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Checking in at practice
Submitted by chipalexander on 10/09/2008 - 10:31
The day before the opening game, the Canes took the ice at the RBC Center. The defensive combos are set:
Joni Pitkanen-Tim Gleason
Frantisek Kaberle-Joe Corvo
Anton Babchuk-Josef Melichar
Niclas Wallin-Dennis Seidenberg.
The lines have not changed, either:
Patrick Eaves, Staal, Whitney
Sergei Samsonov, Rod Brind'Amour, Tuomo Ruutu
Ryan Bayda, Matt Cullen, Chad LaRose
Wade Brookbank, Brandon Sutter, Dan LaCouture
Chip Alexander
A Raleigh native, Chip has worked at the N&O since 1979 and is in his second season as the Canes beat writer. He can be reached at chip.alexander@newsobserver.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @ice_chip.
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Comments
The armchair coaches in here
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 13:44 — Anonymous (not verified)The armchair coaches in here need to realize that Lavi and JR know quite a bit more about the play of our defensemen in camp than we all do...and comparing last year to this year is just crazy. Kaberle is healthy for the first time since the Cup run in 2006 by all accounts and is playing well and Seidenberg is going to get his chance to play a regular role on the blueline. Wallin is 7th or 8th on the depth chart on defense for a reason, and it has nothing to do with him being the so-called whipping boy...
With 8 D...any guy that plays poorly will be in the press box anyhow...so this is the opening night roster and you go from there.
I think some need to realize
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 13:15 — macsmomI think some need to realize that this may not be the exact order of the pairings. I believe it was Forslund who said Seidenberg won the top 6 role out of Babchuk and Melichar. As much as Wallin is the whipping boy right now, we all know, he isn't getting benched. So honestly the last 2 pairings are flipped and that's mostly what we will see throughout the year.
As for playing Seidenberg with Kaberle or Corvo, I don't think that's such a good idea. I like Seidenberg and agree he deserves a spot in the top 6, but he tends to pinch a bit too much and doesn't quite know when to pinch. Leaving him with a defensive-defenseman whether its Wallin or Melichar would be best for him. This way if he gets carried away and pinches, they'll still be a d-man to cover.
I think the reasoning behind
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 12:50 — A.H (not verified)I think the reasoning behind pairing Kaberle with Corvo is that Corvo needs to be play with someone who will make the "safe" play. This would ideally be a defensive defenseman, but Wallin/Melichar don't belong anywhere near a second pairing so that isn't happening. Kaberle, despite being a puck-moving defenseman, doesn't attempt to force offense or create something out of nothing like both Corvo and Seidenberg do.
A Seidenberg-Corvo pairing would result in a whole lot of risk-taking and not much reward on the part of Seidenberg. People have criticized Kaberle for his inability to defend two-on-ones, but most of the time last year it was Seidenberg causing those two-on-ones with some of the dumbest pinches I've ever seen.
Corvo was paired with Visnovsky in L.A, Preissing in Ottawa and then Kaberle here. He's used to playing with offensive defensemen. Likely you'd see Kaberle-Corvo out for way more offensive zone face-offs than defensive ones.
Kabs
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 11:25 — Anonymous (not verified)Kaberle and Corvo played together at the end of last season almost every game. Kaberle played some of his best hockey of the year paired with Corvo. I like how they play together.
D combos
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 10:55 — JRs_FaultI really don't like the prospect of a Corvo / Kaberle pairing... that will be a minus pairing if it goes on too long...
Also don't understand what Seidenberg needs to do to prove he's worthy of a Top 6 position.
Seidenberg
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 11:14 — Anonymous (not verified)Yeah, Chip, if you could at some point ask the coaches or JR what on earth Seidenberg needs to do that would be great. And if you could get them to be more specific than to just say "He makes plays that fans like, but not necessarily plays that coaches like," that would be even better. I think a lot of people are honestly just baffled by his situation. I mean, Kaberle with Corvo over Seidenberg? Really?
I'll wait on the Kabs
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 11:06 — FuquayCaniacI'll wait on the Kabs verdict, but what I've read seems to point that he is playing good hockey.
And agreed, Seids > Melichar
Kabs
Thu, 10/09/2008 - 11:23 — JRs_FaultI'll wait, too... My point is that both Kaberle & Corvo are in the NHL for their offensive abilities and they are both prone to breakdowns. Pairing Seidenberg with either one of them would seem to create a better balance. The #2 pairing will be out there against a lot of pretty good 2nd & 3rd lines... We'll see what happens.