Player Discussion: 2019 HFBolts Current Player Rankings #7

Who the Lightning's best player?

  • Braydon Coburn

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Louis Domingue

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Adam Erne

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Mathieu Jospeh

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Alex Killorn

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Curtis McElhinney

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Ondrej Palat

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Cedric Paquette

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Jan Rutta

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Luke Schenn

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Luke Witkowski

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    42
  • Poll closed .

LightningStrikes

Champa Bay Lightning
Nov 24, 2009
26,062
9,772
What would you answer when asked by a non-hockey fan: Who's the Lightning's best player? I mean, right now because I have tickets. Who should I watch out for?

Let's do that and go down the list.
Rules: None. The definition of "best" is entirely up to you.
Leave a post to let the world know why your pick is superior to all other picks.



#1 RW NIKITA KUCHEROV
71.4% of votes

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#2 LD VICTOR HEDMAN
66.7% of votes

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#3 C BRAYDEN POINT
43.9% of votes


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#4 G ANDREI VASILEVSKIY

61.1% of votes

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#5 C STEVEN STAMKOS
87.5% of votes


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#6 LD RYAN MCDONAGH
73.0% of votes

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LightningStrikes

Champa Bay Lightning
Nov 24, 2009
26,062
9,772
Again, anybody willing to do the polls for the next two weeks? I'll be on vacation and creating these on mobile is a hassle.
 

LightningStrikes

Champa Bay Lightning
Nov 24, 2009
26,062
9,772
TyJo scored 10 more goals and lead the team in ES goals (only one of his 29 goals was on the PP, and one on the PK) which I find impressive.
Cirelli plays the more complete game and almost broke 20 goals in only his first full season. Tough pick.

Went with Tony but ask me again in an hour and I could go with TJ.
 
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ccman68

Registered User
Dec 9, 2017
4,108
4,383
C41195BD-03EC-4AAB-B949-4B945FF7C25A.png


Hmm.. should I vote for the good hockey player or the one getting carried by Kucherov and Point? Difficult decisions.
 

DFC

Registered User
Sep 26, 2013
46,844
22,688
NB
This is a tough one. I think this year it's still Johnson, with Gourde close behind, but next year I think they'll both be overtaken by Cirelli and Cernak.
 

DistantThunderRep

Registered User
Mar 8, 2018
19,303
16,378
I went with Celery because of his importance on the PK and Third line. He makes our Third Line such a threat. I also believe we could put Gourde or Celery on the line with Point and Kuch and get similar results.
 

DFC

Registered User
Sep 26, 2013
46,844
22,688
NB
It's Celery for me. Threat SH, incredible defensively. No quit in his game. Not the producer Johnson is, but doesn't get the benefit of the linemates Johnson does, either. He's going to be one of the best middle 6 C's in the game in a few years, IMO.

Agree with most of this, although I still take Johnson for the time-being. He's a 4-time 20 goal-scorer and has hit 29 twice, and is regularly in our top 4 or 5 ES goal-scorers, even in bad or injured years. There's still a lot of value in that. I do think by the end of the year, hopefully, Cirelli will be the clearly more important player. It'll be better for the team. I just don't think we're quite there yet.

Johnson has scored 20+ goals every year he's been healthy, and had 19 in 66 games in one of the not-healthy years. Even if we're no longer in the Triplet years, that kind of consistency should still place him pretty high, IMO.
 
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Steazy Doo

Registered User
Jan 31, 2013
6,471
3,046
It's Celery for me. Threat SH, incredible defensively. No quit in his game. Not the producer Johnson is, but doesn't get the benefit of the linemates Johnson does, either. He's going to be one of the best middle 6 C's in the game in a few years, IMO.
Johnson has been a shorthanded threat his entire career fwiw. I think he had two last season as well.
 

God King Fudge

Championship Swag
Oct 13, 2017
6,308
6,793
Johnson has been a shorthanded threat his entire career fwiw. I think he had two last season as well.
Eh. Johnson was a threat early in his career (put up 5 SH goals in his second season, just like Cirelli did) but he's only had 3 SH goals since then. I wouldn't really consider him a threat after that second season.

We could of course say the same about Tony in a few years, but right now he's gotta be considered a threat coming off a 5 SHG campaign.
 

FinnLightning26

Death and no taxes
Sep 16, 2007
7,165
2,936
Lapland
Voted Cirelli. I love to watch the kid play. Cirelli is pretty much a perfect middle six player. Chips in on offense and is great on the PK.
 

DFC

Registered User
Sep 26, 2013
46,844
22,688
NB
Eh. Johnson was a threat early in his career (put up 5 SH goals in his second season, just like Cirelli did) but he's only had 3 SH goals since then. I wouldn't really consider him a threat after that second season.

We could of course say the same about Tony in a few years, but right now he's gotta be considered a threat coming off a 5 SHG campaign.

It seems like a lot of players are short-handed threats right out of the gate. Then the book gets out on them or something and they settle down.

I think for the time-being it goes to the more proven player. Cirelli is the shiny new thing, but the shine wears off everybody after a year or two (Gourde this year, for instance, Palat a few years ago, and, dare I say it, we're even starting to see it with Point from time to time). I think the bigger trick is to keep it going for a few years. Johnson will never put up 70 points again, but he tends to score 20 regardless of circumstances, and was the defensive conscience of the Point line last year. They almost seemed to play a LW lock style. A lot of Johnson's goals came from entering the zone late, after covering for a pinching Dman.

It'll be great if a guy or two surpasses him, but I don't think we're quite there yet. Gourde, Cirelli, and Joseph are all capable. Or even Palat if the extra time off heal up whatever's wrong with him.
 

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