Player Discussion Alain Vigneault: Part III

[Raspewtin]

It's not "so dumb" but I can't really see him being a candidate when the reason why this team is where it is right now is because they're shooting at a high clip which is already starting to come down.

As an AV hater, I thought he had a great October. Forwards were great and he managed the D well (whether it was forced because of injury or not). Even when healthy, he had Girardi on the 3rd pair where he should be and got Clendening some games. Forward combinations for the most part were fine. Didn't like Buch on the 4th line but I understood it based on how everyone was playing (forget if that was October or November). Team was playing well, being aggressive, and controlling play.

November was the exact opposite. Basically a copy of last seasons play and his response to this was constant shuffling of lines (part of it forced by injury but he's insisted on changing combos every game even at the expense of breaking up what works such as Grabner - Hayes - Miller). In a month where they had a ton of games, he played his 7th D one game and that 7th D possesses a skill set this defense drastically needs. He went back to Girardi on the first pair where he's getting annihilated. The team is getting hammered again in terms of possession.

A lot to like from AV in October. A lot to dislike from AV in November.

November has been much more reflective of the AV we have seen the past two years. We're back to what went wrong each of the past two years and that tells me a lot more than AV's attempts at adjustments in the first month of the year. And if a coach makes an adjustment and is as "caught in the headlights" as AV looks to be, then that's even worse.

It's the reason I was not ready to give him a medal after October. We've seen what his comfort zone looks like and there was no reason to believe he would move away from it when all of history indicates he usually doesn't.

 

[True Blue]

Most teams would love to have AV as a coach. Hes also gotten a team that many left for dead this offseason off to a very good start. I dont see whats so LOL worthy about this article, unless of course you let the echo chamber of this board get the best of you.

The LOL part is silly. That said, you are painting an rosy picture. Would AV land another job in the NHL? Of course he would. But right now, the team has the same exact issues as last year, except that it is faster. And last year's team looked an awful lot like the Vancouver team from which he was fired. The teams have adjusted. AV has had trouble making them and has been stubborn about it. This is not to say that he would not find employment, this is to say that there will be teams that pass.

 

[Inferno]

You will never, ever, EVER be able to convince me that zone defense will work with our defense...never.

I just wish av was the one who realized that.

You can't get rid of half the defense...but u can adjust to make their lives easier..... And by adjusting I don't mean..."well since our defenseman suck let's just have the forwards do half their jobs!"

 

[McRanger]

You will never, ever, EVER be able to convince me that zone defense will work with our defense...never.

I just wish av was the one who realized that.

You can't get rid of half the defense...but u can adjust to make their lives easier..... And by adjusting I don't mean..."well since our defenseman suck let's just have the forwards do half their jobs!"

If our D personnel is so bad that zone defense won't work then what exactly are you advocating they change to?

 

[Inferno]

If our D personnel is so bad that zone defense won't work then what exactly are you advocating they change to?

I meant man to man...I swear my blood pressure is probably 500\100 right now with how mad I am...my bad.

 

[Mac n Gs]

I meant man to man...I swear my blood pressure is probably 500\100 right now with how mad I am...my bad.

The scary thing is, we're playing more zone than ever under AV. We're just bad defensively.

 

[DanielBrassard]

Seems like we are playing so much more conservatively. Our defense loses the battle down low, forwards come to help, point is wide open,. Repeat.

 

[Glen Sathers Cigar]

Seems like we are playing so much more conservatively. Our defense loses the battle down low, forwards come to help, point is wide open,. Repeat.

Which I can't stand because that's exactly how we lost the Cup to the Kings. Their entire offensive plan was to cycle low, then kick it to the wide open point and create havoc in front.

Can't stand watching it happen

 

[SnowblindNYR]

Seems like we are playing so much more conservatively. Our defense loses the battle down low, forwards come to help, point is wide open,. Repeat.

It was working in October.

 

[Bleed Ranger Blue]

What's this guy supposed to do with the wasteland that is the right side of the defense? Shockingly, Clendening doesn't look like any sort of answer. The complaining about AV mismanaging the defense becomes more comical by the day when there isn't a single top 4 RD no the roster. While you guys complain on a message board and offer very few acceptable solutions, he actually has to put 3 RD in the lineup each night when every one of them sucks.

 

[McRanger]

Clendening was nothing special but was better than Kleins been in a while.

Call me old fashion but I like coaches who ice the best possible lineup on a nightly basis.

 

[Raspewtin]

Clendening was nothing special but was better than Kleins been in a while.

Call me old fashion but I like coaches who ice the best possible lineup on a nightly basis.

Pretty avant-garde concept there bucko.

 

[Blueshirtforlife*]

Clendening was nothing special but was better than Kleins been in a while.

Call me old fashion but I like coaches who ice the best possible lineup on a nightly basis.

When you have something that works as a coach, like the Miller/Hayes/Grabner line you leave it alone. PERIOD!! This is my biggest criticism of this coach. Plus he is too loyal. Gerardo needs to sit. Lundqvist needs to sit until he finds his form.

Clendening was good last night. The penalty call was soft. With him on the PP the Rangers were 2/2

 

[Irishguy42]

When you have something that works as a coach, like the Miller/Hayes/Grabner line you leave it alone. PERIOD!! This is my biggest criticism of this coach. Plus he is too loyal. Gerardo needs to sit. Lundqvist needs to sit until he finds his form.

Clendening was good last night. The penalty call was soft. With him on the PP the Rangers were 2/2

Just going to nitpick here, but I don't think he was even on the ice for the first PP goal.

 

[Raspewtin]

Just going to nitpick here, but I don't think he was even on the ice for the first PP goal.

You'd be right.

 

[Igor Shestyorkin]

Just going to nitpick here, but I don't think he was even on the ice for the first PP goal.

But he got an assist on the 2nd one.

 

[Inferno]

Clendening was nothing special but was better than Kleins been in a while.

Call me old fashion but I like coaches who ice the best possible lineup on a nightly basis.

literally all ive asked from AV. just put the best players out there...they may not all be Duncan Keith out there..but 10 marginal improvements can be a helluva lot bigger than adding 1 duncan keith.

play clendening. sit girardi & klein (rotate them in and out). move Klein/Girardi down to the 3rd pair. Play McD more minutes.

and possible switch to a more zone heavy defense.

if the team still sucks, then thats on the GM.

 

[Raspewtin]

I hated (and I mean HATED) Tortorella when he was here, I didn't like Wenger for the longest time as an Arsenal fan, I absolutely LOATHE Didi Deschamps and want his head on a pike. But none of it compares to the AV of the last two years.

I have this seething disgust for him that I've never felt about a coach in all my time watching sports. And this comes from someone that's met him in person, a few times, lol.

 

[Crease]

AV is an above-average coach , but there is no disputing he fails to get the most out of his rosters. Mike Sullivan looks real good right about now. But that ship has sailed. Who else is out there? I heard positive things about Gerard Gallant.

 

[DanielBrassard]

I just dont understand how this team continues to get bludgeoned night in and night out.

I know our defense sucks, but so does Buffalos. We shouldnt be struggling like this.

 

[Crease]

I just dont understand how this team continues to get bludgeoned night in and night out.

I know our defense sucks, but so does Buffalos. We shouldnt be struggling like this.

I get the sense AV's system is complicated. Beyond that, he demands strict adherence. So when they feel off or face an opponent with an answer a lot goes wrong.

 

[DanielBrassard]

Could be. But you go back and watch this team from a couple seasons ago and it's so different. I know Girardi and Staal have fallen off a cliff, but it's dramatic.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

He should have been fired last season. If this persists, I can't see him making it through this one.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

AV is like a lambo with the engine of the pinto. Looks flashy but is not as functional as you'd hope.

 

[Bleed Ranger Blue]

He should have been fired last season. If this persists, I can't see him making it through this one.

If he continues to play Girardi and Klein over Clendening? Ok guy.