The primary goal each season for every Toledo Walleye team coached by Dan Watson has been to build chemistry and form a bond.
That initial goal has been lagging and lacking for the 2022-23 team and the on-ice product has suffered.
The Walleye, who reached the Kelly Cup Finals in two consecutive postseasons, are off to an uncharacteristically slow start.
Through 14 games, Toledo has posted a 5-8-1 record for a .393 winning percentage. The Walleye have lost six of their last seven games and sit in sixth place in the seven-team ECHL Central Division.
It's the second-slowest start in the organization's 13-year history.
“Goal No. 1 is to become a team as fast as we can and we're not there yet. Guys are still trying to figure each other out,” said Watson, who is in his sixth season. “We're trying to become a team and that's where the disconnect is right now and that's why we're having losses. Anytime there's a little adversity, we start to play as individuals, not as a team. Guys are still working through trusting each other, understanding, and knowing each other.”
Watson has led Toledo to playoff berths in each of the last five seasons.
“It's not happening as fast as it has in the past. Our No. 2 goal is to make playoffs and we're behind the eight ball right now in terms of our five-game segments. We need to get going here,” Watson said.
The coach said he has talked to his leadership group regarding the situation.
“That's something that has to come from within the room and they're working on it,” he said.
Team captain John Albert, who has five points in 14 games, said the players remain positive.
“The mood is good,” Albert said. “Everything's a learning curve and it’s a long season. We're 14 games in and the fans want us to be at a different point right now. But the guys are sticking together. We're still having good practices and still hollering out here. So I mean, that's good. We've just got to find a way to win these games.”
The Walleye are in the earliest stages of a 72-game schedule and last season the team started 9-5-0 before finding its stride.
“I'm not frustrated,” Watson said. “I don't know why a lot is being put on our record right now. We can turn this around quickly. There's no panic. We continue to go about our business to try to get this team closer together. We're trying to get guys playing up to their potential and past their potential. And that comes with workouts on the ice. That's what we're doing. It's a dogfight right now [in the division] and that's what we're looking at. We want to make playoffs.”
Toledo plays three games this weekend. The Walleye go to first-place Cincinnati on Friday before hosting the Cyclones on Saturday. The Walleye then travel to Wheeling for a Sunday afternoon game.
The Walleye, who have traditionally been a high-scoring group under Watson, have scored just 2.64 goals per game. That ranks 26th out of 28 teams in the ECHL. The defense has given up 3.14 goals per game, which ranks 13th in the league.
Rookie goaltender Sebastian Cossa (4-6-1) has started in 11 of 14 games. The former first-round draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings has a 2.98 goals-against average and a .898 save percentage.
“Obviously our record is not looking the best but we're getting together as a team now and I think just every day we're getting better,” the 20-year-old said. “There's time to turn that record around.”
The Walleye finally earned their first win at home, doubling up rival Fort Wayne 6-3 last Friday.
“That will certainly help,” Watson said.
The team is now 1-4-1 at home and 4-4-0 on the road.
“The fans have every right to be upset,” Albert said. “But a lot of these games that we're not winning right now, they're one-goal games. We're shooting ourselves in the foot. It's hard to win in this league. We've got to learn from our mistakes.”
The team ranks 21st in shots on goal per game (29.57) and is fifth in shots given up against per game (28.6).
“We have to be more consistent at times,” Albert said. “You have to play a full 60-minute game. It's just little things that are easily changeable. You've just got to build game by game and break it down period shift by shift. It's more coming together as a group, learning the tendencies that we have as a group.”
Watson said he does not believe it's a work-ethic problem.
“They're not working smart. They're not sticking to the structure and staying within the systems,” he said.
Toledo has scored on 11 of 64 power-play chances. Their 17.2 percent conversion rate ranks 21st in the ECHL. The Walleye have given up 10 power-play goals on 51 chances (80.4 percent kill percentage — 13th best in the league).
Watson said the team's power play has been surging. He said the penalty kill has been good for stretches and then breaks down at inopportune times.
“It's an honor to be on special teams,” he said. “Our guys have to start to feel that.”
The team has scored first in half of its games but the Walleye are just 2-5-0 when scoring the initial goal.
“We have to pride ourselves on being committed to sticking to the plan for that entire 60 minutes and not going off script,” Watson said.
The return of high-scoring forward Brandon Hawkins from a call-up to the American Hockey League should provide a boost. Forward Joseph Nardi, who already had nine assists in 11 games, notched his first pro goal in Friday night's win.
The team also has scored 13 goals in its last four games (3.25 per game). Watson said he is seeing up-tempo practices with good pace. He said the focus has been on working on team aspects.
Watson said the problem is largely mental and that there's a process to overcome it.
“But the biggest part is what happens inside the locker room and then how it translates on the ice,” he said. “I think there's a trust issue right now.”
The Walleye have 12 players back from last year's team that won the Brabham Cup (best regular-season record) and reached the Finals. But several key players moved on including defensemen Randy Gazzola (playing in Italy) and Butrus Ghafari (retired), along with forwards Matt Berry (now with Cincinnati) and Josh Dickinson (Sweden).
The status of last year's captain T.J. Hensick — who has contemplated retirement and is not currently playing — also remains uncertain.
Watson made a trade on Wednesday, acquiring forward Kameron Kielly from the Atlanta Gladiators in exchange for future considerations. Kielly has produced nine points in 15 games for the Gladiators.
In 2010-11, the Walleye started 4-8-2 (10 points) and in 2013-14 they were 5-7-2 (12 points). Neither of those teams made the playoffs. But the 18-game quarter pole in the ECHL is generally considered the initial point in a season to genuinely gauge how a team is performing.
“There's no time to mope around and feel sorry for ourselves. We have to work out of it ourselves,” Watson said. “It's making sure guys are working together, staying connected, and not trying to be so individual.”
Toledo plays 15 games in December, including 12 against Central Division foes. Watson said it is setting up to be a significant month.
“It starts with winning within our division. That's been a staple of our success over the past seven years,” he said. “So we have to start doing that. We have to step up to the plate here and beat teams in our division.”
Another key aspect of the sluggish start is the lack of consistent production from the team's offensive stars.
“We need the big guys to be the big guys. I don't want to name names. I don't think that's fair,” Watson said. “But we're not playing to our expectations and standards. And they know that as well. They're frustrated a little bit at times because we're not playing up the way they want to play.”
First Published December 1, 2022, 10:40 p.m.
