Not a good game today. Bucky came out on fire for about the first 15-16 minutes but looked sluggish for most of the remainder of the game - completely outhustled by Duluth. Passing was sloppy and they struggled to clear their zone. The word that comes to mind to describe their play is abysmal. As I write this, I am not hopeful about tomorrow’s game and fear what OSU will do to them next weekend if they continue to play like this. They must improve considerably, or they won’t go far in the post-season.
On one of my ongoing peeves, LE continues to seem unduly passive to me. She tends to assume a position along the left wall just a few feet off the blue line and rarely gets involved with checking or positioning herself closer to the net. And opposing players don’t devote much attention to her, possibly because they do not regard her as a very serious threat. I understand she is adjusting to a big step up in the competition and level of play from high school, and I don’t want to be unduly harsh. But I think her level of play has yet to match that of the other Yr1 members of the team or the expectations held for her (for which she Is not responsible).
I don’t want to do anything that will affect LE’s self-confidence, but I think MJ should try switching Picard to the line with Simms and Woz, something I mentioned several weeks ago. I think Picard’s speed and aggressiveness is a better fit for that line and the switch also might serve to help LE step up her level of play since the 4[SUP]th[/SUP] line would need her to do so to have any effectiveness. Basically, there would be no place to hide and, hopefully, it would pi?? her off.
On a more positive note, Gervais seemed to have recovered from her injury. I don’t mean to rush her back into play, but it might be a good idea to play her in goal on Sunday. I expect her to be rusty, but it may energize the team to step up their play to relieve the pressure she probably will feel upon returning. After today, they need a strong boost of some kind.