Tyler Wright: Red Wings trying to be trend setters at draft

[Pavels Dog]

Except the NHL wants that, and if you had to deal with all the liability that goes along with concussions and CTE, you would too.

Also don’t know why you brought up Pittsburgh when they won the Cup with no physical presence then dumped Reaves after not even having him a full season.

You’re really reaching with this particular rant. If we get good again, it’s going to be because of the skilled players we just drafted (Zadina, Berggren) and the ones we add from here (Hughes, whoever). I’m fine with mixing in some physical guys with them, but someone else will be driving the bus.

It’s all about what kind of balance you have.
The core 3-4 players are most important to becoming good, but the remaining ~20 players on the roster can determine identity in such a way that you either gain an edge over other good teams, become middle of the pack or struggle to keep up.

I don’t feel like we’re building a Broad Street Bullies team, but our forward group could become a pain in the a** for a lot of small D around the league to handle.

 

[Frk It]

It’s all about what kind of balance you have.
The core 3-4 players are most important to becoming good, but the remaining ~20 players on the roster can determine identity in such a way that you either gain an edge over other good teams, become middle of the pack or struggle to keep up.

I don’t feel like we’re building a Broad Street Bullies team, but our forward group could become a pain in the a** for a lot of small D around the league to handle.

I can agree with that, even Pittsburgh had to shuffle the deck a few times with HOF players.

But I don't think of Washington as a "physical team" just because they have Tom Wilson... not when they have a bunch of skilled Euro's flying around making plays. He was important in their run though, can't deny that.

 

[Shaman464]

Literally gives examples that are nearly 4 decades old.

I don't know nothing by myself, but I just read and hear things and collect them together. Management people are talking about this. They create the game.

Too many of fans are just watching what is happening now. It's like a stock market. See the future. What happens now, it's already late.

If you hear what the managent and players are saying, there's really a big love against physical play era. They want to add it back on the sport, with skill and speed, not just taking something away.

NHL is a big marketing machine. Winning sells most. Everybody can't win. Physicality + adding fights more possible again is what sells second most, imo.

NHL will want to sell their product, be more of action-based like NFL than MLB, which is dead boring currently.

When I watched the IceGuardians document, it changed a bit of my thinking. Players from 80's era are managing things, they want to spark the sport with the element which was with them.

Except the NHL is literally doing everything to stop a potential class action lawsuit from players right now by continually updating player safety and reducing the overall physicality of the game. They could give a shit what fans want if it means exposing themselves to potential civil liability by not ensuring their workforce is safe. So, the era of big hits, and enforcers are dead, and hockey players are better for it.

 

[Henkka]

Except the NHL is literally doing everything to stop a potential class action lawsuit from players right now by continually updating player safety and reducing the overall physicality of the game. They could give a **** what fans want if it means exposing themselves to potential civil liability by not ensuring their workforce is safe. So, the era of big hits, and enforcers are dead, and hockey players are better for it.

Except Bettman as the voice of owners thinks different.



World has not prevented a popular sport like UFC happening.

NHL owners like to be a popular sport. That means more money.

 

[Unfriendly Ghost]

Except Bettman as the voice of owners thinks different.



World has not prevented a popular sport like UFC happening.

NHL owners like to be a popular sport. That means more money.

Admitting that there's something to remove would be admitting fault. This is just an extension of the NHL's position, which is there's no problem to fix in the first place.

 

[raymond23]

The stakes are high for Tyler Wright, and the Red Wings

It's time to bump this thread up.




Discussion started based on this comment.

Now many succesful GMs in NHL are throwing big money for Ryan Reaveses and Tom Wilsons. First Pittsburgh, then Vegas traded/signed him. Now Tom Wilson. HF Boards are laughing for these contracts, but GMs are dead serious.

Best GMs from last summers, SC winner Pittsburgh, SC Finalist Las Vegas, SC Winner Washington.

They are setting a trend.

They are throwing money for players, who are not based on any kind of statistic, except a physical element. Wilson killed many opposite players on last playoffs and his element had a huge impact for their win.

NHL is not gonna just speed and skill in the future. Physicality will come back. That sells. That bumps your ass of from the seat, when a boring game is going. NHL trends are a circle, which goes around and around. Force will face a counterforce.

This is same Tyler Wright talked a year ago.

Times are changing.

You mean the trendsetting draft that was an absolute dud?

I'd recommend his latest interview. Definitely has changed his tune.

 

[Shaman464]

Except Bettman as the voice of owners thinks different.



World has not prevented a popular sport like UFC happening.

NHL owners like to be a popular sport. That means more money.

That's why they got rid of all the rules that have curtailed fighting in the last decade.... oh wait they all still exist and have dropped fighting from happening in nearly 1/2 of games to only happening in 1/6th of them....

 

[Henkka]

There was a lot of size, character and players who compete. Wright explained the reason why.

“When the Penguins come in and go small, with speed and no one can catch them, everyone tries to play catch up,” Wright said, defending the 2017 draft. “Where is the NHL going? We're on the other side of that. We're trying to be trend setters.”

Sounds like St. Louis Blues, who just won the Stanley Cup.

Maybe our Scouting Director isn't so moronic.

This new trend happened faster than anybody predicted. St. Louis wins the Cup, NY Islanders did some damage at Metropolitan.

Physical great defensive team is still as good option, as fast skilled team. Those did get worn out.

 

[pz29]

Except Bettman as the voice of owners thinks different.



World has not prevented a popular sport like UFC happening.

NHL owners like to be a popular sport. That means more money.

To me and to many others, quality hockey has never been about "big hits" and fights. If I were into that stuff, I'd be a wrestling fan.

 

[Frk It]

Sounds like St. Louis Blues, who just won the Stanley Cup.

Maybe our Scouting Director isn't so moronic.

This new trend happened faster than anybody predicted. St. Louis wins the Cup, NY Islanders did some damage at Metropolitan.

Physical great defensive team is still as good option, as fast skilled team. Those did get worn out.

Except that strategy resulted in drafting a bunch of guys who already have no future here, and that may not even end up be our identity in the long run.

But OK...

 

[RedWingsDad]

Fighting and big hits are exciting and fun to watch. To the dudes in here saying otherwise.. is she impressed?

 

[Winger98]

Except that strategy resulted in drafting a bunch of guys who already have no future here, and that may not even end up be our identity in the long run.

But OK...

yeah, I'm not seeing this as any sort of validation for a questionable draft, either. Looking over the top teams, and the majority are in the top half of the league in either height, weight, or both. And I'm betting that will hold up for the majority of seasons. Parayko, Pietrangelo, and Bouwemeester are big guys. They are also crazily skilled. I think the knock on the '17 draft is that the Wings didn't pay enough attention to the latter.

And the Pittsburgh model has been having two of the top5 centers in the world for like the last 15 years. Yeah, teams have had a hard time copying that.

 

[Frk It]

yeah, I'm not seeing this as any sort of validation for a questionable draft, either. Looking over the top teams, and the majority are in the top half of the league in either height, weight, or both. And I'm betting that will hold up for the majority of seasons. Parayko, Pietrangelo, and Bouwemeester are big guys. They are also crazily skilled. I think the knock on the '17 draft is that the Wings didn't pay enough attention to the latter.

And the Pittsburgh model has been having two of the top5 centers in the world for like the last 15 years. Yeah, teams have had a hard time copying that.

Look, it’s good to see there is more than one way to build a team and win. Really only a good thing.

Personally seeing a team with ROR as their #1C makes me feel better about this team and Larkin moving forward, even if we do draft another winger with our top pick, although that’s not my preference.

But this a silly bump because it does not make the guys we drafted following this look any hotter, plus I imagine the guy who gave this quote won’t be here in a few months.

 

[Go Wings]

That is why you fail

 

[waltdetroit]

I am not saying the 2017 draft was great, but when you are drafting 10-11 prospects a year, adding UFA's from overseas, plus undrafted college players, you aren't going to have room in the system for everyone. Borderline prospects that might have been signed in previous years won't get contracts.

 

[obey86]

To me and to many others, quality hockey has never been about "big hits" and fights. If I were into that stuff, I'd be a wrestling fan.

Agreed. A fight is nice every now and again I guess, but if they outlawed fighting all together I wouldn't care one bit.

 

[obey86]

I'm tiring of these arguments where there's a "right" way to build a team. There are many different types of teams that can be successful....there is no one singular template that the Red Wings need to follow. Just get good players.

You can be a good team with ROR as your #1 center, you can be a good team with Crosby/Malkin as your centers, you can be a good team by being big and physical, you can be a good team by being small and skilled, etc

 

[PullHard]

The reality is there is only one of each player, too

Like say you really thought Krug was a model D of the modern game and coveted him

There is only one Torey Krug, you can't just acquire 6 of him and roll 3 pairs of Krugs

Every team is going to have some bigger, slower/ average speed guys, and some smaller, faster guys

The balance may vary slightly depending on the philosophy of the front office but I look across the NHL and most rosters have a few "small" guys and a few "big" guys with a lot of average sized players

 

[Retire91]

As long as we stay away from players like Abby that are mediocre at best but seem to get plugged in because their slightly above average physical play? And Helm's where they are (were) fast as lightning but have literally zero offensive skills I am fine.

If a talented player has a physical presence or size its a bonus. But I think the day and age of a physical player that is pretty much only that dimension without contributing to the score sheet are over unless the game changes again.

It's interesting to try sometime to go to youtube and google a late 80's or early 90's game and then a modern game. The speed of today's game is shocking. Getting rid of hooking and two-line passes might have unleashed the skill of the game but it also unleashed the speed in spades. Today's physical players need to be someone like Marchand that can be a rat but also hit the net.

By the time you hit spot 4 or 5 of the draft anyone who has already shown both elite talent and size is gone.

 

[KasperTheGrittyGhost]

Good ****ing hell.

The stakes are high for Tyler Wright, and the Red Wings

Crazy stuff.

What’s crazy about this? That’s what every forward-looking business in the world tries to do.

 

[ThankGord]

I'm tiring of these arguments where there's a "right" way to build a team. There are many different types of teams that can be successful....there is no one singular template that the Red Wings need to follow. Just get good players.

You can be a good team with ROR as your #1 center, you can be a good team with Crosby/Malkin as your centers, you can be a good team by being big and physical, you can be a good team by being small and skilled, etc

For real. What you really need is depth and motivation.

...and maybe a hot goalie.

 

[dtown77]

As long as we stay away from players like Abby that are mediocre at best but seem to get plugged in because their slightly above average physical play? And Helm's where they are (were) fast as lightning but have literally zero offensive skills I am fine.

If a talented player has a physical presence or size its a bonus. But I think the day and age of a physical player that is pretty much only that dimension without contributing to the score sheet are over unless the game changes again.


Exactly, Don't pass up a better player to reach for a prototype player

 

[Unfriendly Ghost]

What’s crazy about this? That’s what every forward-looking business in the world tries to do.

Right, but forward-looking. Not backward-looking. While we're mining the dead puck era for draft tips, let's bring back that frosted blonde look Joe Thornton modeled so well at his draft.

 

[odin1981]

I cannot wait for Mr. Wright to be shown the door. We need to draft the elite core first, and fill in after. I don't care about size big or small but dammit we are picking top 8 for 3 years and none of those players even appear to be rising.

 

[Henkka]

I cannot wait for Mr. Wright to be shown the door. We need to draft the elite core first, and fill in after. I don't care about size big or small but dammit we are picking top 8 for 3 years and none of those players even appear to be rising.

Please inform us, who are these 3 players drafted at top8 ?