Season unravelling for Chatham?

The Chatham Victory risk extending their play-off drought if current trends persist. Tipped to make their first pro play-off appearance before the season began the team got off to a hot start. However the team have gone 9-14-2 (.400) in the past 25 games. They are not out of the picture yet thanks to blips by conference competitors but they do find themselves in a 5-way dog-fight for what is realistically the one remaining spot in the post season party.

Both scoring and conceding appear to be the problem, a potent cocktail for failure. Not one player is currently hitting the golden makers of a point a game pace or even a point per 20 minutes and whilst the Penalty Kill is still going strong (82%, 5th) the Power Play has slipped to a dismal 15%, good for 18th in the league. Lines and tactics have been juggled but with no change in results.

The most striking change has been goaltending. The early season form of Jose Theordore has evaporated and he has averaged below .875 in his last 10 starts. Disappointingly Josh Harding has been equally as poor when relieving his colleague. With goaltending like this it is no wonder the team’s old problems have remerged.

Grand Master Supremo (GMS) has been known to make decisive moves in similar situations in the past and it remains to be seen if he will opt for stable turds or choppy chancers.