We Need to Talk About the Warriors - Editorial
By @MJWarriorsFun (Twitter) @moosejawwarriors_history (Instagram) Opinion/Commentary
Head Coach Mark O’Leary - photo credit Twitter
Now it’s time for My Unsolicited Opinion on the 2022-23 Moose Jaw Warriors team.
This Moose Jaw Warriors team was predicted to be one of the tougher teams in the WHL and one of the greater teams in Warriors franchise history. The Province listed them as one of their Top Teams to Watch. The Athletic had them battling it out with Winnipeg for the East Division crown and the WHL had them ranked in the Top 10 in the country.
They’ve got two NHL first rounders in Denton Mateychuk and Brayden Yager, and a guy who went early in Round 2 (Jagger Firkus). They’ve also got a candidate for goalie of the year in Connor Ungar plus solid role players in Max Wanner, Atley Calvert, Cole Jordan, Eric Alarie and Lucas Brenton. They’ve even got some young players that could grow to be pretty special in Jackson Unger and Ben Riche.
Jagger Firkus is one of many top talents - photo credit Twitter
There is definitely lots of talent there and I can see how that might have led some people to think they’re a legit championship contender. But I will argue there isn’t nearly enough and I will argue that the team is missing an intangible attribute that even the greatest of coaches might be unable to teach. I predict that the predictors were all wrong.
The Warriors are lacking something that stronger teams have; the ability to play better when the stakes are higher. The Warriors fold under pressure. We have seen this bear out multiple times this season. They are also far too undisciplined and unfocused; most notably in the two loses to Red Deer. To go the distance Moose Jaw is probably going to have to beat them in a playoff series. I’m not confident.
We’ve heard plenty that they are struggling with consistency. You know who isn’t struggling with consistency? Red Deer, Winnipeg and Saskatoon. Genuine championship contenders.
After beating the Everett Silvertips Star scorer Jagger Firkus told James Gallo “there’s momentum going right now in the room, we’re playing good and I don’t see it stopping anytime soon.”
That sounds awesome. Except they came out and played their worst game of the season right after that. So much for all that momentum
“There was times when we pushed back and there was times when we let them give it to us” - Denton Mateychuk after losing badly to Tri-City.
Denton Mateychuk was drafted by Columbus in the first round of the NHL draft
The inconsistency is a huge problem that will need to be addressed if they want to contend. Not learning from past mistakes and adapting is a problem too. The first time they lost to Red Deer they blew a lead and drew 7 penalties. The second time they played them they did it again. The exact same thing. Red Deer is the best team in the league. I get it. But Moose Jaw was predicted to compete with them. They played the same game twice. Nobody can be surprised it didn’t work out differently the second time.
““If you’re not gonna stay disciplined and stay out of the box eventually it’s gonna catch up to you”assistant coach Scott King said after squandering a two goal lead to Red Deer.
It did. Now what?
They don’t score nearly enough goals either. They average only 3 goals a game. That definitely would have to change to turn things around. Outside of the top two lines they almost don’t score at all. Championship calibre clubs have offensive depth. Case in point, Red Deer. Red Deer has 7 players with 10 or more points. Moose Jaw has 4. Winnipeg has 9; and they’ve also got 4 guys with more points than Moose Jaw’s top scorer. The Warriors are definitely NOT an offensive juggernaut.
Defensively the Warriors are a little better. They’ve given up the 6th least goals in the league. That’s pretty good and they run much of their offence through their defence, so I’d argue that makes them even better. But the lack of discipline gets them into trouble other teams don’t get into. Moose Jaw has given up 46 goals. Red Deer has only given up 25, Saskatoon 31 and Winnipeg 39 and they’ve all played more games the the Warriors. The defence is great. But it’s not on the level with championship contenders.
Brayden Yager is bound to be an NHL star
Simply put, the Warriors are good team. A playoff team, even. But they aren’t a championship contender.
Enjoy the team for what they are. They’ve got some great players and a few potential superstars. They don’t score a ton of goals but they don’t give up a ton either so it levels things out. They’ll win more than they lose. They will beat weaker teams, but sometimes they’ll lose to them too. If they stay focussed and disciplined they can hang with the best teams in the league. They’ll even beat a few of them. But don’t be disappointed when their season ends early. They’ve got a long way to go before they can beat the best teams in a 7-game series. The 2022-23 Moose Jaw Warriors are NOT a championship team; and that’s fine, cheer for them anyway because they’re still pretty good, they’re still fun and they are the only team you’ve got.
Having said that, nothing would make me happier than eating my own words.
Go Warriors Go!
The views expressed in this Editorial are those of the author’s and as such may not reflect the views of MJ Independent.