Jake Virtanen | #18 | RW

[Kootenay Gold]

Just now, Hutton Wink said:

Or more like, Hughes and Juolevi.

Yep! Them too

[Toews]

2 hours ago, EddieVedder said:

What were you watching last year?  In the last 20-25 games Virtanen made something happen every time he received a pass.  And, how does he not have elite skills?  He has been THE guy at every level hes played at.  He played alongside McDavid at the world juniors and did not look out of place.  The line dominated every time they hit the ice.  

If i were a centreman, Id kill to have a player with Virtanens skills on my wing.  

I would dispute the "dominated" part. Had they dominated it would have shown on the scoresheet. I can see what @TimberWolf is saying, Jake doesn't create nearly enough to play on the top lines. What I dispute is that he is incapable of developing that aspect of his game. If you look at a guy like Tom Wilson he has grown his game leaps and bounds and that is mostly through playing on the 3rd and 4th line.

 

I would not just hand him PP time and top 6 ice time. Make him earn that role, handing him a spot on the roster is what led to some of his problems a couple of years ago when he called out the coach and showed up to camp out of shape. 

[Gaudette Celly]

5 minutes ago, Toews said:

I would dispute the "dominated" part. Had they dominated it would have shown on the scoresheet. I can see what @TimberWolf is saying, Jake doesn't create nearly enough to play on the top lines. What I dispute is that he is incapable of developing that aspect of his game. If you look at a guy like Tom Wilson he has grown his game leaps and bounds and that is mostly through playing on the 3rd and 4th line.

Jake creates havoc when he rushes up the wing and blows by defenders, taking it to the net and creating scoring opportunities.  Jake creates trepidation when he sits guys down with big hits.  Jake creates immediate counter-attacks when he strips players from behind and turns the play the other way.

[Toews]

1 minute ago, Hutton Wink said:

Jake creates havoc when he rushes up the wing and blows by defenders, taking it to the net and creating scoring opportunities.  Jake creates trepidation when he sits guys down with big hits.  Jake creates immediate counter-attacks when he strips players from behind and turns the play the other way.

True, but he needs to get better at using his linemates. He needs to improve his reading of the game and his passing. That will take time but it is doable. In the mean time I hope they give him some PK time, he can be similar to a guy like Grabner who is a weapon on the PK due to his speed.

[Gaudette Celly]

31 minutes ago, Toews said:

True, but he needs to get better at using his linemates. He needs to improve his reading of the game and his passing. That will take time but it is doable. In the mean time I hope they give him some PK time, he can be similar to a guy like Grabner who is a weapon on the PK due to his speed.

Certainly is, as we saw the progress last year.  Even a simple thing like keeping one's head up and instead of blindly throwing the puck at the net or into the slot, find a guy open at the point.  That's not even hockey sense or IQ, it's just playing the right way and applies to any sport.

[ForsbergTheGreat]

 . With jakes latest quote of “wanting to be relied on to score and wanting other teams to hate him” the first thing I thought of was that sounded very Matt tkachuk esq. (which is a good thing).

 

My question would be will who will produce more this year. Jake or 19 year old Brady Tkachuk? 

 

Personally my money is on jake hitting 25 goals this year which is a lofty expectation but with the tire firm in Ottawa Brady is going to get a ton of opportunity.  

[Rob_Zepp]

11 minutes ago, Hutton Wink said:

Certainly is, as we saw the progress last year.  Even a simple thing like keeping one's head up and instead of blindly throwing the puck at the net or into the slot, find a guy open at the point.  That's not even hockey sense or IQ, it's just playing the right way and applies to any sport.

Well said HW.   It is not just a lack of hockey understanding that appears in some posts, but a general lack of athletic awareness in team sports that comes from many posters.   I grin every time someone claims someone like Virtanen has no hockey IQ - it is one of the more ignorant things said about an NHL calibre player and even some "journalists" use it as if they even have a clue as to what it means.   

 

Jake has all the tools to be an unique top 6 forward in the NHL for years and  years.   He commitment over the past 24 months to learn the professional game, particularly when his team doesn't have the puck, has shown up in his play and his underlying statistics.   Possibly the worst thing that could  have happened to him was having a Boeser-like S% and getting 25 goals or similar last year without having to learn all the key little things he seemingly has learned and learned well.   

[Fanuck]

5 minutes ago, ForsbergTheGreat said:

 . With jakes latest quote of “wanting to be relied on to score and wanting other teams to hate him” the first thing I thought of was that sounded very Matt tkachuk esq. (which is a good thing).

 

My question would be will who will produce more this year. Jake or 19 year old Brady Tkachuk? 

 

Personally my money is on jake hitting 25 goals this year which is a lofty expectation but with the tire firm in Ottawa Brady is going to get a ton of opportunity.  

20g/40pt season from Jake playing up/down the top 9 would be absolutely fantastic for this club and his development in my view.  Can he do it.....based on the way he finished last season - I see few reasons why he can't get very, very close to those offensive stats. 

[ForsbergTheGreat]

5 minutes ago, Fanuck said:

20g/40pt season from Jake playing up/down the top 9 would be absolutely fantastic for this club and his development in my view.  Can he do it.....based on the way he finished last season - I see few reasons why he can't get very, very close to those offensive stats. 

If ferklund can pot 20 goals in Calgary jake should be able to do that here. 

No twins means he should get some pp time in front of the net. Hopefully he breaks out for us this year. 

[SamJamIam]

4 hours ago, EddieVedder said:

What were you watching last year?  In the last 20-25 games Virtanen made something happen every time he received a pass.  And, how does he not have elite skills?  He has been THE guy at every level hes played at.  He played alongside McDavid at the world juniors and did not look out of place.  The line dominated every time they hit the ice.  

If i were a centreman, Id kill to have a player with Virtanens skills on my wing. 

Usually it was McDavid hitting the ice

 

People seem to forget that 5 on 5 offense for the Hitmen ran through Jake. The only solid teammates he had were Jake Bean and Travis Sanheim, both d men, which required him to be very aware of plays developing behind him.  He has no problem with awareness.  What he's struggled with in the AHL and NHL is a more static cycle game (i.e. the Sedin's playstyle).  The nuances of endlessly shifting your position to remain open for those guys is a skill.  But on the rush, Jake has never had trouble receiving passes, creating lanes and hitting a trailer.  His playstyle is the direction this club (and much of the NHL) are heading.  And we saw that in the last 20 games he played he looked like a force.

 

Good young players don't suddenly emerge when there team is playing opponents battling hard for playoff spots.  It's the most difficult play of the season, conditioning is often an issue and it can be hard to keep up.  For Jake to have shown how much he was developing at that time says loads of good things for his future.

[Gaudette Celly]

54 minutes ago, ForsbergTheGreat said:

If ferklund can pot 20 goals in Calgary jake should be able to do that here. 

No twins means he should get some pp time in front of the net. Hopefully he breaks out for us this year. 

Ferk did have little JonJon feeding him for much of the year though.  Jake has shown he can hit 10 goals with under 12 min/game, bottom-6 deployment, and zero PP minutes.  Even if he can start getting in the range of 14 minutes in a middle-six role with 2nd unit PP time, 20 should certainly be achievable.  If he can clear 20, it'll be pretty clear our boy has arrived and he can probably play and contribute on any line.

[PunjabiCanucks]

This screams potential in my mind. He has a top carry in per hour (thanks to his speed imo). Now look at his passing %, if he can get that up to 20% he has the chance to double his points imo. His speed , plus if he plays with Pettersson in my mind will allow him to shoot more, but also draw guys away from Pettersson.

[EternalCanuckFan]

I think Jake definitely has a chance to improve his numbers this year.  There's only one other comparable on that list - Miles Wood - who, if I'm not mistaken, has played up and down the NJ Devils line up.

 

Jake's way more of a shooter than a passer but if he can improve that area of his game, he should start to accumulate more points.  Jury is still out on whether Jake will be a big point producer but he should be a good contributor either way.

[70seven]

Really unimpressed with Virt so far. 

 

He has had a good shot, but lacks the iq to really use it to his advantage.  The same iq he lacks to play with offensively gifted players.  

 

Really hope he can embrace the role of a bottom 6 energy player... and do that consistently.

[Zhukini]

Playing like he has a job secure, take the nameplate off his jersey and he’d already be at comets training camp 

[N4ZZY]

Jake has a lot to prove still. 

[JustABandwagoner]

Does he need to go thru waivers? Or is it waiver exempt

[Dungass]

Boy, Alex Auld ripped him a new one on sports net last night.  

 

Rick Dhaliwal@DhaliwalSports

 

 

Alex Auld on SN 650 postgame show on Virtanen : I am disappointed in Virtanen, he scored a ton of goals in junior but it has not translated to the NHL. He looks like he is comfortable to be in the NHL, he is not showing the desperation needed. #Canucks

 

 

[JeremyCuddles]

Needs to up his intencity BEFORE they go down by multiple goals. He makes good passes, but then just coasts around waiting for them to do something with it. 

[rekker]

2 hours ago, Dungass said:

Boy, Alex Auld ripped him a new one on sports net last night.  

 

Rick Dhaliwal@DhaliwalSports

 

 

Alex Auld on SN 650 postgame show on Virtanen : I am disappointed in Virtanen, he scored a ton of goals in junior but it has not translated to the NHL. He looks like he is comfortable to be in the NHL, he is not showing the desperation needed. #Canucks

 

 

I touched on this a few days back. Jake is way to content with his game.