Player Discussion Mika Zibanejad [Warning Post #3]

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Not a winning player. Period. He’s a passenger at best. We need drivers. Next!

4th on the team in primary points/60. A passenger? I guess Miller is a scrub then

 

[Chimpradamus]

Well, Zibanejad was a beast before his concussion and players usually struggle alot coming back from one. I think he has been fine.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Well, Zibanejad was a beast before his concussion and players usually struggle alot coming back from one. I think he has been fine.

Yes. He is anything but a passenger. You know who is a passenger? Vesey.

 

[Edge]

What gives you the indication that he has all these tools. In his 6 year career he has never been a #1 Center.

You’re right, he’s never been a number one center. Unfortunately merely having the tools does not a first line player make.

But the tools are there - the hands, vision, skating, size, shot, etc.

For a variety of reasons though, they’ve never come together.

 

[Paulie Walnutz]

4th on the team in primary points/60. A passenger? I guess Miller is a scrub then

What does he get for that? A balloon and a small trophy? Being at the top of any stat on this team is like being the smartest kid who rides the short bus.

 

[Larrybiv]

Yes. He is anything but a passenger. You know who is a passenger? Vesey.

You can't handle the truth. (Then click video)

 

[Nopuckluck]

4th on the team in primary points/60. A passenger? I guess Miller is a scrub then

Not a huge fan of Miller either. Actually not a huge fan of any Ranger right now. Mika displays zero passion. He couldn’t motivate a starving dog to eat with his play. To me a driver is someone that carries his team on their backs. Motivates those around him either verbally or through his play to up their games. Mika does none of this. He’s like Linus from Charlie Browns Peanuts gang. With his blanket (Kreider) he can function. Without it he shuts down. A number 1 Center/driver doesn’t need a blanket. PLUS HES SO FREAKIN SOFT

 

[NCRanger]

Not a huge fan of Miller either. Actually not a huge fan of any Ranger right now. Mika displays zero passion. He couldn’t motivate a starving dog to eat with his play. To me a driver is someone that carries his team on their backs. Motivates those around him either verbally or through his play to up their games. Mika does none of this. He’s like Linus from Charlie Browns Peanuts gang. With his blanket (Kreider) he can function. Without it he shuts down. A number 1 Center/driver doesn’t need a blanket. PLUS HES SO FREAKIN SOFT

I wouldn't be shocked if he ate Tide Pods.

 

[will1066]

I wouldn't be shocked if he ate Tide Pods.

AV passes them out before puck drop. "Hey boys, candy! Eat these, they will give you super strength for the first five minutes."

 

[Kovalev27]

I’m a big fan of this kid and it’s clear he’s a guy that struggles coming back from injury. My biggest gripe is I was expecting him to be better defensively. Hasn’t been.

But he’s def a solid solid player. Needs a healthy season

 

[NCRanger]

AV passes them out before puck drop. "Hey boys, candy! Eat these, they will give you super strength for the first five minutes."

The way the Rangers usually play in the first five minutes, this is highly likely.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Not a huge fan of Miller either. Actually not a huge fan of any Ranger right now. Mika displays zero passion. He couldn’t motivate a starving dog to eat with his play. To me a driver is someone that carries his team on their backs. Motivates those around him either verbally or through his play to up their games. Mika does none of this. He’s like Linus from Charlie Browns Peanuts gang. With his blanket (Kreider) he can function. Without it he shuts down. A number 1 Center/driver doesn’t need a blanket. PLUS HES SO FREAKIN SOFT

You say this, but then complain when people mock you.

 

[PatrikBerglund]

How bad has he been after coming back from his concussion?

 

[Nopuckluck]

You say this, but then complain when people mock you.

What is there to mock in that? I’m curious. If you think Mika motivates others or is not soft then I don’t know what you’re watching and most Rangers fans would disagree with you

 

[mrmovies779]

I wouldnt call Mika soft,but i would like to see him engaged quite a bit more.He does it when he wants,but not enough.

 

[Nopuckluck]

I wouldnt call Mika soft,but i would like to see him engaged quite a bit more.He does it when he wants,but not enough.

When has he been engaged? Especially since he’s returned from his latest concussion. He’s 1 hit away from retirement and playing like he knows it

 

[Sayba]

You can't play softer than he has played for us. We didn't get the player he was in Ottawa. Example in 3 essentially full seasons with Ottawa he had 118, 149, 111 hits. Last season in 56 games he had 23 and this season in 44 games he has 44 which is in fairness an improvement but he doesn't seem like a physical player at all to me when he at 1 time had some component of that to his game.

 

[Griffinbw]

You can't play softer than he has played for us. We didn't get the player he was in Ottawa. Example in 3 essentially full seasons with Ottawa he had 118, 149, 111 hits. Last season in 56 games he had 23 and this season in 44 games he has 44 which is in fairness an improvement but he doesn't seem like a physical player at all to me when he at 1 time had some component of that to his game.

Hit totals decrease significantly with age. AVs system (lack of board work and forecheck) also allows for less hits
This isn’t a surprise

 

[McRanger]

I'm not sure I can properly articulate how little I give a shit if Zibs doesn't hit people or if people think he's soft.

Its 2018. Not 1978.

He needs to be healthy. And he needs to be productive. That's it. The rest of this is just blue seat bullshit.

 

[haveandare]

There are maybe a handful of "drivers" in the entire league if you consider a driver a player who can reliably throw the team on his back. Every team, us included, is going to have plenty of passengers by those standards. In case Vegas hasn't made it crystal clear, the league is more even now than it has been in a long, long time, maybe ever.

 

[Samuel Culper III]

I’m not going to weigh in on the soft/engaged issue. How many people realized Mika was 6’2 220+? Does that effect how you feel about his physical play? The way I see it, if you’re not going to use that size (and he doesn’t) than trim down and play at a lighter weight that makes you more explosive and agile. At 220+ he should be much harder to move off the puck and sturdier on his legs. He should be dominating possession battles but he doesn’t have the will. It has to be will because he has virtually everything else that you could ask for, which is, I think, why people get frustrated. What is more of a tease than a 6’2 220 right handed center who is only 24 years old who has hands, skating and a blazing shot, but plays like he’s 6’0 190? If Z used his size and was just more driven he could be a significantly better player.

 

[aufheben]

It may not seem like Mika is driving play or winning battles, (although he looks fine to me), but I would question that:

 

[Nopuckluck]

It may not seem like Mika is driving play or winning battles, (although he looks fine to me), but I would question that:

What the hell are all these colors and lines? Geometry? I thought we were talking about sports. Specifically hockey

 

[Thirty One]

What the hell are all these colors and lines? Geometry? I thought we were talking about sports. Specifically hockey

Yeah, there are no colored lines in hockey!

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Yeah, there are no colored lines in hockey!

Hahahaha. All lines matter