After finishing their recent road trip with a 1-1 record and a Friday evening loss to Kalamazoo (moving them to 5-8 overall), what are your thoughts on this team as they come closer to the real meat of their schedule?
Of course, it was nice to see the boys pull off a big win against a really tough Toledo team (and find a way to jump them in the standings as well), just to have them revert back to what they’ve been multiple times this season (see the next question for more on this) against Indy. When looking ahead at the Nailers schedule, their next 14 games, taking them all the way through Christmas Eve, are all against divisional opponents, so this is where the rubber really needs to meet the road.
Of those 14 games, nine of them will be against one of the three teams currently sitting above them in the divisional standings.
That’s a nice way of saying I hope they enjoyed their warmup, because it’s time to bring the intensity. We finally saw this past weekend what to expect when facing the Fuel, and the boys got ran out of the arena. They can’t afford to have that happen in any of the three games they have against Indy during this upcoming stretch. Same with Cincinnati and Fort Wayne, of course, since they’re staring up at them as well.
I know you never want your team to be staring too far ahead, but if I’m Derek Army, I’m pointing this stretch out to them and telling them that this is where they prove what they want to be as a team this season.
What have you noticed about this team so far that really sticks out to you like a sore thumb that you think can be fixed in short order?
It really bugs me as a fan that, of the seven losses the team has endured so far this year, five of them have been by 2+ goals, and in all but one of those losses mentioned previously, they’ve had stretches of giving up multiple goals within a two-three minute stretch. I can understand that giving up a goal can sometimes weigh on your mind. But as a professional athlete, you must find a way to move past that and continue to perform to the best of your ability.
It can be very frustrating to watch as your team goes from leading by one to losing by one within that quick of a period of time and you must hope they find a way to come back from it. And this goes back to my point in the previous question, where they have to maintain their focus as they get into a tough stretch of the schedule. If they are hoping to turn this thing around, they will have to avoid these catastrophic lapses that can cost them games that are winnable.
Losing can’t be an option when winning is something that is attainable against quality opponents.
Has it become apparent, now that they’ve played a sixth of their regular season games this year, what this team is and what they need to do to be successful?
Everything that I’ve seen from this team so far this year shows me what Coach Army wants them to be. The question is whether or not they are able to perform to his expectations game in and game out.
He wants them to play with speed. He wants them to make it tough for opponents to move freely with the puck, especially through the neutral zone. He wants guys who come out with some grit and get to the tough areas of the ice to create chances for the team.
I’ve seen moments where things have come together for them like this. They’ve had multiple times this season where they’ve managed to shut down the opponent’s offensive attempts, forced the puck up ice and created opportunities, and have seen the success they would have if they played like that for a full 60 minutes every night.
The issue is that intensity doesn’t seem to stay for the full 60 every game. They’ll fall into lapses in judgment that allow the other team to take advantage. They’ll revert to playing undisciplined hockey and taking tough penalties at bad times. And I know this is a learning league – this is where younger guys come to learn the game at a professional level and try to move.
But once you’re at this point, it’s time to show you can continue to put it together consistently. I want to see these boys do it for an extended period of time now, and I believe they have the skill to do it.
What do the Nailers need to do to prove they’re able to compete with the teams ahead of them in the standings and hopefully make that push necessary to secure a playoff berth?
The simplest answer for this would be to win. As I said before, there are a LOT of games coming up over the next month against those teams, and all of their games are in their division. This is where you show that consistency. This is where you show that you don’t fold and lose a game 6-1 when you’re pushing hard and actually lead the game in shots for two out of the three periods of the game.
You’ve found a way so far to stumble in games against those teams above you and lose very convincingly according to the scoreboard. Show those games were flukes and that you can stand toe to toe with those guys. This is your chance to refresh things and come at them in a way they’re not ready for or expect. Force their hands a bit and show them that you can play your style and take them out of theirs.
If you can do that, you’ll come away with more than enough wins to help push yourself towards that playoff berth you want.
What have given thanks to over the Thanksgiving holiday?
Other than being thankful for my family and my health, I’d say I’m thankful for the chance to watch a good hockey team in person in my hometown.
I’m thankful for the chance to see guys who really do look like they want to compete and do everything they can to win as much as possible. I’m thankful for the opportunity to talk (and write) about a sport I really do love. But what I’m honestly most thankful for when it comes to hockey is growing up with someone who took the time to explain the game to me, helped me understand how the game is played and what the players are trying to do, who took the time to teach me good sportsmanship and yelled at me for booing the other team just because they were trying their hardest to do what they needed to do to be successful too, and above all else, took me to the games and helped grow my love for the game.
So, thank you so very much, Dad, for helping me become who I am. I will always love you for all of that and so much more.
I hope you all out there have enjoyed the holiday!
