We have been here before. Approaching Christmas and very inconsistent. Often we get it sorted by Christmas and have a decent run at the title. So I understand why some have hope. Other teams also struggle at this time of year. But there is something different with this team. Problems that have been there for months don't look like being resolved despite lots of line juggling. We still have a second line that looks like a third or fourth. We still have leaky D that make bad decisions and keep passing to our forwards skates instead of their sticks which kills the breakout.
The shame is we have a good first line with Sanford on fire and we have Brits like Waller, Duggan and Ben Davies doing a great job. But between those is a huge gap filled with very mediocre imports and behind it all is the weakest D we have had in years.
It is fixable but it needs a change which is why I keep saying 1 forward and 1 D could turn it all around.
Im not a huge fan of Crawford but he is racking up the points. I would swap Thompson for a large dependable defensive D man like McNulty. He wasn't flash but he did his job.
Up front I think Crandall, Reid, Brittain and Penny are all replaceable. Maybe swapping just one of them will give us the chemistry they have never been able to achieve together.
Last year Coughler replacing Dupont sorted out the forward lines and adding McNulty settled the D. Lets hope we can do something like that again.
If we stick with this team as is its going to be a long and painful season.
The shame is we have a good first line with Sanford on fire and we have Brits like Waller, Duggan and Ben Davies doing a great job. But between those is a huge gap filled with very mediocre imports and behind it all is the weakest D we have had in years.
It is fixable but it needs a change which is why I keep saying 1 forward and 1 D could turn it all around.
Im not a huge fan of Crawford but he is racking up the points. I would swap Thompson for a large dependable defensive D man like McNulty. He wasn't flash but he did his job.
Up front I think Crandall, Reid, Brittain and Penny are all replaceable. Maybe swapping just one of them will give us the chemistry they have never been able to achieve together.
Last year Coughler replacing Dupont sorted out the forward lines and adding McNulty settled the D. Lets hope we can do something like that again.
If we stick with this team as is its going to be a long and painful season.
