Cats Quickies: Vokoun, Panthers stomp bewildered Sabres 6-2
by Donny Rivette on Dec 18, 2010 11:24 AM EST
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More an observation than a game recap...
Friday should be viewed as nothing less than a truly remarkable reversal of fortune - fortune earned through sixty mostly solid minutes of tight forechecking, fulfilling assignments, and converting on advantages of all shapes and sizes. Not simply a game of Xs and Os, coach Peter DeBoer (and by extension, assistants Gord Murphy and fan-battered forward boss Jim Hulton) allowed the Panthers a certain degree of freedom to use their talents, unrestrained by strategies typically defined as "trapping" on an offensively-challenged squad; it was free-flowing, leg-moving, attack-or-die improvisation from start to finish with few letdowns. Foot speed, quick passes, and tempered physicality were in evidence from start to finish. All the particular roles were played to maximum effectiveness. A carbon-copy of the hard-fought battles we witnessed in Edmonton and Vancouver earlier in the year, minus any semblence of a funny bounce directed their way by angry hockey deities seemingly intent on destroying the Cats.
To wit: everything Florida did right in the opening fifteen minutes of Wednesday's eventual Catastrophe du Caroline was replicated, recharged, and ramped up...most importantly, it was maintained.
Notes: Tomas Vokoun stopped 41 shots, while the Ryan Miller / Patrick Lalime duo combined for 20. Stephen Weiss scored shorthanded in the third period. Rookie Evgeny Dadonov has 3 points (1g) in his past two. Regardless of the final score, no Florida player had more than 3 SOG (Shawn Matthias, Chris Higgins, Michael Frolik) while Buffalo had four players with 4. Every Panther was an -even- or better with the sole exception of David Booth (-1)...Matthias led with +3. Florida scorers: Weiss (SH), Booth (PP), Marty Reasoner (2), Bryan McCabe, and Frolik. Assists: Dennis Wideman, Weiss, Matthias (2), Higgins (2), Jason Garrison, Dadonov (2), Frolik. BUF scorers: Derek Roy, Tim Connolly (PPG). More from the awesome Die By The Blade here.
Next up: Cats in Philly on Monday. Live Game Chat at 6.
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Completely off topic:
Did anybody watch the first episode of the Pens Caps 24/7 on HBO? They have the Panthers Capitals game where the cats won 3-0, I realize the show’s not even about the Panthers but, damn it is cool to see our boys on HBO!
Back on Topic:
Well done by the Cats on this game, great to see Booth, Frolik and Weiss on the score sheet for this one, as well as a Boother power play goal.
I actually just watched the whole first episode, it’s on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nt6Aqf—DP8
I have to say i enjoyed watching the panthers spank the capitals and boudreau explode in the locker room after that panthers goal with a second left in the 2nd!
My observation, FWIW...
I’m not a live and die by the Panthers kind of fan by any means, but I do love to watch the game of hockey, and the Cats are my team, for better or for worse.
But -
I have long maintained that the Panthers have the talent to win every single game they play. What they lack, however, is the motivation. IMO, last night’s blowout win proves that. It was played by the same group of guys who looked totally inept in the previous game, who in this game, came out and looked (and played) like a professional hockey team.
So what changed? Not the players – it was same group of guys we saw meltdown against Carolina. It had to be the motivation. What else can explain such radically different results in consecutive games by the same team?
Having said all that, let me get to my point. Is it not the coach’s job to help motivate his players? To coax every single ounce of effort out of each player every game?
I don’t buy the argument that at this level, players should not need to be motivated. Everyone need a fan, a cheerleader, or someone to give them something besides themselvs to excel for. Some of these kids are so young, and they have so much yet to learn. Who is going to foster the winning spirit in these kids? Who will feed it and make it grow?
Coaches are more than just the guys drawing the Xs and Os on the chalkboard – they’re mentors for young minds and hearts. If a coach is emotional and passionate about winning, and not afraid to show it, the players will feed off that, and absorb it. If not…well, who knows?
The Cats have been saddled with 2 vulcan coaches as long as I have been a fan – JM, and PDB. I have never seen either of them get angry at a bad call, let alone celebrate a goal. To me that shows a lack of passion; a lack of killer instinct. A lack of desire to win.
The first rule you learn in plumbing is that the poop always flows downhill. I believe that with the new ownership now in place, and Dale Tallon as the GM, the top of the hill is now the coach’s offices.
FWIW -
Are you kidding? This team is competing night-in and night-out mostly on the basis of they are simply out-working and hustling other teams. When they make mistakes, the collapses occur – it’s the trademarks of a poor-talent team. On a team with better talent, some of those mistakes get covered up and even on a bad night, they can still win on talent’s back. The fact this team came out and busted out on Friday after Wednesday makes logical sense – their pride was damaged and they responded. Let’s not forget that Buffalo laid a complete egg, they looked asleep the first twenty plus minutes.
Now, I’m not sure Pete’s the right coach here but this team does not have any top-end talent. That’s not Pete’s fault – it’s the fault of more than ten years of terrible drafting, lopsided trades and absurd contracts to over-the-hill players. Despite that, Pete has a winning record here with talent that is best described as complimentary. I’ve been impressed by Tallon and by Viner so far and they’ve made changes that look promising. Pete is in the final year of his contract, is a lame duck and personally, I don’t think he’ll be extended – but not because he’s not a good coach. However, to think that Pete is somehow the core of this team’s problems ignores so much that needs to be addressed and if those things aren’t, no matter who the coach is – they will fail and we’ll be here again in three years.
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