Cardiff Devils v Belfast Giants - Sat 14 Jan 2017 - League - FO 7pm
- Thread starter Nott Simpson
- Start date
From the middle of the 2nd period the Giants just out muscled & out fought us which just shouldnt happen when we are at home & closing in towards the seasos end.
The top line guys were absolutely done in mid third period and had little to no gas left in the tank. They are used so so much & to say we run 4 lines is simply wrong. We have enough players for 4 lines but very very rarely is it used. It means our go to guys are fatigued at this time of the year, just the same as the last 2 seasons.
For me today Ulmer went went missing. Ive defended him in the past but tonight when needed he was absent.
The amount of times we were caught out over playing in our own zone was shocking.
We cant afford any more mishaps now. We have to beat the Giants in all our remaining games with them or we will be relying on others to help us out.
The top line guys were absolutely done in mid third period and had little to no gas left in the tank. They are used so so much & to say we run 4 lines is simply wrong. We have enough players for 4 lines but very very rarely is it used. It means our go to guys are fatigued at this time of the year, just the same as the last 2 seasons.
For me today Ulmer went went missing. Ive defended him in the past but tonight when needed he was absent.
The amount of times we were caught out over playing in our own zone was shocking.
We cant afford any more mishaps now. We have to beat the Giants in all our remaining games with them or we will be relying on others to help us out.
I agree in principle. But at the same time, I feel like the best people for the job are being placed where they are needed. I don't feel it's a coaching problem. I just feel like some of the guys aren't getting themselves up for the game like they should be.
Someone to come in and kick everyone in the backside (Like Jason Williams really has at Panthers, and much like Russell did for us last year, albeit slightly too late imo) is what I think this team could do with. But, as a lot of people like to, and no doubt will point out, I'm not a coach.
Someone to come in and kick everyone in the backside (Like Jason Williams really has at Panthers, and much like Russell did for us last year, albeit slightly too late imo) is what I think this team could do with. But, as a lot of people like to, and no doubt will point out, I'm not a coach.
I'm satisfied with a point tonight as we could have easily come away with nothing against a very strong looking Giants team. That's the worry for me - we've been reeled in and haven't played well for some time if we're honest. Approaching crunch time of the season, that Giants team looks better and hungrier than us. The CC semi final looks problematic too now, I'm hopeful but not at all confident of getting through unless this team is given a boost on the playing front. No doubt, we'll get stats thrown at us but one line simply isn't up to the job, particularly when the better teams come to town and we all know which players are underperforming. On a positive note, someone sign Joey Haddad up to a multi year deal now please.
Sadly it is a coaching problem the buck stops with Lordo.TK spent years at Belfast developing their style of play that they kept despite roster and coaching changes he must know what needs changing.They are very physical ,sometimes dirty or gritty as you may like to call it.They never quit and are always hungry for success.I suggest they are much like their supporters and the Ulster Rugby team plays the same way.
Whereas we are like Welsh rugby fans as long as we beat England(in our case the Steelers) we dont need to win anything.
Trying to be postive it was a cracking game end to end and mostly intense hockey.
I dont blame Fournier for the winning goal he almost scored then the puck was turned over.Unfortunately for him he was the only player fast enough to chase down the puck before Belfast scored.
Dont the Police say the first person at the scene of the crime is the main suspect.
I will wait and see if any changes are made but it has been said several times this season we are still top of the league and the games are all sold out so whats the problem?
Whereas we are like Welsh rugby fans as long as we beat England(in our case the Steelers) we dont need to win anything.
Trying to be postive it was a cracking game end to end and mostly intense hockey.
I dont blame Fournier for the winning goal he almost scored then the puck was turned over.Unfortunately for him he was the only player fast enough to chase down the puck before Belfast scored.
Dont the Police say the first person at the scene of the crime is the main suspect.
I will wait and see if any changes are made but it has been said several times this season we are still top of the league and the games are all sold out so whats the problem?
Giants'physicality, their outstanding young netminder and finishing important chances won the Giants that game. Think we were watching definite title contenders tonight.
Can't fault Devils' effort..but they couldn't finish several clear chances and were battling against a fine young goalie in Jackson Whistle. TBH, Devils looked killed by p3 and the Giants always seemed to have a fresh pair of legs with every shift change.
4 out of last 5 games for Devils have gone to overtime with mixed results. They are struggling to nail a result in regulation recently - have other teams worked out what to do or are our guys hitting the January slump through fatigue/injury.
IIRC something similar happened last season after a good lead in the league. The Giants had a point to prove tonight and did. Hope Devils can nail the results against the Giants, particularly in the CC semi-final games or we will struggle to get past this stage.
Can't fault Devils' effort..but they couldn't finish several clear chances and were battling against a fine young goalie in Jackson Whistle. TBH, Devils looked killed by p3 and the Giants always seemed to have a fresh pair of legs with every shift change.
4 out of last 5 games for Devils have gone to overtime with mixed results. They are struggling to nail a result in regulation recently - have other teams worked out what to do or are our guys hitting the January slump through fatigue/injury.
IIRC something similar happened last season after a good lead in the league. The Giants had a point to prove tonight and did. Hope Devils can nail the results against the Giants, particularly in the CC semi-final games or we will struggle to get past this stage.
Fournier was at the end of a longish shift in ot and instead of playing it out of the zone around the boards to relieve the pressure, he did what he always does in that area and tried a fancy play slipped and lost control of the puck then bingo game over. Where is the four line hockey we are supposed to have, piggot sat on the bench for about 40 mins? Brine didn't/Doesn't see much icetime he's and ex NHLER for Christ sake. Devils get this sorted NOW or we will be saying the same things we have for the last two years if only we had won this game or picked up a point in that game we WOULD HAVE WON THE LEAGUE, no longer acceptable to watch top line players going missing in games so and i'll probably get flamed but hey ho tough. For me the following players Doucet, Ulmer, Benni, Morrissette, need a massive kick up the arse get their confidence back and play hockey like we know they can, Fournier stop trying to be a showboat Charlie with fancy plays in dangerous areas and just do the bloody basics properly and consistently. Lordo time to take a good look at the team and get the team back on track sort out the under performing players you know who they are. stop being a nice guy, get 4 line hockey playing as it should or we WILL END UP LOSING THE LEAGUE FOR THE THIRD YEAR IN A ROW.
What is it that we can't play for 60 mins, first 20 awesome, second 20 okay, third 20 aweful, for a few games now I have thought I would settle for a point, what's that about when we are at home. Just my opinion but we have a coach that could outplay many of our team, and we need him on the ice. We are now getting into the home strait, and the business side of things, and we unfortunately are dropping off our game. Other fans call us chokers, they say we choke when it comes to the crucial time of the season, at the moment we do choke in the final third of a game, that breaks my heart to say but it's true. How can players play so good, then play so bad.
That was a crap result tonight in front of another full house. That should be an embarrassment to the whole roster, Lordo and Todd. The Product on the ice at the moment is not deserving of sell out crowds, that go home disappointed with performances and losses like tonight. Both Steelers and Giants have gained ground on us. Lord should have played tonight. He is ineffective on the bench at a time when the Devils NEED him on the ice. especially with Bordy missing. Well done to Hotham and Louis for stepping up tonight but we were flat and lacking intensity and energy for long spells in the game. The Giants were allowed to boss us on our own ice, which to my mind totally unacceptable. We didn't seem hungry enough to go all out for the win, as we should have done, knowing it was our only game of the weekend.
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