Higgins now only has two points (both assists) in those fourteen games, both of which came in the first two contests of the season. That means Higgins has been left scoreless in his last TWELVE games, count 'em, TWELVE games. Now I realize that this team has bigger money problems than Higgins at the moment, but over two million dollars for a player that cannot register a single point in twelve games on a team that is one of the best in the league scoring wise and is currently 9-5-1 is just a bit disappointing. No? I mean, Vinny Prospal already has eighteen points which is eighth best in the league, and he is only being payed $1.1 million. Yes, he plays on a line with Marian Gaborik, but still, a lot of those points have come off of assists, and Higgins has only two, while he has been tried with pretty much the entire lineup.
So far, the New York native has proven himself as a grinder, and that is it. Now allow me to elaborate on why there is, or was, a difference between Higgins and say, Ryan Callahan. Callahan has always been noted as a grinder throughout his career, no doubt about that. Whereas Higgins was being labeled a "goal scorer" ever since his breakout season in 2007-08, when the former Hab registered a career high 27 goals in 82 games played with the Canadians. Higgins then went on to produce a total of five points in twelve playoff games the season, and once 07/08 came to an end, Montreal felt that they had a real prize on their hands.
After watching some clips of Higgins with the Canadians over the summer, I noticed that he was a very energized player that always found ways to get open, as well as clean up the garbage in the crease, and by that I mean bury rebounds. So far this season, he has been the polar opposite. Chris has been slow, he has been dismal, and has not been showing the effort that the coaching staff and fans expect from him, hence the reasoning for his benching in late October, as well as Tortorella calling him out in practice during the pre-season.
I will admit that Higgins was better in yesterday's match-up with the Bruins, and that very well could have been due to the night off he received last Friday because of a left foot injury suffered against the Isles earlier that week. With that being said, this slump can very well be existent because of mental games, as Higgins may not have all of the confidence that he once had in Montreal. Think about it; He is now playing in the largest city in the World, he is in front of his family, there were high hopes for him coming into the season, and now he has failed to meet any of those expectations, which could eventually destroy a player if they do not have the correct mentality. I remind that this is all speculation on my part, but at the same time, it is a very possible scenario.
Even so, I feel like Higgins can be compared to Chris Drury at this point for one main reason. They are both players that were reputable goal scorers earlier in their careers, but now they are proving just to be grinders that are known for intangibles. With the type of money these two are being payed, especially Drury, you would expect more of them, but the bottom line is that we, the fans, cannot control how or when a player performs, as that is entirely up to the individual himself. Sure, people within the environment can assist in that person's efforts, but they cannot make the decisions for them, the must allow the individual, in this case player, to move himself in the right direction.
All things considered, it is totally up to Higgins as to what he makes of himself here in New York. Remember, Higgins' contract expires come July, so if he does not change his play from now until April, than good riddance, it was nice knowing you!
(Image courtesy of AP Photo)
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9 comments:
More disappointed in Cally who, though he contributes with hits and hard work, has missed a dozen dead-on shots from in front of the net. The number of scoring chances in a game are limited and he wastes too many. Is it possible to work on a player's scoring touch?
You make a good point. As I've said here before, I REALLY miss Gomez. How much cap room did we save with this trade? I'm curious. Gomer would totally thrive in this system.
NY is tough for a lot of players to perform in, although Montreal is fairly tough as well I'd imagine. There is SO much attention that I guess it can get to a guy's nerves. We see it this phenomenon in all sports in this town, which is unfortunate, given we have such dedicated FANS who want to win. But, I've come to expect this in a high percentage of hyped players: come to NY and magically underproduce. Drury and Higgins are but two in a very LONG list of guys who came here with a bang and left with a whimper.
@ scchask:
Well, there is no real way to teach skill and scoring touch. However, there are plenty of ways to teach a player how to be in position for scoring chances and how to create the. Pure skill is not taught, but how that skill is appliead can be.
@ tradershot:
The money that was gained from trading Gomez was the exact money Sather went out and used on Gaborik. So that means around the $7 million area (Gaborik being payed $7.5). So you can look at it how you like, but essentially, we got Gaborik for Gomez.
And you make a good point about players underproducing in New York.
Ok, that makes sense. That's kinda what I thought. Of course, I'd trade Gomez for Gaborik.
On scchask's point, I think much of any performance oriented profession is mental/emotional. PARTICULARLY high level skill games, as opposed to pure strength sports, and even those are very much dependent on the frame of mind the participant is in.
If a guy can get past his OWN mental/emotional barrier he can produce to his potential. A-Rod is a good example. He always had the skill, yet choked in the playoffs. Something apparently has shifted for him.
We can't "teach" these mental/emotional breakthroughs, per se, but we CAN absolutely work on and achieve them. (I'm a performance enhancement coach by trade, but don't generally work with athletes). I, like many, often feel that if a guy is making millions he should come in w/this component handled. However, what I want or what I think SHOULD be the case has little to do with the reality; this is a part of the game that not every player - highly skilled or not - can master in all environments, particularly high-pressure environments.
So, call Sather and tell him I'm available!
i think that we should have given drury instead of gomez to the habs. he is getting paid 8m and not producing. what kind of captain gets benched in the 3rd period. he is supposed to be respected by the team but he can't even get a point. he is invisible when he plays and i think he is really messing up our offensive because of his huge salary that he doesn't deserve. he has a higher salary then gaborik. he is nothing compared to gaborik. i think we should buy him out before we buy out rodden and gets a couple of 20 goal scorers for his salary
redden*
@ ihatedrury:
Well, I do not see us buying out Drury. The only problem is that we would bee paying off his salary in increments for the next few years, just like Tampa will do with Prospal.
rotten*
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