- #I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE FULL#
- #I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE PLUS#
- #I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE SERIES#
- #I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE MAC#
Anthony Mantha was the most responsible for Chicago’s third and fourth goals, which are what allowed Chicago to run away with the game in the third period after Detroit woke up in the second. Let’s take the last game as an example, that humiliation against the Blackhawks. Or is the rush to condemn Mantha too quick and too simple? But is it accurate? Jim Devellano could have handled that situation in a cruel way but could have also been basically correct. We’re a far cry from 2015 when Red Wings Senior VP Jim Devellano called Anthony Mantha “very disappointing.” The rush of defenses to Mantha were considered admirable at the time, but what if Devellano just knew then what we’re damn sure we know now? Anthony Mantha is a basket (he sometimes hesitates on the play) with confidence issues (he doesn’t celebrate enough) and low motivation (his legs don’t move as fast as his shorter teammates’ legs.) Despite the anger at Devellano’s comments in 2015, that’s where a lot of the analysis around Mantha feels like it’s at right now in 2021: it’s taken a while, but Jim Devellano was right. Apparently, no 4th liner or bottom pairing defenseman has ever had a problem with their mind.Īnthony Mantha has had a growing reputation as a “headcase” for at least a few years now.
Tyler Seguin got this treatment in Boston. And do you remember all the scrutiny Ovechkin was under until he won a cup? Now everybody loves him, but each promising Washington Capitals season throughout the 2010’s ended with the usual media autopsy on “What’s up with Ovechkin?” Most of the blame for Vancouver losing in 2011 was placed at the feet of Roberto Luongo and his brain.
#I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE FULL#
These thoughts punctuated a career where I helped rebuild a team to respectability, if not prominence, and earned some very nice recognition and awards along the way, despite my lack of natural talent.īryzgalov’s comments about the relative sizes of the universe and a hockey puck were considered cute until he didn’t play well enough, then he was promptly labelled a headcase and run out of town (granted, Bryz had some on-ice disputes with teammates, but I’ve always been curious to know the full story there.)Ī few years later, Dougie Hamilton got pushed out of Calgary for being “too different” as well. I’d wondered “what’s the point?” too, more than once during my time as an NCAA athlete. But I guess that’s why I loved Ilya Bryzgalov in HBO’s documentary for the 2012 Winter Classic. It just comes with the territory when you spend those years boxing with your mental health. It was a label I’d had at different times up to that point in my life, mainly late in high school and early on in college on my cross country and track teams. Turning off that game against the Kings wasn’t just about the game. My college athletic career was over, leaving me both physically and mentally adrift (adjusting back to “normal” can feel really strange on the body.) And my love life? Well to keep with the 2011-2012 theme, my love life was Shea Weber. It was my first year out of college and I was thrown to the employment wolves. I also couldn’t find any decent work in the still-recessed Michigan economy. Of course, Filppula came back a minute later and scored his 22nd of the season to tie it and Darren Helm mucked it up in the crease shortly after that to score the dagger late in regulation. I wasn’t going to watch any more of the game since the game was making me feel terrible. After all, the Wings had struggled of late, and I was watching the Wings’ promising season, and likely Lidstrom’s last, slip away. I couldn’t stand to watch any more of this shit.
I went over, picked up the remote, and turned the game off. With just under six minutes left in the third, LA potted a go-ahead goal. Somehow, after two periods, the teams were still tied 2-2, but the shots and tilt of play were not in Detroit’s favor.
#I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE MAC#
Or this tilt in March, against the LA Kings, with Big Mac in net (remember the Mackinaw Bridge on his helmet?) Detroit was getting absolutely smothered by the eventual 2012 cup winner.
#I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE SERIES#
It was so good! After getting waxed the first two games against them, and going down 2-0 in the third game, the Wings pulled a rabbit out of a hat and stormed back to win the game 3-2, and to take the regular-season series 4-2. I remember a lot of those games, too, like Detroit’s regular season series against St.
#I DON'T WANNA BE A PLAYER NO MORE PLUS#
I watched nearly every Wings’ game that season, something around 75 of them, plus a good 15-25 others. During the 2011-2012 season, I probably watched more NHL hockey than any year before or since.