In one of his daily dialogues recently Coach Bruce Boudreau joked that he almost wished Mike Green wasn't getting so much attention - it's easier to burn teams with his talent when they're not keeping a close eye on him.
Well, if other teams are noticing either they don't care or they're simply not able to shut him down. Safe money is on the latter, as Green has rocketed to the top of the goal-scoring defensemen despite continuing to be the subject of national discussion.
...someone explain to me how he wasn't picked as an All-Star again?
The spotlight continues today for Green as he's featured in the New York Times (swanky), where he put into words what it seems a lot of fans and players alike are starting to feel:
“I see a bright future for this organization,” Green said. “We have the right foundation as far as players and direction. It feels like we’re really starting to put things together.”Then there's the massively long piece on NHL.com, Green's "In the Spotlight" moment. Of course we've read a lot about him in recent weeks, but there's some good stuff in there from the coaching staff and Green himself that's new to any fan. In the piece he talks about everything from good eating habits to modelling his game after some of the greats to working on his game in his own end:
"Offense comes a lot more naturally than the defensive game for me," Green said. When there is offense to be created as the fourth guy jumping up into the play, that's what I want to do, and continue working the power play. It has taken some time for me to come into my own and I finally feel ready to fill that role. But I really try to work on my defensive game. I don't want to be known as just an offensive guy, though I think over the course of my junior career and AHL experience I have developed that (reputation), but I want to be a guy that can play solid minutes and play against top lines."Sounds good to me.
So now that the Ovechkin deal is done there's talk that negotiations will begin with Green shortly if they haven't already. The way Green has been talking about the team, the coaching staff and the organization lately, it's likely that the Caps can lock up Green long-term and keep this team in very good hands for a very long time.
Just nobody give that kid keys to a segway ever again, okay?
3 comments:
The Segway driving was pathetic, but he can't be good at everything, right?
I agree about the greatness of media attention and the stupid All-Star snub completely. Too little too late, guys.
The reason he didn't make the all-star game is simple. There are so many teams in the league right now that they can almost only select one player per team (with the exception of the starting lineup, that's selected by fans). That's why Malkin and Green are not in the game (especially with Crosby and Gonchar already in for Pittsburg), and why Kovalchuk didn't make it last year! Toronto, Boston, Montreal, and Buffalo had NO forwards or goalies selected, so you KNEW they were getting defensemen on the All-Star team (not that Chara and Markov don't deserve it, but Kaberle? He's got 28 pts and he's a -2 on the season). As long as there are 15 teams per conference, and only 18 skaters per team, snubs like this will continue to happen. Just imagine in a few years when the NHL expands again -- there will only be ONE skater per team on the All-Star Team!
You can still vote for Mike by donating $10 to his favorite charity, Children's Hospital. His fundraising widget in the right column of this page is one of the top in the country. Hit "donate" and support Mike and the kids at Children's Hospital!
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