Michael Stuart: Tortorella, McDavid, and Changing the Way You Play to Win

I think they need to play through the contact better is more of the success for the Oilers. They got swept by the Jets and I believe McDavid and Drai got blanked in two of those games.

I think they need to play through the contact better is more of the success for the Oilers. They got swept by the Jets and I believe McDavid and Drai got blanked in two of those games.
- ClaudeFather

How to beat the oilers:
1. Stay out of the penalty box.
2. Forecheck and pressure the defence hard.
3. Give McD no room.
4. Win.

How to beat the oilers:
1. Stay out of the penalty box.
2. Forecheck and pressure the defence hard.
3. Give McD no room.
4. Win.
- TurdFergeson

Just like that hey? Just snap your fingers and boom that easy. 10-2. Only two teams have done it all year and Vegas wasn't one of them.

Just like that hey? Just snap your fingers and boom that easy. 10-2. Only two teams have done it all year and Vegas wasn't one of them.
- Leichs

How many good teams have they beaten this year??

Define "Good".

Calgary/New York/Boston and even Nashville doesnt have a terrible record. One can easily argue that maybe the teams with the rougher standings has actually had a tough schedule against really good teams also because if you look at the stats coming from the Pacific division, it's pretty decent.

How to beat the oilers:
1. Stay out of the penalty box.
2. Stay out of the penalty box.
3. Stay out of the penalty box.
4. STAY OUT OF THE PENALTY BOX!
5. Win.
- TurdFergeson

ftfy

Define "Good".

Calgary/New York/Boston and even Nashville doesnt have a terrible record. One can easily argue that maybe the teams with the rougher standings has actually had a tough schedule against really good teams also because if you look at the stats coming from the Pacific division, it's pretty decent.
- iAvery

They barely beat Calgary right at the start of the season. Boston isn’t looking too good. Much like the oilers they have great offence but weak D and their tending is trash. New York? They are not very good and the oilers had to get very lucky against their back up tender that let in 4 softies. They beat Vegas who is missing their entire first line. Imagine the oilers without McD, Drai and Hyman…

They barely beat Calgary right at the start of the season. Boston isn’t looking too good. Much like the oilers they have great offence but weak D and their tending is trash. New York? They are not very good and the oilers had to get very lucky against their back up tender that let in 4 softies. They beat Vegas who is missing their entire first line. Imagine the oilers without McD, Drai and Hyman…
- TurdFergeson

Can only play the schedule you're given.

I think what's weird is people acting like this is something new. Guys like Steve Yzerman and Brett Hull went through the exact same thing, having to adjust their game in order to have success in the playoffs.

I think what's weird is people acting like this is something new. Guys like Steve Yzerman and Brett Hull went through the exact same thing, having to adjust their game in order to have success in the playoffs.
- Antilles

I don’t tend to buy into that theory all that much with respect to Yzerman. That Detroit team got waaaaay better around him, which is was likely a bigger factor than any real or perceived change in his game.

I don’t tend to buy into that theory all that much with respect to Yzerman. That Detroit team got waaaaay better around him, which is was likely a bigger factor than any real or perceived change in his game.
- Michael Stuart

Watch Yzerman interview HNIC at the end of his playing career. He was scared to death Bowman was going to have management move him. Bowman Sr master of Getting what he wanted. Ask Brian Engblom, bolts tv, what he has to say about Bowman Sr, the original thug,

Detroit picked up great pieces ie Shanahan n others. Yzerman went from 150 pts to learning his team actually had a goalie and their own end.

Ovie did not change how he played the year caps won cup.

I don’t tend to buy into that theory all that much with respect to Yzerman. That Detroit team got waaaaay better around him, which is was likely a bigger factor than any real or perceived change in his game.
- Michael Stuart

No.. that's not entirely correct I would argue any day (as would most Wings fans that know their history). The Wings had a TON of talent for years... yet still couldn't win the cup. Bowman forced Yzerman and the rest of the entire team to learn and play defense (as in you better be responsible defensively).. and if they didn't.. their butt would be planted on the bench. All the best Red Wings centers have been great two-way centers... Yzerman, Fedorov, Zetterberg, Datsyuk.. Yzerman became a much better two-way center after Bowman came.

What's interesting is when Larkin came on board... Zetterberg told him you can go and score a ton of points in this league with his talent.. but you won't win anything. Zetterberg knew what Bowman knew... a committed strong team defense will win you the cup.

The Lightning organization and their fans have experieneced the same thing the Wings had to deal with starting back in the early 90's. Case in point: 1995 SCF. Wings had a 62 win season... huge favorites to beat NJ Devils... yet the Wings got SWEPT. Sound kind of familiar ??

Torterella is right in his statement... but I don't think it's necessarily a slight against McDavid... but rather his take on that it will take the the top players and the rest of the Edmonton team to commit to a strong team defense to win a cup.

No.. that's not entirely correct I would argue any day (as would most Wings fans that know their history). The Wings had a TON of talent for years... yet still couldn't win the cup. Bowman forced Yzerman and the rest of the entire team to learn and play defense (as in you better be responsible defensively).. and if they didn't.. their butt would be planted on the bench. All the best Red Wings centers have been great two-way centers... Yzerman, Fedorov, Zetterberg, Datsyuk.. Yzerman became a much better two-way center after Bowman came.

What's interesting is when Larkin came on board... Zetterberg told him you can go and score a ton of points in this league with his talent.. but you won't win anything. Zetterberg knew what Bowman knew... a committed strong team defense will win you the cup.

The Lightning organization and their fans have experieneced the same thing the Wings had to deal with starting back in the early 90's. Case in point: 1995 SCF. Wings had a 62 win season... huge favorites to beat NJ Devils... yet the Wings got SWEPT. Sound kind of familiar ??

Torterella is right in his statement... but I don't think it's necessarily a slight against McDavid... but rather his take on that it will take the the top players and the rest of the Edmonton team to commit to a strong team defense to win a cup.
- Vladdie_Kon1

Torts is selling ESPN hockey being a dinosaur. Ovie did not change the way he played. Oh yes

Stevie Y was headed to Ottawa all summer, after being told by Bowman you play like Lemaire or you can enjoy the Ottawa valley. He heard the footsteps.

Believe what you want. We suffered here in Tampa a long time, since 2004. Stammer in 2008, Hedman 09, Vinik in 10 and it all fell into place. Yzerman is cutthroat. Ask Kucherov about contract he did not want. Yzerman learned from the best cutthroat Bowman. Ray Ferraro tells how cutthroat Yzerman is and they are friends.

Was worth the suffering. Stanley is ours!