Even though we are all here killing Lou, Ownership, Roy and the players. This is the BEST thing for the isles and this organization! We need to bottom out hard to finally get ownership to finally make the necessary changes from the top on down. So I agree, very frustrating to watch day after day. But we have to look beyone this debacle and look forward to change and a fresh start.
Even with this clueless ownership, no one is going to survive (mgmt.) after this type of season. Not when we are going to re-write the records for the worst special teams in NHL history. And a f***ing coach who know we sucked at this, admits he didn't spend enough time on this before the season started??? LOL, that comment alone should have Roy fired in my eyes.
No coach can save a team if the players are not motivated. I haven't watched the past 2 games but it's starting to look like the team is simply not trying and by that I mean some of their purported "best" players. Horvat, Nelson, Barzal, etc... It's almost like they are playing to get someone in mgmt (coach, GM) fired. If it's Lou that they want gone then fine because to me that would make sense. If it's Roy then I think that's mutiny and the team deserves to be chopped to bits. Roy was the only coach to hold this roster to a standard that has been missing for years. He's actually holding the players accountable moving them away from the country club mentality. Maybe some players are disturbed by the way he treated Engvall and they were just singling him out. Truth of the matter is he is absolutely the kind of player that is hurting this team- overpaid- not pulling his weight and
NOT willing to sacrifice the boy at all. It may be neither of these scenarios and the team's confidence is at an all time low from all the losing to start the injury laden season.
As for the special teams. This team's special teams have sucked for 6 years particularly the power play. The team never practiced the power play because the only instruction they got was when you have the puck you do what you do when we have the puck you do what I want you to do. Offense was not considered a priority for years and an effective power play was not developed all those years. So after 6 years do you really expect these guys to have figured this out? Yes Roy should have emphasized special teams but I think he was fundamentally trying to change the Isles approach to the game with a more uptempo aggressive modern system. This change is absolutely necessary but Lamiorello stocked the roster with grinders more suited towards the obsolete system advocated by his immediate predecessors. Roy is trying to make a race horse out of a carriage horse. What the heck is the guy supposed to do? Also aren't special teams usually assigned to the assistant coaches these days?
As for the losing streak, if this is the best we can get from the current roster then so be it. Tank for the rest of the season to get the highest draft pick available and if any trades are made for a number of our aging "talented" vets I agree with the many here that they should be for high draft picks + prospects. I would not trade these players for younger serviceable but otherwise unremarkable NHL players.
The goal at this point should not be for mediocrity but to suck really bad and retool the team. Do not throw the baby out with the bathwater. Keep Roy and force Lou to resign.
