Miro is a great hockey player. Miro is not the hockey player we want him to be. Both can be true at the same time.
Premise: Miro is a Dman version of a runway model
Miro's game is great, minimal flaws and adroit actions on both sides of the ice. He does this so well as to not be noticeable because the highlight reels can be indexed/sorted/dusted most of the time while he's on the ice. This is the job of a runway model, to be so unflawed as to be unseen and that what is on display is everything but themselves. Add to this being Finnish and you've got the ultimate sleeper.
The pool of players that distinguish themselves above Miro are few and far between, call them Super Models if you wish. They have one or two additional characteristics that stand out and the flip the script to where they are the product, and the other items are desirable because of what they exhibit. Their stories are self reinforcing "Does Makar get so much focus because he's great or is he seen as great because he gets so much focus". We all know Cindy Crawford's mole didn't make her beautiful, but it was and still is part of her beauty and brand.
David, I think your article is spot exception you didn’t give Carolina much credit for acquiring Stankhoven. I still think he will be a star in the NHL for years to come. I really hated to lose him but by gaining Mikko the deal had to be done.
Now in my world when the Stars return to AAC DeSmith gets at least 2 consecutive starts and Otter gets to rest and spend time with the best goalie coach/consultant the Dallas can find. The Edmonton game showed that he is not the top 5 goalie he has been. Is he tired, is he hurt, does he just need time off and practice? I don’t know the answer but if there are not some changes made who knows.
Right now I can tell you that a darn good team between the Jets, Dallas, Colorado and Minnesota there will be 2 good teams going home and Dallas doesn’t want to be one of them.
Thanks David!! I do think more offense is the way to go this year. I missed Saturday’s game, but still thinking about Otter. If he is to be considered a top 20% goalie, shouldn’t we expect him to stop one or two of those on Saturday? I mostly hear it was on the D, but I still think we should expect more.
Otter faced a lot of 2-on-1s and 1-on-1s in this game as a result of defensive breakdowns + McDavid/Draisaitl leading those stereotypically overwhelming passages of offense that the Oilers are capable of producing. I swear there is not another team in the league that can make their opponents desperately "scramble" when everything clicks, and even Otter was pulled out of his net a couple of times in this one.
I don't watch them as much, but I would be curious to see if the LA Kings' vaunted defensive system likewise experiences complete breakdowns (per the eyeball test) when they play the Oilers, or if they are at least able to negate the "scrambling/flailing" look other defenses exhibit more often than not when Edmonton scores a goal.
TL;DR: The Oilers can make any team's defense look utterly stupid, and I don't think you can really hold it against Otter to stay composed and cool in net when his skaters are frantically playing reactive defense in front of him. I think the first Oilers goal is a good illustration of this phenomenon.
I see why you'd make the connection, but I think there are two big differences. Jamie O basically wanted to be Brett Burns, who actually was a forward at one point in time. He just happened to be a massive human and everyone saw him thought fighter, but in his mind he was all lover. Bichsel I don't think would turn down love, but also isn't the type to turn down a fight either, and by that I mean he'll activate and go up the ice, but he's also not going to try to be the other guy on the 2-1 like Oleksiak would.
The other big difference is where Miro is in his career. When Miro was carrying Oleksiak's bags, it was at a time he should have been sharpening his offensive stats and doing what he started with Polak. However, this pairing put that bit of doubt in his head that his partner would look to cover for him, and that took that little bit of risk out of his game. FF years later and Miro is basically grown up and those doubts now have a room and are paying rent. He is who he's going to be, and that might be why Harley is able to look so good next to him, because the damage that Jamie caused is paying dividends with him.
TL:DR - Harley is the next Oleksiak, but now it's a good thing.
Miro is a great hockey player. Miro is not the hockey player we want him to be. Both can be true at the same time.
Premise: Miro is a Dman version of a runway model
Miro's game is great, minimal flaws and adroit actions on both sides of the ice. He does this so well as to not be noticeable because the highlight reels can be indexed/sorted/dusted most of the time while he's on the ice. This is the job of a runway model, to be so unflawed as to be unseen and that what is on display is everything but themselves. Add to this being Finnish and you've got the ultimate sleeper.
The pool of players that distinguish themselves above Miro are few and far between, call them Super Models if you wish. They have one or two additional characteristics that stand out and the flip the script to where they are the product, and the other items are desirable because of what they exhibit. Their stories are self reinforcing "Does Makar get so much focus because he's great or is he seen as great because he gets so much focus". We all know Cindy Crawford's mole didn't make her beautiful, but it was and still is part of her beauty and brand.
David, I think your article is spot exception you didn’t give Carolina much credit for acquiring Stankhoven. I still think he will be a star in the NHL for years to come. I really hated to lose him but by gaining Mikko the deal had to be done.
Now in my world when the Stars return to AAC DeSmith gets at least 2 consecutive starts and Otter gets to rest and spend time with the best goalie coach/consultant the Dallas can find. The Edmonton game showed that he is not the top 5 goalie he has been. Is he tired, is he hurt, does he just need time off and practice? I don’t know the answer but if there are not some changes made who knows.
Right now I can tell you that a darn good team between the Jets, Dallas, Colorado and Minnesota there will be 2 good teams going home and Dallas doesn’t want to be one of them.
Thanks David!! I do think more offense is the way to go this year. I missed Saturday’s game, but still thinking about Otter. If he is to be considered a top 20% goalie, shouldn’t we expect him to stop one or two of those on Saturday? I mostly hear it was on the D, but I still think we should expect more.
Otter faced a lot of 2-on-1s and 1-on-1s in this game as a result of defensive breakdowns + McDavid/Draisaitl leading those stereotypically overwhelming passages of offense that the Oilers are capable of producing. I swear there is not another team in the league that can make their opponents desperately "scramble" when everything clicks, and even Otter was pulled out of his net a couple of times in this one.
I don't watch them as much, but I would be curious to see if the LA Kings' vaunted defensive system likewise experiences complete breakdowns (per the eyeball test) when they play the Oilers, or if they are at least able to negate the "scrambling/flailing" look other defenses exhibit more often than not when Edmonton scores a goal.
TL;DR: The Oilers can make any team's defense look utterly stupid, and I don't think you can really hold it against Otter to stay composed and cool in net when his skaters are frantically playing reactive defense in front of him. I think the first Oilers goal is a good illustration of this phenomenon.
Is Miro-Lian the next Miro-Oleksiak? That Lian is so hot right now -Mugatu
I see why you'd make the connection, but I think there are two big differences. Jamie O basically wanted to be Brett Burns, who actually was a forward at one point in time. He just happened to be a massive human and everyone saw him thought fighter, but in his mind he was all lover. Bichsel I don't think would turn down love, but also isn't the type to turn down a fight either, and by that I mean he'll activate and go up the ice, but he's also not going to try to be the other guy on the 2-1 like Oleksiak would.
The other big difference is where Miro is in his career. When Miro was carrying Oleksiak's bags, it was at a time he should have been sharpening his offensive stats and doing what he started with Polak. However, this pairing put that bit of doubt in his head that his partner would look to cover for him, and that took that little bit of risk out of his game. FF years later and Miro is basically grown up and those doubts now have a room and are paying rent. He is who he's going to be, and that might be why Harley is able to look so good next to him, because the damage that Jamie caused is paying dividends with him.
TL:DR - Harley is the next Oleksiak, but now it's a good thing.
So Miro's perceived offensive flaws are due to Jamie Oleksiak living rent free in his head?
Uh....okay.