There’s one thing to be mentioned a few participant who all the time appears for the move first. It’s that selfless mentality that’s the make-up of each a fantastic teammate and an elite playmaker. There’s much more to be mentioned a few participant who’s all the time crucial of their sport, regardless of how nicely they might be doing statistically.
A type of gamers is first-year Colorado Eagles ahead T.J. Tynan.
Tynan was one of many prime offensive weapons within the AHL final season. The 27 12 months outdated led your complete American League in assists with 59, whereas ending the season with 71 factors in 71 video games, tied for the third-best within the league final season. Within the early months of his first 12 months right here in Colorado, it appears he’s selecting up proper the place he’s left off. Tynan at the moment leads all Eagles in assists (10) and factors (12) and is at the moment tied for third within the AHL for many helpers.
His spectacular resume earned him the ‘A’ on his chest this season for the Eagles, as he hopes to impart a few of his knowledge and success on a younger Colorado roster.
“I’ve been round for some time, I’ve been a captain on different groups and I’m simply making an attempt to convey the expertise that I’ve had,” mentioned Tynan. “I’ve been lucky sufficient to be on some fairly good groups, so I’m simply making an attempt to take some the nice that I’ve realized and unfold that, particularly to among the youthful guys who haven’t been right here earlier than. It’s one thing I’m very pleased with, to be one of many captains.”
As profitable as he’s been as a participant on this league, even he’s all the time seeking to higher himself. There’s one facet of his sport that he’s hoping to hone in on this season. Whereas his penchant for passing has earned him a great quantity of factors all through his profession, nonetheless, Tynan is crucial of his “lack” of offensive output — imagine it or not. He says he desires to spherical out his total sport in one other manner. That’s, he desires to shoot the puck somewhat extra and perhaps rating just a few extra objectives alongside the way in which.
I requested the first-year Eagle about whether or not he has that pass-first mentality to his sport, to which he answered in settlement: “Most likely, sadly,” he mentioned with a smile and a chuckle. Including, “It’s simply type of labored out that manner for certain.”
Ashley Potts / Colorado Eagles
Tynan’s use of the adjective “sadly” to explain his selfless pass-first mentality will not be actually unlucky, per se, and that’s not likely what he means. His use of the phrase is just a nod to his needs that he’d shoot the puck extra. It’s one thing he’s additionally talked about along with his coach, who too needs Tynan would shoot on the web somewhat extra, though, he appreciates his ahead’s play-making talents as nicely.
“He’s a dynamic participant and he’s obtained nice imaginative and prescient…he’s all the time going to have these, he’s a pure playmaker, he’s a dynamic participant,” mentioned head coach Greg Cronin earlier than opening up his file of evaluation on Tynan. “However can we get him to attain extra? Can we get him to shoot extra? Can we get him to place extra pucks to the web?…That’s his problem.”
It’s a problem that Tynan has accepted and is actively working in the direction of creating. He’s conscious of his adeptness at play making and his stat line over the previous few seasons is a testomony to that. He’s additionally very self-aware of his lack of goal-scoring to date all through his skilled profession.
Tynan has by no means scored greater than 15 objectives in a season since he turned professional on the tail finish of the 2013-14 season. His 15-goal career-high was set in the course of the 2017-18 season with the Chicago Wolves. And the 27 12 months outdated hasn’t tallied greater than 20 objectives since his freshman season at Notre Dame in the course of the 2010-11 marketing campaign.
Tynan has all the time been an offensive weapon since turning professional and becoming a member of the AHL. He hasn’t scored fewer than 41 factors in a full season within the AHL but. He averages 53 factors per season, 42 of that are assists, leaving roughly simply 9 goals-scored on common annually.
“I undoubtedly look to supply offensively, that’s what I attempt to do each night time,” mentioned Tynan. “So far as play making goes, I’m all the time seeking to get my teammates in good spots and simply attempt to discover that open man, that’s one thing I all the time attempt to work on and I’ve been fairly good at.
“However I obtained to shoot the puck extra,” he admitted.
From his coach’s perspective, he thinks Tynan simply must simplify his sport. As is commonly the case with play-making gamers, flash and pizzazz are positioned at a premium, typically overlooking the less complicated and extra environment friendly play.
“You don’t need to take away the creativity from gifted gamers, however on the identical time he’s obtained to prioritize when to make performs the second within the sport, the second within the shift, the time on the ice, all these issues,” added Cronin. “He’s a six-year veteran so he is aware of it. However we simply obtained to maintain reminding him of it.”
The sport of hockey is commonly in comparison with a chess match of kinds, the place technique and ability are required. For Cronin, he thinks decision-making is extra akin to a sport of poker or blackjack. Consider the 5 gamers on the ice just like the 5 playing cards in your hand. You’re enjoying towards your opponent, or the vendor’s 5 playing cards. Generally it’s a must to know while you’re matched up properly to the opponent’s 5 guys on the market and typically it’s a must to know when to fold.
“Generally he makes performs making an attempt to do an excessive amount of versus pondering ‘I’ve obtained a three, a four, 7, 9 and a 2, I obtained to fold my hand.’ Simply let it go. That to me goes to be his problem,” mentioned Cronin. “I feel it’s affecting the ability play, too. They’re making an attempt to make the fanciest play as an alternative of simply capturing the puck.”
On that word, sure, as Cronin identified, the Eagles power-play unit is struggling up to now this season. Not essentially associated to Tynan, though he does play loads of special-teams minutes, however to the general man-advantage group, which is commonly caught making an attempt to make the strategic performs quite than simply “folding their hand” and simply firing pucks on the web. The Eagles power-play unit is dead-last within the Pacific Division with an 11.5 p.c success price. That quantity additionally places Colorado at 26th out of 31 groups within the league.
Ashley Potts / Colorado Eagles
Once more, Tynan is aware of it too. The play-making, pass-first mentality is hard-wired into his mind. That’s the kind of participant he’s all the time been. Like Isaac Newton’s first regulation of movement states: “An object at movement tends to remain at movement, and an object at relaxation will stay at relaxation.” That is Tynan’s case, too. Like legal guidelines in physics, it’s not simple to simply merely change the way in which it really works. It’ll take a re-wiring effort of kinds to vary the Eagles playmaker’s sport.
“I feel it’s only a mentality,” added Tynan. “Whenever you get the puck, look to shoot first as an alternative of move. You don’t all the time must search for the open man. Particularly for those who shoot a pair pucks, clearly some issues open up as a result of [opponents] assume ‘oh look, he’s not simply passing, he’s capturing the puck, too.’ It’s only a mentality factor I’ve been making an attempt to work on for some time now, simply making an attempt to grind daily and shoot some extra pucks and work on the mentality to shoot first.”
Both manner, scoring objectives or not, his efforts on the ice has garnered a lot consideration throughout the Avalanche group. On Nov. 6, Tynan earned his first call-up of the season to the NHL and skated for the Avs the next night time towards Nashville, his first NHL sport motion since March 7, 2017. It’s a chance he might not have had elsewhere if it weren’t for the Avalanche group, of which Tynan had nothing however nice issues to say about.
“It’s been nice. It’s a fantastic spot, nice folks, nice coaches, nice workers, nice teammates,” mentioned Tynan of enjoying in Colorado. “Nothing however nice issues to say about coaching camp with the Avalanche and being right here, everybody’s been first-class so it’s been superior. It’s been a number of enjoyable.”
Tynan would in all probability agree that he might have somewhat extra enjoyable if he scored just a few extra objectives. As the good legend Wayne Gretzky mentioned, “You miss 100 p.c of the photographs you don’t take.” Tynan is aware of that, and he’s actually been engaged on it.
