GDT: Game 76: Columbus at Washington | 3/28 7PM EDT

[Cyclones Rock]

Dubinsky is -11 in his last 19 games. He has not had a single "plus" game during this stretch.

In the prior 16 games (dating to Johansen's trade) he was +4.

In all 35 games, he has registered a "plus" against one team currently in the playoffs.

Dubinsky would be a very good #2C. It's not as if he's a bad hockey player. But players needed to be slotted properly. When they aren't bad things happen.

 

[JacketFanInFL]

Solid loss. Keep it up.

 

[major major]

Dubinsky is -11 in his last 19 games. He has not had a single "plus" game during this stretch.

In the prior 16 games (dating to Johansen's trade) he was +4.

In all 35 games, he has registered a "plus" against one team currently in the playoffs.

Dubinsky would be a very good #2C. It's not as if he's a bad hockey player. But players needed to be slotted properly. When they aren't bad things happen.

I'm not saying he is going to be a real quality #1C next year. But the one time we gave him that job, he did it well. That's all.

 

[major major]

In Dubi's defense he is always playing against the top line of the other
team. I don't think heis being used as a #1C. And secondly even an elite playmaker will have trouble without an elite finisher or two.

That being said I'm pretty sure Dubi wouldn't be considered a #1 C anywhere but Columbus. It is a glaring weakness and why "tanking" is good right now. Having the best chance to draft Matthews is much more important than a few wins for whatever reasons the defenders of honor, trying your best, teaching, instilling a winning culture and other ideals can conjure up. Wins now like the 15-1-1 finish last year mean abso-effin-lutely nothing. Nada. Zilch.

That's all fine as long as we're clear on the corollary- that a 1-1-15 run is also completely meaningless.

I'm not sure if I believe that. I think these losses are probably bad for the team. It takes about two losses to get a 1 percentage point better shot at Matthews. That's terrible.

As for Dubi, I don't consider him a #1C. I'm saying it wouldn't be the worst thing to give the guy a shot and then re-evaluate.

 

[KlichkoBro*]

Some people here are suffering from Stockholm Syndrome.

 

[Mayor Bee]

Some people here are suffering from Stockholm Syndrome.

The going got tough, so they stopped going into corners?

 

[EspenK]

That's all fine as long as we're clear on the corollary- that a 1-1-15 run is also completely meaningless.

I'm not sure if I believe that. I think these losses are probably bad for the team. It takes about two losses to get a 1 percentage point better shot at Matthews. That's terrible.

As for Dubi, I don't consider him a #1C. I'm saying it wouldn't be the worst thing to give the guy a shot and then re-evaluate.

Well it wouldn't be meaningless for draft position.

And losses aren't meaningless in that they prevent overconfidence.
These guys are professional athletes. You played hockey, I played basketball. My team sucked but I always thought we would win the next game. But I knew I had to play my best for us to have a chance.
I have to think the Jackets think this way.

However what I really believe is that each season is a series of runs, some good, some great, some the other ways. Injuries, breaks, the other team, many factors influence the outcome. Next season the Jackets could make the playoffs or they could finish bottom 5. Who knows?

 

[EDM]

Saad's disappearance over the last month should be a concern. We are talking about guy who does not play PK and is not used during shoot-outs. He is a one dimensional scorer who is not scoring. Any longer it is not clear to me that we won that trade. And Wennberg's lack of goals has become almost pathological. If not for Boone and Cam we would have no offense at all over the past month

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

Saad's disappearance over the last month should be a concern. We are talking about guy who does not play PK and is not used during shoot-outs. He is a one dimensional scorer who is not scoring. Any longer it is not clear to me that we won that trade. And Wennberg's lack of goals has become almost pathological. If not for Boone and Cam we would have no offense at all over the past month

Sure except that that many of the players who aren't one-dimensional scorers (a contention I don't share, but for simplicity's sake) aren't doing the other things they do that keep them valuable while they're not scoring, either. The team has been garbage since Bob's return (which, as I've said before, is not the same as me saying that is the cause of the garbage play).

 

[DJA]

Saad's disappearance over the last month should be a concern. We are talking about guy who does not play PK and is not used during shoot-outs. He is a one dimensional scorer who is not scoring. Any longer it is not clear to me that we won that trade. And Wennberg's lack of goals has become almost pathological. If not for Boone and Cam we would have no offense at all over the past month

Seems like the entire team quit after the trade deadline, not just Saad (although I agree that he has been awful for a while now).

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Saad's disappearance over the last month should be a concern. We are talking about guy who does not play PK and is not used during shoot-outs. He is a one dimensional scorer who is not scoring. Any longer it is not clear to me that we won that trade. And Wennberg's lack of goals has become almost pathological. If not for Boone and Cam we would have no offense at all over the past month

No idea what's gotten into Saad and Hartnell. They're there...but that's it. That's not good enough

 

[We Want Ten]

Saad struggled to finish at the start of the year as well. He is still getting chances, just not converting them for whatever reason.

 

[JKinCLE]

I'm willing to give Saad a pass this year. Its the first time in his career that he is playing meaningless games. As was previously stated, he is still getting chances, he is just a very unpolished finisher, he has literally zero moves on the breakaway. I can only hope everyone is better for going through this turd of a season.

As for Hartnell, maybe this is the cliff his game was set to fall off of according to everyone on the trade forums?

 

[cslebn]

thought I'd add some positive notes and thoughts on the game:

I really like the way Bjorkstrand battles along the boards. He was winning puck battles and doing a great job in the "dirty areas" especially for someone who is a tad undersized and it getting his first taste.

Wennberg; every game I watch this kid play keep away and posses the puck or fight to get the puck I love what I see. The amount of growth he's done over the last year for how he uses his body and is able to play with the puck is great.

Golo/Kukan pairing; aside fromt he 3rd period these guys looked pretty good together. There were some times they moved the puck really well around the ice. Reminded me of when we had hope for Golo to be a middle pair D.