Raccoon Jesus
We were right there
Coaching at this level is more than X’s and O’s, more than the system. I don’t think the players are clear in what they have to do on the ice, but I’m really not all that down on the systematic changes Stevens has made. Things have been opened up and are more reactive, guys are taking chances, and so on.
Where I think Stevens is incredibly weak is player ice management, lineup choices, and leadership. He’s terrible at matchups. That’s amplified because Sutter was really strong with that, but it’s something he struggles with. Same thing with the lineups, although he looks to be growing more flexible and is trying new things, which is an improvement. His worst quality is his leadership, in my opinion. When asked difficult questions or about team struggles, he doesn’t know how to answer. He appears to not really understand what is going wrong when things fall apart. We are used to a cocky coach who wouldn’t give a straight answer if he didn’t feel like it, but there was no doubt Sutter could pinpoint exactly why the team lost a game and what went wrong. I don’t get that feeling with Stevens at all, he’s more like a person who doesn’t know the answer and says whatever.
It’s probably why we were told by Flyers fans that he’s a good assistant but not suited for head coaching. He’s strong strategically and fairly good with systems and theory. A head coach has to be good with the mental side, and he’s just not. It’s why I think he doesn’t know what to say about the team sometimes, if it’s not a tactical issue but a mental one he literally can’t identify it. Look at his quotes from last night. He said disappointed like 5 times, and then “I can’t explain it, to be honest with you”. He doesn’t get that part of the game.
Probably the best description I've seen.
I wish he could be an assistant eternally.