Player Discussion Adam "the Magician" Larsson

[McGoMcD]

Perhaps 35th best forward for 35th best dman, but, where does Larsson rank among Right-handed dmen? That might be more interesting.

It would be, my guess if you look at left handed forwards vs right handed Dmen. you find Larsson ranks quite a bit higher.


ps, question about Larsson's injury history. Has he ever missed time with a significant injury?

 

[guymez]

ps, question about Larsson's injury history. Has he ever missed time with a significant injury?

Larsson had some lower back issues in 2014....missed 21 games.
Played 82 games last season so it appears that his back issues are a thing of the past.

If you average out his time lost over the 5 years he has been in the NHL it amounts to a max of about 10 games a season. So he averages 70+ games played per season.
Not exactly a concern IMO.

 

[Based Anime Fan]

Larsson had some lower back issues in 2014....missed 21 games.
Played 82 games last season so it appears that his back issues are a thing of the past.

If you average out his time lost over the 5 years he has been in the NHL it amounts to a max of about 10 games a season. So he averages 70+ games played per season.
Not exactly a concern IMO.

He had his hip damaged in his rookie year by Subban, was kind of depressing as he was putting up points.

Oh, he also had that ilness last year, the name of it is escaping me, Mumps maybe?

 

[Up the Irons]

He had his hip damaged in his rookie year by Subban, was kind of depressing as he was putting up points.

Oh, he also had that ilness last year, the name of it is escaping me, Mumps maybe?

Tell me it wasn't a Stapph infection!!

 

[Up the Irons]

Hall is higher then 35th best forward. give him the career path of Seguin and he'd by top 10 easily. He was basically equal to Seguin at 18.

Remember, Hall got drafted into THE WORST ORGANIZATION IN HISTORY!!! He got the ABSOLUTE WORST CASE SCENARIO!!!

I like this trade and don't think it's a gross overpay, but let's be fair. Hall is Top 3 in EV scoring, ffs. Every single minute of his career (save 50 games of McD this year) he has been a one-man show.

I venture to say there has never been a 1OV that got drafted into a worse situation.

 

[oilinblood]

I think people are talking in relatives here, let's just say that he was definitely not drafted as just a shut-down D, but rather a two-way D as you say. Many reports did point out his offense before the draft but that is overlooked a lot here (which makes sense to an extent but the underlying numbers tell a bit of a different story imo).

Please note that I am not talking about what he is or what he will be, I am just referring to what was said pre-draft since that was the issue here.

The Hockey News

The Hockey Writers

TSN

HF

... and one of the more negative ones from USA Today:

Gordie Clark

Thanks for stepping in there, while i was absent. i hate going through piles of links. Thanks for doing it for me. (i pretty much wouldnt have responded...not worth the effort of posting links). The board is mostly set on Larsson being a one dimensional stay-at-home Dman and I came on here to give my thoughts that that is what he was in Jersey because that was what they wanted. He will grow into a bigger more all-encompassing role in Edmonton. Its my opinion. I likely would have walked away from his statement but its fair that the board, because not everyone reads up on pre-draft pospects, get a sense of what the original skills package of the man was.
As i said...the outlets and IQ are still there and when you factor in the mobility and skill of our forwards it should translate into more points WHETHER HE EXPANDS INTO PP TIME OR NOT. I suspect he posts 30-35 points based on being the go to RHD and the talent level he will be moving pucks to. The better he is at turning the pucks around in the defensive end the better our forwards can be used and the better the results for the team.


Thanks for the "step-in" on that one.

 

[oilinblood]

Hall is higher then 35th best forward. give him the career path of Seguin and he'd by top 10 easily. He was basically equal to Seguin at 18.

Remember, Hall got drafted into THE WORST ORGANIZATION IN HISTORY!!! He got the ABSOLUTE WORST CASE SCENARIO!!!

I like this trade and don't think it's a gross overpay, but let's be fair. Hall is Top 3 in EV scoring, ffs. Every single minute of his career (save 50 games of McD this year) he has been a one-man show.

I venture to say there has never been a 1OV that got drafted into a worse situation.

This is the LArsson thread.

 

[Tad Mikowsky]

Hall is higher then 35th best forward. give him the career path of Seguin and he'd by top 10 easily. He was basically equal to Seguin at 18.

Remember, Hall got drafted into THE WORST ORGANIZATION IN HISTORY!!! He got the ABSOLUTE WORST CASE SCENARIO!!!

I like this trade and don't think it's a gross overpay, but let's be fair. Hall is Top 3 in EV scoring, ffs. Every single minute of his career (save 50 games of McD this year) he has been a one-man show.

I venture to say there has never been a 1OV that got drafted into a worse situation.

Lol worst organization in the history of sports.

LOL.

 

[Kolja]

Where does he rank amongst RHD in the league? Anyone care to make a list?

 

[McFlyingV]

Where does he rank amongst RHD in the league? Anyone care to make a list?

Off the top of my head

RHD ahead of him (no order):

Doughty
Karlsson
Weber
Subban
Letang
Pietrangelo
Burns
Ekblad
Byfuglien
Klingberg
Carlson
Faulk
Shattenkirk
Stralman
Seabrook


Some maybes: E.Johnson, Hamonic, Barrie(probably not), Tanev, Ristolainen

I'd put him anywhere in the 16-20 range for RHD.

 

[Fourier]

Off the top of my head

RHD ahead of him (no order):

Doughty
Karlsson
Weber
Subban
Letang
Pietrangelo
Burns
Ekblad
Byfuglien
Klingberg
Carlson
Faulk
Shattenkirk
Stralman
Seabrook


Some maybes: E.Johnson, Hamonic, Barrie(probably not), Tanev, Ristolainen

I'd put him anywhere in the 16-20 range for RHD.

Even in this group there are some questions.

Shattenkirk is a great pp producer but has significant defensive flaws. Over the last two years Larsson has 2 more ES points than Shattenkirk and is far better defensively. So at ES I'd rank Larsson ahead of him.

Seabrook's defensive game has significantly deteriorated. I don't think he can anchor a top pairing these days. He had a very productive year offensively but my guess is that is they were both Oilers Larsson would probably play ahead of Seabrook at ES. Aside from a bit of a nasty contract Seabrook would be a great RHD to add though. Playing with Sekera on the second pairing would cut down his ice time and give you both leadership and that big point shot.

Stralman is likely the closest player on that list to Larsson.

 

[CupofOil]

Off the top of my head

RHD ahead of him (no order):
Doughty
Karlsson

Weber
Subban
Letang
Pietrangelo
Burns
Ekblad
Byfuglien
Klingberg
Carlson
Faulk
Shattenkirk
Stralman
Seabrook


Some maybes: E.Johnson, Hamonic, Barrie(probably not), Tanev, Ristolainen

I'd put him anywhere in the 16-20 range for RHD.

I don't think Shattenkirk and Klingberg belong in that top group. Shattenkirk especially I find to be overrated around here, I prefer Barrie and his high level even strength production over PP specialist Shattenkirk. I'd say that Larsson belongs in that Tanev, Ristolainen, Hamonic, Stralman group. A little less proven than those guys but his level of play last season was right up there with them. Hard to compare with offensive Dmen like Shattenkirk and Barrie who get a heavy offensive zone push playing sheltered minutes.

 

[McFlyingV]

I don't think Shattenkirk and Klingberg belong in that top group. Shattenkirk especially I find to be overrated around here, I prefer Barrie and his high level even strength production over PP specialist Shattenkirk. I'd say that Larsson belongs in that Tanev, Ristolainen, Hamonic, Stralman group. A little less proven than those guys but his level of play last season was right up there with them. Hard to compare with offensive Dmen like Shattenkirk and Barrie who get a heavy offensive zone push playing sheltered minutes.

Personally I think Faulk is the one who gets overrated around here. To me, him and Shattenkirk are quite similar, and both defend better than Barrie imo (although I realize Faulk is forced to play tough minutes while Shattenkirk isn't). Faulk had an elite stretch to start the year, but his offence went in the gutter after that, and Shattenkirk was similar in the 2014-15 season but missed a bunch of games to injury. Klingberg showed he was dynamic enough offensively while still have a decent defensive game for me to have him above those 3, but I'd agree its hard to compare Larsson to offensive D.

If Larsson can stay elite defensively and add some offence to his game he could definitely be ahead of some guys on that list.

 

[CupofOil]

Personally I think Faulk is the one who gets overrated around here. To me, him and Shattenkirk are quite similar, and both defend better than Barrie imo (although I realize Faulk is forced to play tough minutes while Shattenkirk isn't). Faulk had an elite stretch to start the year, but his offence went in the gutter after that, and Shattenkirk was similar in the 2014-15 season but missed a bunch of games to injury. Klingberg showed he was dynamic enough offensively while still have a decent defensive game for me to have him above those 3, but I'd agree its hard to compare Larsson to offensive D.

If Larsson can stay elite defensively and add some offence to his game he could definitely be ahead of some guys on that list.

The difference between Faulk and Shattenkirk is that Faulk plays much tougher minutes on a much worse team and still puts up the numbers, plus he's a lot more physical than Shatty. I think there's a clear difference between the two.

I think we're going to see some issues for Larsson this season as he adjusts to a completely different system (a more aggressive defense system here) and a polar opposite culture in Edmonton compared to the New York metro area so I wouldn't be surprised if he has a poor start to the season and this place becomes unbearable as a result.

 

[Up the Irons]

I don't know a whole lot about Larsson, but if he is comparable to Strahlman and Hamonic, well thats PDG!

 

[ohheyhemsky]

Lol worst organization in the history of sports.

LOL.

In modern sports, in a 30 team league, we're really pushing it here.

 

[Aerchon]

I don't know a whole lot about Larsson, but if he is comparable to Strahlman and Hamonic, well thats PDG!

One of the things I find interesting is that a trade for Harmonic for Hall was speculated. Which was an overpay as well but with the addition of Lucic not as frowned upon.

Larsson is at least as good as Harmonic now with far more upside. Bigger, better skater, younger, and signed longer.

To me this really shows just how much Larsson was an unknown to most Oilers fans.

 

[BoldNewLettuce]

One of the things I find interesting is that a trade for Harmonic for Hall was speculated. Which was an overpay as well but with the addition of Lucic not as frowned upon.

Larsson is at least as good as Harmonic now with far more upside. Bigger, better skater, younger, and signed longer.

To me this really shows just how much Larsson was an unknown to most Oilers fans.

He was the vlasic of the east. I wonder if klef gave any input having played with Lardiggity before?

 

[Aerrol]

One of the things I find interesting is that a trade for Harmonic for Hall was speculated. Which was an overpay as well but with the addition of Lucic not as frowned upon.

Larsson is at least as good as Harmonic now with far more upside. Bigger, better skater, younger, and signed longer.

To me this really shows just how much Larsson was an unknown to most Oilers fans.

Eh. That's because the trade actually happened. People don't get as worked up when it's just a hypothetical on a message board. If we traded Hall for Hamonic 1 for 1 there would be just as much (if not more) fury. I know I'd hate it even more, as I do prefer Larsson to Hamonic, even though I don't think either are what we needed.

 

[Aerchon]

Eh. That's because the trade actually happened. People don't get as worked up when it's just a hypothetical on a message board. If we traded Hall for Hamonic 1 for 1 there would be just as much (if not more) fury. I know I'd hate it even more, as I do prefer Larsson to Hamonic, even though I don't think either are what we needed.

I don't think there would be nearly as much hoopla if it was Harmonic. It was a name being tossed around a lot as a player that would help our team immensely. Typically for Eberle or Nuge 1 for 1.

I of course do think we need a defender like Harmonic or Larsson as opposed to a Barrie type.

Also think it's safe to say there are no true elite #1 right shooting defenders that were available period let alone straight up for Hall better than Larsson. Especially with taking the cap into consideration. Just my opinion tho.

 

[TheRebuild]

Hall is higher then 35th best forward. give him the career path of Seguin and he'd by top 10 easily. He was basically equal to Seguin at 18.

I still remember at that draft how happy Seguin was to get picked 2nd, and playing it up like he was "disappointed" to not be first, but just the biggest ****-eating grin the whole time. Didn't blame him at the time, still don't.

 

[Aerrol]

I don't think there would be nearly as much hoopla if it was Harmonic. It was a name being tossed around a lot as a player that would help our team immensely. Typically for Eberle or Nuge 1 for 1.

I of course do think we need a defender like Harmonic or Larsson as opposed to a Barrie type.

Also think it's safe to say there are no true elite #1 right shooting defenders that were available period let alone straight up for Hall better than Larsson. Especially with taking the cap into consideration. Just my opinion tho.

Don't want to re-tread old arguments, so I'll just say I hope your right, and Larsson's first pass is all we needed in terms of an upgrade on the backend to get our offence going.

 

[Aerchon]

Don't want to re-tread old arguments, so I'll just say I hope your right, and Larsson's first pass is all we needed in terms of an upgrade on the backend to get our offence going.

Our biggest weakness by far/bar none, is keeping pucks out of the net. Passing/transition is a huge part of that of course. We need more goals as well obviously but it's our goals against that has sunk us in the standings more than anything else.

Team defense, from wingers winning battles for face offs and getting in on the fore check down to our goalie making timely saves. Our team on paper is waaay better in that regard than it was to start last year.

A Larsson or a Harmonic type minute munching in all situations is exactly what the team needs to win. The jury is still out if Larsson can do that in Edmonton but by most indications it should not be a problem for him.

A two way defenseman with non elite offense, but elite defense, is far preferable in the Oilers situation than a One way elite offensive type. IMO. And elite two way defensemen just don't get moved and typically cost an arm and a leg. Which Larsson still has a decent chance of becoming.

 

[LaGu]

I would rate Klingberg higher, apart from their current game where Klingberg is not really sheltered even though he is not as exposed as Larsson, Klingberg has a sky-is-the-limit potential imho. I saw he waay back in the days in Sweden, before SHL (and then during) and I have almost never seen anyone who could dominate and take over games as he could. The poise he had was amazing.

For me Larsson is defentively top 25 RD, probably top 20 but that will be more clear once the season gets going (or rather in the spring). Right now I see arguments for other 20 RD to be ahead of him.

 

[McOvechking]

I would rate Klingberg higher, apart from their current game where Klingberg is not really sheltered even though he is not as exposed as Larsson, Klingberg has a sky-is-the-limit potential imho. I saw he waay back in the days in Sweden, before SHL (and then during) and I have almost never seen anyone who could dominate and take over games as he could. The poise he had was amazing.

Klingberg and Larsson are so difficult to compare. Apples and oranges. Right now, for what the Oilers need, I put Larsson way ahead of Klingberg.