Mac Carruth

[MA18]

Well for a start I heard Kozun and Mcnally couldn’t stand him. And a few other players didn’t fancy coming back if Carruth and Skalde were returning. I also remember a tweet from a North American hockey journalist that said he was a cancer in the dressing room during his days in North America. If he was popular with his Devils teammates he would have returned. Carruth pretty much admitted on wally’s podcast that he wanted to come back but the club decided against it.

I’d go as far as to say Mac Carruth is the best goalie I’ve seen in my time supporting the Devils but I find it baffling that some fans think it’s ok for players to be unpopular in the dressing room as long as they’re doing the business on the ice. Team spirit is so, so vital. What kind of message does it send to current players (and players we want to sign in the future) if we’re an organisation that are happy to keep an arsehole just because he’s good?! That’s not the culture Todd and the owners have created here. It’s easy for fans to say “I’d happily have him back” when they didn’t have to spend 8 months of the year with the guy.

The Kozun bit isn’t right. The McNally bit holds a bit more weight, but I know who I’d rather on my team.

Team spirit is absolutely vital but at the same time you can’t have 19 lads sat in their stalls not caring, calling for improvement, having high expectations and high performance. I get Todd might want that culture but maybe because of that we don’t have a ruthless must win/must perform culture.

 

[Rempel16]

The Kozun bit isn’t right. The McNally bit holds a bit more weight, but I know who I’d rather on my team.

Team spirit is absolutely vital but at the same time you can’t have 19 lads sat in their stalls not caring, calling for improvement, having high expectations and high performance. I get Todd might want that culture but maybe because of that we don’t have a ruthless must win/must perform culture.

Yet during Todd’s tenure we’ve won 2 league titles, so something is being done right in that sense.

 

[MA18]

Yet during Todd’s tenure we’ve won 2 league titles, so something is being done right in that sense.

I’ve got a lot of time for Todd and the owners, reading it back that didn’t come over in my original post.
I wouldn’t call us ruthless though.

 

[Devil94]

I’d go as far as to say Mac Carruth is the best goalie I’ve seen in my time supporting the Devils but I find it baffling that some fans think it’s ok for players to be unpopular in the dressing room as long as they’re doing the business on the ice. Team spirit is so, so vital. What kind of message does it send to current players (and players we want to sign in the future) if we’re an organisation that are happy to keep an arsehole just because he’s good?! That’s not the culture Todd and the owners have created here. It’s easy for fans to say “I’d happily have him back” when they didn’t have to spend 8 months of the year with the guy.

Exactly right. We only see the on ice performances, which were good enough to give him a contract for as long as he wanted it. But we didn't spend every day with him in that environment. And talking to him in the bar after a game where he seemed nice doesn't really paint the full picture.
Of course there's no problems with being competitive and wanting to win, we want that, but if you display that in a difficult way then it turns your teammates against you, creates divisions, demotivates and makes it harder to win and less enjoyable to turn up to the rink everyday.
Kozun last season went on an 11 league game win streak if I remember. Then if you look at the games we played terribly and dropped points, I'm thinking in Scotland many times, losing to Dundee and Coventry at home, Carruth was in net. I can only assume that the guys were more prepared to look after and play for Kozun, and subconsciously they couldn't do so for Carruth in the same way.

Funny how he might be our best goalie ever, but he hasn't reached any of Europe's top leagues, or had a real run in the AHL. Makes you wonder why.

 

[Kevlar68]

When Mac left I was amazed but as I said when bowns left, he's gone, he's with another team, who cares?
As for rumours I never listen to them, until Todd or Mac comes out with the truth no one can ever say they know for definite.

 

[fridaysfingers]

When Mac left I was amazed but as I said when bowns left, he's gone, he's with another team, who cares?
As for rumours I never listen to them, until Todd or Mac comes out with the truth no one can ever say they know for definite.

This was why I put the little caveat with my post.
It’s just an observation on an ex player doing well at another team.
Personally I like to keep an eye on how players are getting on when they move on.
I don’t care for what reason and maybe I have too much time on my hands.
I just don’t understand the who cares attitude towards my post.
Out of interest does the attitude stand for an ex player getting a bad injury?

 

[Kevlar68]

I understand where your coming from but for me after the first initial shock of bowns and Mac going, he's not a Devils player anymore so I then concentrate on our players.
It's not just that though, we let a nettie go who has just had 4 straight shut outs and replaced him with a nettie who's leaking goals.
It doesn't feel like a positive, motivating post.

 

[Hedd Wyn John]

What happened in the locker room stays in the locker room, quite a bit I heard..

Lol. Obviously not all of it stayed in the locker room.

 

[fridaysfingers]

Fair enough, but didn’t post it to be positive or motivating or negative either towards any of our netties.
I might have posted the information if it was
Kevin Carr, CJ Motte or anyone else’s ex goalie although I’d be less likely to have noticed it

 

[lloyd_jeff]

I’m no hockey pro or privy to the inner workings of the locker room or those in it. So having said that these comments are based on what we all see on the ice, read from the club and my formed opinion.
What l would love to know is who are the players Mac had issues with and how much Skalde did or didn’t control the team. Did Mac have issues with the same players that posters here are criticising, the ones comfortable & happy taking the wage with little effort or fear of binning. Why would we keep them, having a reputation as an easy well payed team with little respect for the fans or club is just as bad, if not worse than having one arsehole in the room. My opinion is that Skalde lost authority, couldn’t get the team on side, Mac was pissed being hung out to dry most games, nobody was interested and basically some of the team took control and did whatever suited them. If we bin a few guys in the next few weeks great.

 

[kettdevil1]

Fair enough, but didn’t post it to be positive or motivating or negative either towards any of our netties.
I might have posted the information if it was
Kevin Carr, CJ Motte or anyone else’s ex goalie although I’d be less likely to have noticed it

Thanks for posting, interesting to see him doing well.

 

[moggy#9]

Well for a start I heard Kozun and Mcnally couldn’t stand him. And a few other players didn’t fancy coming back if Carruth and Skalde were returning. I also remember a tweet from a North American hockey journalist that said he was a cancer in the dressing room during his days in North America. If he was popular with his Devils teammates he would have returned. Carruth pretty much admitted on wally’s podcast that he wanted to come back but the club decided against it.

I’d go as far as to say Mac Carruth is the best goalie I’ve seen in my time supporting the Devils but I find it baffling that some fans think it’s ok for players to be unpopular in the dressing room as long as they’re doing the business on the ice. Team spirit is so, so vital. What kind of message does it send to current players (and players we want to sign in the future) if we’re an organisation that are happy to keep an arsehole just because he’s good?! That’s not the culture Todd and the owners have created here. It’s easy for fans to say “I’d happily have him back” when they didn’t have to spend 8 months of the year with the guy.

It sounds like the days of having brebant and chinn in the dressing room, from what I've heard about those days.

 

[Swarley]

I like Mac and I'm gutted he didn't stay with us, all the bullshit rumors are just that, they're rumors either made up by people wanting attention or wanting to seem like they have the inside scoop on things when they know absolutely nothing.

His shut out record atm is a thing of beauty and I hope he continues to have shut outs for the blue fox.

Looking at his career yes he has a lot of intensity on the ice and in the locker room, but that's how titles are won, he is a high caliber player who expects 100% from everyone in the locker room and he has the balls to front up to ones he believes are giving less then 100%

Me personally i would of kept Dupont on as head coach bring Dixon in as assistant coach and and bring Mac back and build a team around his intensity and passion for winning.

 

[MA18]

I like Mac and I'm gutted he didn't stay with us, all the bullshit rumors are just that, they're rumors either made up by people wanting attention or wanting to seem like they have the inside scoop on things when they know absolutely nothing.

His shut out record atm is a thing of beauty and I hope he continues to have shut outs for the blue fox.

Looking at his career yes he has a lot of intensity on the ice and in the locker room, but that's how titles are won, he is a high caliber player who expects 100% from everyone in the locker room and he has the balls to front up to ones he believes are giving less then 100%

Me personally i would of kept Dupont on as head coach bring Dixon in as assistant coach and and bring Mac back and build a team around his intensity and passion for winning.

With you all the way on this!

 

[Rempel16]

Here’s a scenario based question… we live in a world where budgets matter so…

Would you have rathered sign Carruth and not Joey Martin? As that’s likely the trade salary wise.

 

[E.D.S.]

Here’s a scenario based question… we live in a world where budgets matter so…

Would you have rathered sign Carruth and not Joey Martin? As that’s likely the trade salary wise.

Absolutely!

 

[MA18]

Here’s a scenario based question… we live in a world where budgets matter so…

Would you have rathered sign Carruth and not Joey Martin? As that’s likely the trade salary wise.

Yep.

 

[Swarley]

Here’s a scenario based question… we live in a world where budgets matter so…

Would you have rathered sign Carruth and not Joey Martin? As that’s likely the trade salary wise.

Mac, and I'm a big supporter of Martin but Mac went an entire season with a disfunctional team and still worked his ass off to get us into the finals and a playoff win.

I'm not discrediting Martin at all as everyone knows his hockey mind is incredible but for me it would be Mac.

That or drop a couple of imports and have both and just have Martin work with cheaper players as he brings out the best in everyone

 

[august04 2.0]

Here’s a scenario based question… we live in a world where budgets matter so…

Would you have rathered sign Carruth and not Joey Martin? As that’s likely the trade salary wise.

Not necessarily. Given the advantages of having a Brit goalie, I would expect Bowns to be on a very good wage too.

 

[Kevlar68]

Yep.