EK vs. PK: A tale of two markets
High risk, high reward defencemen
P. K. Subban makes a glaring mistake and it becomes a national obsession and a Coach’s Corner segment.
Erik Karlsson sets up one Detroit goal with a pizza pass and scores another, accidentally, into his own net — and all is forgiven.
It helps, of course, that Karlsson’s Ottawa Senators came back and won Saturday night, outlasting the Red Wings 3- 2 in a shootout.
Subban’s t urnover, in overtime last week, came in yet another Montreal Canadiens loss. Afterward, an emotional head coach Michel Therrien c al l ed Subban’s play “selfish” and “individualistic.” The news cycle is not yet done with the fallout.
In contrast, after the Senators’ victory, head coach Dave Cameron calmly dismissed the Karlsson mishaps as a case of “stuff happens,” adding that when the Ottawa captain makes a mistake he doesn’t let it affect his play for the rest of the game.
EK vs. PK: ever- fascinating is the tale of the highrisk, high- reward offensive defencemen who toil in eastern Canada.
Their markets, t heir fans, their teammates, their coaches have made their respective treatment radically different, despite the fact they both play for Canadian teams just a two- hour drive apart.
For a variety of reasons, fans in Ottawa have come to terms with the “good Karl” and the “bad Karl,” understanding that the good out- weighs the bad for a twotime Norris Trophy winner who plays nearly 30 minutes a night.
It wasn’t always this way. When Paul MacLean was head coach, he often spoke sharply about his young star, with such widely quoted gems as, “we like him when he plays for us, not for them.”
In December of 2014, Cameron replaced MacLean and instantly the position on Karlsson shifted.
C a mero n has never come close to suggesting his young captain is a boon to the opposition. Instead, from the outset he used a baseball expression to make his point, as he often does.
“I don’t want to cut down his home runs,” Cameron said of Karlsson.
“I want to cut down his strikeouts.”
Against Detroit, Karlsson whiffed twice, badly. Afterward he owned it, to his credit.
“It was a tough period for No. 65 of the Ottawa Senators,” Karlsson said, of the giveaway and own goal in the first period.
Karlsson went on to say that “sh** happens ... but everybody supported me well.”
Indeed, goaltender Craig Anderson said that “those types of plays happen sometimes ... and we just rally around and try to battle for the guys when they do make mistakes.”
In breaking down t he first play, a no- look pass from behind his net, Karlsson said he “liked the odds” of finding a teammate, con- sidering two Detroit players were checking him.
Alas, a line change meant there was no Ottawa player there.
“I’m used to it, it’s happened before,” Karlsson said of his t urnover. “It di dn’ t affec t our team game.”
Meanwhile, down Hwy. 40 to Montreal, Subban found himself having to tell reporters a day after his untimely fall that there is no riff between himself and the head coach.
Therrien told members of the media he would have criticized any other player similarly ( yet he still hasn’t s hared t he bl ame with other culprits on the ice in that overtime). Rumours swirled that Subban could be traded and/or Therrien could be fired.
On a bright Monday morning in Kanata, Senators players held an upbeat practice and were smiling broadly as they left town for a western Canada trip, on the heels of three straight wins. Giveaways weren’t a topic.
Did we mention t hat Montreal and Ottawa have virtually identical records?
Mark Borowiecki, a meatand- potatoes defenceman for the Senators, doesn’t dispute the market differences between Montreal and Ottawa.
“It’s a little more intense ( in Montreal), a little more under the microscope than in Ottawa,” he says.
Yet, Borowiecki makes the point that all players have to be held accountable, regardless of where they play.
“Karl, offensively, skillwise, he’s a generational talent,” Borowiecki says. “You’ve got to let him do his thing. But it definitely is the coach’s job to kind of keep him reined in a little bit.”
In this way, even Cameron, in a calmer market, has to walk a fine line.
Support Karlsson, give him freedom, don’t rip him publicly for mistakes, but consider the team as well.
“Character guys on a team, the glue guys, appreciate a level playing field,” Borowiecki told me.
“At the end of the day, regardless of what you do, what you get paid or how many points you put up, you’re a cog in the wheel. You’re a member of this team.
“To see that every member of the team is held accountable, that can go a long way to garnering respect from your glue guys.”
AT THE END OF THE DAY ...YOU’RE A COG IN THE WHEEL.