Prospect Info: Mikhail Sergachev Part III

[jfm133]

As always, big lack of perspective here by many. Sergachev will turn 19 only at the end of June. Where were Subban and McDonagh at that age? Some were so wrong on McDonagh at 19 that they were happy with the trade for Gomez and when Subban turned 19 was two years and a half away from the NHL. Nobody knows for sure what Serge will look like in two years and a half. But from what I saw it looks very promising. Victor Hedman looked like a bad pick until he turned 22. Playing in the NHL at 18 means nothing for a D.

 

[Price is Wright]

Bergevin and Julien are at the game for those interested.

 

[G0bias]

As always, big lack of perspective here by many. Sergachev will turn 19 only at the end of June. Where were Subban and McDonagh at that age? Some were so wrong on McDonagh at 19 that they were happy with the trade for Gomez and when Subban turned 19 was two years and a half away from the NHL. Nobody knows for sure what Serge will look like in two years and a half. But from what I saw it looks very promising. Victor Hedman looked like a bad pick until he turned 22. Playing in the NHL at 18 means nothing for a D.

Apart from a few exceptions, most ended up pretty good players and the very worst cases turned out to be NHLers. But I agree it shouldn't mean anything when evaluating a D prospect. Just saying.

 

[1909]

As always, big lack of perspective here by many. Sergachev will turn 19 only at the end of June. Where were Subban and McDonagh at that age? Some were so wrong on McDonagh at 19 that they were happy with the trade for Gomez and when Subban turned 19 was two years and a half away from the NHL. Nobody knows for sure what Serge will look like in two years and a half. But from what I saw it looks very promising. Victor Hedman looked like a bad pick until he turned 22. Playing in the NHL at 18 means nothing for a D.

Many of them were ruined playing at such young age.

 

[paddy]

Let's play a game: name an NHL comparable to Sergachev who isn't Russian.

My comparison to Malakhov has nothing to do with their nationalities.

 

[pepperMonkey]

Many of them were ruined playing at such young age.

I doubt him playing just 4 games at the beginning of the season would ruin him...

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

Sergachev has a better shot from the point than Fowler. Seriously, he's like PK no?

Fowler is a better skater and is infinitely smarter. Nothing wrong with Sergei's skating but Fowler is on another level.

People need to take of the fan glasses and recognize that this kid is in big trouble as his hockey IQ is close to non existent. I have followed prospects for over 30 years and am not sure that I have seen many if any top ten picks with a lower IQ.

Timmins has a disturbing trend of picking low IQ players with his top picks.......Fischer, Kostitsyn, Kristo, Tinordi, McCarron and now Sergachev. Scherbak is one where I am on the fence with as IQ certainly isn't a strength for him. Starting to look like Timminis is no different tnan the body building meat heads that he trains with.

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

Fowler is a better skater and is infinitely smarter. Nothing wrong with Sergei's skating but Fowler is on another level.

People need to take of the fan glasses and recognize that this kid is in big trouble as his hockey IQ is close to non existent. I have followed prospects for over 30 years and am not sure that I have seen many if any top ten picks with a lower IQ.

Timmins has a disturbing trend of picking low IQ players with his top picks.......Fischer, Kostitsyn, Kristo, Tinordi, McCarron and now Sergachev. Scherbak is one where I am on the fence with as IQ certainly isn't a strength for him. Starting to look like Timminis is no different tnan the body building meat heads that he trains with.

So he has no hockey IQ even though he's been the among the top defenseman the past 2 years in the ohl both offensively and defensively?

Even though he started hockey at 9 and became this good this fast?

His reaction time without the puck could be a little faster, but his reaction with the puck is really good. He seems to always do the right play (juniors) even when hes in a tought situation. In the nhl, he obviously wasnt reacting fast enough because he did not played enough to get used to the game speed.

Even if he sometimes reacts a little late without the puck, his long reach is enough to cover up

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Let's play a game: name an NHL comparable to Sergachev who isn't Russian.

A less mental Al Iafrate.

I think Serge has better passing skills. Big Al was more of a puck rusher with a big shot. He was impossible to stop once he got moving in the neutral zone though.

I can't think of a modern day comparison for Serge. I'd take a bigger, stronger Petr Svoboda type though. I think they're similar. Svoboda was a skinny **** though and had a tendency to take big hits. He was an under-rated player who played the same "lazy" type of game. People thought he didn't care either until he helped the Habs become one of the best teams in the NHL in the late 80s and you realized he was extremely competitive. He was as competitive as Chelios just not as crazy or dirty.

 

[Locks]

People need to take of the fan glasses and recognize that this kid is in big trouble as his hockey IQ is close to non existent. I have followed prospects for over 30 years and am not sure that I have seen many if any top ten picks with a lower IQ.

Timmins has a disturbing trend of picking low IQ players with his top picks.......Fischer, Kostitsyn, Kristo, Tinordi, McCarron and now Sergachev. Scherbak is one where I am on the fence with as IQ certainly isn't a strength for him. Starting to look like Timminis is no different tnan the body building meat heads that he trains with.

Should have deleted the post before clicking on Submit. You either didn't watch him or can't make an evaluation if you say he has a low IQ. He made a number of good defensive reads in both games and showed nice vision in the O zone. BTW, certain Bobby Mac while on TSN690 said he saw Serge many times in the OHL and he is a brilliant defenseman. Yes, he sure has things to improve as any junior D would but he is ahead of where PK was at this age.

I only saw a couple of games of Fischer and did not notice any IQ issues - his biggest problem was that he never gained the strength to play the pro game. He was so weak that that he was loosing battles to much smaller players.

Tinordi obviously was not drafted for his hockey sense. And if you think Mac has a low IQ, I don't know what to say. Him and Martinsen were the only ones on the fourth line who created chances.

And then Timmins has drafted such dummies as PK, McDo, Pacio, Chucky, Gally, Leihkonen, Hudon, Juulsen, DLR, Evans and Mete.

 

[covfefe]

Should have deleted the post before clicking on Submit. You either didn't watch him or can't make an evaluation if you say he has a low IQ. He made a number of good defensive reads in both games and showed nice vision in the O zone. BTW, certain Bobby Mac while on TSN690 said he saw Serge many times in the OHL and he is a brilliant defenseman. Yes, he sure has things to improve as any junior D would but he is ahead of where PK was at this age.

I only saw a couple of games of Fischer and did not notice any IQ issues - his biggest problem was that he never gained the strength to play the pro game. He was so weak that that he was loosing battles to much smaller players.

Tinordi obviously was not drafted for his hockey sense. And if you think Mac has a low IQ, I don't know what to say. Him and Martinsen were the only ones on the fourth line who created chances.

And then Timmins has drafted such dummies as PK, McDo, Pacio, Chucky, Gally, Leihkonen, Hudon, Juulsen, DLR, Evans and Mete.

Listing 5 players who have yet to do anything in the NHL does not help your argument

 

[Sterling Archer]

Listing 5 players who have yet to do anything in the NHL does not help your argument

Price, PK, McDonaugh, Pacioretty, Gallagher, Galchenyuk. How's that?

 

[WeThreeKings]

Price, PK, McDonaugh, Pacioretty, Gallagher, Galchenyuk. How's that?

I wouldn't really say much about Patches, Gallagher's hockey sense.

 

[McGuires Corndog]

I wouldn't really say much about Patches, Gallagher's hockey sense.

Lots of question marks regarding Galchenyuk too (he's not **** poor, but it's a weakness in his skill set).

 

[xDirtyxSkunkx]

Price, PK, McDonaugh, Pacioretty, Gallagher, Galchenyuk. How's that?

Streit too

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Price, PK, McDonaugh, Pacioretty, Gallagher, Galchenyuk. How's that?

Lehkonen too. Fantastic hockey sense. Hudon too. In his case, it's the rest of the package.

You can have a player like Beau, who physically has all the tools, but not enough "hockey sense" or players with great "hockey sense" but not enough skills etc. You can certainly see on the ice someone who has an innate understanding of the game, like Markov when he first came up and now Lehkonen.

But, I also think hockey sense is a very subjective thing, and I think learnable to some extent. Players become smarter players through experience as they get older.

 

[Jabba11]

Fowler is a better skater and is infinitely smarter. Nothing wrong with Sergei's skating but Fowler is on another level.

People need to take of the fan glasses and recognize that this kid is in big trouble as his hockey IQ is close to non existent. I have followed prospects for over 30 years and am not sure that I have seen many if any top ten picks with a lower IQ.

Timmins has a disturbing trend of picking low IQ players with his top picks.......Fischer, Kostitsyn, Kristo, Tinordi, McCarron and now Sergachev. Scherbak is one where I am on the fence with as IQ certainly isn't a strength for him. Starting to look like Timminis is no different tnan the body building meat heads that he trains with.

You've just insulted the Montreal Canadiens scouting staff and their directors. Ones who spend their whole time and dedicate their lives to be on the road to evaluate these prospects and come up with a ranking list every year for the organization. They sleep in motels somewhere in Saskatchewan or they flew to Russia just to see a young prospect play.

Do you think I give them less credit than your 30 years of "following" prospects?

D you think that they actually would have picked Sergachev after looking at just 2-3 youtube videos? Seriously, saying that he has no IQ is really terrible.

 

[Doc McKenna]

As always, big lack of perspective here by many. Sergachev will turn 19 only at the end of June. Where were Subban and McDonagh at that age? Some were so wrong on McDonagh at 19 that they were happy with the trade for Gomez and when Subban turned 19 was two years and a half away from the NHL. Nobody knows for sure what Serge will look like in two years and a half. But from what I saw it looks very promising. Victor Hedman looked like a bad pick until he turned 22. Playing in the NHL at 18 means nothing for a D.

No one has said he sucks(correction one posted did), what the vast majority are saying is that hab fans thinking he is a shoe in for #4 dman next season are putting unreasonably high expectations on him. I will be happy if he plays for the habs at the start of 2018.

You've just insulted the Montreal Canadiens scouting staff and their directors. Ones who spend their whole time and dedicate their lives to be on the road to evaluate these prospects and come up with a ranking list every year for the organization. They sleep in motels somewhere in Saskatchewan or they flew to Russia just to see a young prospect play.

Do you think I give them less credit than your 30 years of "following" prospects?

D you think that they actually would have picked Sergachev after looking at just 2-3 youtube videos? Seriously, saying that he has no IQ is really terrible.

He has decent hockey sense. Guy isn't Markov but few are. That is a pretty over the top rant there.

 

[le_sean]

It's funny because he clearly has a much higher IQ than Beaulieu at the same age and no one complained about that pick. They just said "yeah puckmoving defenceman that can skate". But here we are with Sergachev and it's nitpick time. Franchise defenceman or bust.

 

[McGuires Corndog]

It's funny because he clearly has a much higher IQ than Beaulieu at the same age and no one complained about that pick. They just said "yeah puckmoving defenceman that can skate". But here we are with Sergachev and it's nitpick time. Franchise defenceman or bust.

Big difference between a #9 pick and a #17 pick. In all fairness, expectations should be higher and they are.

There's going to be a lot of scrutiny regarding the pick because of the three Centers selected immediately after and the obvious holes we have at that position. They are legitimate concerns.

So Sergachev needs to be a solid pick, and if any of those centers pan out then he needs to be a GREAT pick to silence the critics.

 

[le_sean]

Big difference between a #9 pick and a #17 pick. In all fairness, expectations should be higher and they are.

There's going to be a lot of scrutiny regarding the pick because of the three Centers selected immediately after and the obvious holes we have at that position. They are legitimate concerns.

So Sergachev needs to be a solid pick, and if any of those centers pan out then he needs to be a GREAT pick to silence the critics.

Funny thing is I bet the Avs would be happy to trade Jost for Sergachev right now considering they already have a bunch of centres and no defencemen.

 

[deandebean]

Do people know what 'hockey sense' is? Have you played and or coached and or scouted to know what 'hockey sense' is? In french, we say 'expression galvaudée'.

Chis Nilan had no 'hockey sense'. His 'hockey awareness' was developped because of Gainey and Carbo.

 

[deandebean]

Serge has good to great hockey sense. Hockey sense is being AWARE of what is going on on the ice, being able to adapt, adjust, see, feel the game, the flow of thw game. It can also mean having the anticipation to understand what is unfolding.

Serge has that and more. The plays he made against Chabot in the first game, the way he cuts the ice, the way he fakes shots to pass first...THAT is hockey sense. Defensive awareness, NOW THAT he needs to work on. But EVERY COACH AT ANY LEVEL will tell you that it's 100 times easier to teach defensive awareness to a kid that wants to learn than to teach offensive awareness.

He's ****ing 18 years old. He plays double duty on the PK, yet people question his 'hockey sense'????

 

[NotProkofievian]

Do people know what 'hockey sense' is? Have you played and or coached and or scouted to know what 'hockey sense' is? In french, we say 'expression galvaudée'.

Chis Nilan had no 'hockey sense'. His 'hockey awareness' was developped because of Gainey and Carbo.

I learned me a new french word today.

I think you're on to something in that there's a difference between having bad hockey sense and just not having a clue what you're doing in some aspects of the game. The former describes Beaulieu. He's just so goddamn dumb sometimes. I think the latter describes Sergachev. Handling opposing forechecks is just not in his repertoire right now. He just has no idea what he's supposed to do. If he managed to fix that, or make it a strong point of his game he'd be something special, IMO.

However I'm not particularly enamoured with the idea of Sylvain LeZero teaching him that. Maybe it would be helpful if we had Robinson around. Oh well.

 

[Price is Wright]

From what I've seen of him live he's more had consistency issues and development issues than a problem with his hockey iq. He sometimes hits a development wall and it takes some time for him to find his next gear. But he does develop it. If he didn't I'd be worried.

That's why I think he won't be NHL ready next year. He's doing a solid job learning his defensive game but he has some time to go. It's too bad he can't goto the AHL and Montreal isn't a rebuilding team so playing him in the NHL might mean a lot of scratches. I would prefer to see him play one more year in the OHL, maybe get traded to Erie, and put it all together in a massive year. Then he can go either to the AHL for lots of playing time or hit the NHL. But the idea of him being in the NHL next season, I have my worries.