One thing I don't understand is how people can slam Pascal Leclaire while at the same time admitting that our defense corps is not up to scratch? Take this missive about last night's game:You can point the finger at Pascal Leclaire and Alex Kovalev for having another bad game but to me, the Senators are carrying an inept set of defenseman who have zero defensive acumen and zero character on the ice....ok, that's a bit more even-handed than I first read it. Here's a better one:
Holy crap Pascal Leclaire. I thought I kind of put you on notice about those soft goals. I get that they’re going to happen, but they shouldn’t be happening to us first! That’s Martin Gerber Bush League Goaltending. You’ve got to step it up a bit here buddy. I understand there’s a lot of pressure to playing in a Canadian market, and I get that you had the flu, but there was a reason we were so excited only 15 short games ago. You seemed to deflect everything; point shots, criticism, redirections, invitations to the orthodontist. You name it, and you just weren’t having it. Find your mojo Pascal, and do it quick. Brian Elliott is chomping at the bit.Really, how can you blame Leclaire for failing to back-stop the team when he is being put in situations that he shouldn't be in?
This has long been a pet peeve of mine. I never thought Gerber was the incompetent clown that many made him out to be. I have long thought that Gerber was a solid, if unspectacular goalie who didn't get the necessary support from the guys in front of him.
There are many nights when Martin Brodeur couldn't win with these guys on the ice in front of him. Blaming Leclaire for everyone else's failings is just short-sighted.
