Well, Wilson's first job was to get Sanheim going. Check.
His next job is to "fix" Provy.
Seriously, something's being going on with Provy all season, and it's not good.
He's been noticeably worse with the puck and he doesn't seem as physical to me.
It's possible that he has an overhang from the bad should injury in game five of the playoffs.
It's possible that a certain defense coach who's no longer around was screwing with his game.
My pet theory is that he's playing with a cut-down stick this season and it's messed with his puck handling and, as a result, his confidence.
After the game in Anaheim, I posted this:
"Speaking of Provy, I have a theory about his early season problems with the puck. It sure looks to me that he's using a cut-down stick. The last time the boys were in Anaheim I looked at their stick rack during warm-ups. Provy's stick was the tallest on the team. Last night he was using a stick that was average in length; just slightly longer than Gudas and shorter than Hägg, Sanheim and Folin. In warm-ups, Provy spent most of his time at center ice working on his puck-handling. During that time, I didn't see the distinctive "raised right elbow" that was so much a part of his look during his first two years in the League. Have you guys read anything about this? If accurate, an interview with Provy about the change would be interesting."
I could be off base on this, but I'd love for a guy like Meltzer, or Isaac, to do some digging and report on what exactly is going on with our Russian machine.
