• Moderators, please send me a PM if you are unable to access mod permissions. Thanks, Habsy.

Playing it Safe

Playing it safe and being frightened to blow it up and start over is EXACTLY what this organization has done since the decline that started almost immediately after the Cup win in 2006. Yeah, you can dress up a few bold-ish moves like signing Semin, trading for Pitkanen and J Staal and act like yopu've been bold and progressive ... but it's just window dressing. The core of this team is built squarely on the shoulders of Eric Staal and Cam Ward. While Staal is at least still a productive point producer, he's never really come close to the pace he managed in his second NHL season, and that was 8 LONG years ago. Ward meanwhile has managed some solid work in net, sometimes behind some epically awful defenses, but his numbers don't lie. Aside from the 2008-09 season when he dragged the Canes into the Eastern Finals, Ward simply hasn't been the workhorse that this organization acts like he is. In spurts, sure ... but over the long haul we're looking at a lot of mediocre stretches, slow starts and injuries as the defining results from Ward.

And all the while the draft has only been sputteringly efficient in stocking new talent and the individual players in this organization show a frustrating tendency to shine brightly for brief period and then flame out into bleh. I'm not at ALL impressed with the direction of this club, but given the results of the last 5 years or so, I'm not terribly surprised either.
 
The optimist in me wants to believe that JR is really busy at the draft and during free agency.

The pessimist in me thinks JR wants to give this current roster another go at it, and will make only one or two minor changes...one of which has been made.

I predict he throws offers at Gerbe, Malhotra, Hainsey, Tlusty, Faulk and Bellemore, and lets Dvorak, Komisarek, Peters, Bowman and Pitkanen disappear.

Out of that list of RFAs, I think we'll get two, maybe three to sign. I predict Faulk and Gerbe stick around.
 
Bottom line there isn't a lot on this roster that folks were interested in, and probably not a lot of good deals to have been made to trade the assets we do have that would have made us better.

So from a moving in the right direction standpoint over the last year or so. We got rid of Jussi's, Joni, and Ruutu's salaries - at least mostly. Sure those are self inflicted, but it was still a problem that had to be overcome.

If we look at the remaining issues:

1. Cam - Pretty much we either keep him or buy him out at this point. I'd ride the heck out of him the rest of the season and hope he rounds back into form. I'd also put some new coaching and demands on him from a conditioning standpoint. The best solution for us on Wardo is for him to get back into good form. If he can look like a legit number 1 goalie again, he's worth something this summer either to keep and play, or as a trading chip. At present his entire salary is pretty much a waste, so he needs to step up and at least redeem a portion of it. Happily, the signing of Doby means that we have another option here, so we are not in grave need of a goalie for next season. The fringe benefit of playing Cam is if he rounds into shape, good, if he doesn't, then our draft pick improves.

2. Defense - We need a legit first pairing guy. Dropping Ruutu's salary means we can probably spend some money here. Sekera has been very solid, and although Faulk has disappointed of late, I think he's still a safely a legit second pairing guy. We're in better shape here than we have been for years, and you have to assume Murphy is going to step up for next season.

3. Forwards - We need a philosophy change here. Our top end talent should be, and has been productive in the past. Remaking 3rd and 4th lines shouldn't be that difficult. Lindholm is looking good and will be bigger. Our mix hasn't been great this season, but that can be fixed if we have a coach and gm who want to make it happen.

4. Coaching and Management - this is the biggest problem at this point. We need to STOP making mistakes we have to get out of. We need to get bigger, grittier, and harder to play against. It would be nice if we did that by adding in some veteran leadership in there as well. Assuming your main building blocks are Staal, Staal, Skinner, Lindholm and Semin, Sekera, Murphy, Faulk. You don't need to get rid of ALL of the other guys, but you probably need to swap out 3 or 4 of them for bigger nastier versions. If we can somehow get the Staals going, we are in striking distance of where we need to be. Since I don't think they're going anywhere, getting them going is probably the biggest thing we need to do. It's not going to be possible for this team to overcome 11 and 12 under-performing.
 
"I'm no fool! No sir-ee!
I wanna live to be ninety-three.
I play safe for you and me
'Cause I'm no fool!

Anyone can be a fool
And do thing which are wrong
But fools find out when it's too late
That they don't live so long."

---I'm No Fool (1955) words and music by Jimmie Dodd

(In the cartoon shorts, the age changed for each chorus, going
from 23 to 33, then skipping to 53, 93 and finally 103.)

Now we know what JR maiden name was
 
TheBigKahuna said:
The pessimist in me thinks JR wants to give this current roster another go at it, and will make only one or two minor changes...one of which has been made.
Click to expand...

This is why I so badly want to see a change in management at the end of THIS season. Frankly, the current staff simply doesn't deserve to make that call again, and like you I'm fairly convinced that all Rutherford will end up doing is yet another refresh of the same roster. How many times do you get to fail with that approach before Karmanos figures out he's been throwing money in a ditch?
 
Another year or two of no playoffs, and he won't be throwing money in a ditch, he'll be burying it by the truckload! At least now it's not 100% HIS money being wasted. He'll be posting the team for sale, and trying desperately to unload it on someone. They are on a downward slope now, and it's sleeting out!

You have to figure swapping out Dvorak, Bowman, Ruutu for Loktionov, Rask and Boychuk would be good for at least 2 more points in the standings.
 
TheBigKahuna said:
At least now it's not 100% HIS money being wasted.
Click to expand...

Yeah ... thanks for pointing that out. Most of his minority partners are pretty low-key individuals with low stakes in the game ... but not all of them. I wonder if that won't change PK's perspective on his annual "how we doin' Jimmy" review. The question he NEEDS to be asking is, who are we thinking we can bring in to help fix our personnel black hole? If ever a team needed an infusion of outside thinking on the personnel side, it's this one, yet it's been business as usual so long in the front office I don't think ANYbody has any real confidence that anything will change.
 
cmon3 said:
Bottom line there isn't a lot on this roster that folks were interested in, and probably not a lot of good deals to have been made to trade the assets we do have that would have made us better.

So from a moving in the right direction standpoint over the last year or so. We got rid of Jussi's, Joni, and Ruutu's salaries - at least mostly. Sure those are self inflicted, but it was still a problem that had to be overcome.

If we look at the remaining issues:

1. Cam - Pretty much we either keep him or buy him out at this point. I'd ride the heck out of him the rest of the season and hope he rounds back into form. I'd also put some new coaching and demands on him from a conditioning standpoint. The best solution for us on Wardo is for him to get back into good form. If he can look like a legit number 1 goalie again, he's worth something this summer either to keep and play, or as a trading chip. At present his entire salary is pretty much a waste, so he needs to step up and at least redeem a portion of it. Happily, the signing of Doby means that we have another option here, so we are not in grave need of a goalie for next season. The fringe benefit of playing Cam is if he rounds into shape, good, if he doesn't, then our draft pick improves.

2. Defense - We need a legit first pairing guy. Dropping Ruutu's salary means we can probably spend some money here. Sekera has been very solid, and although Faulk has disappointed of late, I think he's still a safely a legit second pairing guy. We're in better shape here than we have been for years, and you have to assume Murphy is going to step up for next season.

3. Forwards - We need a philosophy change here. Our top end talent should be, and has been productive in the past. Remaking 3rd and 4th lines shouldn't be that difficult. Lindholm is looking good and will be bigger. Our mix hasn't been great this season, but that can be fixed if we have a coach and gm who want to make it happen.

4. Coaching and Management - this is the biggest problem at this point. We need to STOP making mistakes we have to get out of. We need to get bigger, grittier, and harder to play against. It would be nice if we did that by adding in some veteran leadership in there as well. Assuming your main building blocks are Staal, Staal, Skinner, Lindholm and Semin, Sekera, Murphy, Faulk. You don't need to get rid of ALL of the other guys, but you probably need to swap out 3 or 4 of them for bigger nastier versions. If we can somehow get the Staals going, we are in striking distance of where we need to be. Since I don't think they're going anywhere, getting them going is probably the biggest thing we need to do. It's not going to be possible for this team to overcome 11 and 12 under-performing.
Click to expand...


Cam: He sure seems like either a buyout candidate or a summer trade candidate with the Canes taking back salary. With Dobie signed and wanting the net, I think the writing is on the wall for Cam come summer as a Cane.

Defense: Totally agree, you have to spend the money and pay a legit top pairing guy this summer. Not a Joni P, over-slotted guy, a real, bonafide top pairing guy that may cost $5 to $6 million per.

Forwards: Size, grit and character to round out your 3rd and 4th lines for sure, not Bowman, Boychuk, Dwyer types...you need the Matt Hendricks, Paul Gaustad, Cody McCormick type of players to balance the skill and softness of Skinner, Semin, Lindholm, Tlusty.

Coaching and Management: JR needs to step aside, if that does not happen, he needs to at least admit his mistakes and change his ways...Muller likely gets another chance to coach next season...maybe Stefan and McLean take the fall and they tweak the assistants.
 
CanadaCanes said:
Cam: He sure seems like either a buyout candidate or a summer trade candidate with the Canes taking back salary. With Dobie signed and wanting the net, I think the writing is on the wall for Cam come summer as a Cane.

Defense: Totally agree, you have to spend the money and pay a legit top pairing guy this summer. Not a Joni P, over-slotted guy, a real, bonafide top pairing guy that may cost $5 to $6 million per.

Forwards: Size, grit and character to round out your 3rd and 4th lines for sure, not Bowman, Boychuk, Dwyer types...you need the Matt Hendricks, Paul Gaustad, Cody McCormick type of players to balance the skill and softness of Skinner, Semin, Lindholm, Tlusty.

Coaching and Management: JR needs to step aside, if that does not happen, he needs to at least admit his mistakes and change his ways...Muller likely gets another chance to coach next season...maybe Stefan and McLean take the fall and they tweak the assistants.
Click to expand...

I think you have the order wrong, because I don't think Rutherford is either inclined or capable of doing anything about your items 2 and 3. That means you bump him to No 1 ... at least in my book.

A lot if not all of my confidence in this organization going forward will be determined by whether or not PK has the stones to do something about his moribund front office staff. Until he pulls that trigger, I have no confidence at all that this team will even try to doing anything more meaningful than re-tool this summer.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top