Blake Wheeler - on track?

[MN_Gopher]

I've seen a lot of wheeler.....

I'm a huge gopher fan and love to give them praise...

but he's just simply been underwhelming, beyond his frame, there isn't much there...not much puck awareness, touch, finishing ability, no great vision.

I know he dominated at the HS level and stuff thats all well and good....

But it would shock me more if he turns out good then if he becomes a bust.

I have to diagree with that almost 100%. Having seen hin play too. He was drafted at 185 and is now close to 230. Probally grew a full inch if not more. That in itself tells me give the guy time. Playing with Kessel to start the year seemed to hurt him. By the end of the year that line was clicking and had some great cycles going. Wheeler did not get prime PP time. He crushed some people but i would like to see him hit more. Has a deadly wrister from the circles. I hope this coming up season he bulks up even a tad more. And plays like a house in front of the net. He looked really good at times and OK at other times.

About the only thing i agree with is his work with the puck. He gets the puck lost in his feet. But i attribute that more to his growth and lack of fine motor coordination. His speed and hands in space are well above average.

 

[Alberta Yote]

I think everyone will agree that we won't know the kind of NHL player he may be for another 2, 3 or even 4 years. Yotes fans have been told and come to accept that since he was drafted.

Yes I wish we could have drafted someone that came in a made a big impact very quickly. I also wish we had a first in 2003. I wish we didn't have really bad luck in the "Crosby" draft and fall to 19th. I wish Koreis wasn't a dud. I wish Kolanos hadn't been cheap shotted. What is done is done. The Yotes are due for a few good breaks in the first round.

 

[Vipers]

I think you're misunderstanding the Yotes needs at the time. The franchise's system at the time was both relatively bare (with no 1st or 2nd rounder from the outstanding 2003 draft) and limited in upside with selections such as Koreis, Eager, Sjostrom, Spiller. All of these were "safe" and "sensible" picks and none had impact potential. Secondly, another two prospects with the brightest potential, Kolanos and Podlesak had succumbed to repeated concussions.

So in 2004, you have a franchise with not much impact potential in their future to help any rebuilding efforts, plus one fearful of players with concussion history (Olesz). Also the draft was considered to be extremely top heavy - it has since proven to be much better than first thought but we are dealing with what was known at that time. The drop off from Ovechkin/Malkin to Ladd the #3 forward selected is still ginormous.

Hence they opted for the shortcut and rolled the dice with Wheeler, rather than make yet another "safe" selection. Also it was the first time the Coyotes as a franchise have ever had a top 10 pick- they really needed a star player, not another mediocre NHLer. They seem to be cursed by weak draft years every time they pick high or have multiple first rounders.

A comment on Wheeler's development - slow starts are a feature of his progress thus far, he seems to really improve as he gets more comfortable at that level. Boyle may have gone 26th but that was in a vastly stronger draft year, in which another huge project, Hugh Jessiman, went 12th.

Diiferent speaking from two years ago you've said09-14-2004, 07:54 AM, on Wheeler theme)



Freddie Sjostrom was indeed a somewhat surprising pick (although nowhere on the scale of Wheeler's selection). If you believe it was a poor pick I can only assume you havent seen him recently.

Just because Hemsky and Kobasew made the NHL faster doesnt make them better. Remember also they are almost a year older than Sjostrom, who has equalled their starts with 7 goals in his 57 games. Additionally Sjostrom brings a ton of energy and two-way play.. he is set to mature into a very valuable all-round top six guy in the mould of Lehtinen which would make this an excellent pick.

 

[PhoPhan]

So what's the conflict?

 

[XX]

Blake Wheeler is like that $20 bill you find in a pocket you didnt know you had. Thats if he pans out.

 

[Draft Guru]

Well, I couldn't tell ya how good of a hockey player is, but I do like his halloween costume!

(Wheeler is second from the left, followed by Stoa and Kessel).

 

[Gwyddbwyll]

Freddie Sjostrom was indeed a somewhat surprising pick (although nowhere on the scale of Wheeler's selection). If you believe it was a poor pick I can only assume you havent seen him recently.

Additionally Sjostrom brings a ton of energy and two-way play.. he is set to mature into a very valuable all-round top six guy in the mould of Lehtinen which would make this an excellent pick.

I dont consider Sjostrom a poor pick and it's good to see someone else acknowledging his attributes. Just that Sjostrom isnt likely to become a franchise player or leader although I certainly hope he hits his Lehtinen upside which would make him very valuable indeed. But I dont think he's going to be an impact or franchise player.

 

[Just Joshin']

Next season should give us a better idea on how well Wheeler is progressing. He'll get more playing time now that Potulny, Irmen, and Chucko are gone, and it will give him an opportunity to show what he's capable of. The Gophers don't seem to have too much depth at forward and will need players like Wheeler to produce. It'll be even worse if Kessel leaves after the draft, then they'll have to rely on Wheeler, Stoa, Okposo, and Gordon for offense. There are high expectations for Wheeler next season and be interesting to see how he does.

 

[Alberta Yote]

Well, I couldn't tell ya how good of a hockey player is, but I do like his halloween costume!

(Wheeler is second from the left, followed by Stoa and Kessel).

I think Kessel's hipsize will be problematic in the new NHL as it will limit his mobility amoungst the bigger players. I can see him dropping to around 10.

 

[Lalander977]

Well, I couldn't tell ya how good of a hockey player is, but I do like his halloween costume!

(Wheeler is second from the left, followed by Stoa and Kessel).

Who's the fourth one?

 

[Draft Guru]

Who's the fourth one?

The one all the way to the left is Justin Borstrom.

Just some college kids having fun. Thought I'd toss it in here for a few laughs

 

[hockeyfan125]

Blake Wheeler is like that $20 bill you find in a pocket you didnt know you had. Thats if he pans out.

maybe if he was picked in the second round, but not that high.

 

[rt]

Well, I couldn't tell ya how good of a hockey player is, but I do like his halloween costume!

(Wheeler is second from the left, followed by Stoa and Kessel).

Where the hell did you get that?

 

[barfy2000]

It doesn't really matter if he's on track. They got Enver Lisin that year and he's better anyways.

 

[Seph]

Well, I couldn't tell ya how good of a hockey player is, but I do like his halloween costume!

(Wheeler is second from the left, followed by Stoa and Kessel).

I don't even want to know what Stoa is doing to that poor bull...

 

[Draft Guru]

Where the hell did you get that?

A lot of the college players have profiles on facebook.com...its kinda like Myspace, but for college kids. It was one of the photos posted on Blake's profile

 

[Vipers]

So what's the conflict?

There's no conflict. The only problem is Stevex said that 2 yrs ago:


Freddie Sjostrom was indeed a somewhat surprising pick (although nowhere on the scale of Wheeler's selection). If you believe it was a poor pick I can only assume you havent seen him recently.

Just because Hemsky and Kobasew made the NHL faster doesnt make them better. Remember also they are almost a year older than Sjostrom, who has equalled their starts with 7 goals in his 57 games. Additionally Sjostrom brings a ton of energy and two-way play.. he is set to mature into a very valuable all-round top six guy in the mould of Lehtinen which would make this an excellent pick.

And he saying that i'm supporting him. Sorry, my english is not the best one but I try.
I never agreed w/Wheeler's choice at # 5. There were too many good players in that draft. Following the guess w/Sjostrom they continued w/Wheeler.
I like Phoenix team but I'd never take: Wheeler where they picked him.