Valtteri Filppula

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leafaholix*

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He was great.

It's scary that the Wings have stolen stars/potential stars from almost every European country that plays hockey...

Henrik Zetterberg - Sweden
Pavel Datsyuk - Russia
Igor Grigorenko - Russia
Valtteri Filppula - Finland
Jiri Hudler - Czech Republic
 

Debrincat93

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Dec 4, 2002
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Filpulla seams to be a crafty player, yes we got zetterberg at center, datsyuk at center, hudler at center, who knows... filpulla is atleast 2 years away from comming to N.A. At this rate, i dont see why he wont be a top prospect in 2 years. We can always move zets to wing, and im sure hudler can play wing IF needed... anyway, im really thrilled to see filpulla improve his game and become what he was drafted to be. Hopfully he can continue to improve and turn out to be a grigorenko-type talked about prospct because it was a while after he was drafted before ppl talked about him
 

Sampe

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Feb 27, 2002
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Hokay said:
Yes Valtteri Filppula! Another great player drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. Do anybody know something about is style of play. Or, do you have impressions about his performance at the WJC.

Based on ONLY what I've seen in the last two WJC's:

To put it short, he's like a poor man's Saku Koivu or a more talented and skilled version of Niko Kapanen (style wise I think he's a bit closer to Koivu). Filppula's biggest strengths are his consistency, hard work and the ability to read the game and make right decisions on the ice. He doesn't quite seem to have Koivu's determination, but he's definitely a team player and his defensive play is improving rapidly. His skill level is pretty good too and he's a good playmaker, even though he doesn't compare to Zetterberg and Hudler in these departments. He's also a decent skater. Oh, and he can control his temper a LOT better than Koivu could at his age, or even now for that matter.

I think he has the potential to become a 2nd/3rd liner in the NHL, depending on the team he plays for. In Detroit, he'd be an ideal 3rd line center, but he still needs a year or two to gain more muscle and improve his ability to take faceoffs.

But nevertheless, his development has been absolutely incredible from my narrow point of view. Last year Filppula didn't impress me at all - and I truly mean that - but this year he was great and didn't have a single bad game. I don't even dare to guess how many points he'd have scored, had Bergenheim been able to finish at least half of his chances.
 

-HIFK-

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Filppula has developed into a key-player for Jokerit this season.

He makes great plays, and very often his play either generates a scoring chance or forces the other team into taking a penalty against him. That´s all thanks to how good he is with the puck, and how tremendously fast he is with the puck in his control. I think he has something like 3+12 points this season in the SM-liiga, which is good for a player of his age, playing as a 3rd line center.

Damn, there are very few things I appreciate about Jokerit, but I have to admit that during this SM-liiga-season there have been Lepistö and Filppula who have really impressed me. And look at how they performed in these WJC´s. Lepistö was fantastic!
And of course I have to mention Bergenheim too, as he has been one of my favorites for a longer time now.

But back to Valtteri Filppula. Isn´t he cute..? :)
 

eh

Registered User
Having seen Filppula a bit more than just the WJC's, I have to comment. The comparisons to Koivu and Kapanen are not that far off, but the biggest difference between Filppula and these two is that his footspeed isn't as great. He's also much more calm, he tries to control the pace of the game instead of rushing it. He's also not as feisty as those two. His skill level is excellent by Finnish standards, but of course doesn't compare to Hudler, for example. His shot could use some work still.

Last year he was dominant in the U-20 league and - while not doing anything spectacular - filled his spot in the WJC team. This year he made the senior team of Jokerit as the third line center and after getting used to the added tempo etc., he has been great. Eleven points in fifteen games (during one month before the xmas break and the WJC) is amazing for a rookie in SM-liiga. I knew he had potential, but he has taken a huge step this year.

In the WJC he was one of the top three Finns and made the all star team. That pretty much sums it up. One of the best playmakers in the tournament. To me the most impressing thing about him was that he was able to carry the puck to the offensive zone in almost every situation, except for the first game against Canada, when the big Canadian defense stopped any Finn from entering the zone with the puck.
 

degroat*

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Hokay said:
Yes Valtteri Filppula! Another great player drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. Do anybody know something about is style of play. Or, do you have impressions about his performance at the WJC.

I love it... Yes Fippula! He's great! I know nothing about him so tell me what you know!
 

teme

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Feb 28, 2002
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Filppula is about 6-0 and thus has couple inches on Niko Kapanen and Koivu. He also has excellent balance, so I think he should be able to handle the physical play. NHL future? I think so, he isn't the most skilled kid out there but he has all the skill he needs including very quick hands, no real holes in his game apart from a weak shot (which can be fixed) and most importantly he has excellent vision and smarts. Potential: good 2nd line playmaking centre, a key player in both special teams. WTG Wings scouts.

edit: and he isn't soft *cough*Hudler*cough*
 
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