Why is the PK so bad?

[Dr Hook]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1856525659566112848

That tells me Swayman is doing the job he is being well-paid to do. A team simplay cannot let the kind of offensive talent that is found on most NHL PP units loose in front of your goalie to pick their spots. Any keeper, even HOFers, would struggle with the kind of shitshow the Bruins are displaying on the PK right now.

 

[Thirty Seven]

Poor positioning and awareness. Doesn't help that in practice they're practicing against the worst PP.

 

[24giovanni]

Question should be why is the whole team bad?

 

[roflstomper]

The Pk is effort. That is why it's bad.

 

[22Brad Park]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1856525659566112848

Guys in front of him definitely need to pick it up .I like pressure if you can't keep a tight box formation which they seem to be having a hard time doing.Only thing about pressure though, is if you pressure & your teammate does not anticipate fast enough its trouble.Cant be letting Guys stand in front either.Its ok to get rough or even a bit dirty to send a message.

 

[PB37]

That tells me Swayman is doing the job he is being well-paid to do. A team simplay cannot let the kind of offensive talent that is found on most NHL PP units loose in front of your goalie to pick their spots. Any keeper, even HOFers, would struggle with the kind of shitshow the Bruins are displaying on the PK right now.

While I agree to an extent, i find the Brick phrase " your best pk player is your goaltender " looms large and is often true. Swayman hasn't done his job well on the PK. Bruins are also awful at defending the far post on cross ice plays where the D rotate to front the pass from the elbow.

 

[bruins19]

Poor positioning and awareness. Doesn't help that in practice they're practicing against the worst PP.

That’s a very interesting point. Hadn’t thought about that.

 

[wintersej]

The PK is so bad because they are on it way too much.
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I don’t think I buy that the Bruins having one more minor penalty every two games accounts for them having a 74% PK vs Philly’s 90%. Amongst the top 5 penalized teams, four of them are under 80%. Amongst the five least penalized teams, four are under 80%. I just don’t see any correlation there.

 

[UncleRico]

That tells me Swayman is doing the job he is being well-paid to do. A team simplay cannot let the kind of offensive talent that is found on most NHL PP units loose in front of your goalie to pick their spots. Any keeper, even HOFers, would struggle with the kind of shitshow the Bruins are displaying on the PK right now.

Agreed, I would say he can definitely be better on the PK but a lot of it is not his fault at all.

Good example is actually last game against St.Louis where two rebounds were scooped up by Blues players for the goal. Would probably like a little better rebound control, but my god someone defensively needs to help him out in front of the net at the same time

 

[goldenblack]

I'd say Step 1 is figure out the personnel. Get guys off the PK who are struggling. At the very least, that means less Beecher and Hampus. Promote the guys who are doing well (Elias, Marchand, Zacha, maybe this is how Wotherspoon becomes a regular). Give Lohrei a shot at some PK time. Maybe that even helps improve his defensive play at ES.

Step 2 make the easy fixes, like clearing the puck when you have the chance. I've never seen so many failed clears. I wish more teams would lob pucks. You can't keep in a puck that's 20 feet over your head.

Step 3 is a tough one but your goalie has got to be your best penalty killer. Swayman is 73rd out 74 goalies in PK expected saves. That's horrendous. So, while it's kinda shitty to just say play better, he needs to play better.

Step 3b: The whole unit needs to play better. They choose not to engage guys in front so they can block shots and passes... ok, then block some freaking shots and seam passes. Carlo got beat twice on a goal last night, once in front and once behind. Get your sticks in passing lanes, get your bodies in shooting lanes... The habits suck right now. Play better!

Beecher not being a PK guy is a horrible outcome for Beecher. His career arc kind of depends on him being able to PK if we're being honest.

 

[22Brad Park]

Beecher not being a PK guy is a horrible outcome for Beecher. His career arc kind of depends on him being able to PK if we're being honest.

Very disappointing player in my eyes.Not giving nearly enough.

 

[yazmybaby]

While I agree to an extent, i find the Brick phrase " your best pk player is your goaltender " looms large and is often true. Swayman hasn't done his job well on the PK. Bruins are also awful at defending the far post on cross ice plays where the D rotate to front the pass from the elbow.

Any NHL goalie is expected to make the first save only.
I wonder how many goals JS has allowed on the second / third shot, when we are killing penalties?

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

The Pk is effort. That is why it's bad.

So wrong.

 

[PB37]

Beecher not being a PK guy is a horrible outcome for Beecher. His career arc kind of depends on him being able to PK if we're being honest.

He's still a young kid in his early progression years. Taking a lesser role or sitting away from the PK for a few games might be helpful.

 

[goldenblack]

He's still a young kid in his early progression years. Taking a lesser role or sitting away from the PK for a few games might be helpful.

Sure. But 24 this Winter. Drafted for his physical defensive game, good footwork/edgework. That's his thing. This is THE thing.

 

[Dr Hook]

While I agree to an extent, i find the Brick phrase " your best pk player is your goaltender " looms large and is often true. Swayman hasn't done his job well on the PK. Bruins are also awful at defending the far post on cross ice plays where the D rotate to front the pass from the elbow.

He hasn't stolen many PKs with spectacular saves, but he stops the ones he should for the most part. The d is just awful in front of him. @UncleRico mentioned the two PP goals St. Louis got the other night which are a perfect example of this. You mention the far post, and then there is the chasing below the goal line, failure to clear pucks, you know the list of issues. I think asking any goaltender to give a team an 85+% PK rate with that in front of him is asking too much.

 

[PB37]

Sure. But 24 this Winter. Drafted for his physical defensive game, good footwork/edgework. That's his thing. This is THE thing.

Beecher hasn't even played 100 career NHL games yet - he's still got a long career in front of him. I wouldn't worry too much if he gets taken out of the PK rotation to try and improve what's currently not working. Beecher is still very much a work in progress, in all faucets of the game.

 

[goldenblack]

Beecher hasn't even played 100 career NHL games yet - he's still got a long career in front of him. I wouldn't worry too much if he gets taken out of the PK rotation to try and improve what's currently not working. Beecher is still very much a work in progress, in all faucets of the game.

I'm just saying that his roster spot demands that he be on the PK, essentially. He'll find himself in the press box pretty quickly otherwise.

 

[EverettMike]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1856525659566112848

I don't know how much of this is statistical noise with a small smaple size versus Swayman not playing well on PKs himself versus the team's PK being a chaotic disaster.

 

[Mick Riddleton]

The guy running the powerplay should be running the PK.