Drakkar @ Wildcats - October 11 / 07

[curtis]

I fully agree with digitalman regarding Eastman....it's too bad he isn't a year younger. I've been disappointed with Pianosi and Barberio thus far, but maybe I was expecting too much, too soon.

There were a few times I thought we chose a poor time for line changes....controlling the puck through the neutral zone, only to chip it deep and change. When you're down 2-0 in the 3rd, shouldn't you try to maintain puck control into the offensive zone? Again, this is coming from someone who doesn't play hockey, and I don't consider myself any more knowledgeable about strategy than a casual fan, but this really looked weird to even me. Can anybody explain or provide insight?

[bauer]

They got to keep it simple everytime they had a shot on goal wich was not very often they had a rebound. I say they need to start playing the players who will give a decent effort every shift more. Macausland is the smallest player on the ice and he finished more hits per shifts than anybody else out there. Sit the players that are only going through the motions and maybe they will want to play once they realize they need to earn their ice time.

5-3 for 1:24 and they don't pass the puck to #61 once??

Keep it Simple shots on goal will go in passes in the corners won't!

[Captain Obvious]

I find they are not attacking like they were last year, they seem to cheat towards defense and not attack the net. Last yaer they skated more and overloaded the puck to gain control and made plays going to the net...maybe just snakebitten the last few games.

[jimmy]

Some thoughts:

- why the hell don't our players move on the PP? When was the last time a point man pinched? The forwards cycled without the puck ... all five men stand with their feet firmly planted in one spot while they don't have the puck ...

- Flynn is known as a smart coach ... why does he insist on trotting out the same six forwards every PP, when NONE of them are being remotely effective ... time to shake things up - juggle the lines (PP and even strength) - maybe give Labelle, MacAusland an opportunity to play PP and on a scoring line for a while ... it is not like the PP could do worse.

- very disappointed with some of the vets last night ... Marquardt is playing with very little intensity ... Cameron is being very sloppy with the puck - needs to make smarter, crisper passes - cut out this blind pass to no one shit he is doing lately ... Pianosi was horrid (not that our other D were much better) - again he just looks sloppy and/or lazy with the puck. Maybe it is time for some of these guys to be rotated into the stands for a game or two as a wake-up call.

- our play in our own zone was pretty good ... they have managed to cobble together a decent team defense out of our collection of FAs and kids on the blueline ... but none of them (except Eastman) are making consistently good plays with the puck ... our break-outs are horrid, as is our play at the points in the offensive end - they are not keeping the puck in, they are not chipping it deep with any success, and they certainly are not making good passes to the forwards - not that any of the forwards are ever in a good position to receive a pass and create a scoring opportunity.

I haven't been this disgusted at a Cats game since the Larue era.

[SteveUL]

I guess I watched a different game than everybody else ... I wasn't pleased with the outcome ... I was frustrated by the lack of offense generated ... but I felt most of our guys worked hard for the entire game ... we were very physical and actually had BC backing off the puck several times. We just don't have the skill to rack up big offense ... and so when we play against a tight defensive team we are in trouble.

WE have very few offensively skilled players ... Mangan and Marquardt are the best ... Mangan shows up every night and works his ass off ... Marquardt is an embarassment. When a team is having trouble scoring or having a run of bad luck ... the veterans need to step up and lead by example ... Mangan does what he can ... Morehouse does what he can but he is a grinder ... Marquardt watches them do what they can. I'd sit Marquardt in the stands for the next game.

Eagles gives you 100% everynight ... he will probably score 30 this year ... but when Matt Eagles is one of your "offensive weapons" you don't have much to work with.

Cameron ... I'm sorry but I've never understood what all the fuss was about him ... I look at him and see just an average Q player ... not sure what separates him from the pack and gets him NHL drafted. I think he'd be better suited as a winger than a center.

Lessard is sort of like Marquardt but with a better work ethic ... big guy that can shoot the puck but not the greatest or fastest skater ... at 18 I like what I see but he won't be counted on to carry the offense anytime soon.

Bezak ... I like the way this kid competes ... we'll consider him still in that adjustment phase and hopefully the offense will come. He isn't blessed with blinding speed (just good speed) and so that limits his ability to be explosive. I can't complain with the effort he brings ... but he doesn't create much in the way of offense.

Brannon and Sill are hard working kids that take the body well but they are grinders ... I don't expect either of them to top 15 goals on the year.

Brown and Macausland are 16 and I expect nothing from them other than learning and developing.

Labelle ... had his best game last night because he was finally willing to work hard in all zones. Last year we would expect that he would be close to a ppg guy this year ... 25 goals perhaps. He won't get that playing 4th line with 16 yr olds and Matt Brenton.

Ted Stephens ... same as Brown and Macausland ... looks good for the future.

Murdoch Maclelland ... if there is ever kid that I want on the ice in the final minute of any period (unless we need to score) its Murdoch ... hard working and smart defensively ... great team guy and I think the early favourite to be captain next year ... assuming he makes it as a 20. But Murdoch is a grinder.

Matt Brenton ... same as Maclelland ... same as Morehouse ... same as Brannon and Sill ... grinder that works his ass off and generates very little offense.

We have too many grinders and not enough skilled players. We play the game along the boards in the offensive zone and rarely get the puck to the front of the net ... hence very few shots.

So ... it might be time to re-evaluate the 20 yr olds ... we need more offense because we just don't have it now. Scratch Marquardt for a game ... and look to add another offensive forward at the expense of Morehouse. I like Morehouse but we have several guys doing the same job he does ... drop Lessard back into the 3rd line and add an offensive forward to the top 2 lines. Or ... add an offensive 20 YO Dman and move Labelle into Lessard's slot.

Marquardt has to wake up and be a leader ... he can change a game by himself with the way we have seen him play in the past. He'll play minor pro all his life until he figures out that hard work wins games.

I don't see the offense improving very much with the group of guys we have ... too many grinders and not enough skill. We also have too many forwards on the roster (and Dmen) and some guys can't get any chemistry going as they are in and out of the lineup.

[gongshow]

As much as the Cats didn't play a good game last night I think alot of credit needs to be given to B-C.....they played an excellent road game,i'm really impressed with their mix of work ethic and skill and for the 1st time that I can remember they have a very disciplined team....it seems like this year teams have finally figured out how to beat Moncton and it's really a simple formula work work work and be disciplined...once teams have that figured out wins will be very hard to come by for the Cats all year because after the outworking teams factor is neutralised they won't win many games on skill.

A few other thoughts-

I really like the play of MacAusland....just the fact that he doesn't even look out of place as a 16 yo who missed a month of the season is impressive,but also his work ethic is incredible ,he's a very solid skater not afraid to throw a hit and has very smooth hands.The thing that scares me though is wether or not he's gonna spend alot of time injured...players with his size that play the game hard like he does are often injury prone....hopefully he won't be.Also i'd have to say that he's quite advanced compared to Matt Brown.

Riopel is good.Basically every game is close because of him...how many times already have we seen Mctn being outshot and outplayed but with the score still 0-0 or 1-0 simply because of Rio.Also I think that a good part of the teams success on defense is because of him.

Defense....everybody knew this year was going to be a tough one for our d-crew but still I can't understand why we have guys like Gomes who are 19 taking away icetime from younger players....I feel better having a Baca or Barberio or Pianosi logging his minutes.Although imo Pianosi hasn't really played well all year and last night was no exception.I think he is overated a little bit and i've thought the same since last year but he's still one of the best we have unfortunately.Also I think too much is expected of Barberio as a 17 yo,so I don't think it's fair to blame him for any of the teams problems.

Matt Marquardt.Is this kid ever gonna realise that he actually could make a living playing hockey if he set his mind to it? He's so frustrating to watch..the kids a 20 yo,his 3rd year in junior hockey and he's 6'4 220 pounds yet at least 3 out of 5 games you can barely notice he's playing...same thing as last year.I was really expecting more from him as he should be a dominating force.Personnally I think he has to lay off the Ayer's convenience hot dogs lol
The sad part is kids like Devon MacAusland would probably kill to be his size.

Quite a few others have been disapointing also mainly Randy Cameron...he was bragged so much last year that you'd think he'd easily be a 60-80 pts player....not quite with the way he's playing he'll be lucky to get 50pts.


I guess that's all for now since I have to go do some real work!

[Sébastien]

I had started a thread about last night's game with the differences I wanted to see with the Cats. Lets take a look.

I want to see the players rotate positions on the ice when puck control is established in the offensive zone during the powerplay. The guys can set it up and they can pass it around, but their feets don't move. You gotta get the oppositions' box to move if you want to create chances![/b]

Absolutely no movement last night, as was very weel demonstrated by the 5 on 3s. The Drakkar didn't have to move at all, their players simply stayed in one position and whenever the Wildcats got the puck, all the shooting lanes were closed, as they were for the previous 10 or even 15 seconds when the players were in the exact same spots. The defense never swtiched, they never tried to bring the umbrella on the 5 on 4 to the other side of the rink.

More toughness from the defense in front of the net. Opposition crashes the net too often without anyone punishing them for it. A message has to be sent. Don't do it in a stupid way that will get you a penalty though. Facewashes acceptable.[/b]

In the 2nd period, a Drakkar player came in full speed and totally filled Riopel with snow while breaking. What did the Wildcats do? Absolutely nothing. They watched him skate away untouched. If looks could kill, I'm sure I would have killed that guy, while the Wildcats would have given him a nice pillow and blankets. Enough said.

Simply put: Shots. The more, the better. Low shots that give rebound opportunities.

WTF is up with this team and keeping the puck so long and not shooting it! Shooting the puck causes the opposing team to scramble down to the net and creates scoring chance. Obviously what they have tried so far hasn't worked. Shoot the puck for heaven's sake!

The defensive box during the pk is too passive. I would like to see them chase a little more and pressure the opposition. If you remain standing like the Wildcats seem to always do, either you will get beaten by a point man who knows his stuff or a team who can pass the puck around like there's no tomorow.[/b]

I have to give credit to the team for this one. The pk was a lot better and there was much more player movement, pressure against Baie-Comeau and such. At least there was an improvement somewhere.

[CrazyJoeDavola]

steveul said:

Marquardt has to wake up and be a leader ... he can change a game by himself with the way we have seen him play in the past. He'll play minor pro all his life until he figures out that hard work wins games.

Marquardt is an interesting character... looked like an elite sniper last year, was the one guy I thought could bury the moose in round 1, as his size and touch around the net was going to be hard for our young defense and goaltending to contain. But he was virtually invisible in that series.

Seems to have carried into this season. Its almost like "40+ goal scorer" went to his head. He came out of the Mem Cup year looking to prove his worth on a scoring line and did... now feels its just going to come naturally maybe.

[Sébastien]

As for my other thoughts of the game.

-Riopel once again played great. This team would be in so much trouble without him it's unreal. He's the goalie I've felt most comfortable backing the team, including Crawford (as he always gave me mild heart attacks, even though he stopped the pucks).

-As it's going right now, Morehouse is a waste of a 20 yo spot. I never expected him to put up many points and that was not why he was staying. His duty was to take care of those "intangibles". Be an intense player. Work hard, be aggressive, be a pest, a pain in the a**, and wake up the team when they're not doing much. So far, I have not seen that. As long as that keeps up, we're finding ourselves short handed in the 20 YO department.

-How the hell does Gomes keep being on the ice for the powerplay? He's horrible enough 5 on 5, how does he get rewarded? I honestly prefer Herr on the ice to Gomes. And that's saying a lot. If we upgrade on our defense, I see him the first in the stands.

-I have not seen one good game from Cameron yet. Usually NHL camps are suposed to make you better and make you realize how far you still have to go. Not think that you've become super human and that you can pass the puck blindly behind you to an opposing player.

-If only Eagles was a couple of inches taller and a couple of pounds heavier. He tries so hard and has the heart of a lion, but he gets pushed off the puck to easily.

-McAusland played great I found. The Q site gives him only 1 hit, but I counted at least 4 or 5 last night. He was always first on the opposition. He's gonna be a great one.

-Labelle played a solid game. I would like to see him tried on the point during the powerplay as he's got a solid slapshot and can get a one-timer off pretty easily. If he keeps like this, he will earn his icetime again.

*****Edit*****
One more thought. I believe last night's game demonstrated the need for Moncton to get a fighter. They got pushed around a lot for most of the game (specially the first half), didn't give the crowd anything to cheer about and there was no atmosphere at the rink because of it. A good fight would have brought the crowd back into it and maybe would have given the players some legs.

[gongshow]

I often wonder why when the crowd is sleeping and the team is trailing by one or two goals why there's never a fight to wake up the crowd....everybody knows fans in Mctn loves the odd fight.....so many times they let the crowd fall asleep basically giving the opposing team an advantage because that's what they want...they don't want the crowd cheering like crazy.I'm sure if we had a fighter Max Morier wouldn't have been acting as tough as he was(coincidentally it was him that snowed Riopel with no reaction).

It's been like that for years and I often wonder if it's not somebody higher up in the organisation(not to name anybody) that doesn't want fighting ruining the "family entertainement"they try to promote.....perfect example would be when Ted Nolan coached...there was basically never any green lights for fighting unless it was to protect a star and trust me when Ted Nolan coached the Buffalo Sabres fighting was a plenty with the likes of may,Ray and Barnaby.Altough we never really needed a fight to wake up the crowd that year with Phil Dupuis and Keith Yandle on the team.

[Captain Obvious]

steveul said:

I guess I watched a different game than everybody else ... I wasn't pleased with the outcome ... I was frustrated by the lack of offense generated ... but I felt most of our guys worked hard for the entire game ... we were very physical and actually had BC backing off the puck several times. We just don't have the skill to rack up big offense ... and so when we play against a tight defensive team we are in trouble.

WE have very few offensively skilled players ... Mangan and Marquardt are the best ... Mangan shows up every night and works his ass off ... Marquardt is an embarassment. When a team is having trouble scoring or having a run of bad luck ... the veterans need to step up and lead by example ... Mangan does what he can ... Morehouse does what he can but he is a grinder ... Marquardt watches them do what they can. I'd sit Marquardt in the stands for the next game.

Eagles gives you 100% everynight ... he will probably score 30 this year ... but when Matt Eagles is one of your "offensive weapons" you don't have much to work with.

Cameron ... I'm sorry but I've never understood what all the fuss was about him ... I look at him and see just an average Q player ... not sure what separates him from the pack and gets him NHL drafted. I think he'd be better suited as a winger than a center.

Lessard is sort of like Marquardt but with a better work ethic ... big guy that can shoot the puck but not the greatest or fastest skater ... at 18 I like what I see but he won't be counted on to carry the offense anytime soon.

Bezak ... I like the way this kid competes ... we'll consider him still in that adjustment phase and hopefully the offense will come. He isn't blessed with blinding speed (just good speed) and so that limits his ability to be explosive. I can't complain with the effort he brings ... but he doesn't create much in the way of offense.

Brannon and Sill are hard working kids that take the body well but they are grinders ... I don't expect either of them to top 15 goals on the year.

Brown and Macausland are 16 and I expect nothing from them other than learning and developing.

Labelle ... had his best game last night because he was finally willing to work hard in all zones. Last year we would expect that he would be close to a ppg guy this year ... 25 goals perhaps. He won't get that playing 4th line with 16 yr olds and Matt Brenton.

Ted Stephens ... same as Brown and Macausland ... looks good for the future.

Murdoch Maclelland ... if there is ever kid that I want on the ice in the final minute of any period (unless we need to score) its Murdoch ... hard working and smart defensively ... great team guy and I think the early favourite to be captain next year ... assuming he makes it as a 20. But Murdoch is a grinder.

Matt Brenton ... same as Maclelland ... same as Morehouse ... same as Brannon and Sill ... grinder that works his ass off and generates very little offense.

We have too many grinders and not enough skilled players. We play the game along the boards in the offensive zone and rarely get the puck to the front of the net ... hence very few shots.

So ... it might be time to re-evaluate the 20 yr olds ... we need more offense because we just don't have it now. Scratch Marquardt for a game ... and look to add another offensive forward at the expense of Morehouse. I like Morehouse but we have several guys doing the same job he does ... drop Lessard back into the 3rd line and add an offensive forward to the top 2 lines. Or ... add an offensive 20 YO Dman and move Labelle into Lessard's slot.

Marquardt has to wake up and be a leader ... he can change a game by himself with the way we have seen him play in the past. He'll play minor pro all his life until he figures out that hard work wins games.

I don't see the offense improving very much with the group of guys we have ... too many grinders and not enough skill. We also have too many forwards on the roster (and Dmen) and some guys can't get any chemistry going as they are in and out of the lineup.

Since when is having a 30 goal scorer among your top forwards a bad thing?

[Captain Obvious]

crazyjoedevola said:

steveul said:

Marquardt has to wake up and be a leader ... he can change a game by himself with the way we have seen him play in the past. He'll play minor pro all his life until he figures out that hard work wins games.

Marquardt is an interesting character... looked like an elite sniper last year, was the one guy I thought could bury the moose in round 1, as his size and touch around the net was going to be hard for our young defense and goaltending to contain. But he was virtually invisible in that series.

Seems to have carried into this season. Its almost like "40+ goal scorer" went to his head. He came out of the Mem Cup year looking to prove his worth on a scoring line and did... now feels its just going to come naturally maybe.

Marquardt has a lot of Mike Ryder in him, he can score 10 in 5 games then only score 1 the next 10 games, very inconsistant.

[hockey1981]

Last Yr, a lot of people complained about Welton & Macdonald, boy do I wish one of them 2 was here this year to help our PP

[Captain Obvious]

hockey1981 said:

Last Yr, a lot of people complained about Welton & Macdonald, boy do I wish one of them 2 was here this year to help our PP

Most of the people who complained are clueless...the knowledgeable fans knew the cats had 3(with Bourdon) of the top 15-d-men in the QMJHL.

[sec21critic]

billy said:

steveul said:

I guess I watched a different game than everybody else ... I wasn't pleased with the outcome ... I was frustrated by the lack of offense generated ... but I felt most of our guys worked hard for the entire game ... we were very physical and actually had BC backing off the puck several times. We just don't have the skill to rack up big offense ... and so when we play against a tight defensive team we are in trouble.

WE have very few offensively skilled players ... Mangan and Marquardt are the best ... Mangan shows up every night and works his ass off ... Marquardt is an embarassment. When a team is having trouble scoring or having a run of bad luck ... the veterans need to step up and lead by example ... Mangan does what he can ... Morehouse does what he can but he is a grinder ... Marquardt watches them do what they can. I'd sit Marquardt in the stands for the next game.

Eagles gives you 100% everynight ... he will probably score 30 this year ... but when Matt Eagles is one of your "offensive weapons" you don't have much to work with.

Cameron ... I'm sorry but I've never understood what all the fuss was about him ... I look at him and see just an average Q player ... not sure what separates him from the pack and gets him NHL drafted. I think he'd be better suited as a winger than a center.

Lessard is sort of like Marquardt but with a better work ethic ... big guy that can shoot the puck but not the greatest or fastest skater ... at 18 I like what I see but he won't be counted on to carry the offense anytime soon.

Bezak ... I like the way this kid competes ... we'll consider him still in that adjustment phase and hopefully the offense will come. He isn't blessed with blinding speed (just good speed) and so that limits his ability to be explosive. I can't complain with the effort he brings ... but he doesn't create much in the way of offense.

Brannon and Sill are hard working kids that take the body well but they are grinders ... I don't expect either of them to top 15 goals on the year.

Brown and Macausland are 16 and I expect nothing from them other than learning and developing.

Labelle ... had his best game last night because he was finally willing to work hard in all zones. Last year we would expect that he would be close to a ppg guy this year ... 25 goals perhaps. He won't get that playing 4th line with 16 yr olds and Matt Brenton.

Ted Stephens ... same as Brown and Macausland ... looks good for the future.

Murdoch Maclelland ... if there is ever kid that I want on the ice in the final minute of any period (unless we need to score) its Murdoch ... hard working and smart defensively ... great team guy and I think the early favourite to be captain next year ... assuming he makes it as a 20. But Murdoch is a grinder.

Matt Brenton ... same as Maclelland ... same as Morehouse ... same as Brannon and Sill ... grinder that works his ass off and generates very little offense.

We have too many grinders and not enough skilled players. We play the game along the boards in the offensive zone and rarely get the puck to the front of the net ... hence very few shots.

So ... it might be time to re-evaluate the 20 yr olds ... we need more offense because we just don't have it now. Scratch Marquardt for a game ... and look to add another offensive forward at the expense of Morehouse. I like Morehouse but we have several guys doing the same job he does ... drop Lessard back into the 3rd line and add an offensive forward to the top 2 lines. Or ... add an offensive 20 YO Dman and move Labelle into Lessard's slot.

Marquardt has to wake up and be a leader ... he can change a game by himself with the way we have seen him play in the past. He'll play minor pro all his life until he figures out that hard work wins games.

I don't see the offense improving very much with the group of guys we have ... too many grinders and not enough skill. We also have too many forwards on the roster (and Dmen) and some guys can't get any chemistry going as they are in and out of the lineup.

Since when is having a 30 goal scorer among your top forwards a bad thing?

When he should be a 50 goal man instead.