The NHL door for European coaches has been kept tight. However, the level of play in the playoffs has shown that European coaching skills would be of use in the legendary puck league, writes Tommi Seppälä, a journalist at Sports.
When the most attack-oriented player in hockey history begins to align the shortcomings of defensive play with action, the situation can be called serious.
– You’ve got to play defense, man, Wayne Gretzky stated on the American TNT channel on Wednesday.
In Finnish, Wayne Gretzky demanded a better defensive game from the final teams of the Western Conference, Colorado and Edmonton. The reason was true, as the West’s first final ended after an awful carnival with the home team’s 8-6 victory. Now it is also worth remembering that Gretzky if anyone knows what he is talking about.
In the years of Gretzky’s greatness, Edmonton’s goalkeeper Grant Fuhr saw their own defenders mostly after the game in the shower.
Now the full measure came to fruition. Especially since Edmonton wasn’t in careless hurlumhe for the first time this spring. Although it clearly knocked down local opponent Calgary in the second round in five games, even in that series it took a hoarse 6-9 in the opening game.
The NHL in general has been on a strong time travel back to the 80s in recent weeks, especially on the west side of the continent.
While Edmonton’s spring must be considered a great success given expectations, for example, Oilers ’average of goals scored in the previous seven matches is 4.67. Final opponent Colorado’s read from the previous seven matches whispers in three and a half.
Such readings have not been found to win championships.
A mere entertainment value lazy argument
The value of entertainment has been highlighted for the first time in the general debate, which is certainly available with all the money, especially in the western finals. The NHL and the broadcasters are spinning when Connor McDavidin and Nathan MacKinnonin superstars like that stack a racing puck on the grid.
At the same time, acknowledging everything that happened just for good entertainment feels lazy.
It is clear that there has been quite a bit of poor hockey in many places. It’s confusing how poorly structured hockey was played in yesterday’s match as well, when you remember that the semi-finals are already at hand. The structures or defense of the pentathlon of either team could not be called in good faith.
At the individual level, many are unable to play an intact sixty-meter game responsibly – or understanding the game does not support identifying situations at critical moments.
Colorado has been considered in many places even the biggest championship favorite, but playing the Denver combination is still not particularly mature. Head coach Jared Bednar yes, he’s talking about the right things, but in the trough, Colorado has had difficulty with playing, for example, in the lead over the spring.
The fact that Edmonton rose from a 3-7 loss on Wednesday to one shot away overtime was a classless performance from Colorado, and not at all unusual. Arrogant gambling, missteps, unnecessary chill, overshooting, and so on – Colorado began to play with a win already in hand.
Edmonton’s deck, on the other hand, was wide-ranging on several occasions, and its difficulties in playing defensive play in its own area, for example, were easily discernible. The same was the case with the downstairs in Colorado.
Of course, on the other side of the coin is a huge amount of individual skill in the series. The superstars on both teams are incredibly adept at creating threats and situations of superiority even in a small space. The new generation of stars have huge amounts of offensive skill. However, defensive skills have not developed in the same proportion in recent years.
The focus is on over-emphasis on attacking and that’s what MacDavids and MacKinnon enjoy.
Shortcomings in coaching
When you look at the gambling that comes into almost complete chaos from time to time, especially in a Western conference, it’s hard not to question what coaching is doing. Colorado in particular seems to lack the ability to calm down and close the door in the lead. All the time we go to the bottom of the gas with even a small risk, even if there is no need anymore.
This is a coaching thing, even if the players make the final decisions in the trough.
In the case of Edmonton, it is confusing, for example, how the team in the regular season gave eleven dangerous goals per hour they played, but in the playoffs, the reading fluctuates over fourteen. The hard tip and poor opponent goalkeeper game has pushed Edmonton even further than what the game in the trough would have promised.
Sure, it’s assumed that the going in the series will level off after a crazy opening game, but even in a broader perspective, it’s hard to get into huge cheers shouts when it comes to the game’s structures behind the results.
Jalos would have something to give
At the same time, a discussion in the aftermath of the World Cup gold medal in Finland Jukka Jalosen the chances of getting a deal in the NHL have been hot. In the name of honesty, right on the subject. There are many other things involved in getting a contract and coaching in the NHL than getting the control game in order, but watching Wednesday’s match was hard not to think about Jalo as well.
Even some of the so-called NHL quality teams have such fundamental problems in their game structures that many would play hockey in the second level in the Lions coaching process. It’s a cold fact that is hardly even understood in North America. Of course, tournament and club team coaching are two different things.
And Lions did not play particularly boring hockey in Tampere.
Hockey is a scoring game and everyone wants to see goals, but there is also room for a high-quality entertainment between 2–1 nihilism and poorly structured and careless 9–6 charms. The Lions run in the spring home races in the area.
Gretzky’s opening was the first message in the direction that, even for isomalic matches, it’s too much if the pack spreads to both hands.
And as for Jalos and other Europeans: the door to the new continent from the direction of North America should be opened in the first place.