2020/2021 Around the League Thread | Part 3

[Pastor Of Muppetz]

Habs have won 3 out of their last 9 since replacing Julien...With Calgary signing Daryl Sutter as coach , I see them leapfrogging the Habs in the standings, and staying there.

If the Habs miss the post season this year, I see a front office housecleaning ahead...

 

[Bad Goalie]

Yeah, coaching may not be able to influence the standings by more than a handful or so points over the course of a season, but in addition to those handful of points, they make the team so much more competitive, even in close games and losses.

And develop young players into better hockey players.

Like we saw with Petey in the SHL, Boeser and Hughes in the NCAA.

Not what we've seen with anything out of Utica or here in Vancouver, other than our goalies who were coached by Rollie, Clouts, and Clark.

I'll ask you once again. Who has Benning assigned to Utica that was actually NHL material? You saw Goldy, Boucher, and Baertschi. They are the best to ever play in Utica. Boucher and Goldobin are in Europe and Sven will be back there after he collects the balance of what he's owed playing in Utica this season. All 3 were picked up in deals with NHL teams who had given up on them and we learned why.

Who else was assigned here? H-m-m-m-m-m.

The kind of forwards they have sent here were either AHL real gud but flawed for the NHL a la the 3 above or crash and bang but short on the offensive end a la MacEwen.

Shinkaruk arrived as damaged goods. Still nursing an injured hip recovering from off season surgery and out of shape due to little off season training. Still played 74 of the 76 games and put up 16G/15A/31 Pts, most in the last third of the season. Came back his 2nd season to lead the team in goals and points when traded after 435 games. His 21 goals were still #1 on the team at season's end. Another Comets All-Star.

We all know the Gaunce story. He was a very successful 2-way center/wing with the Comets and put up lots of points. Didn't work the same in the NHL, but was a a very good defensive center.

Joe LaBate. Best season as a rookie with 20 Pts in 66GP. Next 2 seasons hurt more than he played. Wasn't qualified. Played the next 3 seasons (this is the 3rd) with AHL Belleville 39 Pts in 125 GP. Never was and never will be.

Jonathan Dahlen. Another great trade acquisition by JB. An Allsvenskan hero Played 50,games with the Comets and proved to be uncoachable. Traded to San Jose and they assigned him to the AHL. In 2019-20 he went back to the Allsvenskan on loan from San Jose. He tore the league up, 77Pts in 51 GP. He re-signed to play there again this season and has amassed 71Pts in 45 GP so far. His rights still belong to San Jose. The guy is tickled to death to excel in the Swedish version of the AHL. With all those points in the SHL is disinterested? WHY?

Petrus Palmu. A waste of a draft pick.

Then there's the center who was incapable of actually carrying a line a la Cole Cassels. He wasn't offered a QO, spent a year in Germany, came back and spent a season between the ECHL and AHL Belleville and Wilkes Barre Scranton and this season is with Belleville again. He has amassed 72 Pts in 260 AHL GP.

Kole Lind and Lukas Jasek. Lukas will be an AHL player until he either doesn't get a QO or decides he can do better in Europe. Lind might get a shot if the Canucks have to sign cheap contracts, but he will be a place holder. He has to be top 6 and I don't see it. Bottom 6 will require a different style and I don't think he's up to it.

Jonah Gadjovich will be like MacEwen if he can actually skate in the NHL. Mack has a forward type scoring ability and Gadj is a front of the net garbageman.

Focht is a project.

Lockwood has one half of what it takes (forecheck and backcheck) but is short on the other half (puck skills, which lead to any kind of offense).

There have never been promising high level D-prospects until Rathbone.
Rafferty only played one season here and finished last season as #3 scoring D-man in the AHL and was named to the 2nd AHL All-Star team. He has been in the Taxi all season with the exception of one NHL game that this season that proved he was not up to the level of one single guy they have been icing below their top 4.-----------Jordan Subban was also an AHL D-man, but in his 2nd season. Jordan's already made it to Europe. Brogan will likely find another NHL team that will take a flyer on him if Benning doesn't re-sign him. With all the contracts he has to renegotiate Brogan is not high on the list. Neither can play D worth a shit.

Briesbois was a 3rd rounder who has achieved tweener status and that's the best you'll get from him.

Juolevi? Came here with high expectations. Proved tpo have major flaws right off the bat, but got injured after only 18 games and was gone for the season. The following season played 45 in a season shortened to 6i by COVID, but had injuries again and had the same defensive problems. Maybe he gets it together in Vancouver or at least gets to remain there combined with his draft position, Benning being in charge, and the lack of talent on the back end in Vancouver.

Mackenze Stewart? I won't waste the space.

Now, Rathbone and Woo are actually performing at a level above any of the other D-prospects Benning sent here. It's hard to tell if it's the level of opposition talent or the skill level of the players. With the Bone I can see both. Woo shows the intelligence, positional play, and solid D-zone play.

Don't put the blame on the development city. Place it with those who assign the players that are sent here. If you don't send players with the innate talent they won't suddenly turn into stud NHL players. Basically, the top draftees did have good seasons here. What happens next is out of our hands.

 

[Hit the post]

I doubt Matthews leaves for AZ. See him in another US city. Think he would go to L.A. but if Byfield, Turcotte and Vilardi develop well they won’t have a need to Matthews. Could add him and flip one of their younger guys to fill a need.

AZ, stability still an issue with their team. Nothing on either a long term lease at Glendale or plans for a new arena elsewhere. Gave up assets in the Hall deal and the scouting penalty. So the prospect group takes a hit.

As for Toronto, this is what happens when the team goes super top heavy with their cap. Nothing at the bottom but minimum salaries. What can you expect for $800k a season? Pretty easy for other teams to beat that rate so you end up with old guys who have made their money or reclamation projects or later round picks who get a shot.

We went with the opposite approach. Bottom heavy with respect to the cap.

 

[I am toxic]

I'll ask you once again. Who has Benning assigned to Utica that was actually NHL material? You saw Goldy, Boucher, and Baertschi. They are the best to ever play in Utica. Boucher and Goldobin are in Europe and Sven will be back there after he collects the balance of what he's owed playing in Utica this season. All 3 were picked up in deals with NHL teams who had given up on them and we learned why.

Who else was assigned here? H-m-m-m-m-m.

The kind of forwards they have sent here were either AHL real gud but flawed for the NHL a la the 3 above or crash and bang but short on the offensive end a la MacEwen.

Then there's the center who was incapable of actually carrying a line a la Cole Cassels. He wasn't offered a QO, spent a year in Germany, came back and spent a season between the ECHL and AHL Belleville and Wilkes Barre Scranton and this season is with Belleville again. He has amassed 72 Pts in 260 AHL GP.

Kole Lind and Lukas Jasek. Lukas will be an AHL player until her either doesn't get a QO or decides he can do better in Europe. Lind might get a shot if the Canucks have to sign cheap contracts, but he will be a place holder.

There have never been promising high level D-prospects until Rathbone.
Rafferty only played one season here and finished last season as #3 scoring D-man in the AHL and was named to the 2nd AHL All-Star team. He has been in the Taxi all season with the exception of one NHL game that this season that proved he was not up to the level of one single guy they have been icing below their top 4.-----------Jordan Subban was also an AHL D-man, but in his 2nd season. Jordan's already made it to Europe. Brogan will likely find another NHL team that will take a flyer on him if Benning doesn't re-sign him. With all the contracts he has to renegotiate Brogan is not high on the list. Neither can play D worth a shit.

Briesbois was a 3rd rounder who has achieved tweener status and that's the best you'll get from him.

Juolevi? Came here with high expectations. Proved tpo have major flaws right off the bat, but got injured after only 18 games and was gone for the season. The following season played 45 in a season shortened to 6i by COVID, but had injuries again and had the same defensive problems. Maybe he gets it together in Vancouver or at least gets to remain there combined with his draft position, Benning being in charge, and the lack of talenton the back end in Vancouver.

Mackenze Stewart? I won't waste the space.

Sorry, I missed it the first time you asked.

Green received top round picks same as every other AHL coach. He worked with Virtanen, and the results still disappoint.

The one player Green got who did go on to become a solid NHL'e was Ben Hutton. Green sat him for the entire 23 game playoffs in 2015.

In addition to being a terrible systems coach, Green is terrible at developing players. He also has a terrible philosophy surrounding elite players. His only success is due to goaltending such as Marky's and now Demko's, and that is in spite of him, not because of him.

 

[iceburg]

Seen plenty of guys with term and a big contract clear. Henrique also cleared earlier in the season.
dont get fooled by revisionist history. Pretty sure most thought they got a steal given he was 29 and only doing a 4 year deal at $4 mill. Numbers for him on our radio stations were pushing upwards of a $7 mill cap hit.

I think the message is that signing players nearing 30 to big contracts with term is a gamble at the best of times. Peak performance years have progressively been getting younger. 29 years old is old in today's game. There are clearly exceptions for freaks of nature like Chara but most players are well into their downward trend by 30. It's usually just a GM's way of taking the pressure off by bringing in established veterans.

 

[StreetHawk]

I think the message is that signing players nearing 30 to big contracts with term is a gamble at the best of times. Peak performance years have progressively been getting younger. 29 years old is old in today's game. There are clearly exceptions for freaks of nature like Chara but most players are well into their downward trend by 30. It's usually just a GM's way of taking the pressure off by bringing in established veterans.

I tend to break the 30's into early (30-33), mid (34-36) and late (37-39). To have an contract expire at 33 is probably where I like to have it expire on a deal that starts in a player's 20's. Ultimately, it depends on injuries, skating as those who are not great skaters struggle more to keep up because they have to work harder at it, style of play, etc.

We can take any draft class and walk it back a few years. 2003 class turns 36 in 2021. How many were still doing well in 2018 when they turned 33?, 34 in 2019, 35 in 2020? Very few Bergeron, Weber, Suter out there still performing well.

Colorado has to decide what to do with Landeskog who is 28 going on 29 before the end of 2021. UFA in the off-season. Do they sign him to a B. Schenn contract or do they need to let him walk. UFA system is setup so that when the majority of players hit UFA (typically at 27 or 28 as most won't make the NHL as a teenager), then this is their best leverage in contract negotiations to get the best contract they can get. So, they should push for maximum term. Likely not best for the team, but the team has gotten 7 years of pro service out of the player.

 

[WetcoastOrca]

We went with the opposite approach. Bottom heavy with respect to the cap.

Benning is just ahead of the curve here.
I wonder if they can get Brad Pitt to play him in the upcoming movie ‘Moneypit’.

 

[Fatass]

Bonino scored today for Minny. Guy seems to help his teams be winners. Why don’t we still have him?

 

[4Twenty]

I would pay my best players a lot of money and backfill my roster with cheap vets and homegrown place holders. People try kicking dirt at Toronto about it, but it's essentially what Tampa does too.

 

[canuckking1]

Wild are just rolling. The only reason they weren't a legit playoff team by the numbers last year was that they got some of the worse goaltending in the league. Getting a goalie and adding a high-end winger has really changed them.

 

[Pastor Of Muppetz]

Benning is just ahead of the curve here.
I wonder if they can get Brad Pitt to play him in the upcoming movie ‘Moneypit’.

View attachment 407423

 

[mathonwy]

I would pay my best players a lot of money and backfill my roster with cheap vets and homegrown place holders. People try kicking dirt at Toronto about it, but it's essentially what Tampa does too.

Oh yah?

Jimbo and FAQ does the complete opposite.

Grind their best players and backfill their roster with expensive overpaid mentors and dumpster dived projects.

I dunno. Hard to say which strategy ultimately wins considering the way incompetence is rewarded in this fake constructed entertainment industry.

 

[StreetHawk]

Wild are just rolling. The only reason they weren't a legit playoff team by the numbers last year was that they got some of the worse goaltending in the league. Getting a goalie and adding a high-end winger has really changed them.

They developed a goalie from within. From the same draft as Demko. 4th round pick, so no major hoopla over him. Came over at age 22, basically a college SR graduate. 2 years in the A and now getting his shot in the NHL. Wild were consistently a team with a good Defense, but never had a lot of scoring punch. They have 4D that require protection in the ED, so it means that they either lose a good forward or move assets out to protect them. Cost them Alex Tuch and Haula last time, so maybe better to just take their medicine and just lose a player now. Really need Parise to do them a solid and waive the NMC for the ED given that Seattle is highly unlikely to take him. With a full NMC, Seattle can't try to force him to retire by sending him to the A because they can't.

Always a wise move to draft a goalie from round 3 or later every 2-3 years. Should expect the Canucks to grab one from round 4 or later in 2021. Always want to have that insurance in the event something happens.

 

[Pastor Of Muppetz]

Hutchinson pulled after 2 quick goals in the first..I don’t have a lick of confidence in that goalie

 

[Hit the post]

Oh yah?

Jimbo and FAQ does the complete opposite.

Grind their best players and backfill their roster with expensive overpaid mentors and dumpster dived projects.

I dunno. Hard to say which strategy ultimately wins considering the way incompetence is rewarded in this fake constructed entertainment industry.

Laffs method worked for the Pens. Course Crosby + Malkin in the prime >>>>>>>>> any half a dozen Laff players. Plus they had Letang & a *legit* starting goalie.

 

[krutovsdonut]

Benning is just ahead of the curve here.
I wonder if they can get Brad Pitt to play him in the upcoming movie ‘Moneypit’.

ok, that is solid. well done.

 

[Tables of Stats]

Laffs method worked for the Pens. Course Crosby + Malkin in the prime >>>>>>>>> any half a dozen Laff players. Plus they had Letang & a *legit* starting goalie.

Neither Pittsburg nor Washington were tanking on purpose, they just legitimately sucked and had done so for a long time. There were never any other teams that could have won the Crosby/Ovi lotteries. The NHL couldn't let two major US markets suck for that long and potentially move/fold and they weren't going to get a better chance to fix things than handing them both can't miss superstars.

 

[Peen]

Wild are just rolling. The only reason they weren't a legit playoff team by the numbers last year was that they got some of the worse goaltending in the league. Getting a goalie and adding a high-end winger has really changed them.

The series with the wild was a coinflip by every metric and eye test.

Kaprizov is NUTS

 

[krutovsdonut]

I would pay my best players a lot of money and backfill my roster with cheap vets and homegrown place holders. People try kicking dirt at Toronto about it, but it's essentially what Tampa does too.

vegas showed the league another way but mcphee would not stick to it.

the sherman was not the best tank, but it was reliable, low maintenance and quick. five of them could easily beat a tiger tank. and the allies had twenty of them for every tiger.