A very good first outing. He did have a giveaway in the first but it may have eluded the stat people.
Compared to Carkner he is Bobby Orr. Carkner had a dreadful night.
Compared to Carkner he is Bobby Orr. Carkner had a dreadful night.
Recalled/Assigned: Donovan down/de Haan up
- Thread starter Bunk Moreland
- Start date
blinkman360
Loyal Players Only
I focused in on him all night and didn't notice a turnover. I do remember one time early on where he seemed to cheat a little on the breakout that almost led to a 2 on 1. Other than that I thought he was great.
Not surprised though. The question-marks never had to do with his talent, just his durability.
The Underboss
Registered User
OlTimeHockey
Registered User
That's DeHaan's biggest asset since before he was drafted - POISE. Smart hockey with iron nerves.
I have always liked this kids game, been a big fan of Calvin since we drafted him. However he’s had three, two serious, operations on his shoulders which would put pause to anyone’s career. I remember when they drafted this kid all they beamed about was his exceptionally high hockey IQ. If he can stay healthy, I know a big if; he will be the real deal. He played 20 minutes, made a couple of hits and seemed to get that first pass right. That’s all we can ask for now, but if he stays healthy we will bemoan the fact it’s taken him so long.
LeapOnOver
Mackenzie is a hack!
yeah I saw that cheat to and he almost got burned but the player flubbed it on the boards. Other than that I agree he was solid.
Yeah, but will we ever see the De Haan that has an offensive side to him. Not for nothing you don't draft a guy 12th overall and trade up several picks to move up to the #12 spot, just for a defenseman that keeps his cool and makes the occasional nice outlet pass. I'm very disappointed in his AHL output, and also he was a minus at Bridgeport.
TeamKidd
Registered User
- Aug 9, 2004
- 6,021
- 2,289
dissapointed? yes. but lets just remember that he's basically played zero hockey for two years prior to this year.
I don't know how you guys are disappointed. I had low expectations but was pleasantly surprised. If he can play as well as he did last night over the next 5 games he would move into their top 4.
And how can you guys not comment on how bad Carkner played? I almost went blind from his unforced and forced mistakes. CdH instantly cemented himself as a far FAR superior defenseman last night to Carks after 1 period.
And how can you guys not comment on how bad Carkner played? I almost went blind from his unforced and forced mistakes. CdH instantly cemented himself as a far FAR superior defenseman last night to Carks after 1 period.
Not for nothing, he sounds like a smaller Eric Brewer, who served his purpose, but generally was considered a bust. I put De haan (and Bailey) in that category. De haan needs to show more than he generally stays calm. I need to see that guy who scored almost a point a game his draft year, and made the WJC team the following year. A 6'0" 185 defensive defenseman won't last long in the NHL without adding more to his game.
blinkman360
Loyal Players Only
At this point I wouldn't care if he had zero offensive ability as long as he plays that calm/poised game defensively. That said, you could see the offensive ability just from his one game. His skating blows away anyone currently on our blue-line. Ness included. His breakout blows away anyone currently on our blue-line(not sure if you saw that lead pass to Grabner, who wasn't paying attention). He gets good hard shots low on net. Not the best shot in the world, but hard and accurate.
Right now, he's better than any defenseman we have offensively. Sometimes the points aren't there, but you can clearly see it when you watch him.
I'm actually surprised that you are nitpicking his game Scott. Figured you'd be happy with any top-4. Who cares where he was drafted as long as he helps us win hockey games. I can't imagine what you'll think of Reinhart when he's shutting down top-lines but only scoring 15-20 points per year.
Reinhart is tabbed as that shutdown defenseman that will add a little offense. De haan was tabbed as an offensive defenseman that has a high hockey IQ as well. Must admit I missed the game, so I really can't comment. But after giving up so much for De haan, I expect more. Hopefully that part of the game will come along. If he's a better skater than Ness, that's pretty high praise, Ness is a good skater.
Jester9881
Registered User
He showed it a couple times last night, you just need to know what to look for. He's not an OFD in the sense that he has a heavy and accurate shot, he's more of a PP QB in that he's really good at opening up lanes, finding sticks for tip shots and drawing defenders to him to open up ice. Basically, the exact opposite of how all our other Dmen try to play offense... and coincidentally exactly what you want from your PP QB in an umbrella system.
redbull
Boss
- Mar 24, 2008
- 12,593
- 654
I'm very disappointed in deHaan's stats, but very happy with the way he played. He looks like a much bigger player than I saw in Oshawa and the WJC but still very smooth and poised. He seems to have a high panic threshold and makes a lot of smart plays, and he can carry the puck out of the zone with confidence.
I'm not sure what kind of coaching or development he's gotten since being drafted, what he was told to work on, and he's missed so much time with injuries, it's so hard to tell where he's at in terms of pro development. But the kid has a lot of smarts and physical skills.
He's always looked, to me, better than Donovan even though Donovan's numbers have been far better.
I can't put my finger on it but much like Hickey, deHaan just seems to do a lot of things "right" out there.
What the Isles "gave up" to get him with that pick is of no consequence at this time. So much has happened to deHaan since then (injuries and lost time) - at this point, I'd be happy if he becomes an effective top 4-5 dman, which I think he's got a great chance to be. I'd take an Edler, Ehrhoff, P.Martin, Voynov, Hjalmarsson - type player (his upside, reaching with 1-2 I know) anytime!
It's been ONE game, but he played 20+ minutes and was probably the best dman out there.
Right now we need D-men that are solid in their own end. I'd rather him keep his game simple right now and get use to the speed of the NHL before he starts rushing the puck. There is nothing wrong with a D-man that just plays solid defense.
rikker
Registered User
Gotta say that I was impressed with CDH. Would love to see Pedan or Mayfield come up soon and have the same success.
Just waiting for the naysayers to poopoo the the idea, but it is more about results than theory. If we are going to promote from within, give the youngins some chances. You just never know what will happen...
Just waiting for the naysayers to poopoo the the idea, but it is more about results than theory. If we are going to promote from within, give the youngins some chances. You just never know what will happen...
I really don't care about his offense, regardless of where he was drafted.
Even if he doesn't put up the points, he showed us that he has the potential to be a very good defenseman. He was solid in his own zone, he made a good first pass, was willing to take the body.
I agree that with his skillset you would think he would be a more offensive player, but he doesn't have to be. When you have guys like Crosby, Malkin, Ovechkin etc in your division, having an elite skater that thinks defense first and can get the puck out of the zone quickly is not a bad thing.
Even if he doesn't put up the points, he showed us that he has the potential to be a very good defenseman. He was solid in his own zone, he made a good first pass, was willing to take the body.
I agree that with his skillset you would think he would be a more offensive player, but he doesn't have to be. When you have guys like Crosby, Malkin, Ovechkin etc in your division, having an elite skater that thinks defense first and can get the puck out of the zone quickly is not a bad thing.
Scoring hasn't really been a problem for us. Defense on the other hand... Winning is the name if the game, not points.
Islanderfan17
Registered User
- Aug 24, 2010
- 5,858
- 13
He played like the puck moving D-man that this team is missing more than anything right now (especially since we lost Visnovsky). I thought he was our best player the other night in terms of doing their job.
blinkman360
Loyal Players Only
Which is why stats, especially for defensemen, don't tell the whole story.
If he were in Bridgeport, and 95% of the people here didn't see the game, they would have looked at his line: 0-0-0; even; 2 shots: and thought, "meh".
Andrew MacDonald had an assist and was +1 that night. IMO de Haan played a much better offensive and defensive game. Unfortunately it didn't show up on the score sheet.
In two games so far De Haan has been night & day better than Donovan. Now if we can get Vis and Strait back and send Ness back to BP, Carkner to the press box, we might have a defense that can compete. I thought Nillson looked really good last night. Both of Crosby's goals were sick.
