K-9

Here’s a thought: what if Adams, the coaches, and all those fragile delicate China dolls of players fully understand MORE THAN WE DO that incompetent goaltending is the number one issue, they accept that in the interim until it can be fixed, but they are committed to concentrating and working on improving their own games in the mean time? They are evaluated on a daily basis and are routinely challenged to improve their own games. Remember a few short weeks ago when everyone here was convinced Cozens was being demoralized and his confidence ruined and he just HAD to be sent down to Rochester? His improvement since Granato challenged him before the Oilers game suggests he isn’t the delicate waif of crumbling confidence we thought he’d turn into. Instead, he adopted a positive attitude, accepted the challenge, and is better for it. I doubt Cozens is the only player like that on this team, either. Mitts and Thompson are two other examples as well. I’m willing to give these guys a collective chance before proclaiming they will forever be scarred psychologically by losing. Maybe, just maybe, they have the mental fortitude to keep working in the face of adversity and are committed to being part of the solution long term.

More comparisons to kids? In classrooms? Is that what these million dollar athletes who’ve played a game all their lives are? Kids in classrooms? Are we partly responsible for helping to create the environments we are in or not? When do our own attitudes, decisions, and behaviors contribute or not? Only when everything is perfect? Feel free to have the last word, but I’m done kicking this dead horse.

From a statistical point of view, yes, I agree entirely. I’m referring to the way they play the game. And yeah, Eichel has done ok in spite of the coaches he’s had; a testament to his talent.

Are people responsible for their own roles in creating positive work environments?

Quite the leap to compare a psychologically damaged kid who was bullied to the point I’m making about highly paid and pampered professional athletes needing to overcome adversity with a positive attitude in the face of it. Just an absurd comparison. Yes, constant failure is bummer and nobody is suggesting it’s easy to overcome for teams, but what is the alternative? To give in to the negativity and fold? Or find the requisite grit to keep working at making it better? Sorry, but I don’t believe in providing built in excuses for players to fail.

I agree that “positive” environments are a good thing. But morale is still a personal choice, regardless. Attitude is always in your own control.

Being demoralized is a choice. If our young players are so delicate and fragile that they choose to be demoralized rather than determined to keep their noses to the grindstone and keep working to turn it around, then perhaps we don’t have the right type of players. Success starts with overcoming adversity and growing from it.

I’d argue he was a notch below MacKinnon. Don’t get me wrong, Eichel is an elite player in his own right, but he doesn’t attack the game with speed at every level like MacKinnon does.

Eichel was never not skating the entire time. When were those videos of him skating with his Bruins buddies in the summer? Let me know when he’s back in pads and actually doing hockey things. And 30%-40% better is the definition of pulling numbers out of your ass.

Good point. We forget how well Dell played in the first five minutes vs the Panthers. He single-handedly prevented the Sabres being down 3-0 before we scored our first goal. But as you point out, that early great play became moot when he couldn’t make a key safe in crunch time. But he had a lot of help from a D that can’t cope with pressure in their own zone.

If the Colts had crushed the Bills, it could have been 75 and sunny and it still would have been a miserable experience.

Malcolm wins

Nine points in the 11 games since Granato challenged him with McDavid. That’s when the light switch came on, imo.

To be fair, that fooled everyone except the Panther who made a helluva play to keep it out of the wide open net.

Is it really, though? I mean, really?

Hagg constantly hesitates with the puck. And all of our D lose their poise when the opponent has three guys below the goal line. It's frustrating as hell to watch night after night.

The pass was better than the move around the wheelchair.

Dylan is growing up right before our very eyes.

I'm more interested in how the team in front of him plays with a three goal lead.

I like to think of it as giving up two field goals instead.

I’m terrible at deciphering D pluses and D minuses, so tell me, is he draft eligible in 2022 or 2023?

God help us all.

He was the epitome of “hockey character.” Something Bogo and Kane were never remotely familiar with.

Outstanding. We will never know the damage done when the unnatural leaders on this team gravitated towards the wrong leadership instead of the right kind of leadership exhibited by Gionta and Gorges and brought those lessons into the room when they took on the leadership roles. I think our new young core will see what actual leadership means. I also think the departed players will be more comfortable as players on their new teams now that they aren’t forced into unnatural leadership roles.