Phamily Pheud: What's Wrong in Prague?

[animal74 1,863]

Phamily Pheud: What's Wrong in Prague?

 

The Prague Phantoms are currently clinging to the last playoff spot in the European Conference with a two-point gap over the Moscow Menace, who has a game in hand on the Phantoms. With these two rivals clashing the next two games (making it three in a row), the playoff picture could be altered greatly.

 

So what’s going on with the Phantoms, a team that seemed like they were ready to take a step forward after almost capturing the top seed in the European Conference last season? There has been a lot going on, so we’ll look at the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

 

 

 

The Good:

 

The first 14 games of the season were encouraging as the Phantoms went 6-5-3 scoring 45 goals over that stretch which led the league. The strong offensive start was sparked by veteran center Roll Fizzlebeef, grinding winger Ben McGirr and the “Big 3” on defense Seabass Perrin, Cinnamon Block, and Wolf Stansson Jr. They were receiving solid goaltending from now departed Solomon Crawford, too.

 

The young core continues to improve and gel as a team and the recent trade to bring in journeyman netminder Virgil Ligriv may give Prague a bit more consistency between the pipes. Their power play has been one of the top units all season and they continue to be one of the most physical teams in the league as they currently lead the VHL with 520 hits. They are willing to sacrifice their bodies for the team, leading the league in shots blocked but that might be more a product of giving up the second-most shots in the league which leads us to…

 

 

 

The Bad:

 

For having such a strong blueline and a commitment to defense and taking the body, something within the Phantoms defensive scheme has not been jiving. They are last in the league in goals against and as mentioned, have been near the bottom of shots against all season. While the goaltending has been good, getting peppered with over 35 shots a game is not a successful strategy. Over the last 14 games the Phantoms have gone 4-7-3 while scoring seven less goal then the previous 14 games but allowing the same amount (46). The penalty kill has been middle of the pack at 80% which is not good enough when they allow the second-most power plays in the league.  A couple of moves were made early in the season to add some depth and now they need more scoring from that depth.   

 

 

 

The Ugly:

 

While some of the previously stated numbers look ugly, as a whole, it’s not terrible as a lot of the good is trying to balance the shortcomings of this young team. A couple of things though stand out as ugly for Prague and one of those things is not their fault.

 

The inability to lure top free agents has hurt them as they continue to look for respect as a team on the rise. The superb culture of the Phantoms has never been in question but the up and coming core players are close to clearing the first-round playoff hurdle but many outside the locker room don’t believe they are a contender yet. This will hopefully change over time, but how much time?

 

The main reason they lost the first seed last year was the team’s abhorrent record in overtime and shootouts and this season is no different. The Phantoms are 0-6 in overtime and shootouts with one overtime loss and five shootout losses. So far the Phantoms have lost 14 points due to shootouts alone over the last 100 games. This season they have only scored 5 goals on 20 attempts with the usual top three, Thomas Landry II (2 for 5), Wolf Stansson Jr (1 for 5) and Ondrej Ohradka (0 for 4) not being clutch enough. The rest of the team has gone 2 for 6. They need to find ways to win in regulation or the playoffs may slip by them. And that would cause a feud.

 

S. Mack Tokker

Prague Sports Network

[Jayrad28 397]

Not even a mention

[Victor 11,043]

Keep going we dont want your playoff spot 

[animal74 1,863]

41 minutes ago, Jayrad28 said:

Not even a mention

You are the captain. You do no wrong. 

[animal74 1,863]

7 minutes ago, Victor said:

Keep going we dont want your playoff spot 

 

Then stop beating us!