Rocket:
As many of you do, I play fantasy hockey. I was really disappointed to see a negative advisory posted regarding Guillaume Latendresse this morning. Here it is:
Cyberpresse.ca reports that Canadiens RW Guillaume Latendresse is not happy with being a healthy scratch lately. “It is not a situation I was expecting, but I have no choice; I have to live with it,” said the 21-year-old. “I really don’t know what more (coach Guy Carbonneau) wants. It came as a surprise, I really didn’t understand 100 percent. He may be expecting me to bring more to the offense. I must just carry on and try, despite my lack of confidence.”
It is a translated passage taken from an article in La Presse written by Marc Antoine Godin. (Perhaps BB will have more on it later.) My disappointment is that elements of the poor attitude and sense of entitlement (explained in a previous article) are appearing again from Gui.
How in the world can Latendresse be surprised? And saying that he doesn’t know what more he can contribute to the team is just plain silly.
So if Gui needs it to be spelled out, so be it. Latendresse has 1 goal in his last 10 games. He has 2 points in his last 15 games. Including last season, Lats has 4 goals in his last 46 regular season games.
Are you sure that you are doing all you can Gui? Because if that is true, maybe you will never live up to the potential that was promised.
At times, Latendresse has played better this season, but it seems that he is only willing to put in a few good shifts at the beginning of the game, and then sits back and listens to the cheers from his adoring fans (wonder if Demers voice can be heard at ice level?) Also, when he does play well for part of a game, he expects to be promoted to the first line.
Latendresse has made a marginal improvement but remains as a slow skater who has difficulty keeping up to his linemates and cannot get back to his zone for defensive responsibilities. Hence, he is not a two-way player. And Gui still has a reluctance to go to the front of the net. (According to Carbonneau, he has spoken to Latendresse about all these things.) Despite his size, Latendresse prefers being a perimeter player.
BB and I both mentioned in the last game review that we hoped that Latendresse was paying attention to the play of Matt D’Agostini. D’Agostini plays aggressive, wins battles for the puck, has good vision on the ice, and goes hard to the front of the net. This is a perfect template for Latendresse to follow but unfortunately, for Gui and the Canadiens, it seems that his attitude may get in the way.
from La Presse:
Latendresse: «Je ne sais pas vraiment ce qu’il veut de plus…»
http://www.cyberpresse.ca/sports/hockey/200812/03/01-807049-latendresse-je-ne-sais-pas-vraiment-ce-quil-veut-de-plus.php
a previous related article:
Latendresse as a Power Forward: Myth or Potential?
http://allhabs.blogspot.com/2008/11/latendresse-as-power-forward-myth-or.html
(Photo credit: Bernard Brault, La Presse)
So what would you rather have Latendresse say? “It’s not so bad up there in the press box, you can sit and relax, drink some coffee, chat with the guys and still get paid a ridiculous amount of money….I could get used to it, takes a lot of the pressure off you know…don’t have to worry about your diet or getting a nasty cut or bruise that messes your appearance up when you go out to the clubs after the game. Don’t have to get all sweaty and take a shower….don’t have to worry about getting proper rest…it’s great, really…”.
And you figure that’s his only alternative rob?
I expect Latendresse to be unhappy sitting in the press box AND equally unhappy with his own play. I expect him to realize that his effort hasn’t been good enough nor consistent.
He can either look at his stats or listen to his coach and GM. Both have explained exactly where Gui can improve.
To say that he has done all he can is not what I want to hear. If Latendresse has maxed out on effort and production, then its time to acknowledge that he will never live up to the hype.
I happen to believe that Latendresse is capable of much more. But to get there, he must first acknowledge that he is underachieving and then make a commitment to working harder at the segments of his game that have been identified for him by the coach and GM.
Gui has the same amount of points as the Kostitsyn brothers so far, with less playing time, and he is younger than both. His upside is much greater than either of them. I think you expect too much too soon.
You better update your stats book rob.
Glad to see you back though. I really missed your comments on my reviews the two games that Andrei Kostitsyn was the first star.
Okay, you know me by know so let’s go ahead and agree and siagree with everybody so that we are all confused…
First off, Rocket, be careful. The article is already paraphrasing what Latendresse said so you can’t go ahead and get conclusions from his attitude using his words on that. Also, remember that he is alwasy answering a question but those never make the article so a lot of times his answers alone (him and everybody else) look weird. Also, I remember him in an interview saying that he understood why he was pushed to the third line when Higgins came back. I have never heard him say he expected to play on the first line.
And he did improve his skating a lot more than you give him credit for. I remember last season and I see a huge difference. He’s never going to be a speedster but this improvement is good enough for me… for now!
Oh and please stop making him look like the guy who just waits for applauses. If it was really what he was looking for, he’d do much flashier stuff than he is. The real thing I want him to do with more consistency is going hard at the net and screen the goalie. Other than that he was doing some good forechecking and honestly I am amazed he’s a +3 up to now.
Now Rob, your first point has some merit but Rocket is right: I would rather have him pissed to only have 2 goals than to hear him talk only about being left out.
Your second point has some merit… in a sense. It’s true, Rocket expect a lot from a 21 year old kid and he’s harsh to him. Not as bad as his Breezer hate but still… However Lats doesn’t have half the raw talent of the Kostitsyn brothers. If Andrei was playing all season long the way he was in the first two games, he’d be in the top 10 in the league right now. But those two players will, I think, always be streaky players. The advantage Latendresse has is that he can be a consistent player once he trully understand how to work. Time will tell if I was right…
Andrei is in a hot streak, but he has them every year. At the end his numbers are underwhelming for a guy who is given the power play and top two line time he gets. I’m pretty sure that Latendresse is more productive this season in relation to his ice time and power play (or lack thereof) time than either of the Kostitsyns. Plus Lats brings other dimensions to the game that neither Belarussian will be able to do.
The team would be just as well off, and probably better off giving the playing time to Latendresse and D’Agostini that is presently given to the Kostitsyns. I don’t have much doubt about that.
I’ll quote the stats once more and then we can move on. If you wish to look at this year, both Kostitsyns have more points than Latendresse. If you look at last season, Gui and Sergei had the same number of points with Sergei playing 21 fewer games. Career-wise, Andrei has 15 more points while Latendresse has played 40 more games.
Now, let’s focus on the point of the article. That is, the attitude of Latendresse and whether it will prevent him from reaching his potential.
Misquotes are always a possibility BB, but remember, this is a pro-Latendresse publication. The quote doesnt’t have to be 100% accurate to get the sense that Latendresse isn’t happy, and he doesn’t have a clue why he is in the press box. Pardon me if I’m not really sympathetic when Latendresse implies ‘Why is Carbo picking on me?’ No player has received more lenient treatment when playing poorly than Latendresse over the past few years. Carbonneau has been unbelievably tolerant (some would say, to Latendresse’s deteriment).
My concern is that Latendresse made these comments AFTER his meeting with Carbonneau. He must do better self analysis.
36 hours of off-ice training and power skating has made some improvement but much more is needed. Just watch Gui coming back into his own zone. He usually gets there late.
Just take a look at all the things that Matt D’Agostini is doing well. Gui, if honest with himself, should have a better idea why he isn’t playing, while watching D’Agostini again tonight.
Quote which stats? Even strength points in relation to time on ice? I’ll bet Gui is ahead of both the fat brother with the receding hairline, and the emo brother who “acts like he has been in the league 10 years” according to Carbo, from that p.o.v.
At the age of 21 years and 6 months,(which is the age of Latendresse at the moment), A. Kostitsyn had played all of 12 NHL games and had 3 points. He reported to camp that fall in poor physical condition following a Russian interview where he mentioned that he would play in Russia if he knew there was a team that wanted him, but he wasn’t sure since he didn’t get on the ice much in his previous tenure there.
It’s way early to jump on Latendresse for occassionaly playing “his age”. Most of the players taken ahead of him in the 2005 draft haven’t even reached the NHL yet, and a few of them never will.
The only “point” I see in your article revolves around a questionable quote that you’ve twisted even further out of context to make it seem like Gui is being a malcontent or something. That is just crap. He is one of the most likeable players on the team, and one of the hardest working.
Twisted out of context? Latendresse came out of a meeting with Carbonneau and basically said that he didn’t know what the coach expected and that he was doing all he could.
I didn’t tag Latendresse as a malcontent. Prior to the draft, he was labelled as a player who sometimes has a bad attitude and poor work ethic. That label has followed him around because he has done little to disprove it.
As far as the Kostitsyns…I get it. You hate them. But the majority of your comments focus on their appearance, their social skills and their IQ. I will have to take your word that you are an expert in those areas. I prefer to focus on the characteristics that pertain to hockey.
Comments are closed.