JeremyCuddles

Way too soon to say Hughes is a top 3 pick in this draft. Dahlin and Svechnikov as it stands now are for sure ahead of Hughes. Then the next crop all have a very good chance to be the number 3 guy. Zadina looks like he has pretty elite talent, Detroit had two really big steals at their spots imo, Bouchard, Boqvist, and Dobson all have amazing potential. It's way too early for me to have Hughes in the top 3 group of this draft.

We need this.

I like the sound of it already.

On a serious note, any idea if Woo throws knucks? I hear he is physical, but never really hear anything about fighting. Not that it matters since fighting is becoming more and more rare. Still would be pretty sweet to see Woo beating the snot outta people.

Getting fighting tips from Jett Li might not be the best route to go, we don't want Jett Woo killing anyone. Jett Woo is like 200 pounds, that's a lot of potential power there.

So it would seem.

It just seems like you are separating things from being IQ just for the sake of arguing. So with that in mind I will apologize and carry on. Just finished getting in trouble for not "classifying" a winger as a center with some other kid. Sorry good sir. I need to learn to forum the right way.

Why is IQ only limited to reading a play, and wouldn't being positioned properly be done via reading the play?

So, IQ then?

Good point. He won't necessarily need to sign before the end of the year but I imagine he likely will to burn through his ELC quicker.

Not really what?

I know, I worry about things. But you have to admit as we near the end of the rebuild sometimes people get trigger happy. Owner did tweet some interesting things. Stuff like that feed in my paranoia. Just thinking out loud so to speak with some of these things. Offseason is so long I can't help but think of every little thing.

Yeah, it's a hard read with Aquaman. Especially with the "look how fast Colorado and New Jersey did their rebuild with a couple trades" tweet. And yeah I was also thinking about the College route and how much work out time they get. But at 170 (if that is accurate to his weight) he doesn't have that much weight he needs to add. The Sedins were 180-190 at 6'2/6'3. So he could very easily bulk up in Utica while also getting an understanding of a NHL type schedule/grind etc. We have a good many options with Hughes. I trust in Benning and Linden to do what's best, if they are given the room to do what's best. This is the part of the rebuild where it doesn't feel so bad. Before we had no real light at the end of the tunnel. Now we do and we are starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel.

That gets thrown around a lot. It was said by some of the folks in our system as well in regards to Virtanen not getting a ton of time. Cause he had to learn "the right way to play". I think Green said that about him during their AHL stint together. I think it's just a hockey IQ thing. Maybe? No one wants to call out their guys IQ so they use different terminology to make it sound better. I dunno.

The last tweet has me kinda worried, likely unnecessarily. In my head I trust Benning and Linden to do what's right and let the kids stew, but then my heart is like "But Aquaman might force their hand". Benning's extension was what, two years? I really hope he doesn't feel pressured into forcing these kids into situations they aren't ready for. I don't want Hughes in the lineup next year unless he is absolutely ready, same with Pettersson and Juolevi and every other prospect. I know it was just a shot in the dark, stars align kind of question in regards to Hughes being ready next year but still. No need to rush anyone. We got a real stud here with Hughes. Lets stick to the plan. Him going pro and going to Utica sounds really nice though. We can handle his development much better with him in Utica. College wouldn't be terrible either. Just nicer to be able to be more hands on with his development with him in Utica. Only downside is that starts the timer on his ELC. College for a year, then potentially NHL/AHL next year?

If WD really was the problem why did Tryamkin leave even though WD was fired before Tryamkin left? Probably cause he left for family reasons, exactly like was stated when he left. He took a paycut to play for his hometown, almost as if that family reason was legit, huh? People have a huge hate boner for Willie which is largely unfair. Not his fault our team was/is garbage.

Lowering opponent touches also comes from playing with better linemates and improving our d-core significantly. I think his takeaways are a good sign too. He is so dominant and quick that he gets the puck back at a pretty high rate. The other team can't afford to take liberties with the puck. Jake forces them to move the puck quicker than they'd like because of his speed and the likeliness of him laying the body on you (which despite popular belief Jake does NOT shy away from hitting people). There are more ways of dominating the puck than being a Sedin and holding the puck for a minute in the half boards. He forces the offensive team to make bad plays with the puck with his presence alone.

This is a rather interesting post. McDavid came into the league immediately. So playing in a lesser league prior to being drafted is a pretty moot point. McDavid was on pace to break 82+ points his first year. Followed that up with a 100 point season. And improved upon that with 108 points this season on a bum team. Probably not the best idea to compare EP to McJesus. But who knows, sky is the limit for Pettersson.

he should be in Utica next year scoring 150+ points easy. Otherwise he isn't a bonafide superstar - said some guy on CDC

Nothing wrong with being in Utica. Ripping up the SHL is impressive, and yeah he kept that rolling into the playoffs. But watching these NHL playoffs. Not many 170 pound players are dominating. He has immense skill, fantastic hands, good skating. But he's 19/20. I don't personally believe he needs Utica, but if he does that's fine. There 10-20 pounds of reasons why it would benefit him from being in Utica. That and the physicality of the NHL/AHL is different than that of the SHL. The rink is different. Could be numerous reasons why AHL might be best for him. I still think he'll be in Vancouver all year next year. Still doesn't hurt to have AHL as a possible destination for him.

Never said he was a 4th line player, but presume my meaning some more. I am one of the biggest Baer defenders around here but I don't let that cloud my judgement of him. Being an elite 3rd liner that can contribute in the top 6 is not a slight on his skill. There are plenty of players that can give you 40+ points and would generally be considered 3rd liners. Can he play in the top 6? Sure, lots of people can. Maroon did. Wouldn't consider him a solidified top 6 player. Baer is a tweener, anyone that says otherwise is deluded. If he is a solidified top 6 player why is everyone here saying he isn't worth more than 3mil? What solidified top 6, 25 year old winger makes less than 3 mil that isn't on a ELC or a bridge deal? The only legit top 6 players we have right now are Bo and Boeser. I believe Baer can be that kind of player. But as of right now he hasn't proven it over a full season. Not saying he can't or won't ever be that guy. But he isn't right now. He has been scratched more than a few times now, in multiple seasons by 2 different coaches. He plays a hair over 15 minutes. Which is pretty low for a top 6 winger, no? He is barely a 40 point guy, that's by per game numbers too he's never actually had a 40 point or 20 goal season. Next year is the biggest year of his career. He's gotta put it all together and maintain it all the way through a year. Until then, he's a good 3rd liner that can slide into your top 6 with the right linemates. Which he was lucky enough to play with our two best young stars mostly.

Was a healthy scratch this season. Soldified top 6ers don’t get scratched. Lol.

Baer hasn't been able to solidify himself as a top 6 guy. A decent middle 6 guy. Preferably a 3rd liner that can play top 6 with elite level talent. With the Sedins gone this does open up a lot of possibilities for guys like Baer and Eriksson though. Neither of them are Sedin beneficiaries so with them gone that's open opportunities on the PP and 5 on 5. Eriksson thrives 5 on 5 it seems. He didn't score a ton on the PP in Boston. In his time here he spent the bulk of his time in the bottom 6 with our lesser centers. When the Sedin experiment didn't work. So it makes sense that his scoring had dried up here. The more I think of it the more I think you might be onto something with Eriksson and Bo together.

Jake gets a good amount of shots ON net, problem isn't hitting the net. It's shooting past the goalie. I also think he needs to position himself better. The best scorers aren't just great shooters, they know where to be. Brock was always in the perfect position for rebounds or one timers. Something tells me Jake isn't 100% confident in himself yet either. There are times he throws the puck at the net with no purpose. Right into the crest. Doesn't want to miss the net or hold the puck for long. Said he'll be working on his hands this offseason. Which sounds good to me if that includes his aforementioned shot. Imagine a guy with Jake's shot power, speed and frame but can actually control the puck AND pick his spot on the net. That's deadly. He won't instantly become a 60 point player or something but he could potentially be a really deadly middle 6 player. 10 goals with no PP time, 12 minutes icetime per game and primarily dzone starts is not too shabby for a guy with an "inaccurate" shot. If Bo had Jake's PP deployment he'd have 12 goals in 64 games for instance. Take that for what you will.

To be fair pretty much anyone paired with Bo could probably vastly over perform. Kenins anyone? Who did Eriksson play with primarily in Boston? Bergeron or Krejci? His zone deployment was 50/50 pretty much in Boston, I assume he had a bit of a defensive role there as well. Maybe a Eriksson - Bo - Boeser line could do some real damage and reinvigorate Eriksson's offence. For whatever reason he didn't click with the Sedins but maybe Bo's two way, powerforward style could open up the ice for Eriksson. Clearly at the NHL level he thrives with two way centers. Probably too soon to throw Gaudette's name in the ring to bring up Eriksson's offense.