Jay Richardson - "I don't think it's a coaching issue because if you listen to coach Noel he says it! He knows what they need to do to win, the team just won't do it for him!" LOL...
Jay is right. Noel has the perfect coaching plan.
"Manage the game" (brilliant).
"Check" (inspiring).
"Play the right way" (we are into rocket scientist territory).
I am not sure whether Noel is a brilliant tactician or not, but he gives no indication that he understands how to get a team to play an effective style consistently. I happen to think that he doesn't really understand the nuances of how to get a team to respond. Last night, every single Jet and Noel himself commented about how they wanted to play a cautious defensive game and check hard so that they didn't play to the Oilers' strengths. They kept referring to how the Oilers were going to come out with a lot of energy and fire, etc. It's almost as though they were scared of the Oilers. That was a team with awful D and a marginal goaltender. Instead of asking the Jets to play a cautious pluggers game, I think they should have gone aggressive, physical and fast. That is how the Jets win. When the Jets showed that they were playing too passive physically, he should have given them a dose of Thorburn-Wright-Peluso for a few shifts, and told those guys to play the body every time. Or maybe a shift with Kane-Wright-Peluso. The point is that when he saw that the Jets weren't playing with any fire, he has to do something as the coach to fire them up.
My main issue with Noel is that he has his team playing as though they are AHLers competing in the NHL. They are not stamping their identity on many games. Kane said it best - the Jets play well when they are aggressive and physical. That's what you do with a big, fast team that doesn't have so much finesse.
I can't stand Tortorella's personality, but I like how he has the Canucks playing an aggressive, pressuring style. I'm tired of watching the Jets collapse "into the lanes" and hope that they'll eventually get a rebound or pick off an errant pass.
Okay, rant off.
At this point in the season I would look to move the UFAs for picks / prospects and take our lumps. Give Scheifele a boat-load of ice-time and try to develop Trouba a bit more. Pick up a nice player or two in the upcoming draft and come back next year with a coach that will get this team to play a fast, aggressive style. They need a coach with some maturity and confidence.
