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Z and D for the C

Why are the Wings making such bad decisions with the puck?

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I don't know what some people think but I don't think that our rough streak has been a result of poor effort or lack of or not trying, being lazy, not skating, etc. It's just that every time a player on our team gets the puck he does something stupid with it. The is no poise or patience with the puck. I've said this before here but it's like anytime a defenseman gets the puck on his stick he goes for a hail mary pass through the neutral zone and it is working terrible, they never seem to pass it behind to slow down the play and make a controlled break out. Our defenseman don't hold onto the puck for more than 1 second in most cases. We not passing the puck so much as throwing it as quickly to a teammate as quickly as possible. We throwing it away way too easily in the offensive zone instead of having some patience and making a good play.

That is what the problem seems to be to me. The question I have is why is this happening. The scariest answer is our new coach. Is he instructing our players to get rid of the puck as soon as possible? Obviously this is worrying because I don't want to throw our new much anticipated coach under the bus so soon but it's possible that while his systems worked in lower levels, they're noting working so great in the NHL and hopefully he can adjust. Or maybe our players just have no confidence, but then why the sudden change from going 6-0-2 in the preseason and 3-0 to start?

I think until our players start making better decisions with the puck we'll continue to struggle. I don't think it's a lack of effort, I think it's a lack of patience.

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I agree, they seem to be passing right away trying to force the play when it's not there. It seems this team hasn't quite found it's rhythm yet. There is certainly a lack of creativity which hopefully will change when the Magic Man returns.

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Well, for one, the defensemen that we have in the lineup right now aren't the best at making a first pass. Also, when teams close on us at our blue line like Carolina did last night, we tend to force passes and try to beat them with speed (which doesn't always work). It doesn't help that our centermen can't win a faceoff...

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We are trying the stretch pass way too much. I think Blash is trying to take advantage of our speed but it causes our puck carrier to get out numbered and lose possession. It looked riciculous on the power play. By the time we were trying to gain zone entry at the blue line kronwall was still in his own zone. I'd rather our dmen carry the puck or join the rush. We just can't generate anything unless it's off a turnover. No cycle game and entering the zone is a nightmare. We are pretty tidy defensively (against terrible teams) but the offensive strategy is absolutely 100 percent not working, it needs a complete overhaul

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Probably a combination of a few factors. Missing Datsyuk is certainly a contributing factor in my mind. Also, I think as others have mentioned that the personnel that we have on D isn't really the greatest at being great puck moving players. I think there is also some merit to the change in coaching and that there could be some adjustments that still need to be made, however, I also think that those things would've been worked on extensively in training camp and should be engrained in the players by now.

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shot in the dark but maybe it has to do with blashill coaching. he couldve changed the way the team plays and its taking time to adapt. or maybe his coaching style is get rid of the puck quick and one and done.

we essentially have the same team as last year but with larkin green and richards. so how the rest of the team can just implode when only 3 new players are playing is beyond me. its not just one player either its all of them which leads me to believe it has to do with coaching

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You either take the play to the other yeam, or they take it to you. If the refs arent doing their jobs (last night), then someone has to smash a guy's head in to turn the tide (abdelkader 2013 vs ducks). Like it or not, that's NHL hockey. The players are in a cage in the NHL, as the speed, size, and strength of the average player has grown exponentially with no changes to the rink size. If the referees decide to allow clitch and grab, all our skill means jack sh!t. We saw that last night clear as day. The Canes are terrible, but they were allowed to mangle all of our forwards for 60 straight minutes. Someone on the Wings needs to step up and knock an opposing player into next week when this happens. Or we just get stuck watching pair skating ×5.

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I think Justin Bourne does a good job explaining what I think our problem is mostly due to here: http://www.thescore.com/nhl/news/864998

Nothing to add. Of course our players don't look good at the moment. But I give them 20 to 40 games to sort it out. You don't change you headcoach after 10 seasons and see the team play immediately flawless under the new one. Especially if the coach left is named Mike Babcock.

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Mrazek's mistake aside, the decision-making seemed a lot stronger in the last game than it had been before. There was also the bad pass that Jurco (I think?) either didn't see or couldn't hold on to that led to a goal by Carolina, but on the whole I think Blashill has recognized the problem and is addressing it quickly. (Which is the sign of a strong coaching staff, by the way.)

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