(Rumour) Maple Leafs Have Interest In Erik Gudbranson

[ForsbergTheGreat]

3 minutes ago, aGENT said:

Lol nice neg for pointing out you're, yet again, misinformed.

 

https://twitter.com/GeorgeRichards/status/736032704869830656

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My earlier tweet that Erik Gudbranson turned down a four-year deal has been refuted by both the #FlaPanthers and his agent. I apologize.

8:14 PM - 26 May 2016

Fair play. I’ll + you for that. 

[coryberg]

9 hours ago, VIC_CITY said:

Just going back and looking at Kevin Bieksa's 1st 7 years. He had 3 40+ point seasons! Gudbranson is a way better skater and has 10x the shot. What is going on here?!

First things first. Kevin bieksa was 25 when he joined the NHL... the same age gudbranson is right now.

 

Secondly gudbranson has never put up big numbers offensively at any level and was drafted 3rd overall with full disclosure...

 

https://youtu.be/MyJWw1w8HHs

[aGENT]

21 minutes ago, PhillipBlunt said:

I don't think so. While sustaining an injury last year during his first with the team would hard for any player, this season, Gudbranson has still not brought the same intensity from a physical standpoint as he did in Florida. Understandably Gudbranson would want to shy away from fisticuffs to protect bones and tendons healing in his hands and wrists, but the lack of a heavy game is not explained away simply because they need to compensate for other injured players.

Vanek and Gagner looked excellent with Boeser against Chicago. Injuries have had there way, but the team has run the gamut. Outplaying good teams and then falling off a cliff the next. However this post is about Gudbranson, and to a lesser extent, Edler.

 

Both have had great physical games, and then both have had games (when they weren't injured) where they didn't bring anything of the sort, when it was needed most.

Certainly. The goaltenders aren't really ever going to be bonafide starters, but have had good games. The defense has played airtight games where they suppressed the goals against to the point where it was league leading. Losing Sutter and Horvat was a huge blow to that side of the game, but that's when, by committee, a defense, and any forwards with the inkling of being solid on both ends of the ice, step up and fill the holes in the interim.

 

Gudbranson was playing quite well most games when he and the rest of the team where healthy to start the year. He's presently coming off injury and the team is wilting under the weight of too many key injuries. That's not a good mix.

 

As I said, 'looked good for more than a game or two'. Vanek, Gagner and Boeser looked good for a game or two.

 

That's what happens when the team is injured and tired. Guys can play over their heads for a short while but maintaining that consistently is not going to happen given current circumstances. 

 

'By committee' with guys playing over their heads doesn't work long term. I don't care how much you want to quote 'injuries aren't an excuse'. It's horsehite.

 

[aGENT]

2 minutes ago, coryberg said:

First things first. Kevin bieksa was 25 when he joined the NHL... the same age gudbranson is right now.

 

Secondly gudbranson has never put up big numbers offensively at any level and was drafted 3rd overall with full disclosure...

 

https://youtu.be/MyJWw1w8HHs

Bieksa was also on a FAR better team.

[ForsbergTheGreat]

11 minutes ago, SilentSam said:

Big men take longer to develop, there is longetivity in a player like Gudbranson, his best years may be at the 29 30 age mark.

not to compare him as a player to Chara,  but Chara didn’t really get it until he was 27-28.

.. Lidstrom the same (I think)

i think just a little patience here, (especially while he gets coupled with sophomores and rookies) will be a virtue.

Tanev may be the one to move, for a greater return this year..

then once we settle in, with the cap going up 3-6m..  why not try to add a true #1 D like Karlsson or Doughty to fill that hole once they become free agents?

Gudbransson has a strong all round game... I can’t see him dropping mitts every night if he doesn’t have to,and if he is up against the bigger power forwards every night, he needs to pace the season,. He is needed.

 

Chara was a 40 point D by 25 and had Norris votes already. 

Lidstrom was the runner up for the Calder at 21 putting up 60 points his first season. He has Norris nomination at 23 but never won till he was 30. 

 

Unless we believe guddy has some offensive untapped potential. I think it’s safe to say he is what he is. Maybe he can grow a bit more defensively. But it’s highly unlikely he develops into a top pairing D. 

 

In terms of big D.

hedman, parayko, Weber, byfuglein and hamilton were all developed prior to 23. Giordano was one of the latest developers when he peaks he was 27. But he also left the nhl and went to the khl for a year due to contract negotiation. 

[oldnews]

8 minutes ago, aGENT said:

Lol nice neg for pointing out you're, yet again, misinformed.

 

https://twitter.com/GeorgeRichards/status/736032704869830656

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My earlier tweet that Erik Gudbranson turned down a four-year deal has been refuted by both the #FlaPanthers and his agent. I apologize.

8:14 PM - 26 May 2016

thanks.  was going to post that.

funny how memory tends to be so selective....

 

 

here's an interesting post:

 

On 1/14/2016 at 8:03 AM, ForsbergTheGreat said:

I've been proposing Gudbranson from the start of the year.  I'd send them Edler and Vbrata (retained salary) for Gudbranson and a conditional 2nd round pick (based on playoffs)

 

Why Panthers do this?

Panthers have right handed D in Petrovic and Ekblad. 

 

Why Canucks do this?

We need another top 4 RHD. One with size is ideal. After tanev we don't have much and our only real prospect (subban) is a ways away.  We complain about Weber, but that's because we have no other right handed shots.  Gudbranson fits this spot.  He's young enough to grow with our young core and good enough to slide into our top 4. 

 

Gudbranson, no real loss for the Panthers...just a Raymond comparable lol.

 

But good enough to slide straight into the top 4.... and someone Forsberg was proposing to acquire all along.  For Edler.   And Vrbata....

[ForsbergTheGreat]

17 minutes ago, oldnews said:

thanks.  was going to post that.

funny how memory tends to be so selective....

 

 

here's an interesting post:

 

 

Gudbranson, no real loss for the Panthers...just a Raymond comparable lol.

 

But good enough to slide straight into the top 4.... and someone Forsberg was proposing to acquire all along.  For Edler.   And Vrbata....

Again. I’ve never denied not wanting gudbranson. I’d still like him (at a reasonable cap hit).

 

 I don’t know what your trying to prove?  But keep on swinging. 

[oldnews]

I liked the pairings last night despite the loss to Anaheim.

 

Gudbranson with Pouliot - much more effective than with Hutton.   Wasn't surprised at all to see Hutton scratched - he's really struggling with indecisiveness.

Edler Stecher and MDZ Tanev also made sense imo.

 

Gud and Pouliot had a strong 'possession' night despite the fact our forward group was seriously overmatched - both with 50% ozone starts and corsis of 59% (Gud) and 70% (Pouliot).

And there is an indication of where corsi can be misleading, with that much variance in  a pairing - as Gudbranson tends to change once he's cleared the zone / during transition whereas Pouliot's role is the opposite. 

 

Gudbranson looked really good last night - solid, with great positioning - and always a general on the ice against the rush, directing team-mates on the backcheck - who and what lanes to pick up. 

 

I don't see what folks are seeing - I simply don't think he should be pushing enforcement in the present - particularly when there hasn't really been much cause or cue for him.  He needs to stay healthy and avoid reinjuring that wrist imo.

 

I hope he's re-signed soon - don't like our blueline nearly as much without his presence.

 

[bobbyg43]

Guddy may be slightly high cap hit at outset , however this value against cap will diminish over course of contract . This is a term value signing for any team on rise , The contract will provide value over term an needs to be factored into today’s NHL salary caps may have modest rise over course in term if there is one player to make an exception to penny pinching it would be Guddy for me .He is one of the future core leaders .His only shortcoming has been injuries that have prevented him from reaching full potential. This may be a blessing as the new younger core players are percolating in various leagues around the world . That team in 2 to 3 years is gonna be exciting to watch the next chase for Lord  Stanley’s gord.

[oldnews]

23 hours ago, PhillipBlunt said:

Nobody can control the speculation. That's the line of the day.

Interesting how some people have assumed that confirms that Benning is shopping him....(by some people I mean the twitter responses).

 

the rest of that prior quote is also interesting:

 

"if something can be worked out and then that will be the direction we take."

 

seems like an indication that from Gudbranson and agent's side, that the intention is to work on getting a deal done.  funny how we tend to interpret these things to confirm our own leanings.

 

To me it's a pretty generic, professional response.   First comes the process of discussing extension - and there's no point speculating beyond that - something the player and agent don't necessarily control (but could be a part of if it's a trade-and-extend situation).

 

So I distill the assumption by some that Benning is shopping Gudbranson to even less credible attempts to presume Benning's mindset on the matter - with still no reliable sources offered to 'substantiate' it.

[PhillipBlunt]

3 minutes ago, oldnews said:

Interesting how some people have assumed that confirms that Benning is shopping him....(by some people I mean the twitter responses).

 

the rest of that prior quote is also interesting:

 

"if something can be worked out and then that will be the direction we take."

 

seems like an indication that from Gudbranson and agent's side, that the intention is to work on getting a deal done.  funny how we tend to interpret these things to confirm our own leanings.

 

To me it's a pretty generic, professional response.   First comes the process of discussing extension - and there's no point speculating beyond that - something the player and agent don't necessarily control (but could be a part of if it's a trade-and-extend situation).

 

So I distill the assumption by some that Benning is shopping Gudbranson to even less credible attempts to presume Benning's mindset on the matter - with still no reliable sources offered to 'substantiate' it.

Certainly. I wonder where Gudbranson is on the matter though. He seems to have an air of indifference to his play lately which (to my untrained eye) seems to speak to someone who isn't emotionally invested, and is merely waiting out a situation.

 

I hope I'm wrong, believe me. Seeing as how Gudbranson hasn't been traded yet, with all the chatter being bandied about is interesting though. Also, I wonder if Gudbranson is looking past this season, and seeing July 1st as his opportunity to garner a big payday. One couldn't hold it against him, as this type of opportunity to take advantage of being a wanted commodity is hard to pass up.

[oldnews]

1 minute ago, PhillipBlunt said:

Certainly. I wonder where Gudbranson is on the matter though. He seems to have an air of indifference to his play lately which (to my untrained eye) seems to speak to someone who isn't emotionally invested, and is merely waiting out a situation.

 

I hope I'm wrong, believe me. Seeing as how Gudbranson hasn't been traded yet, with all the chatter being bandied about is interesting though. Also, I wonder if Gudbranson is looking past this season, and seeing July 1st as his opportunity to garner a big payday. One couldn't hold it against him, as this type of opportunity to take advantage of being a wanted commodity is hard to pass up.

I don't share this impression.  What I see from Gudbranson is a primary focus on coverage, the intention to look up ice more / transition passing (which I think is under-rated by some people who's 'eye-tests' look to confirm that he can't move the puck, is a poor 'possession' player and has no upside) and taking the odd risk of getting involved up ice - getting involved / in scoring opportunities (he's going to the front of the opposition net on occassions, and he's letting go of his shot a bit more frequently) - he's also made some really nice stretch passes recently.

 

I see him as quite engaged - just hasn't been dropping the gloves (which  makes sense under the circumstances - for all parties).   

I think there's more to his game than a big mobile prototyical modern shutdown D - I think he's capable of being a good transition puck mover (not pmd - but moving the puck well relative to his role) who can also unload some fairly heavy shots (and create offensive space as a threat if that shot starts converting)..  If he's paired with the right partner, he can also take more risks - going to the hard areas in the ozone on occassion, pinching more, etc.  It will be interesting to see how his role evolves - but playing with Pouliot for example, there are interesting differences than when he has another shutdown partner with a more exclusive role.   Whether it's with a partner like MDZ - as it was moreso before his injury playing more exclusively hard minutes, or with more of a younger puck-moving partner, that he complements as the stay-at-home guy, it'll be interesting.  I think the idea was originally to pair him with Hutton (as they started last season and went back to recently when Tanev was out) - but I think he can bring a lot and needs more time to evolve with this team.

[PhillipBlunt]

3 minutes ago, oldnews said:

I don't share this impression.  What I see from Gudbranson is a primary focus on coverage, the intention to look up ice more / transition passing (which I think is under-rated by some people who's 'eye-tests' look to confirm that he can't move the puck, is a poor 'possession' player and has no upside) and taking the odd risk of getting involved up ice - getting involved / in scoring opportunities (he's going to the front of the opposition net on occassions, and he's letting go of his shot a bit more frequently) - he's also made some really nice stretch passes recently.

 

I see him as quite engaged - just hasn't been dropping the gloves (which  makes sense under the circumstances - for all parties).   

I think there's more to his game than a big mobile prototyical modern shutdown D - I think he's capable of being a good transition puck mover (not pmd - but moving the puck well relative to his role) who can also unload some fairly heavy shots (and create offensive space as a threat if that shot starts converting)..  If he's paired with the right partner, he can also take more risks - going to the hard areas in the ozone on occassion, pinching more, etc.  It will be interesting to see how his role evolves - but playing with Pouliot for example, there are interesting differences than when he has another shutdown partner with a more exclusive role.   Whether it's with a partner like MDZ - as it was moreso before his injury playing more exclusively hard minutes, or with more of a younger puck-moving partner, that he complements as the stay-at-home guy, it'll be interesting.  I think the idea was originally to pair him with Hutton (as they started last season and went back to recently when Tanev was out) - but I think he can bring a lot and needs more time to evolve with this team.

Fair enough, oldnews. As usual, I enjoy the perspective.

[aGENT]

51 minutes ago, PhillipBlunt said:

Certainly. I wonder where Gudbranson is on the matter though. He seems to have an air of indifference to his play lately which (to my untrained eye) seems to speak to someone who isn't emotionally invested, and is merely waiting out a situation.

I see ON saved me some typing.

 

He's coming back from injury on a team that is reeling under the weight of injuries. Going out of his way to make big hits or fight would seem to be a poor decision given his own health and the team's. The last thing we need is him being out of position chasing big hits, re-injuring his wrist in a fight or taking penalties on our already stretched thin defensive players and hence suddenly more porous goaltenders.

 

I prefer he focus on simply playing smart, safe, good hockey at least until we get a bit healthier and can weather a bit more 'risk taking' in our play.

[PhillipBlunt]

1 minute ago, aGENT said:

I see ON saved me some typing.

 

He's coming back from injury on a team that is reeling under the weight of injuries. Going out of his way to make big hits or fight would seem to be a poor decision given his own health and the team's. The last thing we need is him being out of position chasing big hits, re-injuring his wrist in a fight or taking penalties on our already stretched thin defensive players and hence suddenly more porous goaltenders.

 

I prefer he focus on simply playing smart, safe, good hockey at least until we get a bit healthier and can weather a bit more 'risk taking' in our play.

I don't think Gudbranson should throw down fisticuffs at all, if he can avoid it. A big hit that can swing momentum wouldn't be uncalled for though, as Guddy wouldn't need to put his wrist into it to make it count.

[aGENT]

1 minute ago, PhillipBlunt said:

I don't think Gudbranson should throw down fisticuffs at all, if he can avoid it. A big hit that can swing momentum wouldn't be uncalled for though, as Guddy wouldn't need to put his wrist into it to make it count.

If a hits available? Absolutely. Playing well, separating players, clearing the crease, skating/passing the puck out of the zone are what he should and IMO appears to be focusing on.

 

Everyone love's Biega's hitting and intensity but it often puts him out of position chasing those hits and he can't seem to sustain that energy/play for more than a few games. IMO, we're far too thin and shaky presently for Gudbranson to be taking similar risks in his play

[oldnews]

3 minutes ago, PhillipBlunt said:

I don't think Gudbranson should throw down fisticuffs at all, if he can avoid it. A big hit that can swing momentum wouldn't be uncalled for though, as Guddy wouldn't need to put his wrist into it to make it count.

If he did elect to move on from Vancouver, there is something I absolutely could not blame him for....

 

Not having to entertain the sheer mundane media reality here - from B-otch to JD Burke to Gallagher or Jeff Patterson.....who tf wouldn't want to leave that gaggle of annoying clingons behind?

[PhillipBlunt]

1 minute ago, oldnews said:

If he did elect to move on from Vancouver, there is something I absolutely could not blame him for....

 

Not having to entertain the sheer mundane media reality here - from B-otch to JD Burke to Gallagher or Jeff Patterson.....who tf wouldn't want to leave that gaggle of annoying clingons behind?

I agree wholeheartedly. Those hacks are the most unprofessional bunch of spent rags in sports media. Parasites that are addicted to writing clickbait and undermining a professional sports team that clearly hates their very hateable guts.

[PhillipBlunt]

4 minutes ago, aGENT said:

If a hits available? Absolutely. Playing well, separating players, clearing the crease, skating/passing the puck out of the zone are what he should and IMO appears to be focusing on.

 

Everyone love's Biega's hitting and intensity but it often puts him out of position chasing those hits and he can't seem to sustain that energy/play for more than a few games. IMO, we're far too thin and shaky presently for Gudbranson to be taking similar risks in his play

While I do appreciate that he's a tactical player who likes to play a smart game, it would have been good to see him make life a bit more difficult for the Ducks yesterday, who seemed to feel that they had free reign physically.

 

Obviously being the larger team overall with much more NHL experience, they'll take advantage of that fact, but to have one of our only comparable players size-wise not set the tone in return was kind of deflating.

[VIC_CITY]

11 hours ago, Harvey Spector said:

Guddy has not impressed me this year at all.  He doesn't look like a $5.5 million defenceman, which is what he will be asking for in the summer...

Lol nobody is suggesting giving him $5.5M. I think $4.5M is more realistic as to what he'll be looking for on a long term deal in free agency.