Tage Thompson's ceiling

[bluesXwinXtheXcup]

I've read a lot of posts wanting to trade Tage. I disagree. IMO he is a top 6 forward in the making.

I think Yeo used him incorrectly. He isn't a checking line defensive forward.

When paired with Steen and Stastny he was dynamic offensively.

To me, he is the right handed RW that we're looking for.

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[simon IC]

I think he was rushed in to the NHL. I would like to see him get some more AHL time. He also desperately needs to hit the weightroom this off-season. Kid is a bone rack!

 

[LetsGoBooze]

Top6, most likely a productive 2RW. But it might take him 2-3 more seasons to be effective. I like him aswell, but i dont forsee him being a difference maker next year.

I think the biggest reason he comes up in proposals is you have to give up value to recieve value and most fans like Thomas and Kyrou more.

Trading a late 1st(Winn) isnt gonna get us an impact top6 player without an add, hence Thompson maybe being the piece to add. It really might come down to adding Thompson, Kostin, or Fabbri to a deal....such a tough choice.

 

[Bluesguru]

It's so hard to say. He's got a great shot, we all know this. But it can take 200 to 300 NHL games before we really know what this kid is capable of. Definite potential there, no doubt about. Like Simon says, maybe the AHL next yr would be better for him, I'd hate to see him spend a year with the Blues and just flounder, that won't help his confidence at all.

 

[BlueDream]

I'm fine with keeping him. But with Schwartz, Tarasenko, Schenn, Fabbri, Thomas and Kyrou all U26, if Thompson or Kostin in a package lands us another good top 6 forward, it's something that has to be considered.

His size and shot are nice though.

 

[shpongle falls]

Thompson's ceiling to me is a second liner that can get you 20ish goals a season and be a nice option for the power play with his shot. I really like his potential and hope they don't have to trade him although I will say if they have to include one of the big 4 prospects in a trade, Thompson is the one I'd be okay with the most. Thomas and Kyrou are faster and more dynamic and Kostin is still so young and has enormous potential. But again I like Thompson and hope we don't have to trade him or any of our top prospects.

 

[bluesXwinXtheXcup]

Top6, most likely a productive 2RW. But it might take him 2-3 more seasons to be effective. I like him aswell, but i dont forsee him being a difference maker next year.

I think the biggest reason he comes up in proposals is you have to give up value to recieve value and most fans like Thomas and Kyrou more.

Trading a late 1st(Winn) isnt gonna get us an impact top6 player without an add, hence Thompson maybe being the piece to add. It really might come down to adding Thompson, Kostin, or Fabbri to a deal....such a tough choice.

Agreed. Except for the 2-3 year thing. I bet he's harder on the puck NEXT year.

 

[Robb_K]

Agreed. Except for the 2-3 year thing. I bet he's harder on the puck NEXT year.

I'm sure that Thompson will be harder on the puck, better at defence, and win a lot more puck battles next season. But, each season, he will improve quite a bit, as he gains strength, bulk, body maturity and experience. He'll reach a high-level plateau in about 3 years.

 

[bluesXwinXtheXcup]

I'm sure that Thompson will be harder on the puck, better at defence, and win a lot more puck battles next season. But, each season, he will improve quite a bit, as he gains strength, bulk, body maturity and experience. He'll reach a high-level plateau in about 3 years.

Robb-K,

My Dutch brother from another mother.

Good to see you!

I'll always appreciate you from your GDT updates.

My point is, yes, he will be better as he adds weight, but it won't take 3 years.

Tage will have an impact next year.

 

[542365]

25+25 type in a few years. Should be good on the PP too with that one-T. It’s easy to see some flashes of his immense talent, but the consistency isn’t there yet. It was frustrating watching him this season when he truly belonged in the AHL but I still have faith he’ll be a good player for us down the road(or someone else if he’s moved which is well within reason).

 

[Alklha]

I could see him developing into a 50-60 point player, we've had plenty of glimpses of his upside. 50-60 points is the production range of low-end 1st liners/high-end 2nd liners.

He still has a lot of work to get there, and his lack of production wasn't all about his linemates and usage. We'll see how he looks in camp, but right now I think it would be better if he started next season in the AHL. I would expect him to be on the NHL roster full time at some point next season though.

We still have to give to get when it comes to trade. We have Kyrou and Kostin as RW prospects. We have Thomas, Barbashev, Blais, Foley, Stevens and Sanford as young players who could have NHL futures. I'm pretty sure that everyone would rather move Blais or Sanford than Thompson, but that's probably not going to get us who we need.

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

I could see him developing into a 50-60 point player, we've had plenty of glimpses of his upside. 50-60 points is the production range of low-end 1st liners/high-end 2nd liners.

He still has a lot of work to get there, and his lack of production wasn't all about his linemates and usage. We'll see how he looks in camp, but right now I think it would be better if he started next season in the AHL. I would expect him to be on the NHL roster full time at some point next season though.

We still have to give to get when it comes to trade. We have Kyrou and Kostin as RW prospects. We have Thomas, Barbashev, Blais, Foley, Stevens and Sanford as young players who could have NHL futures. I'm pretty sure that everyone would rather move Blais or Sanford than Thompson, but that's probably not going to get us who we need.

Foley and Sanford got Stastny and Shattenkirk. All it takes is a motivated seller

 

[Alklha]

Foley and Sanford got Stastny and Shattenkirk. All it takes is a motivated seller

It's difficult to draw any comparisons to rental deals. There is no way we accept Sanford & a late first for Shattenkirk the summer before. Even then, a first is still involved.

I'm not saying we'll absolutely need to include anyone in a deal to get a top-6 player, there is more than one way to skin a cat. We'll just likely have to give up something of good value; Thompson, Kostin or the WPG 1st.

 

[Celtic Note]

Unless Thompson starts using his teammates better, I will guess 40-45 points will be his average. He looks like a faster, flashier Berglund, without the puck protection. The possession may come with increased size, but size doesn’t solve his biggest problems in my opinion. If he could overcome his inability to use others then his numbers could climb to 50-55 in his peak, but I am not banking on it. In college, the WJC and in the AHL he didn’t use his teammates well relative to his offensive potential. In the NHL you have to be exceptionally skilled to get away with that. In lower leagues it isn’t as difficult to overcome. He isn’t exceptional at anything, so playing an individualistic game in the NHL isn’t an option.

As a reference point, Oshie level production does not seem to be in the cards, unless drastic strides are made. If someone believes he can be a 50+ point player and is willing to pay fair value for that projection, then I wouldn’t be afraid to move him, assuming it fills a hole.

 

[Celtic Note]

It's difficult to draw any comparisons to rental deals. There is no way we accept Sanford & a late first for Shattenkirk the summer before. Even then, a first is still involved.

I'm not saying we'll absolutely need to include anyone in a deal to get a top-6 player, there is more than one way to skin a cat. We'll just likely have to give up something of good value; Thompson, Kostin or the WPG 1st.

I would rather give up something of good value than live a repeat of having a strong core (like we had with our old core) and not being able to augment it with the pieces needed to get us to the next level. Normally I would be against mortgaging the future, but our core is in its prime now and nothing we have on the farm looks better than what we have now. So, I don’t want to defer to the next core. Instead, I would like to see us buy a top 6 C and possibly a top 6 RHS RW, then augment that with Thomas and Kyrou, plus the prospects remaining.

 

[The Note in MI]

Everyone says they want to trade for or sign a top 6 player but I just don’t know where you’re going to find that guy, just look at players that fit that mold (especially RHS) and you’ll see most are young players who will be going nowhere. Especially after this season where we will see the cap rise ~4m as many teams won’t feel the cap crunch.

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

Everyone says they want to trade for or sign a top 6 player but I just don’t know where you’re going to find that guy, just look at players that fit that mold (especially RHS) and you’ll see most are young players who will be going nowhere. Especially after this season where we will see the cap rise ~4m as many teams won’t feel the cap crunch.

This is where I’m at too. We’ve built up our prospect depth through the draft and trade, and it would be a shame to panic and set ourselves back now before we see the benefit from any of it. Unless something appears that isn’t there now, standing (more or less) pat and unloading some cap space to see what happens at the TDL wouldn’t be the worst strategy in the world, imo. It would make a lot of people mad, but it wouldn’t be the worst strategy in the world.

 

[Dbrownss]

Given that he's 6'6"......I bet his ceilings look low.

 

[The Note in MI]

I’ve always thought that it may take until the next trade deadline to see that top 6 winger come to us, just because I don’t think the guy we need is available right now as we stand. Unfortunately not sure if anyone will be available. Signing a top 6 center in free agency is a definite this summer but filling the winger spot I think is going to prove very difficult at the draft. Not many teams will be looking to move a 24-28 year old at the start of the season. A guy like rakell, forsberg etc would be amazing

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

I’ve always thought that it may take until the next trade deadline to see that top 6 winger come to us, just because I don’t think the guy we need is available right now as we stand. Unfortunately not sure if anyone will be available. Signing a top 6 center in free agency is a definite this summer but filling the winger spot I think is going to prove very difficult at the draft. Not many teams will be looking to move a 24-28 year old at the start of the season. A guy like rakell, forsberg etc would be amazing

+1 for Rakell. I like his game a lot

 

[Shwabeal]

What about Silfverberg if we're looking at Anaheim players? Has one year left at 3.75 million but we could immediately start working on an extension. Not as big of an offensive threat as Rakell but defensively responsible, RH and should cost less in terms of assets and dollars. Wouldn't be the worst guy to play 2RW and has the skill set to move down to the third line if/when Kyrou and/or Thompson turn into top 6 difference makers.

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

What about Silfverberg if we're looking at Anaheim players? Has one year left at 3.75 million but we could immediately start working on an extension. Not as big of an offensive threat as but defensively responsible, RH and should cost less in terms of assets and dollars. Wouldn't be the worst guy to play 2RW and has the skill set to move down to the third line if/when Kyrou and/or Thompson turn into top 6 difference makers.

I would love Silfverberg on the Blues, and agree that he would make sense as a long-term addition. Will he be available, and what would the price be? Anaheim is stacked on D, and their prospect pool looks pretty good

 

[Shwabeal]

I would love Silfverberg on the Blues, and agree that he would make sense as a long-term addition. Will he be available, and what would the price be? Anaheim is stacked on D, and their prospect pool looks pretty good

I remember an Anaheim fan awhile back bringing him up as someone they may be looking to move but who knows if that's how the club feels. I haven't heard his name brought up on here in quite some time and I have no clue what his value would be. He's a 40 point, RH RW that's defensively responsible and I'm not sure what value to put on his defensive game for a trade. Even with one year remaining, I'd imagine it would still cost the WIN 1st +. Not sure what the plus would be but it definitely wouldn't require Thompson or Kostin and especially not Thomas or Kyrou. I wonder if something like 2nd + Blais would get the conversation going. Even if it was Blais + the WIN 1st, I'd pull the trigger and bank on being able to get him signed to a reasonable extension. I doubt he'd be asking for more than $4.75-$5 million. Might not be a bad idea to start a thread on the main boards or go straight to the Anaheim board to ask about his availability/cost.

 

[Stealth JD]

Unless Thompson starts using his teammates better, I will guess 40-45 points will be his average. He looks like a faster, flashier Berglund, without the puck protection. The possession may come with increased size, but size doesn’t solve his biggest problems in my opinion. If he could overcome his inability to use others then his numbers could climb to 50-55 in his peak, but I am not banking on it. In college, the WJC and in the AHL he didn’t use his teammates well relative to his offensive potential. In the NHL you have to be exceptionally skilled to get away with that. In lower leagues it isn’t as difficult to overcome. He isn’t exceptional at anything, so playing an individualistic game in the NHL isn’t an option.

As a reference point, Oshie level production does not seem to be in the cards, unless drastic strides are made. If someone believes he can be a 50+ point player and is willing to pay fair value for that projection, then I wouldn’t be afraid to move him, assuming it fills a hole.

I'd love to see Blake Wheeler...but I too think he's a 35-45 point guy barring something drastic happening (such as him being given prime power-play minutes, and becoming a better skater).

 

[STL fan in MN]

I like TT and think he’ll develop into a good secondary scorer but I don’t quite see the upside others see IMO. I see a borderline 3rd/2nd line RW in time.

He was rushed this season though. They needed a RW and a right- shot so he got promoted before he was really ready IMO. Hopefully that doesn’t impact his development too much.