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- Sep 5, 2008
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Forget the scores/results, let's focus on player evaluations and coaching decisions.
Overwhelming positives;
Sprong: Really acquitted himself. The dude looks ready to play in the NHL, no questions asked. Does he look ready to contribute big production? No, but the kid can play. He was easily our best forward for several games, including ones that had roster staples. Give him his nine games, give him 3rd line minutes alongside Bonino and Bennett.
Bennett: Was great on a near shift-by-shift basis. Great play along the boards, great play with and without the puck. No lack of accountability as far as defense goes. His skating also looked a lot better. It's gonna be a shame to see him getting 4th line minutes until he's traded for ridiculously below his value.
Plotnikov: Also acquitted himself very well. He's got a nose for the net, can hit extremely well, his skating's looked good considering all the question marks surrounding it. As time moves on, he gets more comfortable with this team/the NA game/NA ice, I think he'll turn out to be a steal.
Pretty good;
Sid+Kessel: Didn't light the world on fire on a consistent basis, but had flashes of "Holy ****, these guys are gonna be unreal." Anyone thinking that their third linemate doesn't matter is simply wrong. They have the potential to be the best line in the league, easily, and Sid+Kessel could hover between 180-200pts.
Maatta+Letang: Again, weren't out of this world incredible, but I think they'll get better as time goes on. They have to, since they're our only legit defensemen that are capable of more than bottom pairing minutes/responsibility.
Murray: Taking into account the defense in front of him at any given moment, I think Murray played extremely well. He showed flashes of what lead to an incredible season last year in the AHL. He's by no means ready for full time NHL duty, but he's shown an incredible amount of poise, patience, calmness, and an impressive dedication to fundamentals. He's gonna be a really, really good goalie in a couple more years.
Decent;
Sundqvist: I didn't expect him to make the big club, but there were definitely hints of "He could be a very good bottom-6 player for us for a long time." He's got a bunch to work on, and he could stand to get stronger to fully take advantage of his frame, but he's got tons of time to develop.
Dupuis: The speed, puck-hounding, and defensive responsibility are all still there. I don't think he's good enough for top-6 duty, and I wouldn't sacrifice Bennett/Sprong's development to put him on the third line, but Duper showed he can still be a very effective 4th liner/PK specialist. Hope his health holds up, for his sake and ours.
Cole: Again, maybe it's a situation of "He looks better because he's surrounded by garbage," but Cole didn't really look out of place back on the blueline. I am still not sold on him being an effective 2nd pairing defenseman, but we've got no other choice. In my eyes, he's a good bottom pairing guy.
Clendening: Much like with Cole, I don't really know how to evaluate him. He didn't look disastrous, which is like saying he was phenomenal with regard to a lot of those around him. Hopefully he can continue to improve and impress us a la Niskanen.
Downright atrocious;
Gonchar: Should've hung 'em up years ago. Looked excruciatingly slow, and horrendous on the defensive side of the puck. Take the last shreds of dignity you've got, retire, and take a job with the the team in a coaching position. Lord knows guys like Maatta, Letang, Dumoulin and Pouliot could learn an immeasurable amount from an all-time great offensive d-man like Gonch.
Scuderi: Big surprise. Just as embarrassingly bad as we all knew he'd be.
Pouliot: Didn't impress me last season, and looked to take several steps back this camp/pre-season. I don't know if it's a mental thing, a "not ready yet, but on the way" thing, or he's just not nearly as good as we'd all hoped, but it's concerning to see him play at such a piss-poor level with and without the puck, and in all three zones.
Zatkoff: Thank god Murray looked phenomenal, because it's gonna be a situation of the sooner the better as far as Zatkoff being off the team. Hopefully we only have two years of bad backups before Murray's able to make the jump and challenge Fleury for split duties.
Kunitz: Looked just as lazy, slow, complacent, and downright bad as he did last season. He's gotta go. Not simply because he's bad, but because MJ won't tell him to **** himself and put him on the 4th line, and because he's directly responsible for screwing several better, more deserving guys over (Perron, Bennett).
MJ: More evidence to support the idea that MJ is indeed nothing more than Bylsma with an absurd toupee and a mask. Idiotic personnel decisions, ******** rationale for said decisions, and a continuance of seemingly intentionally sabotaging the team before it even hits the ice with line combos.
Overwhelming positives;
Sprong: Really acquitted himself. The dude looks ready to play in the NHL, no questions asked. Does he look ready to contribute big production? No, but the kid can play. He was easily our best forward for several games, including ones that had roster staples. Give him his nine games, give him 3rd line minutes alongside Bonino and Bennett.
Bennett: Was great on a near shift-by-shift basis. Great play along the boards, great play with and without the puck. No lack of accountability as far as defense goes. His skating also looked a lot better. It's gonna be a shame to see him getting 4th line minutes until he's traded for ridiculously below his value.
Plotnikov: Also acquitted himself very well. He's got a nose for the net, can hit extremely well, his skating's looked good considering all the question marks surrounding it. As time moves on, he gets more comfortable with this team/the NA game/NA ice, I think he'll turn out to be a steal.
Pretty good;
Sid+Kessel: Didn't light the world on fire on a consistent basis, but had flashes of "Holy ****, these guys are gonna be unreal." Anyone thinking that their third linemate doesn't matter is simply wrong. They have the potential to be the best line in the league, easily, and Sid+Kessel could hover between 180-200pts.
Maatta+Letang: Again, weren't out of this world incredible, but I think they'll get better as time goes on. They have to, since they're our only legit defensemen that are capable of more than bottom pairing minutes/responsibility.
Murray: Taking into account the defense in front of him at any given moment, I think Murray played extremely well. He showed flashes of what lead to an incredible season last year in the AHL. He's by no means ready for full time NHL duty, but he's shown an incredible amount of poise, patience, calmness, and an impressive dedication to fundamentals. He's gonna be a really, really good goalie in a couple more years.
Decent;
Sundqvist: I didn't expect him to make the big club, but there were definitely hints of "He could be a very good bottom-6 player for us for a long time." He's got a bunch to work on, and he could stand to get stronger to fully take advantage of his frame, but he's got tons of time to develop.
Dupuis: The speed, puck-hounding, and defensive responsibility are all still there. I don't think he's good enough for top-6 duty, and I wouldn't sacrifice Bennett/Sprong's development to put him on the third line, but Duper showed he can still be a very effective 4th liner/PK specialist. Hope his health holds up, for his sake and ours.
Cole: Again, maybe it's a situation of "He looks better because he's surrounded by garbage," but Cole didn't really look out of place back on the blueline. I am still not sold on him being an effective 2nd pairing defenseman, but we've got no other choice. In my eyes, he's a good bottom pairing guy.
Clendening: Much like with Cole, I don't really know how to evaluate him. He didn't look disastrous, which is like saying he was phenomenal with regard to a lot of those around him. Hopefully he can continue to improve and impress us a la Niskanen.
Downright atrocious;
Gonchar: Should've hung 'em up years ago. Looked excruciatingly slow, and horrendous on the defensive side of the puck. Take the last shreds of dignity you've got, retire, and take a job with the the team in a coaching position. Lord knows guys like Maatta, Letang, Dumoulin and Pouliot could learn an immeasurable amount from an all-time great offensive d-man like Gonch.
Scuderi: Big surprise. Just as embarrassingly bad as we all knew he'd be.
Pouliot: Didn't impress me last season, and looked to take several steps back this camp/pre-season. I don't know if it's a mental thing, a "not ready yet, but on the way" thing, or he's just not nearly as good as we'd all hoped, but it's concerning to see him play at such a piss-poor level with and without the puck, and in all three zones.
Zatkoff: Thank god Murray looked phenomenal, because it's gonna be a situation of the sooner the better as far as Zatkoff being off the team. Hopefully we only have two years of bad backups before Murray's able to make the jump and challenge Fleury for split duties.
Kunitz: Looked just as lazy, slow, complacent, and downright bad as he did last season. He's gotta go. Not simply because he's bad, but because MJ won't tell him to **** himself and put him on the 4th line, and because he's directly responsible for screwing several better, more deserving guys over (Perron, Bennett).
MJ: More evidence to support the idea that MJ is indeed nothing more than Bylsma with an absurd toupee and a mask. Idiotic personnel decisions, ******** rationale for said decisions, and a continuance of seemingly intentionally sabotaging the team before it even hits the ice with line combos.
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