Originally Posted by
puckdad
I agree with Stopp on his analysis of the season that could have been.
To me,this was a season of "what ifs":
What if:
Warner didn't decide to end his season & have shoulder surgery & Lange break his arm / wrist on the same day? You've got to think that both Bruno & Habscheid both aged a few years that day.
This had to have an effect on the whole dynamic of the Morrissey trade as well as the package of players & draft picks that they got for Leon. IMO they would have tried to add some more offense & scoring but instead had to try to replace both a tough stay-at-home d-man & a premier puck-moving d-man. Rather than some much-needed offensive firepower, they had to find some depth at defense (Grewal), some toughness & grit on the back end (Heffley) & some scoring from defense (Lees).
What if:
Leon had been drafted by Buffalo instead of Edmonton?
He would've been sent back to PA after 9 games & Bruno could have received a windfall return of draft choices & roster players that would have far exceeded what we got (Schmidli, Yorke, 1st('15), 4th('16), 4th (cond)('16/17)
What If:
Clouston had been let go after last year's 1st round sweep in the playoffs. I know that the mental midgets on the BOD justify it by saying we lost out to the eventual Memorial Cup Champions. They weren't quite smart enough to ask the more important question of why, in a year when we were "loading up" for a playoff run, we finished up in a playoff for 8th spot, instead of higher in the standings & a much more favorable match-up.
What if:
Brooks instead of Conroy. And what if the doublemint twins (Clouston/Campese) had bothered to ask the players who would be a better choice to keep as an OA? Instead Brooksy goes on to Spokane & scores at over a point per game & Conroy scored a goal. It should be noted that our other OA forward (Hart) had 49 points for the Raiders this year vs 56 in 50 games for Brooks.
What If:
Raider President wasn't such a controlling individual & put the interests of the team ahead of his own ego. His goal to have a defensive-oriented team has put the GM in a difficult position and Bruno has allowed himself to be manipulated into trying to implement this goal. McFee's statement a couple of years ago that "Offense Wins Games, Defense Wins Championships" was a quote stolen from legendary football coach Bear Bryant and has largely been discredited by every major sport. They've discovered & documented statistically that you simply can't win if you don't score. As a bonus, it's more exciting hockey to watch than a full trap every change of possession.
This thinking has polluted every aspect of the Raider Hockey Ops from deciding which coach to hire, and as a result what systems are played, what players are drafted, and what players get traded, along with who they are traded for.
This gets me thinking of how many players PA tried to fit into their "defense 1st" philosophy that went on to have stellar careers elsewhere in the Dub. A few that come to mind just recently are;
Cory Millette - put up about a point a game for Seattle. Had 4 points in 17 games for PA
Calder Brooks - 56 points in 50 games for Spokane - had 14 points in 35 games for PA last year
Gage Quinney - 31 points in 38 games for Kelowna - 15 points in 32 games for PA.
Todd Fiddler - had 88 points in 52 games last year for PG. 77 points in Spokane the year before that. In PA they insisted he play defensive hockey & he scored 10 points in 35 games before he was traded.
Interesting to note that we traded Fiddler to Spokane for their leading scorer at the time, Anthony Bardaro - pure offensive guy. Went from 74 points (combined - Spok/PA) to 57 points with PA in his 20-year-old season. Managed to turn a pure goal scorer into a guy who was unsure of his role and became a non-factor.
I'm getting too p'ed off to continue this list.
What If:
Schmidli had not broken his foot. He was scoring at a good clip & seemed to be enjoying himself on the ice.
Speaking of Schmidli, I think it's a little too coincidental that Hamilton traded away a player that suddenly is going to "play professional hockey in Switzerland" next year. If Bruno hadn't asked both Bruce Hamilton & Schmidli what his plans were following this season, he darn sure should have before trading for him. I also kind of find it hard to believe that Bruno advised him to turn pro & not return to the Raiders next year. Does this just ring false to anyone else? Makes me not believe anything else he says.
What If:
Sawyer Lange had not tried to come back too early from his injury? I know the team had a leadership void after the Morrissey trade, but he wasn't half the player he was before he was injured. It wasn't until the last 8 or 10 games of the season that he looked comfortable back on the ice or could even shoot the puck, pass or stick-handle. Coincidentally, that was when the Raiders went on a bit of a winning streak, but it was too late. I know the pressure to get an injured player back in the lineup is great, but Come 0n, you need the proper time to heal an injury like that.
What If:
Marcus Messier had not returned to Calgary due to his Father's illness? I don't know hat kind of point-producer he would have been here & we'll never know.
What If:
We built a team through the draft, as promised, instead of constantly trying to fill holes by trading? No team is successful with a revolving door of players coming & going. You can't develop any chemistry or consistency that way. Just a recipe for continued mediocrity.
What If:
??
I'd be interested in seeing what other "what ifs" you can come up with regarding this season