pi2000

They should play for each other. They should feel guilty when they lose. They should play hard for ROR because he's their teammate and he hates to lose. What? You just said he should call out his teammates in the media.... ...should he call out his teammates in private locker room discourse? Yeah, if it's warranted... maybe he has. Maybe some guys tune him out and just want to collect a paycheck. Maybe if Housley called guys out, he wouldn't have to. Maybe if Housley benched some of these clowns once in a blue moon, they'd feel they need to play harder to save their careers.

You don't call out your own teammates in the media.... that's a surefire way to alienate yourself in the locker room. By taking blame and saying he needs to be better, is a great example. If everybody on the team had that attitude they'd have much better results.

He hates losing more than anyone and takes blame, always pointing the finger at himself before anyone else. That's a great leader. Put a guy with that attitude in an atmosphere where his teammates accept loses and the coach is OK with it... that sounds like a living hell. If we're talking a 20 game beer league season, yeah it's doable to keep your chin up for a couple months. Stretch that out over an 82 game season and it becomes a serious drag mentally and emotionally for a guy like him.

Can't believe how many here are raking him over the coals for giving his honest opinion. He obviously hates losing and this season was hard on him. Fans often lose sight of the fact these are real people who feel real emotions and expect them to just be able to handle every situation. Maybe if more teammates (and coaches) hated losing as much as he did, they wouldn't be in this situation.

Can you point me to one post (besides mine) that says to fire Phil right now? Every post I read say he should be fired early next season if they don't improve. 90% of this board was begging for Bylsma to be canned back in March last year, nobody wanted to give him a chance with an improved roster and healthy Eichel.

Yeah everybody was fine with Bylsma in April of his first season because they improved by 27 points. His second yearz without Eichel for almost half the season, they drop 3 points in the standings and he gets run out of town. Enter Housley with an improved roster and playoff bubble expectations... boom, a 16 point drop... but sure, let's keep him around.

I agree. That said, I've seen nothing to suggest Housley deserves the chance to continue coaching this team. If his name was Dan Bylsma instead of Phil Housley people would be clamoring for him to be fired. But since he's a former Sabre, hall-of-famer, came from a successful Nashville organization, etc... he gets a free pass. Mind-boggling. If he somehow turns this team around next season, I'll happily eat crow, but my money is on another slow start, same excuses, he'll praise their effort, etc. etc... and it will be another lost season before we hit Thanksgiving. Yay.

Failed top 6 players... Josefson Pouliot Girgensons ...all 1st rounders. I'd throw Moulson and Pominville in that group as well, not as failed top sixers but overage players who can't fill a bottom 6 role because of their inability to defend.

The league is going flip back to a heavy game soon. Just be yourself the best you can, don't try to be a player you're not. Do what got you there. With all these guys trying to get lighter and faster, the league will be ripe for a big strong team to bully their way to the Cup. I say get out ahead of the curve. Bring back Bylsma and load up on big physical players that teams are willing to giveaway for next to nothing.

I like all of this. I have a man crush on Barrie, but no way is COL trading him. He lead all defensemen in PPG this season... a monster season after signing a nice bridge type deal (that he deserves btw, plus minus be damned! haha). Prototypical PP QB, ha 30 points on the power play... which allows me to overlook his negative PM. I'd trade Reinhart and Nylander for him straight up.... but COL won't even consider it. You're spot on about the bottom 6. I said it last off-season, this team won't improve until they fix the bottom 6. They need players who can chip offensively and know how to defend. The current group are castaway top 6 players who can't defend worth and we're launched from other teams because they failed to live up to expectations offensively. Again, thus was a massive blunder by JBOTs and Housley to just wipe the slate clean and ignore the hours of film on these guys. Wasted season is the result.

nope

Nylander was a bust two seasons ago. And he's still a bust. The longer they wait to trade him, the less valuable he is. It's time to cut bait. Why is everyone so enamored with him? If he was drafted in 5th round he be buried in the minors, which is where he belongs. He's done nothing to deserve a look over guys like Blackwell and Gill.

8 players sent down.. Nelson Guhle Ullmark Nylander Wilcox Tennyson Baptiste Porter Rodrigues would need to clear waivers I think, and Mittlestadt is banned from the league for being too good.

This is nothing new... it was evident in training camp and pre-season. And here we are. https://forums.sabrespace.com/topic/25237-phil-housley-your-feelings-after-preseason/?do=findComment&comment=981222 "I've seen nothing from this preseason to suggest Housley has them on the right path. Guys like ROR, Eichel, etc... sleep-walking through pre-season games, ragged scrambley d-zone play, giving up odd man rush after odd man rush. Lack of effort and focus... and all Housley has done is heap praise on this group for their work ethic.... well, I for one, don't see any amount of work ethic from anybody."

Took my 12y/o son to see it last week.... good movie.

This is horrifying. Having logged many miles on team buses, this is just unfathomable... Had some close calls traveling around the north east in the winter, but this is just something you never really think about when you're on the bus with your teammates hanging out playing cards, studying, or just enjoying each others company. Terrible tragedy.

And just like that, he's a -15. -10 in his last 5 games. Still has a positive TRpm tho...

Nelson is fools gold. He's serviceable depth at best, he's not an NHL top 4 pairing talent. It's just an illusion because he's on such a bad team.

That was not a well played hockey game by either team. Careless turnovers, sloppy defense, and terrible puck managment. It might be entertaining for the casual fan, but that's not how you win hockey games.

Larsson, Girgensons, Bogosian, Moulson, Gorges... all should have been moved/waived/bought-out last summer. We all knew that... but JBOTs have everyone a clean slate. What swell thing to do, everybody gets a free pass. Now here we are one year behind on the rebuild because he didn't have the guts as a rookie GM to move veterans.

I disagree. He's a very solid starter when healthy.

Just some friendly advice, don't attack the poster, attack the post. I didn't pick 3 random dudes. Those 4 goalies all had better sv% this year in the AHL. They have failed as NHL starters. My response was to dark, who said Ullmark posted career high sv% this season, which is nice but his numbers aren't any better than those 4 guys I mentioned who have failed as NHL starters recently. My point is that we need to pump the brakes on the thought of Ullmark as the answer in net next season.

13th in GAA and 7th in sv% in the AHL doesn't exactly scream NHL starter to me. Some goalies with better sv%.... Garrett Sparks Michael Hutchinson Reto Berra Calvin Pickard ...these guys have failed as NHL starters.

I'll take two half pumps of caramel.

It started in preseason they looked uninterested, lazy, no sense of urgency and it carried into October and through Christmas before they showed a pulse for a bit then flatlined down the stretch. I've seen absolutly nothing from Housley that suggests he did anything remotely positive. Next season is a wash if he's still around.