LW Patrik Laine - Tappara, Liiga (2016 Draft) V

[cotopaxi]

Laine is definitely not better at deking.

That's an interesting statement to make considering Laine's one-on-one arsenal and how often he challenges the opponents with his deking. I can't say the same for Barkov, sure he can be flashy but stating that he's better at deking is pretty weird especially since that has not been Barkov's game in the past and will not be in the future. Why would Barkov be better at deking when obviously he cannot really do that as a responsible two-way center?

 

[skillhockey]

That's an interesting statement to make considering Laine's one-on-one arsenal and how often he challenges the opponents with his deking. I can't say the same for Barkov, sure he can be flashy but stating that he's better at deking is pretty weird especially since that has not been Barkov's game in the past and will not be in the future. Why would Barkov be better at deking when obviously he cannot really do that as a responsible two-way center?

We this is pure bs. Like datsyuk can't, er what.

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

That's an interesting statement to make considering Laine's one-on-one arsenal and how often he challenges the opponents with his deking. I can't say the same for Barkov, sure he can be flashy but stating that he's better at deking is pretty weird especially since that has not been Barkov's game in the past and will not be in the future. Why would Barkov be better at deking when obviously he cannot really do that as a responsible two-way center?

I tried to find a good highlight video for 15-16 but couldn't find any, there used to be a 5 min clip that included couple nasty shootout winners, some subtle but awesome dekes in play and also a couple of very flashy dekes that almost ended up in the back of the net.

Just because Barkov doesn't do it all the time doesn't mean he isn't great at it. He's got a very good arsenal of moves and most importantly they're almost always very efficient. He doesn't do it if it's not the best way to go to the net or beat a defender.

I remember one move he did where he kind of deked like Laine in the game against US but he actually went clean through the legs (Laine doesn't) and beat the D out of his jock, then deked another played while going straight to the net and almost scored. That was amazing.

Honestly, i think his hands are quicker than Laine's.

But yeah.. whatever opinion anyone has, i don't see why player A wouldn't be as good as player B just because he doesn't do it as often. Im sure Laine won't be going for the dekes as often once he's played a couple seasons in the NHL.

 

[cotopaxi]

We this is pure bs. Like datsyuk can't, er what.

Wonder which post here is bs. Show me some of Barkov's famous one-on-one dekes please?

He definitely has world class hands but no he doesn't deke like Datsyuk, I can't actually recall that many times when he'd deke around someone so please if you have more proof to your obvious knowledge please tell.

Also if you're implying that because Datsyuk can deke as a center, so can Barkov and therefore has better deking than Laine? What, why?

 

[cotopaxi]

I tried to find a good highlight video for 15-16 but couldn't find any, there used to be a 5 min clip that included couple nasty shootout winners, some subtle but awesome dekes in play and also a couple of very flashy dekes that almost ended up in the back of the net.

Just because Barkov doesn't do it all the time doesn't mean he isn't great at it. He's got a very good arsenal of moves and most importantly they're almost always very efficient. He doesn't do it if it's not the best way to go to the net or beat a defender.

I remember one move he did where he kind of deked like Laine in the game against US but he actually went clean through the legs (Laine doesn't) and beat the D out of his jock, then deked another played while going straight to the net and almost scored. That was amazing.

Honestly, i think his hands are quicker than Laine's.

But yeah.. whatever opinion anyone has, i don't see why player A wouldn't be as good as player B just because he doesn't do it as often. Im sure Laine won't be going for the dekes as often once he's played a couple seasons in the NHL.

Yeah agree with you, not saying Barkov doesn't have the skill. But we're talking about Laine who obviously is known for getting past that defender and not being afraid to deke - compared to Barkov who has a million better options usually than to try and deke - so saying he's the better deker just doesn't sound right to me.

Laine's toe drag looks like a result of a lot work and it reminds me of Hossa's because he does it so well and usually succeeds with it, so I could see it cause some havoc in the NHL as well. Could not be the case though, not used to seeing a Finn never mind a Finnish rookie do that too often so hard to tell.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmgBKl-Qyyw You can see it nicely in this video (shift by shift from HIFK series), for example if you watch from 6:35. Also notice how he basically glides from the red line all the way to the net while carrying the puck. That's very difficult to defend against because when he pulls the puck back you can't tell if he's going to shoot it or toe drag it around you. And as you can see the dman went for the shot and Laine past him with one stride.

 

[Stephen]

Is the Laine toe drag his signature move?

 

[cotopaxi]

Is the Laine toe drag his signature move?

It has a ring to it.

 

[Gsus]

Is the Laine toe drag his signature move?

Yup. In 1-on-1's he uses it almost more often than not. And it its beautiful.

I think this is the best I've seen from him (at 6:36):

 

[Brewsky]

I'd say Laine has Alex Semin's skill set but plays the game like Ovi. He'll never have the first 3 strides Ovi has that makes him so deadly and he'll never have the vision of Mario Lemieux or Jagr. He's a great prospect, but in regards to production he's more likely to end up in the Rick Nash/Cory Perry territory, and if he hits his ceiling in the Kovalchuk/Heatley area.

Puljujarvi's unique. A better skating Wheeler may be it. He's big and can skate like Kovalchuk, but he doesn't quite have the puck control or shot to be a 50 goal guy.

How is Laine like Ovi at all - those comparisons really just need to stop? He doesn't skate like him, nor accelerate like him, he doesn't hit like him at all. If anything he's Semin not Ovi. Hell, I like the Heatley/Nash comparison (since Laine's weakest trait is I'd say his skating), Kovalchuk's acceleration was lethal back in his prime.

Laine would be comparable to Kovalchuk if he had Pulju's skating.

 

[Stephen]

So Rick Nash is a good comparison? Deadly hands, great arsenal of shots, not elite speed, but big frame.

 

[Derrty]

Don't know alot about him, but he looks pretty slow. Hopefully he can improve his skating, otherwise he will have a tough time adjusting to the NHL. I could be completely off though. As all I have seen is youtube clips. It just wasn't what I was expecting, with all the hype surrounding him.

Can't wait to see all these guys play in the World Championships!

 

[Gsus]

At skating isn't Laine a little comparable with Lemieux? Big guy and when he gets his wheels going he's flying. His skating isn't bad at all but the explosiveness like Ovi or those guys just isn't there. With his determination I'm sure he will develop into a good skater. Laine will be scary good when the explosiveness develops just look at Malkin.

No, I don't mean Laine is the next Lemieux.

 

[TimeZone]

The only thing that worries me about Laine is his poor acceleration.

 

[skillhockey]

Wonder which post here is bs. Show me some of Barkov's famous one-on-one dekes please?

He definitely has world class hands but no he doesn't deke like Datsyuk, I can't actually recall that many times when he'd deke around someone so please if you have more proof to your obvious knowledge please tell.

Also if you're implying that because Datsyuk can deke as a center, so can Barkov and therefore has better deking than Laine? What, why?

he cannot really do that as a responsible two-way center? This is your quote. And response was for this which you sure got but twisted to something else.

 

[BB88]

Laine is definitely not better at deking.

Barkov is slightly faster as well. But for player of his size it's tough to get your legs going on the big ice. Just give him some games and he'll be alright.

Barkov is not fast though, his skating is just enough for the NHL because of his smarts and long reach. Not sure why anyone would say he's fast.

Barkov is a great skater these days, you watch Florida games and the crew is just crazy about him and keep talking about his skating, Pierre is in love with him

How is Laine like Ovi at all - those comparisons really just need to stop? He doesn't skate like him, nor accelerate like him, he doesn't hit like him at all. If anything he's Semin not Ovi. Hell, I like the Heatley/Nash comparison (since Laine's weakest trait is I'd say his skating), Kovalchuk's acceleration was lethal back in his prime.

Laine would be comparable to Kovalchuk if he had Pulju's skating.

Laine can play physical game, and the bigger the game the more physical he becomes, and he just turned 18y.

The only thing that worries me about Laine is his poor acceleration.

He knows that his weaknes and they will focus on that this offseason and in the future, wouldn't be too surprised to see it improve a lot this offseason.

 

[kelsier]

The only thing that worries me about Laine is his poor acceleration.

And that's one damn good consern to have, considering acceleration is one of the easiest things to fix. Especially when you take in count the missed off-season and the giant leap in skating right after. Not to mention for a guy who is a mammoth of a prospect at the age of 18.

 

[cotopaxi]

he cannot really do that as a responsible two-way center? This is your quote. And response was for this which you sure got but twisted to something else.

Yeah exactly. You for some reason compared him to Datsyuk who's a generational talent when it comes to deking and I guarantee you Barkov doesn't have the same hands. If he did I'm sure we'd see more of them, but we don't as he doesn't really use dekes atleast anymore because there often is a smarter option available.

If Barkov played a different role I could see him deke more, but that is not his game at this moment. Laine on the other hand is flashy almost every shift because that is actually part of his game so I can't really see the point how Barkov would be better at deking.

 

[teravaineSAROS]

Acceleration seems to be the biggest thing for him to overcome to be able to do stuff in small rink that he did in Liiga. If it's only a gym and fine tuning of technique then no problem. But if his first steps don't get significantly better I doubt him being star in NHL.. I don't want to sound negative he WILL make a long career in NHL anyway..

Like how Corey Perry never managed to be a star? oh wait...

 

[FinlandPanther]

Barkov has improved his skating immensely to where he is fast now for a player his size. Laine has a lot of work to do to get to Barkov's skating but I know he will become a good skater as well. And funny someone calls me out on Barkov. I've watched every game since he's been in the NHL so don't patronize me. Love both players, but Barkov is a better skater by a decent margin.

 

[FinlandPanther]

Your nick shows probably from which side you watch the game. I have nothing against Barkov. He has great offensive and defensive talents. Definitely a much more complete player than Laine. But Laine has also several areas already better than Barkov (shot, deking skills, and hitting). And by the basis of the USA game it is easy to say that Laine is clearly the faster skater of the two. In fact was quite depressing to see how slow Barkov really was in that game. Although by all the other means his game was looking already quite ok after travelling and probable jetlag.

Might of course be that the jetlag was affecting his skating still a bit. But I have seen him play this season in several games in the NHL too, and have to say that although his skating has definitely improved from two years ago, it definitely is not even good yet. Maybe a bit above average already, but by no means can I see that his skating is really that great as some of his fans like to think here.

In my opinion Barkov is a tad overrated player so far. That was shown especially in the playoffs series against the Islanders, where Tavares outplayed Barkov in almost every single game. It can be seen that even Barkov has a lot to learn still, although he definitely is a very mature player for his age. But definitely if you see that Barkov can match the top speed that Laine has, then you have to be a biased Barkov fan. Otherwise I don't see that simply possible.

I'm a fan of Finland and the Panthers. Saying I'm biased is pretty hilarious. Barkov happened to come to my team. If Laine came I would be just as excited. Wow Barkov got outplayed by one of the better players in the game who is 6 years older... No way! Barkov overrated and not a good skater... Wonder who really has the agenda?

 

[93LEAFS]

How is Laine like Ovi at all - those comparisons really just need to stop? He doesn't skate like him, nor accelerate like him, he doesn't hit like him at all. If anything he's Semin not Ovi. Hell, I like the Heatley/Nash comparison (since Laine's weakest trait is I'd say his skating), Kovalchuk's acceleration was lethal back in his prime.

Laine would be comparable to Kovalchuk if he had Pulju's skating.

He tries to play like Ovi how he sets up on the powerplay and the moves he uses, combined with his elite shot. He clearly doesn't have or ever will have Ovi's first 3 strides. I think he tries to play an Ovechkin style game possess Semin's skill set. Which is average skating, but amazing hands and shot. Laine has a bit more in-regards to size, but Semin wasn't a small guy.

 

[93LEAFS]

I'm a fan of Finland and the Panthers. Saying I'm biased is pretty hilarious. Barkov happened to come to my team. If Laine came I would be just as excited. Wow Barkov got outplayed by one of the better players in the game who is 6 years older... No way! Barkov overrated and not a good skater... Wonder who really has the agenda?

4. Closer to 3 1/2 considering how much we hear about 7 months mattering.

 

[BB88]

He tries to play like Ovi how he sets up on the powerplay and the moves he uses, combined with his elite shot. He clearly doesn't have or ever will have Ovi's first 3 strides. I think he tries to play an Ovechkin style game possess Semin's skill set. Which is average skating, but amazing hands and shot. Laine has a bit more in-regards to size, but Semin wasn't a small guy.

I would say Laine ends up being a good/strong skater for his size, he already looked good against Larkin and Foligno, had no problems with the speed.
Laines difference to Ovy will be that he's not a lazy player without the puck, he will fight more.


I think it's pretty crazy to blame Barkov for that Islanders series, he had to play top pairing defenseman minutes due to Trocheck and Bjugstad injuries, he was played like crazy and Jagr wasn't helping the line as he was in the regular season.
Barkov was one of the best, if not the best player for Florida on that series.

 

[FinlandPanther]

I would say Laine ends up being a good/strong skater for his size, he already looked good against Larkin and Foligno, had no problems with the speed.
Laines difference to Ovy will be that he's not a lazy player without the puck, he will fight more

I think it's pretty crazy to blame Barkov for that Islanders series, he had to play top pairing defenseman minutes due to Trocheck and Bjugstad injuries, he was played like crazy and Jagr wasn't helping the line as he was in the regular season.
Barkov was one of the best, if not the best player for Florida on that series.

I'm glad someone knows what they're talking about in regards to Barky. I know for a fact you actually watch the game because I've seen you on our baords

 

[FinlandPanther]

4. Closer to 3 1/2 considering how much we hear about 7 months mattering.

Tavares is 25 Barky is 20...