Re: Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread
There is a lot to look "forward" to.
Hopefully, the pieces fall into place better than they did this year. I can remember seasons where the team seemed very deep (1998-99, 2000-01, 2008-09), but the overall product didn't gel as well as it might have.
It should be Gulstene's show at goaltender next year but I'm hoping for an overall better team approach to defense that brings down the number of goals against by quite a bit from this year.
I thought that the backpressure, which was absent for much of the year, came around late. It couldn't do much on Saturday, as the turnovers happened too close to our own net.
Also, I know they can improve on the special teams numbers that they put up this year with the Power Play at 19.8% and the penalty kill at 85.4%.
PP was good early, and then tailed off into a long drought. We didn't have the type of distributors we usually do. The PK was good in the middle of the season, but it seemed vulnerable any time the opponent was able to set up later in the year.
I know Wisconsin (Pankowski, Clark, Shirley), BC (Keller, Flanagan, Barnes), and UMD (Rooney, Rooney, and more Rooney) are anticipating what they get back next year. But I wouldn't trade (Pannek, Potomak, Potomak) for any of those other options, from either a competitive or an entertainment aspect.
Beyond the defensive breakdowns, of which there were simply too many, I thought that this team's biggest issue was the passing. That played a big role in the defensive shortcomings, both by the turnovers that resulted, and the amount of time that we had to play without the puck. Part of the passing issue is that not a lot of chemistry developed. Wente's line had it some days, but it disappeared at times. Skarzynski's line was likely the most consistent down the stretch in terms of everyone being on the same page. It just never happened for Piazza's unit. Someone like Woken could benefit from skating with someone whose game complements hers. Some people also need to improve their ability to catch a pass, as too many bounced off sticks or went by untouched.
While I'm sure a SP/KP/AP line would be dynamite, I don't know that we can afford it. Williamson being able to play definitely changes the options. She'll at least be another veteran presence. There were rumors of Agnew moving on, but I'm not sure that the poster really knew, because at that time of year, BC wouldn't have been able to talk to her at all. I could see it either way. New forwards are going to have to figure things out quickly next year, or they could wind up getting left out of the mix. It is hard to improve faster than those with whom you're competing for shifts if you don't even get to dress.
As far as another D candidate, between Skarzynski, and hopefully, a healthier Robinson, I think that they'll be okay on the blue line. With the experience gained by the three primary returning options, I expect that it will be better than this year.
