What's Wrong with Shevchenko?

[der meister 3,273]

The sound of a composite hockey stick being slammed repeatedly into the dasher boards rings out in the Toronto Legion's home arena. The thumps end abruptly, punctuated by a snapping noise. The Legion's Assistant Equipment Manager shakes his head and walks partway down the hallways to the team's locker room. He quickly grabs a stick from a bundle under a placard with the name "K. Shevchenko" emblazoned on it and brings it to the bench. Shevchenko is there a moment later, scowling as he takes the proffered stick and charges up the ice.

 

It's an all-too-familiar scene in downtown Toronto lately, where the Ukrainian winger, acquired in a massive trade with the D.C. Dragons during the offseason, has by all accounts failed to live up to expectations. Coming off a 74 point season, Shevchenko is on pace for just 44 points - 22 goals and 22 assists. There's been speculation around the league as to what exactly is going on with the 6'8" sniper, but no one seems to have the answer. His physical play is way down from last season's numbers, when he played like a legitimate top line power forward, and some wonder if that's reflecting a lack of intensity or a conscientious decision by the Toronto coaching staff. His shooting percentage is also way down, from a 8.90% to a 6.96%. Furthermore, he's not shooting as often, on pace for just over 300 shots after nearly reaching 400 last season.

 

A pile of the dead

 

 

Ultimately, though, the real question is, "Who is the real Konstyantyn Shevchenko?" Some pundits speculate that the lack of production could be a byproduct of the U.S. political scene, which lines up well on the timeline, at the very least. With the incoming administration's historic favoritism of Russia and its leader, Vladimir Putin, it's highly likely that U.S. support of Ukraine will dramatically decrease. For a player who is so clearly invested in the safety of his countrymen and the sovereignty of his nation, such a turn of events could certainly be impacting his on-ice performance.

 

There's also the trade itself to consider. In D.C., Shevchenko was a budding star, a franchise cornerstone to rebuild a struggling Dragons franchise, along with forwards YNF Retiring and Brendan Petan, Jr. Instead, Shevchenko found himself being trade bait following his 74 point sophomore effort. Was there a falling out between Shevchenko and Dragons' management? Did D.C. know something the rest of the league doesn't with regard to the developmental path of Shevchenko? Or, did the move perhaps impact the youngster's psyche, sending a message of rejection when he possibly expected praise and accolades? Keep in mind that not only was Shevchenko an emerging star player, but he was also named the Dragons' Captain at the beginning of last season. What exactly happened, then, to see such a fall from grace?

 

Perhaps the explanation is much simpler, however. The Legion are a team currently built on a backbone of forwards who are all just a few short months from retirement. There have been no rumors of a brash attitude from the Ukrainian, but its possible that he's simply having a hard time finding chemistry with the "old guard" in Toronto. The reduction in shots per game could be explained by a deference to his elders, choosing to support their final career numbers at the expense of his own. Whatever the case may be, undoubtedly Toronto Legion management expects more out of their major offseason acquisition, and certainly, based on the number of sticks that have been smashed during recent practices, Shevchenko expects more out of himself too.

 

Whether he can turn it around this season remains to be seen. In the first year of a two-year deal, a bounce back year is sorely needed, and the Legion will be leaning on him heavily to continue building a team that should be higher up in the standings than they currently are.