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Post by Penguins23® on Jan 23, 2023 13:14:17 GMT -4
Consider this my Monday storm blues rant...
Wtf was that yesterday? I don't mind losses but that effort was mostly terrible. Labelle, Loshing and a few others played well but we had some good players have some bad games.
Hamel and Morin, the top D pair, were on the ice for all 5 goals against(2 while on the PK) I don't recall any goals being their fault but still disappointing.
Beaudoin, not even sure what to say. Worst game I've seen from any Cats player since Noah Massie. If you weren't at the game, go look at the highlights. Two goals(#3 and #4) were a direct result of his turnovers. In fact, the 4th goal he turned it over, the Sags gained the zone and the Cats got it back but Beaudoin coughed it up right in the slot.
I'm not one to name drop players after bad games but he's a 20 year old/veteran and even if his parents are reading this, anyone that watched the game knows he had a brutal game. He also had a offensive zone penalty which is never good.
Again, I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed.(Cliché I know) They seem to get out worked a lot which is really surprising considering Lacroix is known to get the most out of his guys. The D is young but this forward group probably has 10-11 really solid players that I'd feel comfortable throwing out there against any line in the league. They just need to bring the same energy that the visitors are brining in. Chicoutimi was on a 3 in 3 but you couldn't tell. They were skating, they were engaged. The way they were celebrating blocked shots, you would have thought it was a game 7.
Some games this team makes me think they could scare a contender and other games I think they'll surely get swept, maybe even in the first round.
That's all for today. Sorry for being cranky.
Go Cats Go!
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Post by jimmy on Jan 23, 2023 13:24:06 GMT -4
Consider this my Monday storm blues rant... Wtf was that yesterday? I don't mind losses but that effort was mostly terrible. Labelle, Loshing and a few others played well but we had some good players have some bad games. Hamel and Morin, the top D pair, were on the ice for all 5 goals against(2 while on the PK) I don't recall any goals being their fault but still disappointing. Beaudoin, not even sure what to say. Worst game I've seen from any Cats player since Noah Massie. If you weren't at the game, go look at the highlights. Two goals(#3 and #4) were a direct result of his turnovers. In fact, the 4th goal he turned it over, the Sags gained the zone and the Cats got it back but Beaudoin coughed it up right in the slot. I'm not one to name drop players after bad games but he's a 20 year old/veteran and even if his parents are reading this, anyone that watched the game knows he had a brutal game. He also had a offensive zone penalty which is never good. Again, I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed.(Cliché I know) They seem to get out worked a lot which is really surprising considering Lacroix is known to get the most out of his guys. The D is young but this forward group probably has 10-11 really solid players that I'd feel comfortable throwing out there against any line in the league. They just need to bring the same energy that the visitors are brining in. Chicoutimi was on a 3 in 3 but you couldn't tell. They were skating, they were engaged. The way they were celebrating blocked shots, you would have thought it was a game 7. Some games this team makes me think they could scare a contender and other games I think they'll surely get swept, maybe even in the first round. That's all for today. Sorry for being cranky. Go Cats Go! Could Lacroix be on borrowed time? |
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Post by Penguins23® on Jan 23, 2023 14:57:05 GMT -4
My post was definitely not meant to bring any light to the job Lacroix has done and I'm not blaming him.
Overall I’m happy with what the Cats look like on paper. I’d just like to see a more consistent effort. Hats of to Labelle, Loshing and Mercier though, they never take a game off.
Cats are 4-6 at home against Quebec teams. Most of which had played the night before plus travelled anywhere from 10-20 hours in the days before the game.
Somehow, they come to Moncton and have more energy than the Wildcats. They only managed double digit shots in 3 of the 10 first periods which is meh. On the other side they had first periods of 2,3 and 4 shots as well.
Here's a quick recap:
Val Dor – 5-4 OT Win – Got dominated the first two periods, played better in the 3rd to get the lead but then blew it in the last minute. Loshing won it in OT.
Gatineau -4-2 Win – Nothing bad to say here. Gatineau lacked discipline and Moncton went 2/7 on the PP which was the difference.
Baie Comeau – 4-3 Loss – Not a terrible game but the Cats had 5 days of rest. BC travelled to Halifax and played the night before.
Blainville – 8-5 Win – Cats got outplayed and outworked in the first 2 periods but had a big third period with 4 goals for the win.
Drummondville – 5-2 Loss – Terrible game. Only managed 22 shots on goal. Had 10 shots over the last 2 periods.
Rouyn – Noranda – 4-2 Loss – Terrible game. Only managed 15 shots on goal. Best period had 6 shots on goal.
Victoriaville – 3-2 SO Loss – Essentially a tie. Don’t think that’s a terrible result against a good team but Victo had a lot of miles. They played CB-PEI-Moncton in 4 days after travelling from Victo.
Rimouski – 5-1 Win – Good all around game. Can’t complain about this one.
Quebec 4-2 Loss – Didn’t see it but essentially a 1 goal loss against one of the top teams in the country.
And then this stinker against Chicoutimi to cap things off.
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Post by catzfans on Jan 23, 2023 21:39:02 GMT -4
My post was definitely not meant to bring any light to the job Lacroix has done and I'm not blaming him. Overall I’m happy with what the Cats look like on paper. I’d just like to see a more consistent effort. Hats of to Labelle, Loshing and Mercier though, they never take a game off. Cats are 4-6 at home against Quebec teams. Most of which had played the night before plus travelled anywhere from 10-20 hours in the days before the game. Somehow, they come to Moncton and have more energy than the Wildcats. They only managed double digit shots in 3 of the 10 first periods which is meh. On the other side they had first periods of 2,3 and 4 shots as well. Here's a quick recap: Val Dor – 5-4 OT Win – Got dominated the first two periods, played better in the 3rd to get the lead but then blew it in the last minute. Loshing won it in OT. Gatineau -4-2 Win – Nothing bad to say here. Gatineau lacked discipline and Moncton went 2/7 on the PP which was the difference. Baie Comeau – 4-3 Loss – Not a terrible game but the Cats had 5 days of rest. BC travelled to Halifax and played the night before. Blainville – 8-5 Win – Cats got outplayed and outworked in the first 2 periods but had a big third period with 4 goals for the win. Drummondville – 5-2 Loss – Terrible game. Only managed 22 shots on goal. Had 10 shots over the last 2 periods. Rouyn – Noranda – 4-2 Loss – Terrible game. Only managed 15 shots on goal. Best period had 6 shots on goal. Victoriaville – 3-2 SO Loss – Essentially a tie. Don’t think that’s a terrible result against a good team but Victo had a lot of miles. They played CB-PEI-Moncton in 4 days after travelling from Victo. Rimouski – 5-1 Win – Good all around game. Can’t complain about this one. Quebec 4-2 Loss – Didn’t see it but essentially a 1 goal loss against one of the top teams in the country. And then this stinker against Chicoutimi to cap things off. How did the young D look Grenier/Fortier-Gendron? I'd like to see them start to get more minutes. It seems like Hamel and Morin have been on the ice for an awful lot of goals in the last few games. |
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Post by jimmy on Jan 29, 2023 11:22:48 GMT -4
Pretty embarrassing effort last night getting blown out at home in front of a big crowd by a last place team. Way too many break downs in their own end.
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Post by lirette on Jan 29, 2023 13:37:29 GMT -4
Pretty embarrassing effort last night getting blown out at home in front of a big crowd by a last place team. Way too many break downs in their own end. When a week passes and absolutely nothing changes from last sunday. you have to wonder if today is Lacroixs last game. Not something I would have thought I'd ever say a few months ago. |
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Post by Penguins23® on Jan 29, 2023 15:04:34 GMT -4
Yup. Another terrible effort against an inferior(on paper and in the standings) opponent. 6 shots in the first period. Good way to set the tone.
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Post by xcaper on Jan 29, 2023 19:05:05 GMT -4
After the Quebec game things went bad, mainly because of soft passes and weak attempts clearing the puck. In late December and early January they were aggressive on the puck, playing physical and nice crisp passing, they look like a different team out there now. Also, as much as I like what Daniel brings to the team, he is not a goal scorer and should not have been on the ice when the Cats had a 6 on 4 last night with the goaltender pulled and a power play. Player selection on the power play needs to be a lot better.
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Post by catzfans on Jan 29, 2023 19:33:40 GMT -4
Now what? Can you fire the coach this late? Is it too reactionary to blame the coaching or is this just a slump?
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Post by jimmy on Jan 30, 2023 11:23:21 GMT -4
Now what? Can you fire the coach this late? Is it too reactionary to blame the coaching or is this just a slump? Not sure what you do in the short term ... I would need to see/know more about the behind the scenes. That said - Lacroix strikes me as an OK coach - no more, no less ... sort of league average. Not sure I can envision him being the guy who leads us to our next championship. My sense is that we see a change sometime in the next 12 months - whether that is this week, the offseason, or mid-season next year, who knows. |
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Post by lirette on Jan 30, 2023 11:41:51 GMT -4
Now what? Can you fire the coach this late? Is it too reactionary to blame the coaching or is this just a slump? Not sure what you do in the short term ... I would need to see/know more about the behind the scenes. That said - Lacroix strikes me as an OK coach - no more, no less ... sort of league average. Not sure I can envision him being the guy who leads us to our next championship. My sense is that we see a change sometime in the next 12 months - whether that is this week, the offseason, or mid-season next year, who knows. The weird thing is, he had the 2019-2020 team rolling on all cylinders prior to the shut down. They were looking pretty much unbeatable. Now was that just the makeup of the team being so good that it didn't matter who coached? There was also some great leaders on that team like Pelletier, Hudson etc. Then he had teams in the last couple years playing above what I felt their roster was, this year though I'm not sure if he's just checked out or what's going on but he's has been making next to no adjustments despite the team looking terrible the past few weeks. They've been rolling out the same powerplay setup every game, same d pairings. Then doing weird desperation moves like changes goalies against SJ. Guys are making bone headed plays and seem to face no reduction in icetime. This is a roster that should be beating SJ, CB, and looking much better against a tired Chicoutimi team. My worry is if they just roll with Hepditch the rest of the year I can't really see much changing, but then who's even out there to hire that would be a quality coach. I doubt Bruce Boudreau wants to come coach a major junior team and ride a bus the rest of the winter. Either way, I just don't see how you can head into this quebec road trip with the same makeup of this team and not just get blown out for 3 games. There is a big cone of silence around the Wildcats, so everyone's just left to speculate based on zero information. All we get is generic Facebook interviews from Lacroix saying everyone's trying their best and they aren't getting bounces. |
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Post by WhiteTyAffair on Jan 30, 2023 12:48:30 GMT -4
No quotes from Coach Lacroix in the T&T following yesterday's game but there was after Saturday night.
No Lacroix in the Wildcats post-game video on YouTube following yesterday's game but there was after Saturday night.
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Post by Penguins23® on Jan 31, 2023 10:26:23 GMT -4
I appreciate people trying to create some smoke regarding the coaching situation but I can't see a change happening this season and probably not during the off-season either.
As others have noted, while the team is playing very uninspiring hockey right now, they have shown some flashes throughout the season. Lacroix's previous season have also been mostly above expectations. I don't think he's done enough for Irving to want to pull the plug.
Really curious to see how this road trip is going to go. The tougher the opponent, the more inspired they seem to play so while looking at pure results you would expect them to get blown out tomorrow night but I have a feeling they will play Gatineau tight and maybe even sneak out a point.
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Post by Captain Obvious on Jan 31, 2023 10:30:00 GMT -4
I appreciate people trying to create some smoke regarding the coaching situation but I can't see a change happening this season and probably not during the off-season either. As others have noted, while the team is playing very uninspiring hockey right now, they have shown some flashes throughout the season. Lacroix's previous season have also been mostly above expectations. I don't think he's done enough for Irving to want to pull the plug. Really curious to see how this road trip is going to go. The tougher the opponent, the more inspired they seem to play so while looking at pure results you would expect them to get blown out tomorrow night but I have a feeling they will play Gatineau tight and maybe even sneak out a point. I think in general, the team has over achieved other than in nets(Filion) which can't be blamed on the HC. They don't have a bunch of a stars and the team is pretty young. The recent slump could be the team just hitting a wall after all the post WJHC games. |
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