Centering Pass (Great Forward Lines)
Before expansion and skyrocketing salaries made it more difficult for teams to keep superstars together on one team, there were many great forward line combinations in the NHL with clever, catchy nicknames. Some of the more famous and fantastic were the Detroit Red Wings' Production Line of Gordie Howe, Sid Abel, & Ted Lindsay (late 1940s-early 1950s); the Buffalo Sabres' French Connection: Richard Martin, Gilbert Perreault, & Rene Robert (early-mid '70s); the Los Angeles Kings' Triple Crown Line of Marcel Dionne centering Charlie Simmer & Dave Taylor (1980s); the Edmonton Oilers' incomparable Wayne Gretzky centering Jari Kurri & Dave Semenko (two scalpels and a sledgehammer); and the Philadelphia Flyers' Legion of Doom (GREAT line nickname) of Eric Lindros, John LeClair, and Mikael Renberg. Although the practice is much less common in today's NHL (when there IS a today's NHL, that is), it's worth talking about lines in general.
On the ice, there's no one a hockey player relies on more than his linemates. A good line watches each other's backs and is there for each other in good times and in tough times. It wins and loses together, and sticks together, especially when one member is struggling with minor injuries or going through a slump. If a line is together long enough, the players know each other's games inside and out, and they raise each other's games and make each other better players than any of them could be on their own or on another line. Each player develops an almost otherworldly feel for where his linemates are going to be in all situations. They can pass the puck to each other without even looking. It's magic when a line clicks. Sadly, even lines that have been together for many years sometimes break up. A member of the line's priorities may change to the point where he is no longer focused on team goals; he can be distracted by off-ice interests or selfish concerns; his work ethic and dedication may slip noticably. For any or all of these reasons, he may negatively impact the line's play. The coach may elect to move him to another line and replace him with another player who may be a better fit. Usually, the committed members of the line can sort these difficulties out by bringing the offending member's behavior to his attention and asking for a renewed effort. In rare and extreme cases, however, one or both members of the line may even approach the coach and request that he break the line up, either by moving one or both of them to other lines or replacing the underperforming member of the line with someone else who may be more committed to the line and to the overall success of the team. This is becoming a more and more common occurrence on some teams.
A player's linemates and teammates should be his brothers, working toward the common goal of team success. If a player really buys into that principle and sticks to that framework, individual success also usually follows. In today's NHL and today's world, however, those players seem to be a dying breed.
Last day of February (finally). There's no month on the calendar that I look forward to seeing the end of more than February. When you put February in your rear view mirror, you know spring is just around the corner!
Cheers!
On the ice, there's no one a hockey player relies on more than his linemates. A good line watches each other's backs and is there for each other in good times and in tough times. It wins and loses together, and sticks together, especially when one member is struggling with minor injuries or going through a slump. If a line is together long enough, the players know each other's games inside and out, and they raise each other's games and make each other better players than any of them could be on their own or on another line. Each player develops an almost otherworldly feel for where his linemates are going to be in all situations. They can pass the puck to each other without even looking. It's magic when a line clicks. Sadly, even lines that have been together for many years sometimes break up. A member of the line's priorities may change to the point where he is no longer focused on team goals; he can be distracted by off-ice interests or selfish concerns; his work ethic and dedication may slip noticably. For any or all of these reasons, he may negatively impact the line's play. The coach may elect to move him to another line and replace him with another player who may be a better fit. Usually, the committed members of the line can sort these difficulties out by bringing the offending member's behavior to his attention and asking for a renewed effort. In rare and extreme cases, however, one or both members of the line may even approach the coach and request that he break the line up, either by moving one or both of them to other lines or replacing the underperforming member of the line with someone else who may be more committed to the line and to the overall success of the team. This is becoming a more and more common occurrence on some teams.
A player's linemates and teammates should be his brothers, working toward the common goal of team success. If a player really buys into that principle and sticks to that framework, individual success also usually follows. In today's NHL and today's world, however, those players seem to be a dying breed.
Last day of February (finally). There's no month on the calendar that I look forward to seeing the end of more than February. When you put February in your rear view mirror, you know spring is just around the corner!
Cheers!
posted by Dave at 10:20 AM
1 Comments:
Thanks for the comment. Yours was the first. I would say it all depends on the player. Sometimes the player can find success on his new line if he works to mesh with his new linemates and they're willing to work to mesh with him. Sometimes, even lines that were once great and that most people (even the members of the line themselves) assumed would be together till the end of their careers can split apart, for all of the reasons I mentioned or due to other reasons or circumstances. History provides mixed results. Some players were never able to reach the same level of success with their new linemates because those players weren't as good as the players on his former line. Anyone who played on a line with Wayne Gretzky, for instance, and then had to play with other people for whatever reason would tell you that Gretzky made them a lot better. Some extraordinary players (Mark Messier comes to mind), go on to achieve continued success after playing with Gretzky. The bottom line to me is: if a player's line that he's been on for many seasons is broken up because of him, I believe that that player needs to do some real soul-searching and ask himself whether or not he still wants to play the game. If he's lost his desire completely or is not willing to recommit himself and focus on the team, there's probably no hope for him. He won't find success with anyone. No team really wants to take on a selfish, self-centered player for very long, no matter how good he is (see Randy Moss). He may bounce around from team to team (a very lonely existence) or be forced to retire.
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