Flames/Stars Postgame Thoughts
by Kent Wilson on Mar 19, 2009 10:22 AM PDT
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Print- It's finally happened: Dion Phaneuf is back to being a third pairing defenseman. He played 14:20 at ES last night, the least of any Flames defender, and he spent most of the night facing Brunnstrom, Neal, Lundqvist and other assorted 3rd liners. There's no question at this point: the kid has taken a big step back this year.
- The Flames dominated at ES yesterday, but still surrendered too much on the PK (even though the Stars failed to score) by my eyes. Dallas had just 13 ES shots all night, but managed 6 shots in 3 PP opportunities. Keep in mind, this was a tired opponent whose PP has been operating at about 11% recently. The Flames, in contrast, generated 7 shots in 5 PP chances. Secial teams are rapidly becoming a sort point for me with this club.
- Last night's corsi. I actually really like what I saw out of the Jokinen line, even though they were all -1 on the evening, and the corsi rates back me up. Also, while they didn't score, they did manage to draw three penalties, which has value to be sure. Other interesting numbers from last night are Leo's +18 rating and Phaneuf's team low +2...especially since Leopold was facing the tougher competition.
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i was actually surprised at what i saw out of dion against the stars: he was NOTICEABLY leaving these half-assed little drop passes in the neutral zone, instead of sending an outlet pass to the forwards or doing the customary phaneuf “enter the zone all by myself” move…. it was like somebody (and, in my head i hear playfair) said “don’t try to do it all youself, kid. as a test: i don’t want to see you carry the puck across the offensive blueline at all this period.” so, instead, he’d take the puck across the red and just leave it there for someone to collect. it was truly annoying.
i have to say i thought the dallas game was his worst of the year, though his +/- would not have reflected a meltdown like some of the previous outings….
i also wonder how much of it has to do with leopold, and here i’m speaking as someone who has never been a huge leopold fan, but also someone who has seen dion’s effectiveness (what little there has been this season) drastically decline since the re-acquisition of #40.
i miss me some gio…. :(
I can’t see how any of Dion’s struggles can be related to Leopold. The two weren’t even paired last night. In addition, Phaneuf has pretty much been crappy all year.
Keenan has finally come around and done the right thing: demoted the kid to the 3rd pairing where his performance and numbers indicate he belongs. He’s been the weak link (defensively speaking) for awhile, and his relative lack of production means the warts are really noticeable. The bounces haven’t been kind by any means, but I haven’t liked what I’ve seen out of Phaneuf for months now and he doesn’t seem to be getting better. I can only hope this season is a “hiccup” in his development.
by Kent Wilson on Mar 19, 2009 11:26 PM PDT up reply actions
I honestly think Dion’s got a case of the young-and-stupids. He got a Norris nomination, a movie-star girlfriend, pictures in the tabloids, a $6.5-million salary, the cover of a video game, and anyone who gets in earshot telling him he’s the absolute greatest ever. And he’s 23. Are you going to listen to Jim Playfair? Getting dropped to the third pairing, then hearing a lot of crap in the offseason that you suck, then getting dumped by Kim Bauer, then getting the A stripped off your jersey — that’s the kind of thing he needs right now.
I really, really don’t think he’s done. It’s not like he’s not good enough, doesn’t have the raw skills, can’t be taught, etc. He just has to grow up.
I completely agree with Duncan on all points – he has received way too many accolades in the past year, especially considering – based on some of the comments he’s made – his maturity level is not high enough to handle them (he is only 23). I think he has talent and he needs to be knocked down a few pegs.
Unfortunately, there are two problems I see with this. One, his character may be such that he won’t turn that ‘maturity’ corner. There have been so many NHL players or prospects who hit a plateau and couldn’t go past it because of character issues. I don’t live in Calgary and don’t know if he’s the type of player with those type of character issues (I’m not into gossip, but you know the kind of stories I mean, you hear things about night life, etc.). I admit to being nervous about almost any player dating hollywood starlets.
The other problem is I think he’s soft, I think other players in the NHL know it, and I think it hampers him defensively. He is often out of position, or late to a puck, because he doesn’t seem to want to take the hit, he wants to wait until someone else gets the puck and then deliver the hit. Even in scrums, which are generally a waste of time but which do show certain attributes of players, he comes in a bit late, waits for teammates, turtles a bit, etc. I’m far from a Don Cherry type, but I don’t really like his body language when the going gets tough. He can deliver some great hits, but I’m worried his peak is limited by his ‘lack of toughness’.
I don’t like equating ‘character’ to talent, or output on the ice, but in Phaneuf’s case, I’m a little concerned.
All that stuff seems potentially valid. Whatever the cause, we can all hope things reverse themselves eventually. With all the talk about being a future Pronger and such, keep in mind Ed Jovonovski was once a highly acclaimed and coveted youngster – one who basically never turned the corner in terms of becoming a great overall defenseman. Neither career path is assured, but both are possible.
Funny you mention Jovo – I was watching a game LAST year with a Canuck’s fan, one who didn’t see the flames much, and he said, without any prompting, that Phaneuf reminded him of Jovo, and he figured his future might look the same…I’ve not really looked at Phaneuf the same way since.
The same thing has occurred to me, only it was this year. Phaneuf looked – at times – like a dominating force to me last season, but that hasn’t happened at all so far in 08/09. He’s just kinda looked like Jovo – above average offense, but a liability otherwise.
by Kent Wilson on Mar 20, 2009 10:13 AM PDT up reply actions
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