Blake Wheeler Is Struggling

[Albatrosss]

3 hours ago, Br4d said:

 

It's really not unusual to step down and have the step down be right off a cliff at his age.  Some guys can keep it together but they're usually the guys who have been fitness maniacs their entire career and they're still running the stairs every day.

 

Use it or lose it.

That’s my philosophy 

[The Dude]

7 hours ago, jsrangers said:

Not sure it's all that exaggerated, otherwise why would he have gotten all of 4 shifts in the 3rd period?  First one coming past the 9 min mark.  He was dreadful.

 

http://shiftchart.com/game/2023-11-07-red-wings-rangers

 

 

 

If I recall correctly,  they opened the 3rd on a PK and took 2 more minors within the first 6- minutes of the 3rd. That might explain why it took so long to get his first shift in the 3rd. Maybe the opportunity never materialized due to that? 

 

I'm not saying he's been good. I'm saying he hasn't been as bad as some are saying. On this line, I see marked improvement in where he's going on the ice. He's separating from defenders and is getting open.  He's creating traffic infront of the net. Zibanejad and Kreider need to start realizing they have a RW. They haven't to this point. 

[Sod16]

The MSL experience at the same age is instructive:

 

He was cruising along at age 38.  Upon the trade he scored one goal in 20 games and didn't do much in the first round.  He picked it up greatly in the next two rounds, but was a non-entity in the finals.  The following season, he was solid for the first third and then went off a cliff and was a hinderance to his team in the playoffs.   So basically, we went wobbly at 38, alternating fairly short effective and non-effective periods, before simply going off the cliff.

 

Envision a plane that is flying high, hits a period of turbulence for a while, and then crashes.

Edited November 9, 2023 by Sod16

[lefty9]

With Trocheck playing well as the second line center ,we should try chytil on first line 

 

[siddious]

2 hours ago, lefty9 said:

With Trocheck playing well as the second line center ,we should try chytil on first line 

 

Any line chytil is on is automatically the first line 

[BrooksBurner]

8 minutes ago, siddious said:

Any line chytil is on is automatically the first line 

 

[BrooksBurner]

For real though, Trocheck is 1C. He's playing with Panarin. He's also probably the best ES center on the team. He's been buzzing since G1, and the production was due to follow suit.

[Albatrosss]

Cant believe Wheeler scored. But i like it