So with 4 captains/ex captains on our team do we have enough leadership?

[Cecithepylon]

Spezza,Thorton,Tavares and Foligno

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[Gabriel426]

Think they need a Captain in Defence

 

[MR4]

Gonna be really hard for anyone to blame Dubas if we falter during the playoffs, with how he changed his philosophies this year

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Gonna be really hard for anyone to blame Dubas if we falter during the playoffs, with how he changed his philosophies this year

Fairly sure the philosophy has remained the same with him: Draft skill and IQ. UFA and trades for size. Pretty sure that is how he said it in his opening presser.

Contrary to popular belief, he has never had an issue with size. He's even overpaid for size (Foligno) and his first big trade was to acquire Muzzin. He just doesn't like size that can't play or skate, and he is not going out of his way to add size (i.e. icing a worse lineup just to get a guy with size in the lineup). In fact I am fairly sure even in his Soo days he was pretty big on size. The first guy he ever drafted was Darnell Nurse and he followed up with Jared McCann the next year.

He also recognizes that being tough to play against has multiple meanings. Guys like Kerfoot and Robertson may be small and won't run people through the boards but they are still very hard to play against because they work hard, are very smart, and can be strong all-around players. Can't have a lineup full of them but you definitely want them in your lineup. Or you have guys like Hyman and Mikheyev who are an absolute handful even though they won't punch a guy out.

 

[GardinerTheForward]

Leadership is a bad excuse for when your players shit the bed.

 

[sxvnert]

Leadership and toughness have been addressed. Its all on the top players putting up the numbers (Tavares & Nylander)

 

[Mickey Marner]

Don't need a letter to be a leader, but I think we've got a pretty good room. Come a long way from the Islanders homecoming game.

 

[sxvnert]

Think they need a Captain in Defence

Muzzin performs that duty.

 

[The Iceman]

Obviously not going to happen but Captain Chara on the 3rd pair would be the best.

 

[mallory67]

Gonna be really hard for anyone to blame Dubas if we falter during the playoffs, with how he changed his philosophies this year

I am not sure he changed his strategy. Defense wins cups and I think he is seeing what he wants to see on team defense.
We are top 5/10 in defense and offense ... so now is the time to make some moves.

I would say Dubas knew we were not going to win it all the last year or two and we needed maturity and we needed to show strength through a whole season ... which is what we are doing.

 

[TheGreatOne11]

Think they need a Captain in Defence

Pretty sure Phaneuf is available.

 

[usernamezrhardtodo]

Fairly sure the philosophy has remained the same with him: Draft skill and IQ. UFA and trades for size. Pretty sure that is how he said it in his opening presser.

Contrary to popular belief, he has never had an issue with size. He's even overpaid for size (Foligno) and his first big trade was to acquire Muzzin. He just doesn't like size that can't play or skate, and he is not going out of his way to add size (i.e. icing a worse lineup just to get a guy with size in the lineup). In fact I am fairly sure even in his Soo days he was pretty big on size. The first guy he ever drafted was Darnell Nurse and he followed up with Jared McCann the next year.

He also recognizes that being tough to play against has multiple meanings. Guys like Kerfoot and Robertson may be small and won't run people through the boards but they are still very hard to play against because they work hard, are very smart, and can be strong all-around players. Can't have a lineup full of them but you definitely want them in your lineup. Or you have guys like Hyman and Mikheyev who are an absolute handful even though they won't punch a guy out.

He might have said size was important to him...but he traded away Marchment for Malgin...he trades for Petan etc... Those deals to me say he doesn't value size as much as you think he did. Maybe he is coming around after realizing that having a 'pest' like Andreas Johnsson is not going to win you anything because he just took abuse...never gave it.

I think he just realized you can't just ice skill alone...and grit has a place on the team..he added Bogo and Simmonds in the offseason, where he might normally add a more skilled puck mover and another Barabanov type who can't score.

I really like what he has done since we got booted last year...it looks good and they play well on top of that.