The Teach Me About Hockey Thread

clonetrooper264

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My favorite teams
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  1. Chicago Bears
  1. Chicago Blackhawks
So I got a question about Crawford. Clearly he's not an awful goalkeeper, but he's not great either. What are his strengths and weaknesses? I suppose a corollary question is, what does a goalie do outside of saving every shot that makes him good? Or is it just pure block every shot and try to keep the rebounds to a minimum?
 

Tjodalv

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Strengths are great positioning, technique, reading plays, and ideal size. Weaknesses: primarily concentration, but his rebound control isn't always great, and his reflexes aren't amazing (for a goalie) either. He's technically sound but has a virtually guaranteed concentration-lapse related goal (that I've deemed the "nightly blonde goal"). He'll play an otherwise solid game then just let one in that should have been an easy glove save or something like that, and he kicks rebounds out directly into the slot more often.

There's basically two types of goalies; reactionary and positional.

Reactionary tend to play the older stye "standup" or a "hybrid" style and rely primarily on getting into vaguely the right spot and then having incredibly fast reflexes and superior athleticism that allows them to throw out a leg or something to block a shot. They're also responsible for a lot of those highlight reel stacking the pads or flipping on their back types of saves, they do completely unconventional contortionist kinds of things to stop pucks. The two best examples of this style in the modern era are Dominik Hasek and more recently Tim Thomas. This playing style is virtually extinct since these kinds of goalies tend to be viewed as less consistent (for obvious reasons).

Positional or "butterfly" goalies rely on reading the play, getting into the proper spot, and keeping themselves square to the shooter, and basically just making the puck hit them rather than forcing them to actually do something extraneous to make a save. Martin Brodeur is the perfect example and probably the best goalie of all time (despite all the spectacular acrobatic saves he's made over time, notice that initially he's out high on his crease and square to the puck completely under control while Hasek was always low in his crease looking like he was flailing like a madman), but virtually every goalie in the game now is a "butterfly" netminder.

Just go to youtube and search for highlight videos of those guys and you'll get the idea. Crow is a pure butterfly goalie and his skills suit that just fine.
 

Popinski Soda

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This is a really cool idea for a thread. You're never too old to learn something new.

:beer:
 

Ares

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So I got a question about Crawford. Clearly he's not an awful goalkeeper, but he's not great either. What are his strengths and weaknesses? I suppose a corollary question is, what does a goalie do outside of saving every shot that makes him good? Or is it just pure block every shot and try to keep the rebounds to a minimum?

Crawford has not had any great games this season.... but Crow has been the only thing keeping the Hawks in some playoff series in the past few years.

A goalie who can turn it on in the playoffs like that and shut down the opponent's offense even when your own D is playing hot-potato with the puck in their own zone is pretty priceless.

Keep in mind he was injured and just got back off that injury...

Crow kinda reminds me of Bickell lol for whatever reason the regular season can be kinda "Meh" but get to the playoffs and they can be gold.
 

clonetrooper264

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My favorite teams
  1. Chicago Cubs
  1. Chicago Bulls
  2. Golden State Warriors
  1. Chicago Bears
  1. Chicago Blackhawks
So I notice that the Hawks have been dropping some games recently. Are they just playing poorly or is there some kind of other thing that they are struggling with?
 

Ares

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So I notice that the Hawks have been dropping some games recently. Are they just playing poorly or is there some kind of other thing that they are struggling with?

Oddly they are struggling on Offense mostly....

I seem to notice they are not getting bodies to the net on time.... people are taking shots with no one ready to get to the net for second chance opportunities.

Similarly I don't think we are doing well screening the opposing goalies this year.... guys like Shaw and Bickell need to get in front of the opposing goalies more and cause some havoc.... I think they are failing to get there for a variety of reasons but mostly because the Hawks are having troubles entering the opposing zone and maintaining puck possession.
 

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Oddly they are struggling on Offense mostly....

I seem to notice they are not getting bodies to the net on time.... people are taking shots with no one ready to get to the net for second chance opportunities.

Similarly I don't think we are doing well screening the opposing goalies this year.... guys like Shaw and Bickell need to get in front of the opposing goalies more and cause some havoc.... I think they are failing to get there for a variety of reasons but mostly because the Hawks are having troubles entering the opposing zone and maintaining puck possession.

Agree with all this. Also, Keith hasn't been playing like his usual self. Sharpie has had quite a few missed opportunities lately. All fixable. Q needs to figure out what lines he wants and stick to them, but the chances of that are slim. Q's always shuffling.
 

clonetrooper264

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My favorite teams
  1. Chicago Cubs
  1. Chicago Bulls
  2. Golden State Warriors
  1. Chicago Bears
  1. Chicago Blackhawks
So let's say I look at a hockey box score. What kind of stats do I want to be seeing other than the straightforward points and assists?
 

Novak

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So let's say I look at a hockey box score. What kind of stats do I want to be seeing other than the straightforward points and assists?

plus/minus, shots on goal, time on ice, penalty minutes
 

clonetrooper264

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My favorite teams
  1. Chicago Cubs
  1. Chicago Bulls
  2. Golden State Warriors
  1. Chicago Bears
  1. Chicago Blackhawks
plus/minus, shots on goal, time on ice, penalty minutes
Are there any sort of defensemen specific stats or do are there really no stats to track there?
 

Ares

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So let's say I look at a hockey box score. What kind of stats do I want to be seeing other than the straightforward points and assists?

Well right now I would say assists and points are all you really care about.

The Hawks are not losing cause they are giving up a ton of goals, they are losing because they cannot score.

Under other circumstances you might check +/- of Hawks players to give you an indication of positive or negative trending players.

The +/- number on a player indicates the balance of goals for or against while the player was on the ice.... so if Hossa is on the ice for 2 Hawk goals and 1 opponent goal for the night he would get +/- of +1 for the game. This can give you an idea of players who are struggling or lines that might be struggling if the coach is keeping the lines together.

I would also right now look at shots.... Sharpie led the team with 7 shots..... a trend continues with him getting shots but not putting them home.

Last you might check minutes.... who is getting alot of time on the ice and who is not.... if a player has few minutes on ice and a bad +/- that probably means they are spiraling downward.
 

Novak

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Are there any sort of defensemen specific stats or do are there really no stats to track there?

Blocked shots is a good one. Hockey, more so than other sports imo, is about more than statistics. Being a good defensive player has a lot more to do with positioning and smart decision making than any one stat can show you.
 
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Its all about the dangles and the snipes.
Maybe a lil dangle dangle toe drag snipe


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Plus and minus is overrated. Score 4 powerplay goals and you don't get a plus. Get A 5 on 5 goal against you and your now a minus 1. Likewise. Give up 4 powerplay goals and score one while your on the ice, makes you a cute plus 1

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Hockey is a pure team sport. The success of your passing and chemistry from d zone to attacking zone transitioning and visa versa(sp?) A teams ability to create scoring chances is more important than shot totals. Hits are important, but its more vital for playoffs. Faceoffs are vital 24/7, we saw this against the kings in the playoffs.

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clonetrooper264

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My favorite teams
  1. Chicago Cubs
  1. Chicago Bulls
  2. Golden State Warriors
  1. Chicago Bears
  1. Chicago Blackhawks
Blocked shots is a good one. Hockey, more so than other sports imo, is about more than statistics. Being a good defensive player has a lot more to do with positioning and smart decision making than any one stat can show you.
I think it's also true in the other sports I watch. Sure, amassing lots of steals or blocks is nice in basketball, but Bruce Bowen never got much of either stat and was considered by most to be the best defender in the NBA at the time he played. I assume similar logic applies in hockey. At the same time though, there are players who do accumulate lots of defensive stats who are also great defenders. Just wondering if there was that equivalent in hockey.
 

Ares

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Did everyone notice what happened when the Hawks got bodies to the net and screened the goalie effectively?
 

Tjodalv

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Stop clogging up the teaching thread with useless banter fucktards!

So, what should the next lesson be about?
 

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