Comments on: A few thoughts

By: Puck

Puck — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 16:18:56 +0000

Orr –
You say its the dumbest thing you’ve ever heard to start Vally. I suggested that. And I didnt suggest doing it right now. I said if the slide continues it might spark something. You also say that he would let in 3-4 goals per game. He only let in 2 goals against the blues and his career average is 2.72. How is that 3-4? Last year the whole team said Vally sparked the turn around. Not Avery.And the team was playing quite Horribly when he played..kinda like right now.

By: Peter

Peter — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 16:12:17 +0000

Spiderpig: Yea, I mis-typed. Good catch!

As far as “intangibles” go…if sports were played by robots, then statistics would tell the whole story. But since human beings have emotions, those play a great deal into performance and into what type of player you’d want on your team.

Case in point…Does anyone believe that Sean Avery’s stats jump-start the team last year? Or was it his attitude and swagger?

I think it actually takes more of an effort to watch the games and read what players say and what’s said about them than to read a box score. That’s why sports teams have scouts. If you could determine all you need to know from stats, you wouldn’t need to go see anyone play.

The problem with sabermetrics especially is that the values are predetermined based on the statisticians personal views. For example, based on sabermetrics and moneyball, a team like the Oakland A’s doesn’t believe in giving away outs. Therefore they never steal bases or sacrifice bunt or go after players who have low on base percentages. They’ve been quite successful, haven’t they? Whereas a team that USED to be heavy into moneyball, the Red Sox, is now in the World Series.

Basically the point is that 90% of the people who read this post could care less about your fictitious relative +/- and would rather see a player come up here and give 110% rather than the player with the best stats come up and play like he doesn’t care.

By: Robby Bonfire

Robby Bonfire — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 15:30:38 +0000

OK Sam, you can put up another post now.

By: Robby Bonfire

Robby Bonfire — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 15:29:07 +0000

My favorite “intangible” is the retension of athletes who are over 40, who can’t cut it anymore, but who provide clubhouse “mentoring” leadership pep talks for kids who can perform circles around them in the actual game -arena for which they are employed, in the first place.

See, “intangibles” are popular with illiterates, because intangibles cannot be measured and are merely subjective impressions; whereas the mathematical grading and measuring of performance, and holding athletes to standards of production requires thought, work, and discipline – qualities lazy people abhor and cut and run from, in all facets of their lives.

By: JOHNM

JOHNM — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 15:22:00 +0000

And the Rangers Lame players merry go round continues.. Strudwick off..Strudwick on.Isbister on…Isbister off…. Pock on…Pock off….Dupuis on…Dupuis off..Hall on…Hall off..Scatchard on…etc .

One lame one after another. And I only put half of them on here.

By: section344

section344 — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 15:20:52 +0000

Zipay says no one called up from Hartford, and Jason Strudwick skated as a forward.

By: Spiderpig

Spiderpig — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 15:02:44 +0000

Peter – Is that supposed to read Cullen would have had another sub-par year here? From the rest of your post, it looks like that is the point you are trying to get across.

By: Nasty 1

Nasty 1 — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 14:52:59 +0000

Not Pingry, but pretty close to it. It is that kind of school though.

By: paulf

paulf — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 14:50:37 +0000

Nasty: Sounds like Pingry…. or maybe that place outside of Peapack that I’ve passed on drives to the country.

By: Peter

Peter — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 14:42:57 +0000

Just a few notes on some of the comments above…

Aebischer wasn’t claimed by the Coyotes, he was always on that team. They just send him to the AHL after no one claimed him.

Cullen would not have had another sub-par year on this team. Renney would not use him where he excels (point on the PP), and playing a shoot first center with 2 shoot first wingers would not result in better stats for Prucha and Callahan. Just the opposite. Dubinsky is a way better play-maker than Cullen.

“Intangibles” are often mocked by stats freaks. Stats definitely do not tell the entire story of a player, especially stats that are of the fabricated variety (such as “relative +/-).