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Everything posted by TOMapleLaughs
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A post closer to 10,000.
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My impression of him is that he's far too fast for Calgary and he constantly has to slow down and wait for his linemates. He's also been the most physically dominant player in any given game he's been in this season. Calgary's been using him in all situations, with many different linemates, but esp. in a shutdown role. He is able to tightly check any assignment because of his speed and size, and it's not just him plowing guys into the boards shift-to-shift, he has an active stick as well. He even takes some important defensive zone faceoffs and can win them. This is intriguing because that means his reported 'lack of defense' is pure mythology. It's just a guess, but I can see Jim Benning possibly being involved with this type of usage, if not Virtanen himself. To get Virtanen more focused on defensive assignments instead of trying to score as many goals as possible. This will only make him a better, more complete NHLer in the future. The only thing I see wrong with him is he is guilty of creating the odd turnover. Understandable due to his age and the fact that all young players do this now and then. imho This is correctable by increasing the speed of his linemates so he can create easier plays on the rush, and getting him trained on better team systems, and I don't think that will be available to him in Calgary next season.
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I disagree. I agree.
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Sorry, but in my hypothetical scenario it does. In that scenario, given Virtanen's play in the WJC and MDC's demotion from the same tourney, the hypothetical scouts for the top-5 picks in the draft get excited and forces him up the rankings. They also get excited for Larkin and Pastrnak, but not enough to put them into top-6 draft positions. You will find this totally useless and moot argument based on a hypothetical situation and outcome built to my own design is fool-proof. "Oh but this player will rise instead..." Nope, sorry. La-la-la-la-la.
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There seems to be a global perception that MDC's stock has fallen since the draft. Do I subscribe to it? Not entirely. However, that perception would indicate a potential rise in Virtanen's standings to where MDC is. As for the other players mentioned, I remain unimpressed in various aspects of all their games. I definitely do not subscribe to the idea that Virtanen was drafted early. I also don't believe that Fleury was picked too early. He suited Carolina's needs and that's what at the end of the day will help a team more down the road.
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Please... Continue...
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While it is not expected that Nylander and omg re-draft talk would cease in this thread, I think Nylander's skill has been overhyped for awhile and Virtanen's skill has been underrated due to him bringing more than just offense to the table. I think he'll bring more than Dustin Brown, skill and speed-wise, but imho this is comparable to Dustin Brown vs. Thomas Vanek of the 2003 draft. I'm taking Brown hands-down because he is one of those guys you absolutely hate to face while Vanek is... Vanek... Agreed that Baertschi is pretty much the guy regardless. Pretty sure I would not have traded a 2015 2nd for him, but I can understand why we did it. Baertschi was a skilled player being wasted in Calgary and there is potential for him to be top-6 in Vancouver right away. This helps Baertschi, and therefore the league as a whole, quite a bit. Nylander is a perfect fit in TO anyway. You can even hold an 'advanced stat' on hair-tosses per interview. Meanwhile, speaking of the 2003 draft, Canucks re-draft: Kesler? or Perry?
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I don't know what you guys see in those other guys, but Virtanen is still the concensus no-brainer guy at where we got him imho. Agreed about Ekblad being the trade target though. Benning well acknowledged the need for a stud defender. Come undone for Chychrun? Speaking of re-drafts, i find it strange that there's been so much focus on our 2014 6th overall when oh my god there's been so much instant buyer's remorse on so many drafts of our past.
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He'd probably go before 6th.
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Forget it, we're coming undone for Chychrun next season. Seriously though, there will be other toys for Benning to play with. Drafting and prospect development did not end at the 2014 draft.
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Honestly, you don't have any idea. But what I've noticed from Benning so far is that he's a straight shooter. He said he was going to perform trades like the Baertschi trade and that's what he did. Same thing said by him just before the Clendenning trade. So when he says something about Virtanen, why would he mean something else? Because of lineup concerns based on the now? Before the draft and free agency? Okay. How about wait and see, and the odd time support Benning's draft choice. He's looking very good.
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Recent trends suggest otherwise.
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"Change is coming."
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"He'll be fun to watch next year."
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Have to respect the fact that he's putting education over hockey. Hopfeully when he does turn pro he turns out to be a good one.
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Again with this? Not that it's appropiate to post this crap here, but I swear the more times I hear these type of rumours, the more I think they're put out there to justify the latest trade of a star to a southern franchise. Spreading these rumours doesn't really help anyone in particular. That's part of the reason why there are rules here to see that it doesn't happen. There are other forums for this kind of talk. Google to find your favorite. I lol'd at the post in one of these 'dirt' forums by this apparent Kesler victim who caved in to his relentless stalking or whatever.
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There are a few similarities, but not enough for an all-out cloning. Main difference is that Virtanen keeps the "I am a total prick" act on the ice. Off it he seems to be a really nice kid. But no doubt a lot of enemy NHL players will grow to hate him for what he'll do to them on the ice. Hate, but probably respect.
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Correct. The exact posts about the October lineup of the team not allowing room for Virtanen were posted in the Horvat thread this time last year. Then there was this Canucksarmy guy going on and on about Horvat not being ready for 3-4 years and peaking as a 30-40pt guy... Wow.
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Wrong wing. If any prospect feels more pressure it's Shinkaruk, but for now both are Comets anyway. There will be a lot of moving parts going forward obviously, so it's pretty hard to draw conclusions now. Change is coming.
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That hit is trending all over the hockey world. We can never trade him. I don't think I've ever seen a puck-carrier destroy opposing checkers like he has been on a regular basis. And he's only freakin' 18. We can never trade him.
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Agreed. It seems that he's not even going out of his way to seek these hits out. Sometimes he does, but most of the time it's just guys attempting to line him up, and they end up being destroyed. Sick to think he's only 18 and can barely grow a peachfuzz stache. What's he going to be like in his prime?
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Sweet Mary Mother of Christ that was an exceptional hit! When will these guys learn not to bodycheck Virtanen?
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So we're supposed to be down about the much-needed youth injection on this team? Okay. What?