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Jake Virtanen | #18 | RW


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1 hour ago, Hutton Wink said:

Despite only 7 minutes, tonight may have been the best game we've seen him play so far.  He actually took it up a notch from preseason; was effective and noticeable every time out there.

That's all Jake played? His speed was distracting for Edm, like maybe we should watch this guy?

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1 hour ago, 73 Percent said:

Fantastic. He was fast. He was strong. He was splitting the D.  He was good in his own end. 

 

He only has 7 mins. But made it seem like he was out there for 15.

i think he inevitably does get there in terms of minutes. would be curious to see what he would do with those increased minutes. 

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50 minutes ago, 73 Percent said:

If he keeps that play up he'll be there in less than 10 games.

That break up the middle of the ice in the 1st was big! He showed it during the pre-season and again last night. He took a shot in the 2nd where he had a open man on the left side but it is fast out there. The fact he played for Green last year is such a big deal for Virtanen. I am not worried about points for Jake. I want him to settle into regular NHL play with a decided defensive structure but using his breakway speed to make opposing teams think twice on how to deal with him.  

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11 hours ago, Where's Wellwood said:

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My favourite part of the game last night, Jake pops into the camera with a huge sh*t eating grin on his face :lol:

 

You could really tell the Canucks were getting under the skin of the opposition last night. I think I've heard "we're gonna be hard to play against" repeated over and over, every new coach we get. Last night was the first time I finally saw some substance.

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He's also playing smarter in the offensive zone.  At one point he picked up the puck and went around the net.  In the past he would just blindly take a shot or throw it out front, but he put his head up and fired a pass cross-point to the open defenceman.  Clearly he is has regained his confidence and is maturing in all aspects of his game.

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Decent game by Jake last night.  His speed is so noticeable every time he's on the ice, when he learns how to take the momentum from the outside of the ice to the middle he's going to be a much better player (Green should make him study some Horvat video, he is hands down the best on the team at forcing his way to the net).  Also he seems to be getting himself into good positions to score goals more often than not, his issue last night seemed to be bobbling pucks on his stick and little mistakes like that.  Conditioning doesn't seem to be an issue this year, seeing a lot more hustle from him, especially at the end of a shift.

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On 2017-10-11 at 10:54 PM, -AJ- said:

Virtanen is playing the right way. He's not fretting about putting up points, he's just focusing on the little things. Points or not, that'll keep you in the NHL for a long time.

Jake is WAY more effective offensively from the left side.  

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I really like the way he's playing more engaged and keeping his feet moving. There have only been a couple of shifts where he was coasting. He did concede the middle of the ice a couple of times too when it was wide open and he could have made himself a target to receive a one-time pass.

 

As impressive as he has been with  breaking down defenses with his speed and drawing penalties, there is still a huge element to his game that will never get developed in the NHL and that is special teams play. He really does need to spend a portion of this season in Utica to get on the powerplay and maybe even penalty kill, the way Cull used him in the pre-season. 

 

There isn't enough practice time during an NHL season to coach special teams to a player that never does it and the only way to get the experience is in game situations. He is proving that he has learned the game during his time as a pro and he should be moving his way up the lineup. Being stuck in the bottom six in the final year of his waiver eligible status seems like a wasted opportunity for him to develop and round out his game.

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