Blaze Vs Devils - CC - 18th Sept 22

lloyd_jeff

Well-Known Member
#64
Tough reality check to start off the “proper season” even if it is the competition that nobody cares about, unless their bossing it. If a coach is to be successful from the outset, he‘ll need to be either very good, very lucky or more likely EIHL experienced. That by now should be blatantly obvious to at least the club. Doesn’t matter if its Skalde, Dupont or whoever, they’ll all need to find their feet and that takes time. We’ll see how long it will take Dupont, but going on last year’s expectation & changes, he’ll need to be quick & he’s not got the same coaching level, so we may need to lower expectations and ride it out for what it is.
 

E.D.S.

Well-Known Member
#67
I’m not overly concerned just yet, but I do feel the line chemistry is wrong and it’s frustrating me that we aren’t playing physical.

DuPont said he wanted to get bigger and heavier and so far our bigger, heavier forward has thrown less hits in his Devils career than Dixon did in a period.
This is my concern. I always like to wait until Christmas before gently pointing the finger but.... I just don't see this big body player and better puck retention that Dupont and Brittain spoke about. It just isn't there. We're lightweight.... again and more concerning is that our lightweights (our most creative players) are throwing the checks... again.
As for Crandall, he is just too good to not be a major player on this team. It's more than just form with him (for me). The guy is class but he isn't firing. May be the uncertainty of which line he's on, who his line mates are and the style of hockey is what's creating the issues.

Dupont is learning. He's earned that right to learn and for his bosses to be patient with him but I hope this doesn't go the same way as his predecessor - where for weeks EVERYONE could see what the issues were, even the non hockey intelligent posters, yet we persevered and the cracks that we all saw became great big voids and we ended up having to rescue a season (what a rescue it was by the way but hockey as a spectacle became dull, until Brnadt arrived)
 
#68
geez dupont has been in the job 2 minutes its a competition that you can qualify after only winning a few games let the guy try some things out get his feet under the table , this IS the time to try things not in the league games and if it goes tits up so what hes learning just like the players he and the devils have recruited . Id rather all have a solid unit after a few weeks than our usual slump at nov/dec
 

pjj365

Well-Known Member
#69
This is all so familiar - bad start to the cup so everyone on here starts rearranging the lines etc.

But our history in the cup is not reflected in those bad starts

Hang on in there folk
 

E.D.S.

Well-Known Member
#70
Agree - but it's what a forum is for. People are allowed to vent, write stupid stuff or even write clever stuff but they all turn up at the game and cheers the boys on. People can calm down, people can get irate and fear the worst. Doesn't make a difference.

It's the same every year and I seem to write the same thing every year..... things we know.... we win, we think we're amazing, we lose and we react. We will lose in Scotland midweek, we will lose to the worst team in the league, we'll get spanked by the best team in the league, but we'll also pull wins out of our backside that we should never have won, we'll rip up the form book and win a game everyone had us down to lose, we'll go on a brilliant run of form beating the top sides and then lose a game we should win, we'll be top of the league for a bit. It's hockey. It's the same thing every year.

Guaranteed topics going forward:

- Bownsy isn't what he used to be
- Two top end goalies is a waste
- We get bullied
- Why doesn't Louis fight more?
- We need more seats in the gantry
 

BostonBart22

Well-Known Member
#71
geez dupont has been in the job 2 minutes its a competition that you can qualify after only winning a few games let the guy try some things out get his feet under the table , this IS the time to try things not in the league games and if it goes tits up so what hes learning just like the players he and the devils have recruited . Id rather all have a solid unit after a few weeks than our usual slump at nov/dec
Really hope it's sorted by November as we gotta get it right for the continental cup
 

ASHIPP

Well-Known Member
#73
Not bothered about CC, never have been, so for me league then playoffs in that order are all that matters.
They can use the CC as a training platform for all I care.
This is a feeling of many. If the ultimate objective is to qualify for a European tournament, the Challenge Cup won't deliver that...other than provide momentum.

It does ,however, have a place in the heart of our Club, as the first title we won under the new ownership.
 

Kevin roog

Well-Known Member
#74
If we ain’t bothered about cc group games, and they are just training games (I’m not particularly bothered, only away games I don’t go to) why don’t the club be a bit more honest and take them off our season ticket and charge a tenner like the rest of the friendlies
 

moggy#9

Well-Known Member
#75
One of my big gripes about the cc is that the games for that and the league are mixed up. I'd like to get all of the cc group games out of the way before the league starts. That way we could treat it as a glorified pre-season.
 

kingmo19.1

Well-Known Member
#77
It’s obvious really, If we had more seats in the gantry we’d get more home fans in so it would be more intimidating then we’d likely never lose at home. By my calculations, a further 17,000 seats in the Gantry is the equivalent of another 4 goals for us !!!

For away games, the club needs to invest in a pop-up gantry so we can take thousands of fans with us!
 
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#78
It’s obvious really, If we had more seats in the gantry we’d get more home fans in so it would be more intimidating then we’d likely never lose at home. By my calculations, a further 17,000 seats in the Gantry is the equivalent of another 4 goals for us !!!

For away games, the club needs to invest in a pop-up gantry so we can take thousands of fans with us!
If I remember correctly last year you said we could get another 10,000 seats on the gantry.
If that’s the case it would be more like 2.5 goals per game.
As we all know, you can’t have half a goal so what is it 2 goals or 3?
Quite the conundrum!!
 

kingmo19.1

Well-Known Member
#79
If I remember correctly last year you said we could get another 10,000 seats on the gantry.
If that’s the case it would be more like 2.5 goals per game.
As we all know, you can’t have half a goal so what is it 2 goals or 3?
Quite the conundrum!!
Ah FridaysFingers, where have you been? Don’t tell me you were not aware of the Phase 4 extension that went up in May?? That was the additional capacity for circa 7,000 seats!

Listen, if you need to keep up, tune into:-
Gantry FM or Gantry 24/7 news on Sky (channel 4301) or even listen to the pod - 3 Ales and Gantry tales! There really is no excuse for being out of the gantry loop these days !!!

For those with a sweet tooth, new 8 part series on BBC1 starts on Wednesday this week - “Mary Berry’s what’s in the Pantry up in the Gantry”. Mary and her team will be making a selection is exquisite cakes up in the gantry and distributing at home games throughout September, October and November!
 
#80
Ah FridaysFingers, where have you been? Don’t tell me you were not aware of the Phase 4 extension that went up in May?? That was the additional capacity for circa 7,000 seats!

Listen, if you need to keep up, tune into:-
Gantry FM or Gantry 24/7 news on Sky (channel 4301) or even listen to the pod - 3 Ales and Gantry tales! There really is no excuse for being out of the gantry loop these days !!!

For those with a sweet tooth, new 8 part series on BBC1 starts on Wednesday this week - “Mary Berry’s what’s in the Pantry up in the Gantry”. Mary and her team will be making a selection is exquisite cakes up in the gantry and distributing at home games throughout September, October and November!
There’s the problem, I have my annual sabbatical from all things Gantry in May.
As you say there’s plenty of outlets to keep informed but when I heard that Devils had failed to sign my favourite player again I kinda switched off.
Never mind, I do hear a rumour that Brett Gallant-ry might be a mid season signing!!!
 
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