hockeydude474 Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Thoughts? In this post I argue that Linden Vey has the skill set and potential to possibly be as good as Kyle Wellwood (at best). They both play a similar perimeter game, are small, skilled, easily pushed off the puck, a bit lazy out there, try to deke players too often and fail etc. I think with enough time Vey has the talent and potential to be as good as Kyle Wellwood at (Linden's) absolute best. Key Similarities 1. Similar playing style "small skilled forward" 2. Similar size 3. Sometimes tries to do too much 4. inconsistency 5. Questionable work ethic and very little indication of improvement over time. 6. Long stretches of being invisible on the ice. 7. With strong junior numbers both players had a lot of hype and modest but not great NHL success (i.e Wellwood scoring multi 100 point seasons in the OHL and Linden putting up near a PPG in the AHL) Linden has only played one season so the jury's still out on this one but I think in his best years he will probably put up 35-50 points just like Wellwood 8. Plays on the perimeter 9. "Playmakers" i.e a more assists than goals type point distribution 10. Good hands and general hockey instinct. 11. Some degree of good shooting ability (but Wellwood was deadlier) 12. Both play centre Key Differences 1. Wellwood had more natural elite ability 2. Wellwood was better at face offs 3. Linden is billed as being a two way player but is bad in the defensive zone. Wellwood was pretty decent defensively and was used on the PK. Could be labelled as two way in this sense 4. Wellwood had a good natural shooting ability 5. Wellwood had more offensively impressive junior seasons. 6. Wellwood did not take penalties 7. Wellwood was a little stronger and was willing to go into the dirty areas at time. Sometimes showed the will to battle and rough it up. Vey stays away from danger all together. My argument has a bit of teleology to it. Wellwood posses an enhanced version of all of Lindens abilities and thus makes a good comparison project of what Linden could be at his best if he worked on his game (face offs, stick skills, shooting). There are some major differences though which could limit Linden from ever reaching Wellwood's level and could definitely fuel an argument that they are different players. Wellwood was touted as having elite offensive ability. Moreover Wellwood basically never took penalties and was dynamite in the face off circle. For an outside comparative analysis: Kyle Wellwood Scouting Report On Kyle Wellwood From Hockey's Future (2002) Kyle Wellwood is that special kind of hockey player who can make fans gasp in amazement and opponents gape dumbfounded at his innate offensive abilities. When you go to a game in Windsor, the question many people ask is not ‘if’ Wellwood will score, but ‘how many times’ will he score. Top OHL defenseman and fellow Leafs’ prospect Brendan Bell describes Wellwood’s unique abilities in a similarly glowing fashion. ‘The main things that make him so dangerous offensively are his vision and creativity. He can see plays before they develop and he is not afraid to do things other players wouldn’t think to try. His offensive skills and play-making ability make him a threat every time he’s on the ice‘ His Gretzky-like vision and twine-splitting wrist shot should make him a lock to make the NHL Linden Vey Scouting Report on Linden Vey From TSN (2015) Displays tremendous hockey sense. Has proven himself as a great point producer at lower levels. Is also a solid player without the puck. Doesn't have a lot of size (6-0, 183 pounds) to speak of, so he must prove capable of producing good totals at the highest level (and over time). Projects to be a "Solid playmaker with some upside." Scouting Report on Linden Vey From Hockey Prospectus Vey is a pretty solid all-around forward. He is a very smart hockey player with the offensive instincts to create. Vey sees the ice at a high level, and he can be pretty dangerous from the perimeter. He has quick hands and feet and can be tough to check. Vey has really improved his defensive play, and he shows pro-average ability in that department. He can play center or wing as well. - important notes, both he and Wellwood were perimeter as noted earlier. Conclusions The key point here is that, even with Wellwood's great skill set he managed to only go on and have a statistically modest career. Up to this point a lot of what Linden has done has been a bit of a shadow of Wellwood only not as good. I think it's a fairly down to earth comparison to say that, to reach Wellwood's degree of point production and general talent level, is a safe and realistic level for Linden Vey's overall ceiling and career potential. Expect Linden to play on several different teams, be waived and claimed from time to time, and to put up 42-47 points in his absolute best years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
73 Percent Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I dont the he has enough talent to be considered a wellwood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oregon.Duck Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I dont the he has enough talent to be considered a wellwood This is actually true. We usually see Wellwood as a lazy player, however he had a crazy amount of talent. This is often true with a lot of players in the minors that have a significant amount of talent, but the work ethic is simply not there. With Vey, I haven't heard enough to question the work ethic, however from observations, it seems as though the skill level is not high enough for him to quite stick as a second liner. Will that change, maybe, but as of now he seems to project as someone that'll top out as a third/fourth liner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herberts Vasiljevs Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 It's cute how often posters on CDC proceed to make lazy comparisons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jock Cousteau Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 It's cute how often posters on CDC proceed to make lazy comparisons. Wellwoodion syndrome is common on CDC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuktravella Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I dont the he has enough talent to be considered a wellwood true at least wellwood put up points veys useless what a waste of a second rounder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCammer Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Wellwood, easy to take off the puck? Hardly. He was very good at digging the puck off the wall in both the offensive and defensive zones. Lazy and motivation , definitely questionable. Wellwood and Vey are not similar players at all. Is Vey struggling? Yes. He's a rookie and prone to rookie errors. He shows glimpses of good play in the offensive and neutral zone. His defensive coverage lacks at this point. Is he Wellwood? I think not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
73 Percent Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Man when wellwood played in the O. That kid had some slick mits. Best hands ive ever seen at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thejazz97 Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 You should think about this Vey more before posting Just kidding. interesting comparison though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmm Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 where's Wellwood? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herberts Vasiljevs Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I'd say that Vey is like a more accomplished Zack Phillips. Yes, Phillips is virtually a bust, but I'm talking stylistic comparisons. Otherwise, Vey is somewhat unique and hard to find a comparison for. I guess I see some Vincent Trochek in his game, and some qualities that Damien Brunner possesses. (especially skating style) If Vey were to really take off and hit his ceiling, Derek Stepan wouldn't be an unfair comparison. edit: spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87Crosby Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 where's Wellwood? Retired in 2013, because his heart wasn't in the sport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaner Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 C'mon. Have a positive post for once. You have to remember that Vey is a ROOKIE for Christ Sakes. Vey to me is an excellent player for a rookie. Sometimes he makes mistakes, and does things wrong, screws up breakouts, but you shouldn't be mad, if anything, you should be happy that he is learning from his mistakes. If you feel the need to bash someone, why don't you bash one of our veterans playing top 6 minutes on the second line! For example, Bonino has been playing like a Pewee A4 bench warmer. I haven't noticed the guy in the past 4 games at least. Eveyone talks about how we need to get younger and do a 'retool' but when try actually step on the ice, we talk S**T about them. Hockry players are real people, so unless ou can do a better job, ZIP IT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baer. Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 true at least wellwood put up points veys useless what a waste of a second rounder Wellwood's PPG with Canucks: .35 Vey's PPG this season: .35 Sorry, you were saying? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
73 Percent Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 C'mon. Have a positive post for once. You have to remember that Vey is a ROOKIE for Christ Sakes. Vey to me is an excellent player for a rookie. Sometimes he makes mistakes, and does things wrong, screws up breakouts, but you shouldn't be mad, if anything, you should be happy that he is learning from his mistakes. If you feel the need to bash someone, why don't you bash one of our veterans playing top 6 minutes on the second line! For example, Bonino has been playing like a Pewee A4 bench warmer. I haven't noticed the guy in the past 4 games at least. Eveyone talks about how we need to get younger and do a 'retool' but when try actually step on the ice, we talk S**T about them. Hockry players are real people, so unless ou can do a better job, ZIP IT.my favorite part is when you belittle bonino, then go on to criticize other fans for doing it. Good talk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baer. Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Wellwood was also 3 years older when he posted those numbers. Not only is Vey NOT like Wellwood, but he's actually better. He wants to play. That alone makes him better than Wellwood. Garbage thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odd. Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 first year as an nhl pro and we are already writing him off? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeeBee51 Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Linden Vey is the next Linden Vey. How about that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaner Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 my favorite part is when you belittle bonino, then go on to criticize other fans for doing it. Good talk What? I don't think you get my post. I mean that if you are going to bash on someone, bash on one of our veterans, not on our rookies who have next to zero NHL experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elvis15 Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 ...Vey is a ROOKIE... Wellwood's PPG with Canucks: .35 Vey's PPG this season: .35 Sorry, you were saying? first year as an nhl pro and we are already writing him off? /thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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