GFWE Game #11 Predictions

@ Gilbert:
I have no doubt that Schenn will turn out to be a solid NHL player. I just question how he is being developed. As for Wilson, I agree he has his team playing hard every night, other than the first 10 minutes, but there are several areas of this team that coaching has a direct influence on that are absolutely awful. The PK , supposedly a specialty of Wilson, is once again near or at the bottom of the league. Granted, the goaltender is usually your best penalty killer, but some improvement in his second year should be noticed by now. The PP is unimaginative and relies on perimeter shots or booming shots from Beauchemin with nobody in front. Especially alarming is that the young players, including Schenn, have taken backwards steps all at once. Not a coincidence in my opinion. Kulemin seems to be coming out of it, but not as an offensive threat.
Wilson arrived here with a reputation as a defensive genius, but the majority of his coaching wins came with Olaf Kolzig playing in his prime with Washington and Evgeni Nabakov in San Jose. It’s easy to be designated a genius with goaltending like that, but he has failed miserably in getting the Leafs to play even a simple defensive scheme and not allow teams to expose their weak goaltending, shots from center ice excepted.

Gilbert wrote:

@ ingy56:
Toronto had 49 shots against montreal and gave up 23 at some point it falls on the players. thats pretty defensive if you ask me.
As for the pk, take notice next time you watch the leafs and see how many forwards go down to block one. I havent caught every game this year but thats the one thing I notice about this team. They need a guy like steve staios who throws his body in front of shots not stand up in flamingo. This team lack character and guys like jamal mayers and wayne premeau should be leading the way

They did take it to Montreal after they got down 2-0, but a lot of those shots were from the outside, however playing in the other teams zone is a good defensive tactic for sure.
I agree about the shot blocking, it has been awful, I remember John Mitchell doing the flamingo against Carolina when they tied the game with seconds left and then lost in OT earlier this year. Komisarek was supposed to lead the way in that department but it was him screening Gustavsson on the OT winner Saturday I believe. Was Staios the guy Cherry was showing Saturday?,that was amazing.
As for character, they are missing it but Ian White has it in spades. Here is a guy who has been told he’s too short probably his whole career, yet worked through it. Wilson had him in the press box for a pile of games at the beginning of last year and only got back in the lineup as a forward. Yet, he just worked hard , persevered and has become one of the best defensemen on the team by far. Then they go and hand “A”s to Komisarek and Beauchemin who arrive with reputations, but have only shown glimpses of their games so far this year, puzzling to me.