RIT 2010-11: What do Tigers dream of?

[dutchbrowncoat]

Re: RIT 2010-11: What do Tigers dream of?

I was taking a look at some numbers and I believe the PP is where we miss Ringwald/Tanev/Mazur the most. The defensemen on the unit don't seem to be as offensive minded as in the past. Haltigan leads the D with 3 goals. Seracino and Noyes have have 2, and Descoteaux has 1. That's it. And Descoteaux, Raibl, Spivak, and Eckenswiller combine for 12 total points.

All three of the players that we lost would have more goals than what we have combined from the D. Teams can slack off the point knowing that haven't been scoring - and often not even shooting and that makes it harder on the forwards because they can't find openings down low.

unfortunately for the new guys, they have to fill in for some great defenders. ringwald and tanev were an absolutely incredible duo. it will be hard for any d-pairing down the road to match up to what those guys did in 09/10. in 41 games, they had 21 goals, 44 assists, and only 16 penalty minutes.

some good points about the power play though. i would add that (in the few games i have seen) they lack the movement and passing that ringwald/tanev had. they both were great at moving with the puck, opening space and drawing defenders. ringwald working with the puck on the power play was my favorite thing to watch since lambert graduated.

 

[TigerFan86-87]

Re: RIT 2010-11: What do Tigers dream of?

Watching the Tigers in the attacking zone, particularly on the power play, has become increasingly painful.

As has been pointed out before, it basically goes...pass, pass, pass, pass, boardplay, pass, pass, turnover.

They seem completely unwilling to shoot unless they are in the absolute optimal position, which doesn't seem to happen very much as smart teams just crowd us out of the slot. They do manage to generate a decent amount of goals given the number of shots they take (see: Merrimack game, Mercyhurst, ect) but if they took 10-15 shots more per game, they would probably find that one extra goal they have needed 5 times now this season.

It's not just on the PP or in the offensive zone set-up. How many 2-on-1's, 3-on-2's, and even 2-on-2's went essentially wasted on Saturday (and throughout the season, for that matter) by the "skate, skate, skate, wait until within 5 feet of the goal-line, then try and pass" strategy? Put the darn puck on goal every once in a while!!! What's the worst that could happen?!?! Couldn't be any worse than the inevitable turnover headed the other way when the defense picks off the last instant sharp angle pass attempt and heads the other way with it.