RW Jake Virtanen - Calgary Hitmen, WHL (2014, 6th overall, Vancouver)

[Tv9924]

In his prime, I can definitely see a 1st line LW/RWer. For most of his career, I see a solid 2nd liner that can fill in the first line if need be.

Kind of like Wayne Simmonds?

 

[PG Canuck]

Virtanen's skating is what is going to help him excel in the NHL. Acceleration, and speed, already a massive advantage for him. Just needs to fill out his frame. He's already flattening opposing players as is too.

 

[wings5]

Virtanen's skating is what is going to help him excel in the NHL. Acceleration, and speed, already a massive advantage for him. Just needs to fill out his frame. He's already flattening opposing players as is too.

He's already pretty filled out at around 210 lbs.

 

[Robongo01]

He's already pretty filled out at around 210 lbs.

He's got a lanky frame and has room to add more muscle onto it.

 

[Zaddy]

Gotta say I've been impressed with this kid so far in the tourney. Didn't know a whole lot about him before the draft but I'm starting to see why he was raved about. Just a very dynamic player. I think he'll need some time to get his game to translate to the pro's though, but it shouldn't be a problem down the road.

 

[ponder]

He's definitely a guy who you look at and think "his game's going to transfer very well to the NHL." In terms of recent NHL draft picks, he reminds me most of Nichushkin, and going back further, Rick Nash. Definitely not as good as either of these guys were at the same age (both were solid NHLers in their first post-draft seasons), but he plays a similar style game. I do think he has way more NHL upside than his pretty pedestrian WHL stats would suggest, I can picture him as a top line winger, who normally put up well above 1 PPG in their pre-and-post draft CHL seasons, like Jake did last year and so far this year.

 

[Orca Smash]

I still see (and hope) evander kane in him personally. The skating, the shot, physicality, the shoot first mentality.

 

[Mancesco Franquilini]

Can I get an unbiased opinion from non Canucks fans on his play last night? I'm a HUGE Virtanen fan and I love the kid and pick but I felt last night he looked so lost out there, missing passes and stick handling into nowhere, taking low percentage shots. Outside of his assist and that chance I. The first where he got stoned by Demko, I was pulling my hair out with his play...

However, when I brought this up on the Canucks board I got scorched for it..

Am I being too critical or did others feel the same way? As I said, I love the kid and think he's a beast but I know Canucks fans have a tendency to sugarcoat things due to our starvation for a star prospect for once and I want to know if anyone else saw what I saw last night

 

[CanaFan]

Can I get an unbiased opinion from non Canucks fans on his play last night? I'm a HUGE Virtanen fan and I love the kid and pick but I felt last night he looked so lost out there, missing passes and stick handling into nowhere, taking low percentage shots. Outside of his assist and that chance I. The first where he got stoned by Demko, I was pulling my hair out with his play...

However, when I brought this up on the Canucks board I got scorched for it..

Am I being too critical or did others feel the same way? As I said, I love the kid and think he's a beast but I know Canucks fans have a tendency to sugarcoat things due to our starvation for a star prospect for once and I want to know if anyone else saw what I saw last night

Can't be too surprised when you get scorched on another team's board as, in my experience, no fanbase takes well to 'criticism' (even valid points) on their own boards.

That said I personally agree with much of what you posted above and if you read through the WJC or Virtanen thread on our boards you'll many others have said the same things. One consideration is that he was playing so high in the US zone - basically a 3rd Dman at times - which isn't normal for him, so there is some thinking that he was either instructed by Groulx or took it upon himself to play extra conservative to eliminate any odd man rushes the other way. Worked out great when he picked off the US pass and sprung McDavid the other way, but really hurt that lines possession time overall.

Don't expect him to play that way against Denmark but if he does then you could be on to something.

 

[BeautBabeC]

Yea he does look lost when his team has sustained O zone pressure. Don't worry about people disagreeing with you because they just got homer shades on. I'm a Canucks fan myself and I really like Jakes skill set, he is just excellent at the basics of hockey and imo will become a very good pro player. Every player has weaknesses and his is cycling and being in the right spot when the team has puck control are obviously the things that he needs to figure out still.

 

[Icebreakers]

Jake is very much a on the rush type of player. He doesnt do well in the cycling role. Hes more crash bang and create chances off the rush.

 

[Pyromaniac]

I thought Virtanen had a bit of a disappointing tournament. With all the talent that this kid has he should have shown a bit more this tournament. His shoulder may have recovered but I don't think he has gotten his form back. I haven't seen a lot of him this year outside the tournament but I think he should spend one more year in junior and come back next year stronger and better for next year's WJC.

 

[D0ctorCool]

I thought Virtanen had a bit of a disappointing tournament. With all the talent that this kid has he should have shown a bit more this tournament. His shoulder may have recovered but I don't think he has gotten his form back. I haven't seen a lot of him this year outside the tournament but I think he should spend one more year in junior and come back next year stronger and better for next year's WJC.

I think he would've performed a lot better if he was on a Swiss-type team where he is one the central parts of the team. He's top 6 or bust out there, and Canada was too deep to accommodate his play style. I look at someone like Ritchie, who played his best hockey as soon as he was assigned a bottom 6 role, and that's just not Virtanen's game. To be honest, I don't really want Virtanen to be a bottom 6'er anyways.

Virtanen's going to have to round out his game. I think everyone can see that. Hot damn though,can he ever lay some big hits!

 

[5 14 6 1]

Virtanen isn't gonna be any fun to play against in 3-4 years. Awesome physicality and he never backs down. Laid some great hits out through the tournament and showed some offensive flashes as well.

 

[Scarbarian*]

He played okay yesterday but overall, a bad tournament by Virtanen.

I wish he used his head more to create plays rather than just trying to run guys over and running around like a headless chicken at times. such a great skillset yet not much of a toolbox.

As it stands, he has a lot of things to work on and one thing is clear as a blue sky, Virtanen lacks Hockey IQ.

 

[Proust*]

I think he was drafted too high. He's a great physical package, but the IQ and playmaking is lacking.

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Really impressive skills!
Like most big power forwards he's going to take longer to develop than the smaller offensive forwards. But his talent level and physical tools are elite. Needs to put it all together and will take some patience from fans but I think he's going to be one of those rare power forwards who can hit like a truck and drive offence all on his own.

 

[86Habs]

Virtanen needs to round out his game quite a bit to succeed at the NHL level, in my view. As others have pointed out he's really good when coming down the wing on the rush, but seems a bit lost in the offensive zone when his line is on the cycle. NHL-caliber defencemen should be able to defend against him coming down the boards quite easily, especially when they know its coming. He hasn't seemed to really develop the playmaking skills to keep them honest either. I was also unimpressed with his play in the neutral zone (aside from the aformentioned rushes and the nice little play to McDavid vs. Denmark), but he battled hard to get the puck out of the defensive zone when necessary.

The physical tools are there for him to develop into a good power forward (speed/skating ability, frame, physicality, shot), but realistically he's probably a few years away. Power forwards typically take longer to develop anyway. He has a pretty high ceiling if he can work on his weaknesses (I see Jeff Carter as a reasonable comp, though Carter was good defensively at a young age). Hopefully he'll be back playing for Team Canada next year, in a bigger role more suited to his skillset.

 

[Bankerguy]

Virtanen needs to round out his game quite a bit to succeed at the NHL level, in my view. As others have pointed out he's really good when coming down the wing on the rush, but seems a bit lost in the offensive zone when his line is on the cycle. NHL-caliber defencemen should be able to defend against him coming down the boards quite easily, especially when they know its coming. He hasn't seemed to really develop the playmaking skills to keep them honest either. I was also unimpressed with his play in the neutral zone (aside from the aformentioned rushes and the nice little play to McDavid vs. Denmark), but he battled hard to get the puck out of the defensive zone when necessary.

The physical tools are there for him to develop into a good power forward (speed/skating ability, frame, physicality, shot), but realistically he's probably a few years away. Power forwards typically take longer to develop anyway. He has a pretty high ceiling if he can work on his weaknesses (I see Jeff Carter as a reasonable comp, though Carter was good defensively at a young age). Hopefully he'll be back playing for Team Canada next year, in a bigger role more suited to his skillset.

Good points made here.

I think that the age thing here is a little overlooked. He's 1.5 years younger than most of the players on team Canada. He was almost the youngest player taken in the first round. This matters...especially when you're talking about 17, 18, 19 year olds. This effect is compounded by the fact that Virtanen IS a power forward type player and it takes a while for them to grow into their bodies.

I think he has the tools, you can teach the other things... Could be a Raffi Torres 3rd liner OR a Jeff Carter 1st/2nd liner

 

[drax0s]

Yup, Jake was great when bouncing guys off him while carrying the puck and had some nice moves, but I think he needs to do a better job of finding seams and making himself open and ready for a one-timer when he doesn't have the puck in the O-Zone.

Maybe this was down to the role he was asked to play by the coach, I don't know. I do know I'll be watching some of his games back on the Hitmen to see if the trend continues.

 

[member 105785]

I want to see him on the same line as Kassian, huge hits and annoying to play against

 

[Drew Doubty]

For a young guy who's closer to Mcdavid than to most of the other players on the team in age I think he had an OKAY tournament. You've got to think he was told by coaching staff, once he was put into the bottom 6, that his job was to hit everything that moved. He became less of a trigger man and more of an energy guy, which he did pretty well, laying some massive hits. As a Canucks fan I liked what I saw, I think he has some Corey Perry in him.

 

[86Habs]

Good points made here.

I think that the age thing here is a little overlooked. He's 1.5 years younger than most of the players on team Canada. He was almost the youngest player taken in the first round. This matters...especially when you're talking about 17, 18, 19 year olds. This effect is compounded by the fact that Virtanen IS a power forward type player and it takes a while for them to grow into their bodies.

I think he has the tools, you can teach the other things... Could be a Raffi Torres 3rd liner OR a Jeff Carter 1st/2nd liner

The age factor is a good point. Virtanen is very young, though his frame and raw skillset are very projectable into a 1st/2nd liner at the NHL level. I thought he looked a little nervous out there at times, but then again he bounced around with a number of linemates and never seemed to get into a good groove. From what I've seen I'm concerned a bit about his hockey IQ, but I think patience will be rewarded. The physicality is already there, and he seems to have the ability to control it (I thought his hit last night in the 2nd period was clean). As the poster directly above me said, I'd like to see him be a bit less predictable in his offensive game and find a way to take advantage of his shot, by finding open spaces and seems in the o-zone. Should come with maturity and having trust in his linemates that they'll deliver him the puck, instead of thinking that he needs to do it all himself.

 

[1989]

Said before he reminds me of Nash (especially in his Columbus years) and still sticking with that. Similar offensive style, good size, good speed, needs to play the body to be effective, and needs to be in the main SUPPORTING role to find team success. Not a bad career by any means, just a guy who won't win it all with the load squarely on his shoulders.

 

[Canadian Canuck]

Said before he reminds me of Nash (especially in his Columbus years) and still sticking with that. Similar offensive style, good size, good speed, needs to play the body to be effective, and needs to be in the main SUPPORTING role to find team success. Not a bad career by any means, just a guy who won't win it all with the load squarely on his shoulders.

I agree with you. I see a more Physical Nash with better speed and a better shot with less hands and hockey IQ