Prospect Info: 14th Overall - Julius Honka

Satan

MIGHTY
Apr 13, 2010
91,167
12,771
Lapland
Honka's been solid and the metrics back it up

xGF/60 - 3.66 (1st on the team)
CF/60 - 77.27 (1st)
CF% - 60.71 (4th)

His PDO is 91 due to the fact his on-ice shooting percentage at 5v5 is 0.


What a shame it is to sit him in order to fit Jamie Oleksiak in the lineup. At least the Coyotes might make Oleksiak look useful and worth trading for to other teams around the league.
 

Magic Mittens

Registered User
Nov 2, 2006
6,861
3,117
Calgary
Honka needs to stay in the lineup. Only going to get better playing

Oleksaik hasn't looked that much better this year. Honka at least helps us have two good PP units

Le sigh
 

Shonky

Registered User
Sponsor
Jul 2, 2017
2,337
2,239
Whats been the main issue so far, expected a little more. Tough start.
 

FirstRowUpperDeck

Registered User
May 20, 2014
5,386
1,410
Arlington, TX
No, not a bust. Kind of reminds me of the old joke about the only one who could keep MJ from scoring was coach Dean Smith, who benched him.

Honka not quite that class yet, but there is little or nothing in the eye test or stats to believe that he hasn't already passed Jamie O. Whether he sits back down when Methot comes back is a possibility.

Hitch's fascination with Oleksiak never seemed quite right, nor does his critiques of Honka. I get that he is/was too deferential, etc. Just didn't see him being benched for a giveaway machine.
 

MarVell

Registered User
Jan 10, 2014
443
98
Lol. He's not a bust. What about his development suggests he is a bust?

Like, him not playing...

Maybe they should’ve traded Honka instead of Oleksiak. Maybe he’ll be a better fit on another team, one that hasn’t got someone like klingberg already..?
 

Satan

MIGHTY
Apr 13, 2010
91,167
12,771
Lapland
Like, him not playing...

Maybe they should’ve traded Honka instead of Oleksiak. Maybe he’ll be a better fit on another team, one that hasn’t got someone like klingberg already..?

Watch the games my man. Last night he was on the first powerplay unit with Klingberg.
 

M88K

irreverent
May 24, 2014
9,072
7,021
Invisible largely, but he did finally match Oleksiaks point production(same number of games) for the year, and he's 3rd among team defensemen in PP time, so yeah Invisible.
 

M88K

irreverent
May 24, 2014
9,072
7,021
He plays like what, 10 minutes per game? No wonder he's invisible.
14mins a game of which 1:40 is PP time. Its better to be invisible than visible for all the wrong reason, that said it would be nice if he could be half as good as people think he is
 

Doogle

Registered User
Jun 8, 2010
599
465
Pens fan. It seems you guys are low on him, and we are looking for depth now that Cole left. Would you guys think Honka's available for trade and if so what kind of return would you expect?
 

Kaako Kappo

Kaako Kappo
Oct 12, 2016
10,871
12,959
Kaako Kappo
Pens fan. It seems you guys are low on him, and we are looking for depth now that Cole left. Would you guys think Honka's available for trade and if so what kind of return would you expect?
This kid's ADV stats destroy Johns's and Methot's. The only reason he's not an NHL regular is Hitch.
 

Troy McClure

Suter will never be scratched
Mar 12, 2002
47,604
15,488
South of Heaven
This kid's ADV stats destroy Johns's and Methot's. The only reason he's not an NHL regular is Hitch.
He’s also not a regular because he hasn’t played well enough. At some point, he’s going to have to produce some offense if he wants to play. Advanced stats are cute and all, but games are won by scoring goals. So far this season, he’s not contributed to the Stars scoring goals.
 

WhatWhat

Registered User
Aug 7, 2014
5,685
1,119
We are straight up better with him in the lineup. Its painful how bad we struggle to transition the puck without him. Klingberg is left hanging as the only player who can constantly transition the puck when Honka is out of the lineup
 

jballa95

Registered User
Aug 18, 2013
547
573
He's been absolute dogsh*t for Finland in the WHC. Lots of skill but zero hockey IQ.
I've been quite disapointed with his play, I was hoping he would have a good tournament to trampoline into next season. Honka needs to slowly regain his confidence, offensively he hasn't been bad in the tournament, using his skating to create chances. Defensively he looks puzzled out there, doesn't know where to put the puck and consistently gives it away. But as a whole the Finnish D looks underwhelming, other than Heiskanen who looks like the veteran on the team.
 

BfantZ

Registered User
Jun 22, 2017
2,635
1,144
I wonder what kind of a return we could get for honka . I remember there were few teams rumoured to be interested in him after his rookie season with Texas but he’s probably a question mark for them now .
 

________

Registered User
Feb 6, 2006
4,815
123
I wonder what kind of a return we could get for honka . I remember there were few teams rumoured to be interested in him after his rookie season with Texas but he’s probably a question mark for them now .
It would be selling low on him. No point in trading him. He's a much better player then this.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Kcb12345

BigG44

Registered User
Jul 12, 2007
24,127
1,579
I liked the way Shapiro put it in a recent mailbag, expectations were really high for him, but at this point he needs to prove that's deserved. I agree that trading him would not be wise. Unlike guys like Oleksiak and Nemeth, it seems Nill is very interested in this project working. I think the better play is to see what he can be with consistent playing time, something those other guys never got. Yes it could further damage his value, but it still seems like the better move to maximize asset management.

I too was kind of hoping that Honka could be a potential significant piece in a trade. I'd love to play well and stick around in Dallas, my thought is just that right shot D are pretty damn valuable, especially offensive ones. Ideally, he could have been an actual prime asset for a Top 6 forward that was younger and/or had term on an established contract.

Again, thinking purely about asset management and potential cap implications in the coming years, Johns will get a raise this year because of arbitration, it could be in the $2 million range. He's a year from UFA. Not exactly sure if Nill is ready to pull the gun on a longer deal, but he could be in the $3 to $4 million range on a deal buying some UFA years. Lindell is arbitration eligible and has two more years of RFA after next season. He may end up as a 3rd pair D next year, it's not impossible, but if he's playing Top 2 minutes for the third year in a row, I'd expect a pretty significant raise for him. Nashville has been able to succeed with 4 great D and 3 of them have just major bargain contracts. Klingberg's sweetheart deal is a huge help, but ultimately, I think in 3 or 4 years, you're only going to be able to afford 4 of Heiskanen, Honka, Johns, Klingberg, and Lindell.

It would be a a big win for Dallas if they all develop into key players. Honka probably buys you 5 years to make an ultimate decision as long as he's useful those 5 years. If he develops into a similar player as Vatanen even better. He has 4 more years of free agency after next season. Knowing how conservative Nill is, my guess is he's budgeting money for Heiskanen in the next 3 years that would reflect a top paid defender. I'm absolutely not saying he will be that. I'm merely saying Nill's focus on the cap and the projections for what Heiskanen can seem to reach make it at least reasonable to consider his next contract and what it could look like if Heiskanen continues on his current trajectory.

Hopefully Honka can figure out life in the NHL.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Magic Mittens

jballa95

Registered User
Aug 18, 2013
547
573
Montgomery mentioned Honka as a player he is interested and excited to work with. So I agree with most, don't trade him with his value being low and see what he can do next season with Montgomery.
 

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad

-->