How much do the Penguins look at a tablet on the bench?
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Sidney Crosby isn’t quite sure when he first started using a tablet to watch video on the bench.
But the Pittsburgh Penguins’ captain knows which one of his teammates is to “blame” for starting the trend.
“’Tanger’,” a smirking Crosby said of his longtime friend and teammate, defenseman Kris Letang. “He might be the guy that you should ask about that.”
Sure enough, Letang doesn’t dodge the accusation.
He went so far as to suggest there isn’t a number on how many times he watches a tablet, or iPad to use a generalized term.
“I was always watching my games (on video) maybe once or twice after the game,” Letang said. “You learn so much by looking at different plays. At the moment, you thought you had no time. But you had more time than you thought.”
Tablets started appearing on NHL benches about a half-decade ago and were initially a tool for coaches, much like a dry-erase board. But eventually, players started looking at them too so they could review just about anything on the ice from individual shifts or the structure of a power-play opportunity.
In the eyes of at least one coach, players began looking at them too much.
Last month, Philadelphia Flyers coach John Tortorella outright banned his players from using tablets on the bench during games. And as Tortorella is wont to do, he explained his decision with some bluster.
“I don’t give a flying (expletive) how I’m perceived,” Tortorella said to Philadelphia media Jan. 13. “I really don’t.
“I’m kind of locked into what is best for the team, and I have to make those calls.”
One of his long-time colleagues, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, offered a more measured observation on the matter — free of airborne fertilizer — recently.
“When used appropriately, it can be a really productive piece of technology on the bench,” Sullivan said. “It helps us make adjustments on the fly. We have (assistant coaches) Ty Hennes and Mike Vellucci that monitor the iPads for us, looking at things while the game is going on in order for us to make adjustments if we need to. There are things of that nature. Our power-play guys sometimes want to see it when they come back to the bench or during a commercial break.
“If you’re not careful, you can get immersed in the iPad and not watching the game. I think you can learn as much from the game as you can from the iPad. It’s important that players stay immersed in the game so when they go over the boards, they understand what the challenges are when they go over. For example, in the second period (with the benches on the far end of the ice), if you have a defensive pair that’s been on the ice for an extended period of time, if you’re the forwards going over the boards and you’re fresh, you need to know that they’ve been on the ice so that you can get the puck deep and get them to change. If you have your nose buried in the iPad the whole time, you have no idea. That’s just a specific example of just understanding that you need to watch the game so you have awareness about what’s going on in situations when you’re going over the boards.
“But the iPads, the technology can be an effective tool when used the right way.”
In recent weeks, a number of the Penguins were asked about how often they use tablets during games.
Josh Archibald, right winger — “Never. … There’s certain situations. (Linemate Teddy Blueger) is a big guy that likes watching. If there’s something that comes up and he wants to show us and talk about it, that’s definitely something. But I’m never one that just gets off the ice and go look at the tablet. I can remember the shifts pretty well. … Definitely don’t go to the tablet pretty often.”
Teddy Blueger, center — “Depends. Sometimes, you look at it a couple of times a game. Sometimes, you don’t look at it all. It could be a helpful tool, but you don’t want to get carried away with it.”
Sidney Crosby, center — “It really depends. Some nights, not a lot. It’s probably better when you’re not looking at it a lot, to be honest with you. It just kind of depends on the game when you use it. … When it was first there, it was more for the coaches than the players. I think (Letang) got a hold at it, then after that, players started looking at it more.”
Brian Dumoulin, defenseman — “A few shifts. I wouldn’t say I’m the guy that uses it the most. Some guys on our team use it a lot. For me, I just try to look at little tidbits of what (the opponents) are doing, some of their schemes. And I see some of our breakouts.”
Mark Friedman, defenseman — “Probably every time there’s a mistake made. It’s something that I look at when I didn’t realize something or something that was messed up on my part. … I’m not too much into the iPad. Usually, mistakes are pretty obvious. So, you don’t really have to look at them. But when I get the chance, I’ll take a look.”
Danton Heinen, left winger — “Maybe once a game. Maybe not even. If you get a chance and you don’t know what you see or don’t know what (the opponent was) doing on a play, maybe I’ll look at it.”
P.O Joseph, defenseman — “Whenever I don’t like a play or like what I did or if I had another option, it’s nice to be able to just see it right away. … I’m trying to stay as focused on the game as much as possible. But whenever I know a situation that I can improve and learn quicker in a game to not do that mistake again, it’s very valuable to do so.”
Kris Letang, defenseman — “A lot. I’m probably the worst. I mean … a lot. There’s no number, it’s a lot. Maybe, not every shift but close. … What are my options on some plays? But it’s mostly how they come with pressure and what opens up on the ice when you play against those types of systems.”
Drew O’Connor, left winger — “Not much. Maybe once or twice when one of the coaches is showing me something. But I’m not looking too often during the game. Moreso, afterward (following the game). … If there’s a play where I was kind of unsure where there was something I could have done differently maybe, I’ll just take a look and see what’s there.”
Jeff Petry, defenseman — “There’s times where you utilize it. If you have a TV timeout and take a look at it and kind of talk through a play. I try not to watch it too much. We had a rule (during his time with the Montreal Canadiens under coach Martin St. Louis) that he only wanted us to watch during TV timeouts. So I’ve tried to keep to that just to stay locked into the game while it’s going on then when there is that little break, to kind of take a peek at some things.”
Marcus Pettersson, defenseman — “Not a lot. I use it sometimes to see tendencies the other teams have or something like that. But I tend to not use it too much. … I tend to kind of lock into the game. I could use it sometimes but I tend not to.”
Rickard Rakell, right winger — “Never. Maybe if someone else is looking at a situation, I’ll look in. It’s just never been anything for me. It’s in the past. If I know I should have made a play, I usually know right after it happens anyways. So why look at it? You’ll just get frustrated. … I’d just rather watch the game (live).”
Chad Ruhwedel, defenseman — “Not that often. If I need to see something how (the opponent) forechecked or how they did something, I maybe do it quickly but not that much at all. … (Associate coach Todd Reirden) is about taking a quick peek if we need to clarify something. But I try not to look at it too often.”
Bryan Rust, right winger — “Depends on the game. Depends on the situation. Sometimes, I’m looking at plays, looking at what the goalie does. Probably, three to five times a game.”
Jason Zucker, left winger — “Never. … There’s nothing you can do to change things. The only time I ever look at it is to see if a power-play situation … you have the ability to see that situation again, essentially. I try to stay away from it as much as I can realistically, even on the power play, you’re just not going to see much of it (again). You’re not going to see the same play over again. The odds of that happening are very slow. So there’s no reason to go look at it and dwell on what just happened. If it’s a systematic thing where you’re checking to see what they’re doing in a certain situation. I understand that a little bit. But typically, the coaches are going to tell you that rather than having to watch the iPad.”