Hockey Duckie
Registered User
I would be willing to bet that bad decision making in general is 100% linked to fatigue and that there’s science to back it up, I’m just too Getzlaf to look it up.
Edit: Big Fowler guy here. He’s in over his head and playing too many minutes, has been for years but there’s literally no one else on the team that can do what he does on a nightly basis.
Does that mean there's no accountability for decision making then? Because I've seen LaCombe take on the puck carrier on 3v2 situation a few times while I've seen Fowler point to the puck carrier a few times, getting scored upon, including in the first period. Fowler can't be tired in the first period.
If Fowler stops staking backwards, he closes the gap and shrinks the shooting angles. If Fowler attacks the puck carrier, then that gap closes even further, shrinks the shooting angles even more, and probably removes the puck carrier from shooting the puck. If Fowler continues to skate backwards, then the gap increases, the shooting angles increases, and makes the situation far worse.
Again, Fowler isn't a rookie. I know Fowler isn't a great defensive player. He's a good two-way D, but defense isn't his forte, which is why Fowler looks better with a shutdown D.