 2002
Location: Edmonton
6 Cups
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It's hard to evaluate a team when they are not only allowing endless golden chances against on the rush, but also the goalie is letting them in almost every time. Just skews all the stats. Teams that know amazing chances will be given up by totally inept defending, they will start to wait for them. And if you're constantly chasing, you're always bring score effects into play to make yourselves look better possession wise.
I think Woody was flailing hard after Cassidy spanked him. The weird new system announcement, all our players looking completely lost in their own end. Woody and the gang never really recovered. His fixation on getting players to obsess about all their mistakes watching videos didn't really seem to translate to much. We will never know how Woody would evolve though, maybe we will see on another team like McLellan right now, although Todd might keep getting his playoff spankings by opposing coaches. Todd is no stranger to great regular seasons and playoff collapses.
Maybe for the Oilers it's a coach bump, maybe goaltending, maybe luck regression, maybe it's players getting healthy, or maybe it's better systems being practiced. Most likely it's some of all of the above. I will say, I don't think we had the time for Woody to figure out how to not get outmaneuvered in the playoffs. I still can never let go of how ridiculous we looked playing "man on man" and then having to announce to the world our new "zone defense" this season. That's just clown show amateurish stuff. One of the easiest red flags you can get that a coaching staff is flailing. Of course now we're also betting on another NHL newbie.
A convincing win against Minny would be a pretty nice sign that this team has actually turned the corner.
[Updated on: Fri, 08 December 2023 18:57]
"We need to get better immediately. That starts today"
- Lowe, 2013
"Next year I would forecast as another developmental year"
- MacT, 2015
5 x $5,000,000
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