Knights peanut gallery:
To the guys raking #12 over the coals I got a real question - have you won anything ever? Even a houseleauge atom coach understands the value of a plus skater that will do anything the team needs him to do. Dale walks on water on these boards and somehow you know better? How can so many fans/minor coaches/dad that never-played-evers be that stupid? Even in London?
LOL....and you guys wonder why people leave these forums? Many of you have no use for anyone who dares to disagree with you. Well, sorry, I'm not gonna kiss anyone's a$$ and agree with everything they say. Part of the thrill of participating in these forums is the ability to play armchair GM and express an opinion...even if it DARES to disagree with the old guard....and yes, vouve, I've won plenty coaching hockey, soccer and baseball....thanks for asking!
I've never said Turko didn't have value. To 80% of the teams out there, he would be extremely valuable, but (in my opinion....as crazy as it may seem to some of you), for a team looking to challenge for a Memorial Cup, I believe the Knights could have done better. The truth is Turko's playing style is more reminiscent of my own, more than anybody else on the team and I think he has done a brilliant job of maximizing his value through the use of what skills he has, but.....just as I recognize my own limitations, I also see the same limitations in Turko, and I wouldn't call that "raking him over the coals". He will never be an offensively-gifted player at this level, and for someone who plays 20 minutes a game against the opposition's top line, I think we could do better. There are players out there who can play great defense, yet still put the puck in the net as well and I think we have 3 of them in Tymkin, Moskal and Cotter.
So, who would you rather see playing 20 minutes a game, Turko or Cotter? For me, it's no contest.
...and sorry to harp on trade deadline mistakes, but hey, that's just me trying to play armchair GM again....sorry if you have to suffer through my musings.
I've said before, while I like Turko, Keane and Hancock, if I were GM, I would've hung on to Perrott and Coome as my 5th and 6th defenders and I would've attempted to acquire maximum size and talent up front.....call me crazy if you must, but I've always believed that it's the lack of offense (against strong defensive teams...ie. not Windsor) that will ended up costing us a championship this season. Don't get me wrong, I love Hancock, but if I couldn't get him without giving up Perrott, then I would've moved on to the next target.
...and yes, maybe Brazeau wasn't available or would've cost too much, if that's the case move on to the next target...there were plenty available. He's just an example of the type of player I think we could've benefited from.
Perhaps you'll all see what I mean, when we end up losing in the playoffs in a crucial low-scoring game, because we were unable to come up with that tying goal when we needed it, but then, I doubt any of you will ever admit that I may have been right.
Again, even though I respect all of your opinions, I refuse to simply kiss butt and agree with everything the old guard says. If all you guys want are little minions who hang on your every word and agree with everything you say, please let me know and I'll be happy to move on!
Carry on!