When the Coyotes coaching staff made the decision to remove forward Christian Fischer from the lineup on Feb. 21 in Vancouver, Fischer had gone 14 games without a goal, posting two assists over that span while averaging about 12 and a half minutes of ice time.
When Fischer sat down, forward Clayton Keller had gone 12 games without a goal (the streak reached 13) with four assists in that span. Keller averaged about 18 minutes per game in that period, never dipping below 16 minutes in a game.
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Over the same time span, captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson had one goal and three assists, but was averaging about 23 minutes of ice time, with three games of 26 minutes or more.
Why the disparity in treatment for a trio of underperforming players?
“I’ll give you the standard answer,” coach Rick Tocchet said. “Life isn’t fair. Any coach can say you treat 21 players the same, but it’s not true. Not everybody is treated the same.”
Tocchet had well-reasoned explanations for sitting Fischer while continuing to play Keller and playing his captain the most of any player on the team. The disparity offers a case study in coaching, and the approach extends beyond ice time into Tocchet’s public approach to each player. Here’s a look at those differing methods.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Tocchet has not been shy about critiquing his captain to media, and in turn, the public. Some have interpreted that as a fundamental clash in personalities. Tocchet doesn’t view it that way.
“It’s not so much that I call him out, but I think it’s a responsibility to be the captain and to have the role he has on our team,” Tocchet said. “O has played well for me. Don’t get me wrong on that, but is there another level to his game? Yes, I know there is. I have seen it. We’re going to need him at that level down the stretch.”
Tocchet wants to see Ekman-Larsson play a more assertive game.
“When he is playing a forceful game, he is a real top-end player and when he gets casual he gets caught in between,” Tocchet said last week. “These last 20 games, he has to think, ‘I am the guy.’
“I think there are certain times where, because he is a really good guy, he just defers a little too much in certain crucial times of the game. With six minutes left, you get that puck, I want to see you get it to the middle, fake a shot and then blast it instead of just getting it and passing it to somebody else. That’s one thing I always tell O. ‘Don’t defer to people. You can be the guy, staying within the system,’ but I’m just looking for him to take charge sometimes. A lot of times he does, but there are certain times he can do more.”
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Ekman-Larsson admits to battling an inherent personality trait.
“It’s a new thing for me to be a captain and it’s obviously big shoes to fill,” he said. “I would lie if I said it hasn’t been a big thing to take over after Shane (Doan). One thing Shane told me is you have to be yourself, so I have been trying to be myself but at times be selfish. It’s hard because I want to be there for the team and help them out and be positive, too.”
Both player and coach insist their relationship has grown by leaps and bounds since the start of last season when they weren’t always communicating well. Tocchet just believes he can ask more of Ekman-Larsson because of his age (27), his experience, (nine NHL seasons) and the C he wears on his chest.
“O has got to keep me on my toes, too,” Tocchet said. “He has that right as the captain and he knows can come to me. O knows who I am now, my temperament. He knows I’m a fiery guy but I’m also an open book, and I feel like I know him, too. There are times we talk a lot and like to communicate and there are times I like to leave him alone. As you grow as a coach and as a captain, you learn the best way to approach things.”
Tocchet is appreciative of the fact that his captain is playing through a knee injury suffered in a game at Ottawa on Jan. 22.
“He’s a warrior,” Tocchet said. “He got banged up there pretty hard. Some guys might have been out three, four, five games. He came back and played after one. Don’t get me wrong, we’re never going to put him in harm’s way, but that is a thing with O. He can take a hit and get up. That’s a big character thing for me.”
Ekman-Larsson mostly shrugged off the injury when asked if it was OK now.
“No, it’s not, but it is what it is,” he said. “Nobody is playing 100 percent at this time of year so I’m battling through it just like a lot of guys are battling through stuff. It’s good enough to play on. We sat down and looked at it, did the MRI and it’s not going to be a problem two, three years from now if I play now so I’m fine.”
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As for his performance, Ekman-Larsson agreed he can do more, but he cautioned against viewing him through the same lens he was viewed when playing for former coach Dave Tippett.
“I would like to chip in more points and goals but I also know we play in a different system and playing the top on the power play is a little bit different than being a shooter on the flank like I was when Tip was here,” he said. “I’m totally fine with it because I feel like we have more guys chipping in instead of me just doing my own thing.
“I hope you guys aren’t looking for 20-plus goals every year. I don’t think that’s me. Obviously, I did that a couple times and I am very proud of that, but I’m more of an all-around defenseman. I really felt good about my game at the end of last season, kind of found my game where I was playing my best hockey. That’s what I’m looking for. Hopefully, I can bring that level the last 20 or so games here.”
In his past five games, Ekman-Larsson has two goals and seven points and is a plus-six.
Clayton Keller
Keller has been a student of keen focus for Tocchet. The Coyotes coach spends a lot of time with his skilled forward on the ice at practice, talking and teaching. Keller is usually one of the first players on the ice and one of the last ones to leave.
It’s not as if Keller has struggled this season. He is a bit light in the goal-scoring department with 12, but he has 41 points, which leads the team, and his development looks to be mostly on track as he chases the guys after whom he models his game, Patrick Kane and Johnny Gaudreau. All the same, Tocchet sees room for improvement.
“His intensity in practice was better last year than it is this year,” Tocchet said. “He might not agree with me but I really believe that it’s a reason for his slump. And also away from the puck is something he has to be more diligent and work harder at. He’s not a secret any more so you’re going to go against the other team’s best players. You’re going to have to go get the puck. You can’t just be on the outside expecting the puck to come to you. You’re going to have to be close to people. You’re going to have to be a give-and-go guy for a while. You can’t stickhandle through three guys. I’m not saying he does it all the time, but if they’re doubling up on you, give it to somebody and then go find the good ice.”
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Tocchet’s insistence on continuing to play Keller has led some to believe that he takes a kid-glove approach to the 20-year-old. Keller’s eyes widened when this was suggested.
“They’re hard on me,” he said of the coaching staff. “But I’ve always had that growing up since I was 10 years old. Coaches have been hard on me and I have always been able to respond, whether it’s being one of the first guys out at practice or doing the extra work. It seems to help.”
Tocchet laughed when told of Keller’s reaction.
“I have probably been harder on him than maybe any player this year, but Kells understands I’m still going to put him out there,” he said. “I might be hard on him but I remember back in the day being hard on a kid meaning you’re not going to play him or you’re going to sit him on the bench for the third period. I give him a lot of crap, but he’s playing 18 minutes. I’d rather a coach be hard on me and play me 18 minutes than be hard on me and not dress me.”
Tocchet’s gentler public approach to Keller is likely due to his age.
“I have to remember he’s 20 years old,” Tocchet said, laughing. “I always need to remember that, but Kells probably gets a little bit of rope because he’s a talented kid and he can score like he did (against the Winnipeg Jets on Feb. 24). He probably gets a little more rope than a guy like Fisch because of that, but I’ll be honest, it’s a hard question to answer when deciding that.
“I think it is a feel thing. When that situation arises and I’m not happy with Kells, I have taken some time off in some situations. I have told him and some other guys that if they can’t defend and have a defensive conscience, I can’t put him out there the last four or five minutes of a game. If Kells takes the lesson and he is trying, I’ll put him out there again, but if he continues to be casual, then I’ll go to the next step.”
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Keller understands the latitude Tocchet has granted him. He also understands the responsibility that comes with that latitude.
“I love being coached by him and we have a great relationship where we can talk about certain goals,” he said. “He’s hard on me, definitely, but he wants the best out of me and he knows what I can do. I want to be productive every single night. I’ve always been an offensive player, always put up good numbers but you can’t think about that.
“I put a lot of pressure on myself and I put in a lot of work this summer, but the second year is always hard. Sometimes, things just aren’t going your way but you have to stay positive. The points will take care of themselves if I’m playing my game.”
In his past four games, Keller has a goal, three points and 12 shots on goal.
Christian Fischer
Fischer didn’t see anything noticeably alarming in his play over the aforementioned stretch, but it was hard to ignore those two assists and zero goals in a 14-game span.
“I haven’t scored in a little bit and things get real magnified if you are put in that production role or playing power play or playing top nine and you’re not scoring,” he said. “You can play as good as you want, but in the end it is about results.”
Tocchet took a philosophical approach to Fischer’s four-game absence from the lineup (he returned Saturday against Detroit).
“It’s not necessarily that he’s just playing bad,” Tocchet said. “Fisch is a young guy. It’s OK for him to sit out some games. He has played some good minutes for us. Sometimes with a young guy, you need to take a little step back once in a while. I think he has been fighting it a little bit with the puck.”
Tocchet was a power forward in his day so he has a keen understanding of Fischer’s strengths and the things he needs to do to be successful. Tocchet uses the term “sticky” to describe how he wants players to play down low in the offensive end, holding onto the puck along the wall and making plays from that scenario.
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“He has hockey IQ,” Tocchet said. “But holding the puck in your skates accomplishes nothing. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and place for that. To me, it’s more about getting out of a pile with a puck and then making the right play, not losing it. That’s the characteristic of our Coyotes players. That’s a big part of being a playoff hockey team is being in those pressure, close quarters and coming out with the puck and making a play instead of losing the puck. Whether it’s Fisch or Keller or whoever, we always strive for guys to be better in those situations.”
Fischer believes he has identified the problem.
“Probably the biggest thing when you talk about production and ask why am I not scoring, right now it’s probably in the O-zone down low keeping my feet moving,” he said. “I could hold onto the puck down there on the wall and the guy could be on my back and I could just hang out there for 30 seconds and muck it up but that doesn’t do anything.
“It’s about body position and moving my feet. If I get stuck in there, sometimes I just get stagnant when I could go as simple as low to high or I could take that spin off the guy and go to the net. That’s my game. I have to get out of that corner and make a play. That’s my game. Something as simple as a wraparound is how I have scored all of my career so I am just trying to get back to that.”
Tocchet’s decision to sit Fischer did not come without much thought to the end game.
“I don’t enjoy telling a guy he’s not playing,” Tocchet said. “It sucks. Everyone wants to play, but six weeks ago, two months ago, I didn’t play (Lawson Crouse) and he worked his tail off. (Josh Archibald), early in the year hardly played. If you look the last six weeks, five weeks, those have been two of the most effective players, game in and game out.”
Fischer, 21, understands this is part of the growth process for a young player. He learned that from an excellent source.
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“Last year I got scratched and I remember talking to Doaner,” he said. “You think that Shane Doan, who had his jersey retired, probably didn’t go through anything like this, but he even went down to the minors. I get that it is part of the process but you’d love to avoid it. I’m young and still learning things after 150 games but I know I am going to work through this, and there is light on the other side by working and having confidence in my game.”
Fischer didn’t score against the Red Wings on Saturday, but he was engaged and he had five shots on goal. Tocchet said that Fischer always comes with the right attitude and work ethic.
“You’ve got to remember a lot of these (are) young guys we have put in the lineup in the situation we’re in,” Tocchet said. “Sometimes, it’s good for him just to calm the process down. You can’t just shove Fisch into the lineup every night, but I love Fisch. He’s going to be fine.”
(Top photo by Norm Hall / NHLI via Getty Images)