jeff@dciem.UUCP (Jeff Richardson) (02/12/85)
So far this NHL season, there are several teams whose records are much
worse than expected. Most of them can be explained: I expected the Maple
Leafs to be as bad as they are, the Rangers have had a lot of injuries, as
have the Bruins, who have also been breaking in several new players. But
the most difficult team to figure out is the Minnesota North Stars.
If you look at their lineup, you see enough talent to make them one of the
league's best teams. They should have three solid two-way forward lines
with Maruk-McKegney-Plett (their best line in a game I saw last week),
Acton-Bellows-Payne, and Broten-Ciccarelli-McCarthy (I may have Payne and
McCarthy reversed, or they may have juggled the lines since I saw them last.)
Until recently they also had Mark Napier and Brian Lawton to provide the
necessary depth. Goaltending should also be strong with Roland Melanson,
Gilles Meloche and Don Beaupre. Defence is not a strong position but with
guys like Craig Hartsburg (when he's healthy), Gord Roberts and Curt Giles,
it's no worse than the league average. I don't think coaching can be
blamed either, since Glen Sonmor has had success with mostly the same players
before, but can't seem to get them going now. I can think of only one reason
why they are so bad: they lack leadership and drive. The one player on the
team who provided it when they were successful was Bobby Smith, and he was
traded to Montreal last season. Despite the fact that they came out way
ahead talent-wise (Acton and Napier), they have gone downhill ever since.
The moral of the story is, you can't just look at the talent and the players'
ages in a trade; you have to look at the intangibles and what the player
really means to the team.
--
Jeff Richardson, DCIEM, Toronto (416) 635-2073
{linus,ihnp4,uw-beaver,floyd}!utcsrgv!dciem!jeff
{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!dciem!jeffrick@ucla-cs.UUCP (02/24/85)
In article <1383@dciem.UUCP> jeff@dciem.UUCP (Jeff Richardson) writes: >So far this NHL season, there are several teams whose records are much >worse than expected. ... But the most difficult team to figure out is >the Minnesota North Stars. > ... > I can think of only one reason >why they are so bad: they lack leadership and drive. The one player on the >team who provided it when they were successful was Bobby Smith, and he was >traded to Montreal last season. Despite the fact that they came out way >ahead talent-wise (Acton and Napier), they have gone downhill ever since. >The moral of the story is, you can't just look at the talent and the players' >ages in a trade; you have to look at the intangibles and what the player >really means to the team. As I recall one of the reasons the North Stars traded (read: got rid of) Smith was that he didn't give the kind of leadership they expected him to. He had one good year (1982-83?) but has never been much in the playoffs. To say that the North Stars have gone down hill since is misleading because they have been a disappointment ever since they made it to the Stanley Cup finals. Everyone had them figured to be a powerhouse (especially with 2 #1 overall draft choices [I count Bellows as a #1 overall]) but they haven't fulfilled their promise. In many ways they are the Montreal Expos of hockey. -- Rick Gillespie rick@ucla-cs ...!{cepu|ihnp4|sdcrdcf|ucbvax}!ucla-cs!rick "She turned me into a newt! . . . I got better."