RW Jesse Puljujarvi - Bakersfield Condors, AHL (2016, 4th, EDM)

[DoingItCoolKiwi]

I still remember when he was drafted and people called me nuts for saying his ceiling is 60 points.

You cant really predict how a player will develop so it is a bit nuts to call his ceiling like that so early

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

You cant really predict how a player will develop so it is a bit nuts to call his ceiling like that so early

Maybe, but at the same time people don't seem to realize how hard it is to be an elite player in the best league in the world.

If you have flaws, those are going to hinder your ability, and Pulju always had plenty of flaws but for whatever reason people didn't want to acknowledge them.

60 points is still good. That would make him one of the best Finnish wingers in the past decade. But i still view him as more of a secondary piece.

How i felt about Pulju was pretty telling when Jarmo passed on him and istead of the "whaat" reaction, i remember thinking something like "yeah i get that". If he was Canadian and i had seen him play less, i would've been shocked based on the hype.

 

[DFF]

Just like Bennett. Has some skills but lacking hockey sense. Dumb player

 

[ijuka]

Maybe, but at the same time people don't seem to realize how hard it is to be an elite player in the best league in the world.

If you have flaws, those are going to hinder your ability, and Pulju always had plenty of flaws but for whatever reason people didn't want to acknowledge them.

60 points is still good. That would make him one of the best Finnish wingers in the past decade. But i still view him as more of a secondary piece.

How i felt about Pulju was pretty telling when Jarmo passed on him and istead of the "whaat" reaction, i remember thinking something like "yeah i get that". If he was Canadian and i had seen him play less, i would've been shocked based on the hype.

It is a bit weird how Pulju's tools got rated so highly.

Stickhandling has always been poor(Some scouts actually praised it, so odd...), he's had questionable decision making and his passing hasn't been very consistent. His shot is powerful but the accuracy's never been anything to write home about and his release hasn't been super fast or deceptive or anything. His "physical capabilities" got praised a lot like his strength, fitness, skating, effort etc. but isn't it odd how little pure skill would be valued with Puljujärvi? Is being big and fit really what you'd primarily look for in a top pick?

 

[Ainec]

he looked like a superstar in his draft -1 year. Thought he could go 1st overall

did think the same for Yakupov though. Who knows he might improve like Drai

 

[MrThomas]

He will be first line with McDavid next year and putting 60+ points. Believe me. He is only 19 years old give him some time to get use to american ice rink and the system.

 

[JetsFan815]

Wow! Tough crowd in this thread. He is getting 3.1 Shots on goal/game as a 19 year old in the AHL, that's pretty good. I am not worried about him although I do get the feeling that he could be a casualty to a Chia panic trade to get some help on the wing now.

 

[Stephen]

Seemed like Columbus had a good idea of what was going on when they bypassed him at 3... everyone thought they were passing up on Laine 2.0.

 

[suddeninterest]

Seemed like Columbus had a good idea of what was going on when they bypassed him at 3... everyone thought they were passing up on Laine 2.0.

They didn't have that good of an idea apparently. Dubois isn't exactly a world beater either with his 3 in 15. That's worse ppg than Pulj last season. If they had an idea they would've taken Keller.

 

[snipes]

He'll be fine.

I'm actually happy they're taking it slow.

 

[Haatley]

They didn't have that good of an idea apparently. Dubois isn't exactly a world beater either with his 3 in 15. That's worse ppg than Pulj last season. If they had an idea they would've taken Keller.

Or Tkachuk.

 

[agent082]

Keeping him up as a 12 or 13 forward slowed his development just like people were telling last season. 18 year olds should be playing and not sit and eat popcorn. that's not good physically or mentally and that's why GM's don't do that ever. If high level prospect isn't playing he is send to minors to play.

 

[Zaddy]

Where's this BusQuets guy to tell me how wrong I am about Puljujärvi? Or to laugh at me for saying his ceiling is likely that of a complementary 1st line winger, and for comparing him to Pääjärvi, and for saying Laine is a much better prospect? Hmm...would love to hear from that guy

 

[Cassano]

Wow! Tough crowd in this thread. He is getting 3.1 Shots on goal/game as a 19 year old in the AHL, that's pretty good. I am not worried about him although I do get the feeling that he could be a casualty to a Chia panic trade to get some help on the wing now.

He has good tools, but lacks the creativity in his arsenal to be an elite winger. Maybe he can be like Kreider one day, but that is what I put at his absolute ceiling.

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

It is a bit weird how Pulju's tools got rated so highly.

Stickhandling has always been poor(Some scouts actually praised it, so odd...), he's had questionable decision making and his passing hasn't been very consistent. His shot is powerful but the accuracy's never been anything to write home about and his release hasn't been super fast or deceptive or anything. His "physical capabilities" got praised a lot like his strength, fitness, skating, effort etc. but isn't it odd how little pure skill would be valued with Puljujärvi? Is being big and fit really what you'd primarily look for in a top pick?

Well i would say it was easy to see why people were so high on him, as he does have all kinds of tools. He's shown the ability to stickhandle and dazzle with nice moves, he's shown a good shot, particularly slapper, he's shown to be able to make some high-end passes, he's got the size, had the speed etc. It's easy to think what this kid could do if he puts it all together.

But in saying that, he never showed consistency. It's amazing how the kid can fire a lazer and then you don't see that type of shot for the next dozen games, how he can dish and then can't even make tape to tape passes the next game, stickhandle in a phone booth and then completely fumble the puck in the next couple games.

You can understand inconsistency in terms of overall game or compete level from game to game basis for a young player, heck even some older players have that issue, but when it comes down to inconsistencies in basic skills, it's not often you see that and to me was always a red flag, and it still is. When you look at the high-end offensive players in the game, they all have a skill or two they excel at, and you can always count on those skills showing on the ice, regardless of if they have ordinary game or a good game.

And he does lack some level of creativity, as well as hockey IQ. Basically the WJC's was Pulju in a nutshell. He showed all kinds of stuff during that tournament, but ultimately it was Aho and Laine that often finished a play or made that creative next level play that led to a goal. Pulju contributed to everything, but i don't remember too many goals that i'd remember saying Pulju was the reason that went in the net. I would say the biggest reason Pulju was so good was that he competed the hardest he ever has over 7 games. You could see the potential as a big, speedy, buzzsaw type of winger who can do a bit of everything INSTEAD of the high-end skill player who produces big numbers. That's why i always leaned towards 60 point future, than say, PPG.

In saying all of this, to not sound too negative, i still stand by my statement that if (and hopefully when) Pulju is ready to make the jump, he's going to be able to make an impact right away. His tools give him that advantage. But first he just has to get there and put in the work.

With Pulju making the NHL will be the biggest hurdle he's ever going to have to jump over. Once he does that, he's going to be a good player right away. Thus, patience is the key.

Biggest issue with him is between the ears. Just need to wait for him to mature and start seeing things in a different light, and for the Oilers sake you hope it doesn't take too many years.

 

[DesmondDekker]

The guy is freaking 19. It is way too premature to wrtie him off so early in his development. Unless the player is exceptionally talented, wingers/shooters always take a bit longer to reach their potential. Take a look at Anthony Mantha. Big winger who dominated his peers in junior. Took him almost 4 years to make it full time. Pulju has a big body and it gave him an edge over other players his age early on and made him look good in the Liiga, but now he needs to use other tools and adapt to a smaller rink. Some adapt easily and fast, some take time.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Extremely premature panic on Jesse. The kid is just 19 years old. Let the kid develop on his own time line. He has too much talent to not be a NHL impact player. Ultimately it will depend on him, he will have to find his way. But if the Oilers want to deal him, I would love to see him sent to Carolina or Winnipeg and reunite with either Aho or Laine. As a NHL fan, this would be fun and interesting.

 

[Cassano]

The guy is freaking 19. It is way too premature to wrtie him off so early in his development. Unless the player is exceptionally talented, wingers/shooters always take a bit longer to reach their potential. Take a look at Anthony Mantha. Big winger who dominated his peers in junior. Took him almost 4 years to make it full time. Pulju has a big body and it gave him an edge over other players his age early on and made him look good in the Liiga, but now he needs to use other tools and adapt to a smaller rink. Some adapt easily and fast, some take time.

Pulju wasn't a consistent scorer at any level though.

 

[These Are The Days]

If JP doesn't turn it on by Christmas then it's gonna be officially time to worry

 

[ponder]

He's a mixed bag. On the plus side he's got great size, is an outstanding skater for a big man, has an excellent motor, and shows flashes of nice skill. On the down side his hockey IQ seems a bit low, and he really battles the puck a lot, he's just not a good stick handler.

There are certainly some "shades of MPS," and I do think there's a chance he busts similarly. However, he's still very young, and has some nice tools. If he can improve his stick handling, learn to read the ice a bit better, and also learn how to best take advantage of his talents at the NHL level (likely sticking to a pretty simple north-south game that leans on his size and speed), I can see him being a quality top 6 forward.

 

[CBJx614]

They didn't have that good of an idea apparently. Dubois isn't exactly a world beater either with his 3 in 15. That's worse ppg than Pulj last season. If they had an idea they would've taken Keller.

While he's no Laine or Matthews, he's playing a similar role to Tkachuk last season.

He's on the wing of nick Foligno and opposite Josh Anderson. He's gonna be the guy who goes into the corners to retrieve pucks and sits in front of the net to cause havoc. All 3 of them are extremely good at getting the cycle going. His role has been gradually increasing as the season goes.


But for what it's worth, he should be in the AHL getting top line minutes. But as far as Dubois goes, he's doing all the small things and putting in the hard work to stay on the team.

Can't speak for Pulju though

 

[DDRhockey]

The finns are busting left and right.

 

[Hockeyisl1fe]

The finns are busting left and right.

Juolevi and Pulju both looking nothing special and were drafted in the top 5. We can't have nice things, I've accepted that already.

 

[Brock Radunske]

The finns are busting left and right.

Leave Matt Finn out of this.

 

[FinPanda]

The finns are busting left and right.

Yeah 2016 Draft looking real bad for us now. 2017 is more promising.