October 23, 2014
steve laidlaw
2014-10-23
Fantasy Hockey thoughts on Fleury's vote of confidence, Green vs. Carlson, Anders Lee's arrival and more…
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Following the scary events in Ottawa yesterday the NHL postponed the Senators-Leafs game. I'm sure you all understand that this was the logical move. Stick tap to the NHL for recognizing that. Stick tap to the classy fans and organization in Pittsburgh for singing the Canadian national anthem. Our thoughts are with the people of Ottawa and the friends and family of those affected.
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I was really impressed with Penguins early in this one as they controlled the early play but it wasn't long before they fell back into their old habits against the Flyers. I don't know why the Penguins always seem to devolve into a chip-and-chase game where they chase hits as much as they chase the puck but it always seems to be the case. They are just so caught up with winning the physical battle against the Flyers that they forget that there are other aspects to the game.
The tide had already started to turn by the end of the first period and it tilted fully in the Flyers' favour in the second period with Philadelphia winning the shot battle 17-6. Somehow the Penguins scored the only goal in the second and had things tied up at 2-2. It could have been much worse.
It was much worse in the third but that was mostly because of some turnovers that led to a 4-2 deficit but I'll give them some credit for improving their possession game even as the Flyers moved to clog up the neutral zone and force the dump and chase.
The announcers kept admonishing the efforts of Steve Downie to carry the puck into the offensive zone despite heavy defensive pressure but I applaud it. Gaining the offensive zone cleanly is how you get good offensive chances. Downie eventually recorded an assist on a play where his linemate attempted to gain the line cleanly and the puck was deflected onto his stick and a mini-three-on-two was created.
Ultimately, the Penguins couldn't complete the comeback but I don't mind what they did in the third. Sure, you want to take what the defense gives you but you also can't allow your opponent to dictate the play.
Let's credit the Flyers for a well-executed game plan. I think the Flyers stink and won't make the playoffs but they know how to beat the Penguins. They've now won four in a row against the Penguins and have a 10-1-1 record in the Penguins' new barn.
I swear some of it has to do with a mental block for Marc-Andre Fleury. He does having a winning record against the Flyers (24-16-2-6) but his numbers (not including last night: 2.85 GAA, 0.901 Save%) leave much to be desired. Some of that is because the Flyers have always had a really good offense throughout Fleury's career but some of it is because Fleury turns to scrambled eggs whenever he sees that burnt orange.
Fleury is always something of an adventure when he leaves the crease but he had three horrible plays in this one that could have cost the team. He actually didn't play that horribly last night as most of the goals were on plays where he couldn't have done a lot. But he didn't play well either. Routine saves turned into real battles and he struggled with even staying on his feet.
It doesn't look like the Penguins will consider any other options in goal however. Earlier in the week Penguins' GM Jim Rutherford publicly committed to Fleury long term despite his UFA status:
As long as I’m the general manager, Marc-Andre Fleury will be our goalie.
That's laying it on the line and it's what you have to do as a coach or a GM of a player. Whether we believe him or not is another thing. I for one won't feel confident about Fleury in a keeper league until I see that extension signed.
We should see Thomas Greiss go for the Penguins tonight and he is a legitimate threat to steal starts from Fleury. I do think that Fleury can be and probably should be the long term option for the Penguins but there's always a chance he falters and Greiss is good enough to take the job, at least for a little bit.
What's more likely is Greiss simply sees an expanded role that keeps Fleury's starts down around 55-60, which could be good for his numbers. Of course, we've seen the Penguins bring in a capable backup before in Tomas Vokoun and Vokoun didn't stop Fleury from making over 60 starts.
Two Penguins I was really impressed with last night were Paul Martin and Christian Ehrhoff. Neither one is getting the best opportunity skating as a pairing at evens and on the second power play unit but on this team that's still a very good opportunity. They each went plus-three with an assist giving them two assists apiece so far. That's not explosive production but it is early going. I like both for 40 points if they can remain healthy, which is frequently a problem for Martin.
How do rate this dive by Chris Kunitz?
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Ray Emery had a solid game for the Flyers. He doesn't have the durability to be the Flyers' starter but I would rather see him in goal than Steve Mason if I'm a Flyers fan.
Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek continue their torrid start to the season. After recording two assists each they now have seven apiece. So far Michael Raffl has been their most frequent linemate and while that's a decent fit I'm certain it's the long term fit.
Sean Couturier also had a couple of assists, his first two of the season and added the empty-netter. Lots of hype about this as a breakout season for Couturier but I don't really see it. I don't think this team as a whole is good enough and he's not a top power play unit guy.
Burakovsky surely won't maintain his point-per-game pace as he's skating just second line and second power play unit minutes. You don't score at that pace for 82 games with secondary billing. He is making a case that he should be getting top unit minutes but it's not like the team needs a shakeup there. We'll see if he hits a wall but there's no reason for people to be talking so much about Tanner Pearson's Calder chances and not about Burakovsky's – they are both in similar situations with similar upside. 50 points looks like a real possibility.
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Justin Schultz has goals in back-to-back games now. I really like how active he has been in jumping up into the rush, which is his MO. They key for me in his ability to do so has been the Oilers actually generating a rush these past few games. It's impossible to activate your defensemen when the puck is constantly in your own end. Schultz will start to look better and better the more consistently the Oilers play. Part of that is on Schultz to play a better defensive game but it's not just on him.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has goals in back-to-back games as well. Check out his sick shot on the rush: