Speculation: Armchair GM - Offseason Thread (Summer Edition)

[CBJx614]

The more I think about it, the more I love a Johnson-Fantilli-Laine line. All 3 have playmaking ability with Fantilli and Laine both being superb shooters. Johnson is the only small body which really shouldn't be too small if he can put on a little muscle.

 

[majormajor]

The more I think about it, the more I love a Johnson-Fantilli-Laine line. All 3 have playmaking ability with Fantilli and Laine both being superb shooters. Johnson is the only small body which really shouldn't be too small if he can put on a little muscle.

That works also because Gaudreau is capable of carrying offense on a line without those three.

 

[stevo61]

The more I think about it, the more I love a Johnson-Fantilli-Laine line. All 3 have playmaking ability with Fantilli and Laine both being superb shooters. Johnson is the only small body which really shouldn't be too small if he can put on a little muscle.

Johnson is also no slouch as a shooter either. Could be an incredibly fun line, Id just hope Laine doesnt get too caught up playing fun and uses that absolute weapon of a shot he has lots

 

[VT]

https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/columbus-blue-jackets/columbus-blue-jackets/adam-boqvist-interviews-with-swedish-site

 

[CBJx614]

Johnson is also no slouch as a shooter either. Could be an incredibly fun line, Id just hope Laine doesnt get too caught up playing fun and uses that absolute weapon of a shot he has lots

Johnson is accurate but I don't know that he's capable of wristing a laser like those two can. But with those two out there I think he's gonna get a lot a chances as opposing teams will be cheating towards them leaving him to get really good looks.

 

[stevo61]

Johnson is accurate but I don't know that he's capable of wristing a laser like those two can. But with those two out there I think he's gonna get a lot a chances as opposing teams will be cheating towards them leaving him to get really good looks.

I mean yeah, not many people on the planet can shoot like Laine but I think Johnson's shot is pretty underrated because he plays more like a playmaker. I like the potential line though, if it clicks that would be an incredible line.

 

[Jovavic]

Fantilli and Laine would work best with a banger on their line, to fish pucks out of the corner so Laine can either rip one timers or make a quick pass to Fantilli.

 

[stevo61]

Fantilli and Laine would work best with a banger on their line, to fish pucks out of the corner so Laine can either rip one timers or make a quick pass to Fantilli.

I dont know how he'll be out of the gate in that department but thats actually a skill Fantilli himself is good at. I guess it could be a good spot for Tex if he learns that he doesnt need to go 100mph at all times

 

[CBJx614]

Fantilli and Laine would work best with a banger on their line, to fish pucks out of the corner so Laine can either rip one timers or make a quick pass to Fantilli.

I don't know that they do. Neither necessarily shy away from contact. I think both are more than capable of sticking up for themselves. Fantilli had a reputation for fighting before he entered the NCAA and IIRC correctly got suspended for fighting in the NCAA.

Edit : *Disqualified

 

[majormajor]

I don't know that they do. Neither necessarily shy away from contact. I think both are more than capable of sticking up for themselves. Fantilli had a reputation for fighting before he entered the NCAA and IIRC correctly got suspended for fighting in the NCAA.

Edit : *Disqualified

It sounded more like they were talking about the need for a retriever on the line, not a fighter.

 

[Farmboy Patty]

The more I think about it, the more I love a Johnson-Fantilli-Laine line. All 3 have playmaking ability with Fantilli and Laine both being superb shooters. Johnson is the only small body which really shouldn't be too small if he can put on a little muscle.

I can imagine them being a killer line and taking the league by surprise. Huge offensive potential when matched properly!

 

[Farmboy Patty]

I don't know. Danforth is RH, so maybe they could use him in another line. With Fantilli ony if Adam would play in the third line. Next, I think Laine should play on left side. From there, he moves to C more effectively as RH, and even if Babs doesn't use him as at C, he would have more shooting options. Besides he can play with anyone if he moves his feet, be a TOP player. I hope Babs has a thorough talk with him about this. The third should be a tough player who plays great in front of the goalie, at the boards, but at the same time doesn't have the hockey IQ of a rocking horse. The big problem is that we have too many players and even if we wanted to have three offensive lines like Florida had in the PO, we would still have some players available.

IIRC Babcock talked about bringing the joy back to Laine’s game, which I interpreted as getting back the moxy and thinking about scoring any time he sees the opportunity. But that’s just what I read from it, and he has developed a lot in other areas. I’ve just got the impression that he has spent so much in developing his overall game that he has kind of surpressed his goal scoring instinct. It was not a fluke that he almost scored at will when he was wired that way when he came into the league. I hope that he finds the middle way gelling with his line mates this upcoming season.

 

[Farmboy Patty]

Johnson is also no slouch as a shooter either. Could be an incredibly fun line, Id just hope Laine doesnt get too caught up playing fun and uses that absolute weapon of a shot he has lots

As long as it ends being a goal scored, everyone will be happy All three have serious game making abilities, and if they end up on the same line I can see KJ being the puck hog that the opponents will expect to pass the puck to Fantilli or Laine and instead sniping it.

 

[VT]

Johnson is also no slouch as a shooter either. Could be an incredibly fun line, Id just hope Laine doesnt get too caught up playing fun and uses that absolute weapon of a shot he has lots

Lars said he moved Laine over to Jenner and Nyquist for the sake of getting him to shoot more, since he was still trying to combine with Voráček. Btw, even Jakub told him to shoot and not pass. That's why I might join Laine with similar players. Otherwise, Patrik may still try to pass to Fantilli.

 

[tunnelvision]

Too many players, too few spots: Blue Jackets expect intense competition in camp

Here's how we view the roster battles heading into training camp next week — when tough decisions will begin for Columbus.

theathletic.com

Porty expects these players to be "roster locks".

At forward (9): Gaudreau, Laine, Jenner, Johnson, Kuraly, Fantilli, Marchenko, Texier, Roslovic
Defense (6): Werenski, Severson, Provorov, Boqvist, Gudbranson

"strong candidates":

Forward (5): Sillinger, Voronkov, Robinson, Danforth, Olivier
Defense (4): Jiricek, Bean, Blankenburg, Peeke

"in the running":

Forward (5): Chinakhov, Foudy, Bemstrom
Defense (1): Christiansen

---------

How I see it:

Locks:

Gaudreau, Laine, Jenner, Johnson, Kuraly, Fantilli, Marchenko, Danforth
Werenski, Severson, Provorov, Gudbranson, Peeke

Stronger candidates:

Texier, Roslovic, Olivier, Robinson, Voronkov, Chinakhov
Boqvist, Blankenburg, Bean

Weaker candidates:

Sillinger, Bemstrom, Foudy
Jiricek

 

[barriers]

I was a bit surprised he listed Texier as a 'lock' and think he perhaps should have been with the Stronger candidates but I think it's likely he and Danforth make the team

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

I'm going to go ahead and ask if there are others who are just nonplussed about the love affair with Justin Danforth.

I'm sure the response will be to take my understanding of the game of hockey to task, but I don't get the fascination. I don't not like the player, and I understand that he brought certain abilities and predispositions to a roster that lacked them and was, much of the time, completely out of whack. But if Babcock gets the whole roster playing the right way, I'm not sure Danforth stands out as much.

Without seeing them in camp and allowing for Babcock to do what he thinks is best, I think my approach would be to keep him on as a 13th forward who can play in almost any configuration on a night-in-night-out basis.

As always, I'm happy to be wrong. Just a take.

 

[stevo61]

I'm going to go ahead and ask if there are others who are just nonplussed about the love affair with Justin Danforth.

I'm sure the response will be to take my understanding of the game of hockey to task, but I don't get the fascination. I don't not like the player, and I understand that he brought certain abilities and predispositions to a roster that lacked them and was, much of the time, completely out of whack. But if Babcock gets the whole roster playing the right way, I'm not sure Danforth stands out as much.

Without seeing them in camp and allowing for Babcock to do what he thinks is best, I think my approach would be to keep him on as a 13th forward who can play in almost any configuration on a night-in-night-out basis.

As always, I'm happy to be wrong. Just a take.

But in the whole team building concept guys like him are worthy of spots. Even Cup winners have guys that dont wow you but quietly do their job no questions asked. I like Danforth for his compete, responisibility and the ability to provide offense in a depth role or fill in from time to time higher in the lineup. Having high compete energy lines that can chip in some offense would be a nice change of pace. I dont remember in Toronto how Babcock structured his lines, if hes the old school roster building Texier+Danforth could be 2/3 of a pretty pesky energy line that can provide offense. Or depending on what Babcock thinks of Olivier they can split time

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

But in the whole team building concept guys like him are worthy of spots. Even Cup winners have guys that dont wow you but quietly do their job no questions asked. I like Danforth for his compete, responisibility and the ability to provide offense in a depth role or fill in from time to time higher in the lineup. Having high compete energy lines that can chip in some offense would be a nice change of pace. I dont remember in Toronto how Babcock structured his lines, if hes the old school roster building Texier+Danforth could be 2/3 of a pretty pesky energy line that can provide offense. Or depending on what Babcock thinks of Olivier they can split time

Yeah I feel like Danforth stood out in some of those areas only by comparison to the rest of the squad and I'm not convinced he's an "elite" "meat and potatoes" guy that you're just going to automatically find room for. It's not about roster configuration, it's about Danforth.

No ill will to the guy, I just don't see it. Again, happy to be wrong.

 

[squashmaple]

Danforth is another Riley Nash archetype. You want that kind of player in the room and on the roster, even if he's not flashy.

 

[NotCommitted]

Yeah I feel like Danforth stood out in some of those areas only by comparison to the rest of the squad and I'm not convinced he's an "elite" "meat and potatoes" guy that you're just going to automatically find room for. It's not about roster configuration, it's about Danforth.

No ill will to the guy, I just don't see it. Again, happy to be wrong.

He hasn't really played that much and his injury last season was really unfortunate, but what I see in him (potentially) is a player who can tilt the ice with enough skill to sort of keep up with the offensive talent, or just make the bottom-6 better, whatever is needed. If he is that guy, that's really valuable player to have, and he should improve with the team around him improving.

 

[cslebn]

I'm going to go ahead and ask if there are others who are just nonplussed about the love affair with Justin Danforth.

I'm sure the response will be to take my understanding of the game of hockey to task, but I don't get the fascination. I don't not like the player, and I understand that he brought certain abilities and predispositions to a roster that lacked them and was, much of the time, completely out of whack. But if Babcock gets the whole roster playing the right way, I'm not sure Danforth stands out as much.

Without seeing them in camp and allowing for Babcock to do what he thinks is best, I think my approach would be to keep him on as a 13th forward who can play in almost any configuration on a night-in-night-out basis.

As always, I'm happy to be wrong. Just a take.

For me it goes back to Crosby a coupe years ago talking unsolicited about how tough Danforth was to play against. That was some respect shown there and speaks to me of deserving a place.

I do think it got blown up a bit when Lars was trying him at 1C at one point (preseason I think).

 

[thebus88]

Does anybody else think there were more to those Gudbranson comments from last year yet?

Torts and Larsen and Babcock??

Just Larsen and some bad practice drills??

Or something different??

 

[koteka]

Or something different??

I am really interested to have someone interview Korpi and Gavrikov in a couple of years about the Jackets. Let them have a couple of seasons to gain some perspective. Don’t interview them now. But they are two guys who were starting their NHL careers as the Jackets were peaking and they were around through the decline through last season. They also weren’t stars or leaders - they were just guys on the team. I really want to know their perspectives. Boone or Werenski would have a different perspective, but I am more interested in what Korpi and Gavi would have to say.

 

[ThirdPeriodTurtle]

Korpi and Gavi also may not have been trained quite as much on "North American sports talk", so indeed might say something a bit closer to the truth in a few years (or even let their guard down for local interviews etc).

But I'm not really expecting a whole lot of drama (regarding Bus's insinuations). I think the Babcock stuff already trumps whatever happened in the Larsen era.