News Article: Hirose Amongst Favorites for Calder

[MBH]

To be fair, it's very difficult to accumulate PP points anywhere else.

LOL true

 

[Go Wings]

Caps run the same PP, Ovechkin on the left side and Carlson on the right. With the Wings, it's Green setting up Hronek (left side) for the one timer in the circle. Hronek did get a few shots off but the plays were slow to develop. On PP1, it's Cholo trying to set up Mantha (lefty playing right side), same thing the plays are developing too slowly.

Zone entries still need work but are better than last season, Larkin needs to stop losing FO on PP, passing looks better as well but still needs work, but most of all, the plays are too slow to develop with not enough traffic up front. Gibson had plenty of time to track the puck before Mantha, Cholo, or Hronek shot it.

Lets be honest here Hronek is a better defensmeb than Cholo. Hronek should be on the first unit hes the best puck mover on D on the team.

As for the comparison Detroit does not have the talent of Washington what works for them isnt necessarily going to work for us.

 

[NickH8]

Hirose is definitely in over his head on the 2nd line, but I still think he'll get the points I mentioned earlier by virtue of playing with AA. I can see the criticisms posted in this thread, but those don't affect how he's gotten points in his short NHL career. He's very one dimensional and I honestly don't think he has a long term future on this team. I think Yzerman is going to want more defensively responsible and competitive players in his bottom 6, and Hirose doesn't fit and his value could be inflated by his stats.

 

[izlez]

"He has all the skill in the world. He just needs 1 to go in to get his confidence up, and he will be dominating in no time"


But really, he had 7 points in 10 games last year, 5 points in 6 pre-season games, and has 1 point in 3 games this year. Why are we looking to bury this guy so quickly?

 

[Bondurant]

Hirose is not among Calder favorites. A long shot. Still needs more time. He was an assist machine during his year end cup of coffee but has been quiet this year. I'm not declaring him a Calder contender nor writing him off. He's still transitioning to NHL. Time will tell.

 

[Hatter of the Beach]

Just stop.

I don't see anything wrong with his analysis. Outside of a few nifty passes that show off his vision, Hirose has looked very ineffective, often times a straight up liability.

I still think he can be a good secondary scoring threat, especially now that AA is back, but there are noticible warts to his game. And a Poor Man's Hudler isn't an insult, it's a very good result off a college UFA free asset.

A 8-10 goal, 25-30 assist campaign for Taro would be a very nice season in my eyes. If he can keep production similar to that up on the third line 2-3 years from now when we're deeper at forward depth, he'd be a valuable part of the team.

 

[Gniwder]

Lets be honest here Hronek is a better defensmeb than Cholo. Hronek should be on the first unit hes the best puck mover on D on the team.

As for the comparison Detroit does not have the talent of Washington what works for them isnt necessarily going to work for us.

I'm not debating the talent level, I'm just explaining the setup.

The Wings have tried the same setup with Pulky and Frk. The concept here is to set up for one timers in the circle, and handedness does matter. Caps aren't the only team to run it, but they are one of the most successful simply because they have Ovechkin.

I like Hronek better as well, but the shooter on PP1 is Mantha not Cholo. In fact, I don't like Cholo shooting because he takes too long to set up the puck whereas Hronek, Mantha, and AA do one timers.

 

[Gniwder]

Hirose is definitely in over his head on the 2nd line, but I still think he'll get the points I mentioned earlier by virtue of playing with AA. I can see the criticisms posted in this thread, but those don't affect how he's gotten points in his short NHL career. He's very one dimensional and I honestly don't think he has a long term future on this team. I think Yzerman is going to want more defensively responsible and competitive players in his bottom 6, and Hirose doesn't fit and his value could be inflated by his stats.

I think he's in over his head physically, he's 40+ lbs lighter than the average NHL player (205 lbs). He looks weak and timid out there, I was not impressed with his perimeter play on the 5-on-3s when the puck was in front of the crease. Any other player would have gone and fought for the rebound.

He's got the hockey IQ, but if he doesn't bulk up he'll eventually be replaced by one of the prospects. Right now he seems scared to be near either crease.

 

[Retire91]

Sorry Hirose may be eligible for the Calder but not in the favorites discussion IMO. If we want to call him a long shot I can live with it.

Most calder winners are players that get top line / top pairing / #1 assignments. He may see a lot of power-play time but for the calder he needs first-line minutes. I don't think he's ready that assignment.

 

[GMR]

I didn't realize that Kyle Calder had a trophy named after him.

 

[RedWingsfan55]

I guess I'm in the minority, but I dont see it. Hope to be wrong about him.

 

[rawraw]

Damn, the kid is playing his first 14 pro games and people are ready to write him off. He is still learning the pro game and learning the league.
He needs to get faster and stronger, and he needs more experience.
Give the kid some time people.

 

[Gyldenlove]

Kid has a lot of smarts and just needs some time to get used to the NHL game physically. The PP goal he helped set up for Mantha last night was classic. Pulling the D to his side, send it back for a quick change of sides and let Mantha pull the trigger.

 

[saska sault]

Hirose has hockey IQ, regardless of his size, speed or just about anything else. If he learns to use it game in and out he will find success in the league on a regular basis.. He's already showing it in flashes. He may never be more than a PP specialist with limited d zone starts but that's ok, the game these days is built on special teams and I'll take an advantage in that area anytime we can get it. We have enough defensive oriented players to make up for him if he falls short in that area.

 

[Konnan511]

I guess I'm in the minority, but I dont see it. Hope to be wrong about him.

You're in the wide majority. Read the thread brotha.

 

[golffuul]

8 pts in 14 games......bust

 

[SirloinUB]

8 pts in 14 games......bust

How dare he be considered a.... long shot... in the calder race. /s

 

[rawraw]

The same people who are complaining about Hirose are the same type of people who complained when we picked Larkin.
Just saying.

 

[Retire91]

Damn, the kid is playing his first 14 pro games and people are ready to write him off. He is still learning the pro game and learning the league.
He needs to get faster and stronger, and he needs more experience.
Give the kid some time people.

I don't think people are wrighting him off just saying its a little sensationalist to consider him a Calder leader where he is in his physical development.

 

[izlez]

8 pts in 14 games......bust

This got me thinking. Not that I think he has any chance at winning the Calder, and it is not significant enough in this case to make a huge difference....

but when voting for the Calder, do voters consider the prior year's production if they are still eligible the next year? Does Hirose's 7 points in 10 games factor into this years voting?

 

[TheOtherOne]

I honestly don't know what's more ridiculous. Mentioning him in the same sentence as "Calder", or calling him a bust that won't make it in the NHL.

He's doing fine. He clearly has some skill and hockey IQ. He's taken advantage and produced at a reasonable rate. But he hasn't played much. And he has some areas he needs to work on.

That's it. He doesn't need to be sensationalized. Let him play for a few damn weeks before drawing all these conclusions.

 

[Realgud]

8 pts in 14 games......bust

Saying he won't win the calder trophy = bust?

 

[Hatter of the Beach]

8 pts in 14 games......bust

9

 

[Retire91]

This got me thinking. Not that I think he has any chance at winning the Calder, and it is not significant enough in this case to make a huge difference....

but when voting for the Calder, do voters consider the prior year's production if they are still eligible the next year? Does Hirose's 7 points in 10 games factor into this years voting?

One could never really know for sure that stuff happens behind closed doors but it shouldn't.

 

[golffuul]

Saying he won't win the calder trophy = bust?

Yeah...I was being sarcastic. Obviously any rookie that is at an almost .6 ppg/50 pt season is going to be in the conversation for the Calder.

Does he have some glaring weaknesses? Sure. But he's also less than 15 games into his NHL career.