DrChill Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 From the province. Interesting quotes by Tambie The Canucks may be faced with an interesting decision when the No. 6 pick comes up at the NHL Entry Draft later this month in Philly and its their turn to select a player. The NHL club has taken big players with their first-round pick in the last three drafts and gritty Canadians with their last two, but based on the current form chart they are likely to be in a position where William Nylander is available to them. Nylander, the son of former NHL player Michael Nylander, may be the most intriguing prospect at the top end of this years draft. He isnt big hes 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds and his defensive game is very much a work in progress, but his high-speed, high-skill game is compelling enough that he might go higher than the 10th overall neighbourhood where most have him penciled in. Would the Canucks pass on the size and nastiness of huge winger Nick Ritchey or the speed and physical maturity of Abbotsford centre Jake Virtanen to take the dynamic Swedish forward who can play centre or wing? It would be a gamble, but some believe Nylander has the biggest upside of any player in the draft. Hes got the potential to be a guy who scores 100 points in the NHL, said former Canuck Jeff Tambellini, who played part of last season with Nylander on Modo in Ornskoldsvik. Hes got that swagger. He wants to be the guy. Not a lot of players have that. There have been rumblings that Nylander, 18, may have attitude problems, but confidence in young players can sometimes come across as cockiness. Former Canucks captain Markus Naslund, who stepped down as Modos GM following the season, said the team had no problems with Nylander. Great talent, said Naslund on Wednesday in a text message. The best 1996-born player in Sweden talent-wise. Grew a lot (both physically and mentally) during the last year. Has the potential to be an NHL star. Tambellini, who played part of the 2011-12 season with Michael Nylander in Zurich of the Swiss League, said the son has more top-end tools than his father, who scored 679 points in 920 NHL games. The skating isnt close, said Tambellini. Michaels a bit of a choppy skater, but William can just fly. Hes also got a much better shot, a great one-timer and snapshot. He holds the puck like Mike and both come out of their turns with speed. Nylander, who was born in Calgary when his father played for the Flames and grew up mostly in the U.S. as Michaels career took him to the next NHL stop. Central Scoutings second-ranked European skater behind Finlands Kasperi Kapanen, Nylander led the recent Under-18 world championship in scoring with six goals and 16 points in seven games, five points clear of the next player in a competition of his peers. Tambellini, who roomed with young Nylander last season in Modo, said the teenager doesnt shy away from physical play. Hes got a lot of jam, hes not afraid, said Tambellini. Hes used to being targeted because of who his dad is. He competes.bv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheAntar Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 I want him now that I read this article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warhippy Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 He will be roughly 6 foot 195-200 pounds when he's done growing He will do fine. RH Center or RW player. Kinda have a need for those and as I have said many times before (I am not sold on him entirely) we NEED RW talent in our org. We don't have any of his potential so why not just do it. If we don't get Reinhart Nylander is not a bad grab at 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharnhayre Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 Attitude can be fixed with being around great leaders like the Sedins and Bieksa. Linden would also be of a great influence in Nylanders professionalism if this is a concern for him. I like that he plays with confidence and thats quite the praises coming from other NHLers. You can't ignore the fact that he led the U-18's in scoring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bissurnette Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 Between him and Ehlers I'd definitely go with Nylander. But if we do end up retaining our 6th I'd be happy with any pick we make between Virtanen Nylander and Fleury. Ritchie I'd feel meh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdatb Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 I'm praying we don't trade our 6th to move up and stay put and snag Nylander. I see first line written all over him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langdon Algur Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 You have to think Linden is talking to Naslund about this guy. What a great opportunity to get honest first hand knowledge from Linden's former teammate and Nylanders current GM. I personally find it really hard to judge Euro jrs playing in men's leagues as their stats are way off CHL players stats. If this kid is as good as some say he is go for it, I'd way rather take skill over size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riley57 Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 That is good news, for me. Naslund is a classy guy and for him to say he had no problems means atleast he keeps his attitude off the ice, and keeps his demeanor to his private life. Or has, anyway. I hope that he comes as they advertise, with an attitude but a positive one at that. We've got another guy with attitude, Kesler. I would love Virtanen or anyone from the top 5, but if none fall I'm not sure if I'd pick Virtanen 6th anymore. Still undecided, but positive news at that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeltaSwede Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 wasn't sold on him before the combine but that changed my mind a little bit as well as this article. I think he is a bit of a risky pick because he HAS to be a top 6 player in the NHL but with the way our team looks right now, how our prospect pool looks, I think the Canucks will have spots open in the top 6 soon. If he works out this summer he could be on the team straight away either on Keslers wing or playing with and being mentored by the Sedins. Would bring that line back to life I think in the best case scenario. If none of the top 5 drop he is my pick at 6, now that Virtanen has gone through the shoulder surgery (still hope we get the 10th pick and get him as well) You have to think Linden is talking to Naslund about this guy. What a great opportunity to get honest first hand knowledge from Linden's former teammate and Nylanders current GM. I personally find it really hard to judge Euro jrs playing in men's leagues as their stats are way off CHL players stats. If this kid is as good as some say he is go for it, I'd way rather take skill over size. Naslund is not the GM of MoDo anymore that would be Per Svartvadet former Atlanta Thrasher player I think, but he never really made a name for himself in the NHL. I reckon if Nylander played in the CHL this past season he would have 90-110 points depending on teammates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
70seven Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 I like this kid at 6. Assuming Draisaitl is gone I might just pass on Dal Colle in favor of Nylander as well... only cause of his hatred for the Canucks.... Just not the kind of attitude Id want on the team. Nylander also impressed at the combine with his physical tests as well as his almost arrogant seeming confidence... sometimes people confuse arrogance when someone believes in themselves so much. this isnt a weakness. id much rather have that than a player who loses his confidence with every error. this is something the rest of the league used to hate about our team... and an image Benning would like this group to re-gain. i still have a feeling that a trade is coming, but Id take Nylander @ 6. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tangelos Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 I'm starting to like him more and more. Let's hope we don't go down the truculence path Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langdon Algur Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 Naslund is not the GM of MoDo anymore that would be Per Svartvadet former Ducks player I think but he never really made a name for himself in the NHL but anyways, I reckon if Nylander played in the CHL this past season he would have 90-110 points depending on teammates.Right I meant his former GM. On that note, anyone think or hope Linden will hire Naslund as a European Scout to help Gradin out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 Hoping we can snag NYI 5th as well and get Nylander + one of Draisaitl, MDC or Virtanen as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lockhart Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 If we pick at 6 I'd take Ritchie, you can't teach size and nastiness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derp... Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 He's in the mix for sure. Having Naslund and JT say good things is encouraging. Not often we get first hand knowledge from a player who played with him and his GM, who are former Canucks. I personally feel that he won't be there at 6 though. He's got the skill to be top 5 if someone wants to put there money on him. I like the swagger, he can back it up. If he wants to be the guy, then let him be the guy, don't pigeon hole him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awalk Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 The power of a newspaper article to sway the opinions of the masses Most intriguing about a player like that is that he has already been playing with men in a pro league, playing for a top team in MODO. Cannot overlook the fact that that simply puts him ahead in terms of development. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpt Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 The guy has a lot of skill but does he have the jam required to play on small ice. It will definitely take him some time to figure it out and he might not ever figure it out. Learning to use your skill on big ice with big room is very different than NHL size ice with 220+lbs defenders in front of you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canucksnihilist Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 it's high risk, high reward. we need to take the risk. I mean, we have no superstar in the making at all - no prospect of one right now... If you want a team full of 60/70 point players - that might get it done, sure. But you need a few top-end guys. We don't have that right now, and none of the prospects project to that (horvat is more of a Kesler-60/70 point player). put it another way: you can't just fill a team with Toews-like players, you need a Kane as well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Money Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 At 5'11" and 180 lbs, he's already the same size as: - Claude Giroux - Patrick Kane - Jordan Eberle - Ondrej Palat - Bryan Little - Erik Karlsson And he'll likely grow an inch or two and put on another 10-20 lbs in the next few years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theminister Posted June 5, 2014 Share Posted June 5, 2014 The guy has a lot of skill but does he have the jam required to play on small ice. It will definitely take him some time to figure it out and he might not ever figure it out. Learning to use your skill on big ice with big room is very different than NHL size ice with 220+lbs defenders in front of you. Whether he can play against increased physical play and harder checking is a valid question. The size of the ice surface should be less so. He grew up playing in NA. It was everything he knew before he moved to Sweden at age 14. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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