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RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

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Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

The capital district is a combined 8-3-1 against big blue. Assuming UAlbany or any other college in the area didn't play them...
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

FlagDUDE08 said:
The capital district is a combined 8-3-1 against big blue. Assuming UAlbany or any other college in the area didn't play them...
Click to expand...

Seems unlikely, assuming that you mean hockey and on the NCAA level.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Random thought/concern: anyone else concerned by the fact that we were taking issue with not producing on the power play earlier this season, yet suddenly we did this past weekend, and now we've gone an epic amount of game minutes without an even strength goal? Why are our offensive woes swinging from one side of the equation to the other? (Regardless of the fact that we're having scoring issues all around. This is within the scope of the actual scoring we're doing)

Edit: also, why is one of our top scorers a d-man? I know he's got a wicked one-timer, and I'm not complaining about the production, but still just a curiosity question.
 
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Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

ibanezist00 said:
Random thought/concern: anyone else concerned by the fact that we were taking issue with not producing on the power play earlier this season, yet suddenly we did this past weekend, and now we've gone an epic amount of game minutes without an even strength goal? Why are our offensive woes swinging from one side of the equation to the other? (Regardless of the fact that we're having scoring issues all around. This is within the scope of the actual scoring we're doing)
Click to expand...

It's a sign that things are improving, albeit very slowly. Before we basically couldn't score to save our lives, whether that was on the power play or not. Now they're at least starting to put the puck in the net occasionally on the power play (when it is supposed to be easier to score), but that now has to translate to even strength.

Edit: also, why is one of our top scorers a d-man? I know he's got a wicked one-timer, and I'm not complaining about the production, but still just a curiosity question.
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He was last year, too. Leading returning scorer.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Red Cloud said:
He was last year, too. Leading returning scorer.
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I understood that, and as I said no complaints, more curiosity. My question still stands though; why? If he's this good at putting the puck in the net, maybe he should be a forward for the moment while we're having these scoring issues? Would that make a real difference in our overall offensive game?

Again, all just curiosity/semi-rhetorical questions that make me think.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

ibanezist00 said:
I understood that, and as I said no complaints, more curiosity. My question still stands though; why? If he's this good at putting the puck in the net, maybe he should be a forward for the moment while we're having these scoring issues?
Click to expand...

Look at where he scores his goals from and then ask yourself this question again.

Defensemen are not necessarily restricted from scoring as part of their job. Some do it well. Others focus more on defense. Some, like Bailen, do both.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

ibanezist00 said:
I understood that, and as I said no complaints, more curiosity. My question still stands though; why? If he's this good at putting the puck in the net, maybe he should be a forward for the moment while we're having these scoring issues? Would that make a real difference in our overall offensive game?

Again, all just curiosity/semi-rhetorical questions that make me think.
Click to expand...

As a defenseman, he gets more ice time. He is also a pretty good defenseman.
I like him right where he is. He is comfortable playing defense, who knows what might happen if he has to go into the corners on offense, or go into the dirty areas around the net.
Leave him be, and get the high scoring freshmen to relax and play their game.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

ibanezist00 said:
Random thought/concern: anyone else concerned by the fact that we were taking issue with not producing on the power play earlier this season, yet suddenly we did this past weekend, and now we've gone an epic amount of game minutes without an even strength goal? Why are our offensive woes swinging from one side of the equation to the other? (Regardless of the fact that we're having scoring issues all around. This is within the scope of the actual scoring we're doing)

Edit: also, why is one of our top scorers a d-man? I know he's got a wicked one-timer, and I'm not complaining about the production, but still just a curiosity question.
Click to expand...

Do you remember so guy named Orr? ;)
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Red Cloud said:
Look at where he scores his goals from and then ask yourself this question again.

Defensemen are not necessarily restricted from scoring as part of their job. Some do it well. Others focus more on defense. Some, like Bailen, do both.
Click to expand...

Bailen has made some dumb plays this year on defense although not recently.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Red Cloud said:
Look at where he scores his goals from and then ask yourself this question again.

Defensemen are not necessarily restricted from scoring as part of their job. Some do it well. Others focus more on defense. Some, like Bailen, do both.
Click to expand...

Good point.

Figured I would ask all these speculative questions to see if experimenting with the lines may actually do us some good, but now that I think of it, I think we just need to wait for the current freshmen to get comfortable with their game more than anything.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

For what it's worth, Bailen's goal was a set-up one-timer, and he didn't have any obvious giveaways on Friday's game, although I cannot claim this to be true for all defensemen.

If defensemen are scoring, then the forwards have to be doing something right. They're effectively screening the goalie and drawing the clutter out of the shooting lanes. I'd say leave as is.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Ralph Baer said:
Bailen has made some dumb plays this year on defense although not recently.
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I thought that Bailen was struggling early in the season as well. Perhaps he was trying to do too much, especially when the injuries to the forwards started piling up.

It was nice to see Higgs and Lee pick up their play at RIT. That HAS to continue. It seems that Laliberte is more involved since returning from the injury too. He is making some nice plays and setting up some opportunities. If they can get him producing goals like expected, this team could get on a roll. Too many upperclassmen, especially up front, are not producing as I expected. I still don't see much from Rabani, and though he has been good at time this year, Angers-Goulet was a non-factor at RIT. Bergin needs to shut his mouth and play hockey. He was awful against Union and then took a bad misconduct penalty. Then against RIT he had three more minors. All the time he keeps talking. He played well in the final 20-30 minutes last week, but he needs to do that for 60 minutes all the time. He is a senior and a captain with NHL potential. It is time for that potential to manifest itself in quality play over extended periods of time.

Let's see how this weeknd goes against two tough league foes on the road. If they can get at least one win, this season may be on the upswing.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

ibanezist00 said:
I understood that, and as I said no complaints, more curiosity. My question still stands though; why? If he's this good at putting the puck in the net, maybe he should be a forward for the moment while we're having these scoring issues? Would that make a real difference in our overall offensive game?

Again, all just curiosity/semi-rhetorical questions that make me think.
Click to expand...
There is a lot more open ice for a defenseman with the puck than a forward. A smallish skating oriented player that has played D all of his life may not be suited to forward where much of the play is either a quick transition onto a rush or cycling in the corners. Someone with a good one timer who passes well is better off at the point where he can see the play better and pick his spots to pinch. That's why you see so many NHL teams move a forward to the point on the PP - and usually one with either a good shot or good vision.

Moving a d up to forward is only done when you want a big lug in front of the net or you have extra D men to spare. We have only 7 D this year. Putting Bailen on forward and letting him get slashed all game long trying to skate through the trees is a good recipe for losing your 7th defenseman. I know we moved Brutlag up a couple of years back but that was because we had plenty of D and he was also strong in the corners. I also don't think he was much of a setup man so having him in back for breakouts wasn't needed as others could do it equally well or better. Not sure if Bailen is similarly strong in the corners but the lack of spare D and his passing skills argue in favor of leaving him where he is.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Jasma said:
. I still don't see much from Rabani, and though he has been good at time this year
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Was the screen on Bails goal. Not a creator but physical presence. Always plays hard. I'll take Rambo every time.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Jasma said:
I thought that Bailen was struggling early in the season as well. Perhaps he was trying to do too much, especially when the injuries to the forwards started piling up.

It was nice to see Higgs and Lee pick up their play at RIT. That HAS to continue. It seems that Laliberte is more involved since returning from the injury too. He is making some nice plays and setting up some opportunities. If they can get him producing goals like expected, this team could get on a roll. Too many upperclassmen, especially up front, are not producing as I expected. I still don't see much from Rabani, and though he has been good at time this year, Angers-Goulet was a non-factor at RIT. Bergin needs to shut his mouth and play hockey. He was awful against Union and then took a bad misconduct penalty. Then against RIT he had three more minors. All the time he keeps talking. He played well in the final 20-30 minutes last week, but he needs to do that for 60 minutes all the time. He is a senior and a captain with NHL potential. It is time for that potential to manifest itself in quality play over extended periods of time.

Let's see how this weeknd goes against two tough league foes on the road. If they can get at least one win, this season may be on the upswing.
Click to expand...

I was glad to see Higgs put as a wing on Laliberte's line-IMO, it generated more scoring chances than having the two centering separate lines. Maybe we need to concentrate our scoring power into fewer lines until everyone relaxes a bit and remembers they're all perfectly capable of scoring.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

Keep Nick where he is. Maybe have him cycle down on PP by the dot so he can take that one timer from another position.
 
Re: RPI 2011-12 Part III: Our Goal is to be Offensive

REDaero91 said:
I was glad to see Higgs put as a wing on Laliberte's line-IMO, it generated more scoring chances than having the two centering separate lines. Maybe we need to concentrate our scoring power into fewer lines until everyone relaxes a bit and remembers they're all perfectly capable of scoring.
Click to expand...

I like that line too.
 
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