Georgie Best Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 GO JAKE , ROCK EM SOCK EM SHOOT EM SCORE EM, he's a beaut Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 NYI returned Dal Colle to Oshawa. Will Virtanen make the cut in Vancouver? We will see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 NYI returned Dal Colle to Oshawa. Will Virtanen make the cut in Vancouver? We will see. Different teams, different situations, different players. Not sure what relevance it has to Virtanen... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuckfan_Brett Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I find that JV looks small out there and needs to add weight if he's going to play a physical. If not, he will get injured. Anyone else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I find that JV looks small out there and needs to add weight if he's going to play a physical. If not, he will get injured. Anyone else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 (edited) Different teams, different situations, different players. Not sure what relevance it has to Virtanen...None. But this is the everyone but Virtanen thread you see. We're not sure. Edited September 29, 2015 by TOMapleLaughs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Realtor Rod Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I find that JV looks small out there and needs to add weight if he's going to play a physical. If not, he will get injured. Anyone else? You need to adjust your television set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Lock Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I find that JV looks small out there and needs to add weight if he's going to play a physical. If not, he will get injured. Anyone else? JV has proven in the WHL that he can throw around bodies bigger than himself. Even if he does need to add on weight he's been holding his own quite well out there and playing a physical game, especially for a rookie in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VANcanucks92 Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I find that JV looks small out there and needs to add weight if he's going to play a physical. If not, he will get injured. Anyone else? Lol i was at the game last night in person he was one of the biggest guys out there, he just cut from 228 to 215 thats pretty big.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off_The_Schneid! Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 He's noticeably faster then almost everyone It helps him in his defensive coverage He's played better then I thought he would, I knew he had skills but he's playing a very mature game Not a defensive liability and chipping in with offense, hits and energy He looks good out there I pretty much assumed he would make the team awhile ago, but I'm surprised how many people are still on the fence McCann"s stellar play doesn't affect Virtanen making the team, it only puts vey in the press box, which in turn pushes Hutton out as an extra defenseman and back to the ahl It's a numbers game Side note: McCann adds a 2nd pp unit that is actually dangerous, something this team has lacked for ever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumerman77 Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Unfortunately Virtanen's attributes specifically his shot, skating and physicality led people to think he can make the NHL jump as a 19 year old. But he needs to fine tune everything, learn to be more disciplined and mature. He can do this with another year of junior and likely at least half a season in the AHL after that. I think people are correct about Virtanen adding more weight. No doubt he already is big, but if he wants to be a power forward, similar to how he has played his whole career so far, he needs to get even bigger. Virtanen is likely going to take a while to develop and if he wants to have a shot as a top 6 winger one day developing him slowly and properly will be very important. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Lock Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Unfortunately Virtanen's attributes specifically his shot, skating and physicality led people to think he can make the NHL jump as a 19 year old. But he needs to fine tune everything, learn to be more disciplined and mature. He can do this with another year of junior and likely at least half a season in the AHL after that. I think people are correct about Virtanen adding more weight. No doubt he already is big, but if he wants to be a power forward, similar to how he has played his whole career so far, he needs to get even bigger. Virtanen is likely going to take a while to develop and if he wants to have a shot as a top 6 winger one day developing him slowly and properly will be very important. The question really comes down to where would the best place for his development be? Will skating with other kids still be beneficial for him or would playing with men develop him faster? Just because he may need to gain a few pounds it doesn't mean playing in junior would be more beneficial for him. I think it's a question only an expert would have a better answer to no matter what we think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Karlsson Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Unfortunately Virtanen's attributes specifically his shot, skating and physicality led people to think he can make the NHL jump as a 19 year old. But he needs to fine tune everything, learn to be more disciplined and mature. He can do this with another year of junior and likely at least half a season in the AHL after that. I think people are correct about Virtanen adding more weight. No doubt he already is big, but if he wants to be a power forward, similar to how he has played his whole career so far, he needs to get even bigger. Virtanen is likely going to take a while to develop and if he wants to have a shot as a top 6 winger one day developing him slowly and properly will be very important. I disagree. He looked better than the twins and all the veterans last night. He doesn't really need to add any weight right now, he CUT down to 215, that's pretty big... His first shift showed how much of a force he can be already. NHL coaching and learning from the twins etc, will help him a lot more than playing against kids in a crappy system that the Hitmen play imo. If he was on London then I would be in favor of sending him back. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatPope Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I like Virtanen, I wouldn't be surprised if he stay up with the team this year. He is physically ready, he is already crushing NHLers and that is going to pump up the crowds in the library. But man, if he had even 1/3 of the offensive IQ/vision that McCann has it would be an absolute no brainer to keep him up. He has the individual offensive skills and shot to be a good goal scorer but his slight lack of ability to truly play well/give and go with his linemates leaves you wishing for more offensive IQ. He's going to be a great player for the canucks but it's hard not to think how good he would be if he had the vision/playmaking skills like McCann to go along with his speed/physical play/shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaudette Celly Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 He's going to be a great player for the canucks but it's hard not to think how good he would be if he had the vision/playmaking skills like McCann to go along with his speed/physical play/shot. Then we wouldn't have had the chance to draft him. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatPope Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Then we wouldn't have had the chance to draft him. You're right, I was thinking that too haha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 I like Virtanen, I wouldn't be surprised if he stay up with the team this year. He is physically ready, he is already crushing NHLers and that is going to pump up the crowds in the library. But man, if he had even 1/3 of the offensive IQ/vision that McCann has it would be an absolute no brainer to keep him up. He has the individual offensive skills and shot to be a good goal scorer but his slight lack of ability to truly play well/give and go with his linemates leaves you wishing for more offensive IQ. He's going to be a great player for the canucks but it's hard not to think how good he would be if he had the vision/playmaking skills like McCann to go along with his speed/physical play/shot. And if McCaan had Jakes size he'b be unstoppable.......only generational talents are the complete package. That is turning out to be a game changing first round. They got two top notch fwds who play very different games. That's huge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumerman77 Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 The question really comes down to where would the best place for his development be? Will skating with other kids still be beneficial for him or would playing with men develop him faster? Just because he may need to gain a few pounds it doesn't mean playing in junior would be more beneficial for him. I think it's a question only an expert would have a better answer to no matter what we think. I agree from a development standpoint there are pros and cons for development at both the NHL and junior level. But I think junior is, perhaps not ideal, but nevertheless the best option. He still is yet to dominate the WHL. Perhaps because his coaches mismanaged him or because he has an early birthday or because he had a shoulder injury. Regardless, I think he still has a lot to learn from junior. The question I think a lot of us have to ask ourselves when evaluating Virtanen's development is whether we are being honest and objective or if we are letting wishful thinking cloud our judgement. It is very rare a 19 year old player with about a 1 PPG +1 season in the CHL (who is not noted for strong defense) comes into the NHL in his +2 seasons and has an impact (yes there are examples but they are the minority of cases). Moreover, there are many flaws in Virtanen's game which can be more easily corrected at the junior level against easier competition such as defense, play-making, discipline (bad penalties). These are a lot harder to correct when going up against NHL players. And yes I agree the coaches in Calgary have misused him and not developed him the way I would have like, nevertheless, they still can teach him a lot especially as he will be their main option this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 I agree from a development standpoint there are pros and cons for development at both the NHL and junior level. But I think junior is, perhaps not ideal, but nevertheless the best option. He still is yet to dominate the WHL. Perhaps because his coaches mismanaged him or because he has an early birthday or because he had a shoulder injury. Regardless, I think he still has a lot to learn from junior. The question I think a lot of us have to ask ourselves when evaluating Virtanen's development is whether we are being honest and objective or if we are letting wishful thinking cloud our judgement. It is very rare a 19 year old player with about a 1 PPG +1 season in the CHL (who is not noted for strong defense) comes into the NHL in his +2 seasons and has an impact (yes there are examples but they are the minority of cases). Moreover, there are many flaws in Virtanen's game which can be more easily corrected at the junior level against easier competition such as defense, play-making, discipline (bad penalties). These are a lot harder to correct when going up against NHL players. And yes I agree the coaches in Calgary have misused him and not developed him the way I would have like, nevertheless, they still can teach him a lot especially as he will be their main option this season. Truthfully I don't care about his Jr career. Hes shown he can play atbthe NHL level and as long as he's not expected to light up the league, he should play in Van Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c00kies Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Different teams, different situations, different players. Not sure what relevance it has to Virtanen... It's always interesting to see where the draft class is as a whole. If nobody else is making their NHL teams, then Virtanen could be considered "on par" if he gets sent back or "ahead" if he makes the NHL. If the majority of the first round was making the leap, then he'd be considered "behind" the class...of course it helps to look at comparables (other gritty forwards, top 10 picks, etc...) instead of just the entire class (d-men take longer to develop, so it's be wrong to say a d-man is behind just because a bunch of forwards are making the leap.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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