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Everything posted by kloubek
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I do hope he learns to chip in with scoring thanks to his booming shot. Don't get me wrong - I've been an advocate for this guy ever since I saw him play, and he can be totally effective even without scoring. But if he could hone that too, he could be really something over and above the obvious. As for that video clip Darius posted, I was watching the Phoenix feed of the game and the announcers were exasperated that he didn't get a penalty. "How that isn't a penalty...." they said. Well, if you knew anything about hockey, it's because that was an excellent DEFENSIVE play. Idiots.
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This is exactly true. He has made some defensive mistakes, but no more than anybody else on the team. I think he's actually relatively solid, and when he does make mistakes, his size and reach can sometimes keep it from becoming a goal against. Combine that with his wicked shot and the fact he literally hurts people when he hits them, and I'm quite content to have him in the lineup. Keep in mind people: He's still... what.... 22 years old? Many defensemen are still working with their minor teams at this age. He has only shown us a part of what he is capable of, and I expect him to continue improving.
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Given the way Sbisa has played the last couple of games, I see zero harm in doing this.
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Sbisa was horrible last night. Especially in a game against a big, physical team like the Ducks I don't know why WD didn't play Tryamkin. I will admit, the last two games aside, Sbisa has looked much better than previous, and there was no way for WD to know Sbisa was going to stink it up. Still, I wish he would find games to get Tryamkin into, and this was a prime opportunity.
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I think that there are likely players in utica that would make more of an impact than Burrows seems to be having. But as a poster above me says, why not just let him play out his last year and end his career with dignity. He bleeds our colours, and deserves to go out accordingly. Maybe due to the fact we stuck by him, he would return the favour and enter some sort of coaching capacity for us. Not sure what that would be.... Perhaps training/effort coach.
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That's actually really surprising to me. I haven't caught any of the Flames games (though I live in Calgary), but considering that they have him playing with some really talented players, it might look like Benning was onto something when he made that trade. Such a shame. I was excited to see Shink develop in our system and play on one of our top lines, but he really might end up a bust after all.
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Given the option of Stecher over Larsen, I think it is pretty clear that Stecher has proven himself to be the better player at camp. I don't think many expected that Stecher would be so good already. The issues with keeping him up have already been mentioned though, the big one (for me) is allowing him top minutes in Utica. If we keep him with the big club and he gets cold, it will not only be a dead position in our lineup but will also kill his confidence. If he can play in the NHL (and he can), you can bet he will KILL it in Utica. One issue is that it has already been said more than once that management is going to assemble the best team they can. So it is a challenge for them to send down Stecher without totally going against their promise, as it is abundantly clear how well he has performed so far. It is a challenge, but a good one to have. Who knew a couple of years ago that by this point, Benning would have injected so much depth into our d core that we would be deciding on which NHL-caliber defensemen we would be forced to demote or let walk.
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I'll eat crow myself as well. I really didn't see what Benning saw in him when the trade happened. Add to that the fact we just didn't need another bottom six center. But I will also admit, he has outperformed my expectations this camp and it will be interesting to see how he does in the real season.
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He's older, so perhaps he just needs to shake the rust off a bit longer. I know his stats have been decreasing rapidly, but I still always felt he found ways to get scoring chances. This season, however, he's looked almost invisible. You look at the chances and energy that someone like Gaunce or even Labate or Rendulic bring, and it's hard to understand what place Burrows would have if he doesn't pick it up.
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I looked at his highlights and this is a guy who WILL make the NHL Haven't watched him enough to form an opinion on his ceiling, but that kind of energy is exactly what a team needs on its 3rd or 4th, and in the locker room as well
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Let's not get too high in him quite yet. I agree with everything that was said, but the sample size has been small, and I wouldn't be surprised if he was sent down just to get a year under his belt, and a ton of confidence ripping apart Utica opponents. I am very hopeful for him though. As others have said, his hockey IQ is off the charts and his decision making is instant. That's not common in a rookie defenceman.
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All excellent points, and it is indeed too early to say who will have to go. If our guys like Pedan don't work out or if Larsen is unable to contribute, or Tryamkin doesn't impress like I think he will, then there is no point in moving anyone because we need that depth to put forward reasonably competitive pairings. Luckily, I feel we have enough depth to believe we will be ok no matter what. I singled out Sbisa because, unless he completely breaks out this season, he's likely the most expendable. He has so far shown not a ton of skill in any respect, and we simply don't need either a 3.6m player either sitting in the box, or on the ice, playing nothing but an above average physical game. As for Edler, at least he would garner a return for a player we could use. But with a defence already less than a scoring powerhouse, I'm not sure we can afford to lose what will likely be around 30 points. That is, unless Larsen surprises me and makes that amount up... and hopefully more. (Dreaming) Maybe for Barrie I'd trade Edler....
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I think one year in Utica would do Stecher some good. We simply don't need him right now, with all the competition going on for the lower pairing roles. I think he's going to be a solid player for us, but no need to rush it. Same with Juolevi and Subban. I believe if Tryamkin is as improved as Bang Bang Boogie indicates, then it would be a huge mistake to leave him out of the lineup. He needs to earn the spot, of course, but keeping him out of the lineup both makes our blueline far smaller, as well as exposes the risk of losing him to his out clause, as he already indicated he doesn't want to play in Utica. To me, the big question mark is whether Larsen can make an impact with our club. If he can, then the same thing I said when we acquired him remains: Who is the odd man out? My belief then and my belief now is that player is Sbisa. And unless we want Sbisa's 3.6m/yr sitting in the press box, it makes sense to find a trading partner for him.
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I was initially one of those people who didn't think about it, and undervalued his worth. But when you do look at the relatively obscure defensive numbers, the guy is an absolute beast. What was it I heard.... 5th best in the league in reducing scoring chances or something like that? Sure it is exciting to have a scoring powerhouse. (Which, even with another forward, we wouldn't have) But if you're letting in extra goals at the same pace, there is little point in making that tradeoff - especially considering many GMs may be reluctant to pay dearly to acquire a player like Tanev, where the stats are more difficult to define on paper...
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I really wish everyone would stop trying to include Tanev into trade suggestions. His ability to shut down the opposing team is undeniable, and we don't have any other players who properly fit that role. And no, the numbers show Gudbranson is not it. I think nearly every team needs an elite shutdown defenseman to be successful; it's a great asset to have. Would it be nice to have a star top six forward? Absolutely. But scoring can also be comprised of a well balanced team. Since we are lacking tradable assets, I'm really interested to see how Benning intends on bolstering those positions - both for the remainder of the Sedins' tenure, but especially after.
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Stecher appears very smart, and his timing in making passes seems excellent. No, he might not be a physical presence but the same could be said of a player like Tanev. Yet, Tanev plays his role so well that most of us forgive him for not being particularly physical. Now that we have guys on our blueline like Guds and Tryamkin, it allows other players to play to their strengths rather than having to do it all. Guys like Hutton and Stecher should be able to play the way they are most effective. I would argue that Stecher's best position is on a DIFFERENT line than Hutton, save for the power play, where wall-stopping size and strength isn't nearly as important as it is on 5vs5 play. And Subban - I'm rooting for this guy to make the NHL. Even for the minor leagues (which can make some players look better than they really are) his offensive prowess is impressive. He needs to put on enough size and find his defensive game as to not be a liability. If he can do that, I see him as having real dark horse potential. (No racial pun intended there).
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Me too. Tryamkin is the guy I was perhaps the most excited to see after the offseason to see how much he improved. Assessing him is somewhat unique, as with many players you don't really know what they bring to the table until they fully develop. While his ceiling may still be in question, the size and strength he brings is quite evident already. Also unique to Tryamkin is that we know exactly what he needs to do to be successful in the NHL. The first and main thing is that he needs to kill it in the conditioning department. If he can do that, I think he showed enough last season to indicate his size buys him at least a bottom pairing position on virtually any NHL team. If he can then add to that, like utilizing his big shot, then he positions himself well to creep up the depth chart. As soon as I watched him play, I penciled him into our lineup. Though lots of people are questioning if he will even be in the lineup, to me it is a no brainer that he should be. (If his conditioning is up to par). Size like his is uncommon, and is the kind of x factor you pray for. We don't exactly have a big team, so excluding him from our lineup strikes me as being a big step down.
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It is hard to say at this point how far Bo will go. I have always viewed him as an elite 2nd liner (in his prime), and so far I am sticking by that. However, he has the potential to end up a 1st liner - which would be awesome, since we don't have anyone else in the system with that potential. But if he doesn't end up that kind of player, then we're going to need to find a Henrik 2.0, as you put it, and without assets to find such a player in a trade, we can only hope to rely on Benning's solid drafting to find him there. Even if he does, it will take years before such a player would be ready to be our first line center. Imagine, if it actually worked out though: Virtanen Horvat Boeser - That would be one hell of a hard line to stop.
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223. That's freaking huge. He was already a very powerful hitter last season. He seriously has all the physical tools to be a dominant player in this league, and I sure hope management doesn't give up on him. He was pushed into the league too quickly, and simply didn't understand how to properly play at this level. He's never been a guy who I've viewed as having a particularly high hockey IQ, but with his tools he doesn't necessarily need it. He just needs to put it all together and he should do just fine. Should absolutely be a solid 2nd line winger, at minimum. I think we do all have to keep in mind how young he was coming into the league, and we certainly haven't seen all he has to offer.
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Honestly, I was confused about the Granlund trade in the first place and still am. I feel he has a rather mediocre skillset (even though for some reason he is touted as being a supreme playmaker across the internet), and although many have thrown out the idea of the 4-line team, I just don't see him being physically built enough for a bottom role, nor skilled enough for a top role. I can reluctantly appreciate if Benning felt Shinkaruk wasn't going to be a role player, but to me, Granlund doesn't seem to bring much to the table. If we were going to trade Shinkaruk for a 4th line player, we might as well have gotten a big guy who could at least punish to opposing team. We can only hope Benning saw upside potential in this guy and he'll have a breakout season. Fingers crossed.
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Horvat's ceiling is not at 50 points. Heck, he got 40 playing on a line with guys who had no right playing on a second line, and some of the season even playing on the 3rd. Give him a couple years more experience and better linemates, and 60+ points should absolutely be in reach on the second line. I believe that is around his ceiling, but it is entirely possible he does develop into a legit 1st liner as well. If we are so lucky to have that occur, it would help our rebuild a ton.
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I'd still consider the Sedins 1st line players - especially if they do end up playing with Eriksson. But yeah, I can see Eriksson being moved to the 2nd, entirely for the lack of top 6 winger depth only. If he has mad chemistry with the Sedins, that would be a hard thing to do, but it might still make sense. Yes, all those forwards can play both sides. But 4/5 have no place on the 2nd line, and Rodin is a huge question mark. Unlike prior years, there are a lot more young guys and a lot of question marks surrounding them. If even half of them are improved and especially if Rodin can step up to the plate on the 2nd line, we're looking *significantly* better than last year.
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Well colour me surprised. If he can play the LW, then it may not look as bleak on that side as I thought. Virtanen will have a lot to prove in camp. While everyone is expecting him to be in Utica for the year, remember that he did make the team last year so if he comes into camp legit, then I'm not so sure. I can totally see him on the 3rd line with Hansen and Horvat - the latter of which I believe will HAVE to be moved up to the 2nd when he's clearly performing better than Sutter, as I expect. I'm not so sure we have a "lock" on the right wing. Everyone is expecting big things from Rodin, but I'm not convinced. If he doesn't work out, the best we have to work with is Hansen.... who isn't quite a 2nd line player under most circumstances. I also felt Baertschi was over his head on the LW, and there is no way that even if Virtanen is better this year that he slots into the 2nd line role. Overall, I think our 2nd line wings are still quite suspect, and I think if Benning does get another top six winger that would help give us the talent up front we need. I just don't believe we have the trade chips to do so.....
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Going to be tough no matter what, considering neither Hansen nor Virtanen have ever played left wing, have they?