In regards to Kreider, this board will never change. Many of you hyped him up without ever watching him play a single game. You built up expectations on how he should play or what he would do when he played based on... what exactly?
I watched him for 3 years, game in and game out. I don't know how many times i've come on here to try and quell misconceptions about his play or unrealistic expectations that people have but no one ever seems to listen.
Systematically, Torts system for him was horrible. You need to let a kid with that speed fly. Torts system inhibited that. Torts wanted him to play puck retriever, Kreider is far more skilled than that.
Now you're all wondering why he has underwhelmed so far this year? He's played in 3 preseason games. Key word here is pre-season. Before you all go jumping off ledges, although that may be too late judging on the reactions many of you had during the GDTs these last 2 nights, you need to take a step back and remind yourself that preseason is used by every coach in the league to see which players work together, which players excel in certain aspects of the game, and which don't. Especially during the beginning of pre-season, when there is a new coach implementing a new system, using pre-season as a test trial is very common.
As for Kreider's play in particular, many of you still need to understand the type of player he is before you start advocating for his demotion. He's not a player that's going to come in and WOW you every night. Very few players can do that consistently, even Nash's skillset it wearing thin on this board when he doesn't produce - flashy moves and all. Kreider is a gamer, he shows up for games that matter and not so much for ones that have little meaning. I don't know why that's the case, i'm not Freud, but for some inexplicable reason he always comes up big when it matters. In games that have little relevance he has the tendency to be invisible. If he has one fault it is that he's complacent during these games to give some sort of positive effort but not everything of himself.
In terms of playing style he needs a defensively responsible center, who is fast enough to keep up with him, and a winger who can not only grind out pucks but create space for himself. He wasn't on the first line here at BC... ever, but he was our best and most dangerous player. He played north-south, defenses constantly had to stay true against his line because he'd break out so often. He's not Jagr where he's going to beat you using his hands and hips. His dominance is derived on speed and strength.
Now look at Nash and Richards as linemates and what that may do to a player like Kreider. Richards is not a defensively responsible center. He's too slow to keep up with Kreider. He hesitates before he makes many decisions which tells me he doesn't have a good grasp of either of his linemates and the games they play. Nash on the other hand loves the puck to be on his stick. He wants players to adapt to him when he holds the puck. All big time players want that - when I get the puck, watch me and get open. Nash throws a lot of audibles when he's on the ice - which if you want me to dumb it down for you means he's going east-west far more often than north-south. He slows the game down, especially when he's already in the opponents zone.
Now you have 2 players, albeit your 2 highest paid players that give them a stigma of being our best (even though it is not necessarily true)... 1 who struggles to make decisions when they need to be made, slow, and defensively irresponsible and another who thrives off of controlling the puck, playing east-west, and is also defensively irresponsible....
And you expected Kreider, a player who plays north-south, thrives off of speed and impulsive decisions, and is ALSO defensively irresponsible to look good with 2 players like that?
Stepan is 1) impulsive 2) defensively responsible 3) has chemistry with Kreider 4) fast
enough
Miller is 1) impulsive 2) defensively responsible 3) has chemistry with Kreider 4) fast 5) can grind it out on the boards
1) You all need to know the player you're watching. Understand who he will succeed with before you throw these line combinations out there and expect them to just work cause you say they will.
2) Lower your damn expectations. Kreider isn't going to come game in and out and make game changing plays. Like many skill players, he has the tendency to disappear during some games and show up for others. What makes him a welcome relief, in my opinion, is the fact that he'll come up in the games that matter the most... and that's what you should want. Gaborik showed up for games that didn't matter, scoring 5 goals against the maple leafs and islanders when they were bottom feeders... but where was he in the playoffs? No show. I'd rather have it where my big time players actually perform when there is a lot at stake... not the other way around.
