Early season offensive struggles

[whl_observer]

I was just wondering what everyone's opinions are on the early season offensive struggles??? It pretty clear that RNH is not coming back from Edmonton so what should the Rebels do now??? If not for the two empty net goals ther other night against Regina the Rebels would have scored as many goals as they have given up. That formula does not equal success at this level. I think the only way to increase the teams offensive production is to produce more offense from the back end. Not counting Petrovic and Dumba, the rest of the d corps has a combined 4 points. And Dumba is the only one with a goal. I do understand that points is not part of Weller and Borejko's game but what about the other two??? Pufahl and Doetzel have a combined 1 point in 14 games played. They are also a combined minus 2 to boot. Something has to give here because this is not the type of production you expect from your back end. I have been holding this back all year but after eight games and no change I need to hear what other people's thoughts are on this. Is it maybe time to give Thiel and/or Hak a chance on a regular basis much like Pufahl and Doetzel have been given the opportunity through eight games?

[Rebrevs]

I would have to agree with Hockeyfan94 to a certain extent. To me, it is the wingers who are NOT pulling their weight. If the d men could produce more, that would be great but I don't think it is our main issue. I think Doetzel is going to be the "quaterback" of the defense in the future and needs to get as much play time a possible. Your fifth and sixth d men always seem to be a step behind. I would agree that Thiel and Hak should get more play time for the experience but I don't want to see Doetzel out of the lineup too much. That means Pufahl should be the man who is going to have to swing out of the lineup. I can see them keeping Hak and Thiel in order to prepare them for the void which will be left by Weller, Petrovic, and Borejko next year. That being said, what are we going to do about our lack of scoring. Pearson isn't the same without his linemates from last year. I don't see much improvement in Siwak. The only true "set up" man I see out there now is Millette. I think he should be on the line with Pearson. I don't think Siwak positions himself well enough to take full advantage of Millette's ability. There are a few other veterans that I would to see pull their weight more. How often does Elson miss a wide open net. Has anyone else noticed that Ness is having trouble picking up his passes..... In the words of Ellen deGeneres....."ANYWAYS".....

[SectionNDeserter]

If not for the two empty net goals ther other night against Regina the Rebels would have scored as many goals as they have given up.This is only due to the 7 goals that Pouliot allowed on 18 shots in the PA game, you take that game out of the equation and it is not that bad.


Pufahl and Doetzel have a combined 1 point in 14 games played. They are also a combined minus 2 to boot.Due to injury, Pufahl has played 37 games over the last two seasons, and Doetzel is only 16 and didn't play almost all of last season (also due to injuries). Young defensemen in the WHL are typically not counted on to put up a lot of points, they learn the defensive part of the game at first and as they become comfortable with that they ease the offensive game into their repertoire.


Something has to give here because this is not the type of production you expect from your back end. I have been holding this back all year but after eight games and no change I need to hear what other people's thoughts are on this.When assembling a WHL team, there is only so much talent out there to go around. I like to think that this talent falls into three categories (applied to the Rebels' blueline in this case);

Impact player: (Petrovic, Dumba, Weller) These players are often drafted by NHL teams, and typically have a big part in the success that a team has, and in some cases can outright win a game with a big goal or control a game with pro-caliber physical play.

Depth player: (Borejko, Thiel, Pufahl to some extent, the departed Deagle) They don't usually put up a ton of offensive numbers, get drafted into the NHL or even wind up playing pro after junior. They go out, work hard and eat up minutes, and if successful their presence on the ice doesn't hurt the team.

Potential: (Doetzel, Hak, Pufahl to some extent, the departed Grayson) Generally 16/17 year old players that haven't played enough to have established their role on the team yet.

If you are asking potential talent and depth on the blueline to put up a bunch of points in the first 8 games of the season with limited ice time, I think that you may be really setting yourself up for disappointment over the course of the rest of the season.


Is it maybe time to give Thiel and/or Hak a chance on a regular basis much like Pufahl and Doetzel have been given the opportunity through eight games?Doetzel has the potential to be an impact player, and will likely get a ton of ice time (and during this time, won't be filling the net). I suspect that Pufahl, Thiel and Hak will rotate in and out of the lineup, with whoever makes the best impression filling in for players that are at the World Jr. tryouts and possibly the tournament.

[Rebrevs]

I think the ultimate job for the coach of the REbels is to win games.This is followed closely by the necessity to consider the future.....so they can, again, win games. Borejko needs to be kept on the ice along with the other three main d men to win games....NOW and not next year. I still believe the only way to get the others in the game is to rotate around the 6th and possibly 5th dman. If anything, I can see, taking Doetzel out of the mix every once in awhile, depending on who we play, then putting in Pufahl AND Hak or Thiel. I still think Doetzel has a bit of an edge though and needs as much play time as possible. Consider Petrovic when he was a 16 year old. He played.....a lot and now he is the quarterback of the dmen. I'm still more worried about the wingers!!

[SectionNDeserter]

I know Borejko is okay but I think with more ice time, any one of these four players could be just as good or better??I have talked to a lot of regulars at the games, and they all mostly agree on the same thing, the Rebels don't need TWO overage defensemen this season.

I like Borejko's game, but I would be more comfortable not losing half of the regular blueline next season. Also I think this is as good as this team's blueline is going to be for a few years, might be time to acquire a solid overage center (possibly at the expense of Borejko), now that it is a lot clearer that RNH won't be back. Traditionally though, the Rebels like to carry a lot of extra defensemen.