The Mavericks were sent reeling by the Idaho Steelheads this past week losing three straight games including being shut out on Friday. The Mavericks were outscored 11-3 by the Steelheads. The Mavericks have now dropped to fifth in the Mountain Division. The hot start to the season is starting to cool off and the Mavericks need to find away to reignite the fire. This team is capable of it but they are going to need to fully commit and have to work hard. Luckily Mark Cooper returned to the lineup on Friday after missing several weeks with an upper-body injury. Having him back will do a lot of good when it comes to getting this team’s confidence back. Let’s dissect last week’s games and see what we can learn.

Game 1: Wednesday, December 12.

The first period was rough, the Mavericks went down by 1 late in the first period and never regained the momentum. The only goal for the Mavericks came in the second period, scored by Joey Sides. But shortly after Sides’ goal, Idaho scored again. The Mavericks ended up losing 5-1.

What did the Mavericks do right in this game? Not much. They did have several high-quality scoring chances, but Idaho’s goaltender was able to grab them. Most of these chances happened because the Mavs’ offensive positioning was better than we’ve seen for a while. They were running good screens on the goaltender, had players in the slot, and were there to try for rebounds.

But there was quite a bit the Mavericks could have done better in this game. The most egregious thing to me was, for as good as their offensive positioning was, their defensive positioning was abysmal. In the second period alone, I counted at least 4 chances where an Idaho player was able to get the puck on net with no one defending against him. The front of the Mavericks’ net was wide open for the entire game, leaving goaltender Nick Schneider out to dry. Unfortunately, the defensive shortfalls cost even more because of the Mavericks’ inability to keep the puck out of the defensive zone. I wouldn’t be surprised if Idaho spent more than half of the game in possession of the puck. It was really brutal to watch. And when the Mavericks did manage to have the puck, the passing was subpar at best. A lot of the passes ended up in their skates, that’s if the pass wasn’t picked off first. The fact of the matter is, if you’re not going to get the puck to the net you need to defend better, and the Mavericks did neither on Wednesday.

Game 2: Friday, December 14.

Game 2 was the worst of the 3-game set. After playing in just 1 game, Nick Schneider was recalled to Stockton after the Flames called up John Gillies. The Mavericks did get Mark Cooper back but you wouldn’t have known it based on the way they played. The Mavericks were shut out with the final score being 3-0. 2 of the 3 goals came from Reid Petryk of the Steelheads. The Mavericks did not keep pressure on Petryk throughout the entire set of games and he really made them pay for that in this game.

Frankly, the Mavericks didn’t even show up for this game. They spent a total of 19 minutes in the penalty box, taking 4 penalties in the second period alone. They also only managed to put 21 shots on goal with 12 of them coming in the third period. That’s right, the Mavericks only had 4 shots in the first period and 5 shots in the second. I wasn’t able to watch this game like I was on Wednesday, but it sounds like it was a minor miracle they only allowed 3 goals. In terms of what they need to improve from this game, I might just present the whole game as “How You Shouldn’t Play Hockey”. The only bright spot was Ben Halford who made 26 saves on 29 shots, Halford continues to impress and doesn’t get rattled. Without him, this game would have been way more lopsided.

Game 3: Saturday, December 15.

This game was a complete 180 from the night before. This was by far the Mavericks’ best game of the set and was the closest they came to winning. The Mavs fell 3-2 but were in it for the entire 60 minutes. It didn’t start out great as the Mavericks allowed 2 quick goals, and then had one of their goals disallowed because video review (the league is testing video review in Idaho) showed the Mavericks kicking the puck in. But the Mavericks scored two quick goals at the end of the first period to tie the game up, scored by Greg Betzold and Joey Sides. The Mavericks would allow Idaho a third goal in the second period scored by Reid Petryk, but that would be it. Unfortunately, the Mavericks couldn’t score another, even when presented with a multitude of power play chances including a 5-on-3, a major, and two double minors.

The Mavericks fought hard in this game and clearly showed a drive to win in this game. The Mavs ended up outshooting the Steelheads 32-to-24. The boys can look back at this game as a good game that didn’t turn out how they wanted. However, the Game Winning Goal was Reid Petryk’s 4thgoal in this 3-game series against the Mavericks. The Mavericks for some reason did not keep him covered throughout this series. If a player seems to have your number, make sure he can’t dial it. Defensive positioning was ultimately one of the biggest downfalls for the Mavericks in this set of games.

Where Do the Mavericks Go from Here?

First off, the Mavericks need to be better at communicating with each other. The intercepted passes and passes that end up in skate blades come in part from not being aware of each other and ready to receive the pass. The passing we saw from the Mavs at the beginning of this season was some of the best I have ever seen from a Mavericks team, so I know these guys are capable of it.

Secondly, the Mavericks have to get better at defending the net and clearing the zone. The fact that a single player was able to score 4 goals against is unacceptable. Coverage in the D-Zone needs to be tightened up, revamped, and reinvigorated or the Mavericks will continue to see more losses. Ben Halford has been a fantastic goaltender for us and was really quite good in the two appearances he made in Idaho, but he can’t stop every puck if he’s having to face as many shots as he did.

Third, the discipline needs to be much better. Apart from the nearly whole period worth of penalties the Mavs took on Friday, on Saturday it seemed like whenever the Mavs would draw a power play, they’d end up taking a penalty of their own. The biggest example of this was when Idaho’s Steven McParland was assessed a 5-minute major penalty for interference, the Mavericks had a HUGE chance to tie up the game and even pull ahead of Idaho. But just a minute into the penalty, the Mavericks got called for slashing. This effectively negated the 5-minute major, although there was about a minute left the Mavericks couldn’t convert. Not only does taking badly timed penalties ruin good chances, it completely deflates any sort of momentum that could be built up by the Mavericks.

Finally, the Mavericks need to work on shot accuracy. They’ve been shooting a lot, but many times it either ends up going straight to the goaltender’s chest, or it goes wide. The Mavericks hit several posts in this series as well. Idaho’s goaltenders were certainly hot and hard to beat, but elite teams are able to beat hot goaltenders. If the Mavericks can start tightening up and being more accurate, they’ll start to see more goaltenders being beat.

What’s the good news?

After losing three in a row and dropping to below .500 on the road, things seem a bit bleak for the Mavericks. But, it’s always darkest before the dawn. The Mavericks got off to the best start in franchise history this season, and the team I watched start so well wasn’t a fluke. Their passing was crisp, they were setting up plays, they were staying physical without drawing penalties. And they were doing this against everyone, not just Allen. But that team hasn’t showed up the past couple weeks. If the Mavericks can get back to the composure they had earlier in the season, they can right the ship. The good thing is these struggles are coming relatively early in the season, instead of down the stretch when every game starts to matter. The playoff race this season will be a tough one, but this team has the tools it needs to make a run. It’s up to the players to make sure the tools are being utilized effectively.