Pre-Game Talk: All Purpose Off Day Thread | Blue! My Boy!

[Tom Hanks]

Why isn’t Riikola playing.

He is ..........for WBS.

 

[Tom Hanks]

is he one of our 6 best D?

Or 7 now Maatta is back.

 

[Peat]

IDK if Riikola is better than Maatta or JJ, honestly. But he is cheaper and so I'd prefer him for next year.

I'm pretty sure, given their respective demonstrated ceilings in the NHL to date, that Riikola is probably not better than either, and that its not even close with Maatta.

 

[Turin]

Riikola has shown nothing to suggest he’s an NHL regular. I like his skills but he should be in the AHL.

 

[Peat]

Schultz's stature benefits from 2 things:

2017 playoffs where he became the co-#1D by default.
Earlier this year where him being out correlated with us sucking.

Nonetheless, I agree with you that he has not been quite as good recently. Dumo had a couple of rough games too although he was great Tuesday night.

Not just this season - it was true last season too.

In fact, here's the numbers for with and without him over the past two seasons

With him
50-24-10 – 110 points out of 84 games .654
And without him
36-29-7 – 79 out of 72 games .548

 

[Andy99]

Or maybe Schultz has just been ass and needs to be better? There's a thought.

I don't get the unwillingness some people here have with criticizing Schultz. You almost never see any negatives said about him.

He’s struggled in the D zone too... but he hasn’t made as many blatant mistakes as JJ and he’ll be judged and rightly so by how he helps transition and O first

 

[Empoleon8771]

He’s struggled in the D zone too... but he hasn’t made as many blatant mistakes as JJ and he’ll be judged and rightly so by how he helps transition and O first

Which he's not doing at all, seeing how his possession stats are downright horrendous.

 

[Corvidae]

Which he's not doing at all, seeing how his possession stats are downright horrendous.

I could say the same about yours. I won't though, because that wouldn't make any sense.

 

[PensandCaps]

Which he's not doing at all, seeing how his possession stats are downright horrendous.

By eye test he is helping a lot in transition.

the advanced stats are bad because his partner is awful advanced stats JJ, Not a coincidence.

 

[ColePens]

Riikola has shown nothing to suggest he’s an NHL regular. I like his skills but he should be in the AHL.

The team expected him to spend a lot of time in WBS. He spent a lot of time in the NHL. IMO that was a huge successful first year.

 

[Corvidae]

The team expected him to spend a lot of time in WBS. He spent a lot of time in the NHL. IMO that was a huge successful first year.

Considering this was the first time he played in an NA sized area? Yeah, good stuff for sure.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

The team expected him to spend a lot of time in WBS. He spent a lot of time in the NHL. IMO that was a huge successful first year.

Even if it takes a bit to get him a full-time spot, keep him in the system and let him develop. I think he's got almost as much potential as Petts to be a regular on our blueline. We just have no spot for him to play through the growing pains right now.

 

[Gurglesons]

Dumo - Letang
Pettersson - Schultz
Riikola - Gudbranson

Would be even better.

No it wouldn’t.

Maatta - Schultz are pretty solid too.

 

[Gurglesons]

Even if it takes a bit to get him a full-time spot, keep him in the system and let him develop. I think he's got almost as much potential as Petts to be a regular on our blueline. We just have no spot for him to play through the growing pains right now.

You do realize Petts is having a Maatta level rookie year?

 

[Gurglesons]

Or maybe Schultz has just been ass and needs to be better? There's a thought.

I don't get the unwillingness some people here have with criticizing Schultz. You almost never see any negatives said about him.

It’s because he really makes misplays and plays a solid game supporting our forwards. The exact opposite of JJ.

 

[Empoleon8771]

I could say the same about yours. I won't though, because that wouldn't make any sense.

I never claimed Johnson helps the Penguins in terms of possession or in their transition game. Schultz having bad possession stats is way more damning than JJ having bad possession stats because Schultz is supposed to have good stats based on his strengths.

By eye test he is helping a lot in transition.

the advanced stats are bad because his partner is awful advanced stats JJ, Not a coincidence.

Yet Pettersson didn't have awful advanced stats while playing with a worse Johnson on his off-side. Convenient thing you're ignoring there.

This is really supporting my thought that people here refuse to criticize Schultz at all, despite his play deserving significant criticism recently.

It’s because he really makes misplays and plays a solid game supporting our forwards. The exact opposite of JJ.

So the Juuso Riikola defense then.

 

[Peat]

You do realize Petts is having a Maatta level rookie year?

Every now and again I stop and think to myself that if Pettersson fills out his frame and grows his game just a little more, and crucially is capable of maintaining what he's doing against that higher level of opposition with some more minutes, he's very close to being a Dumo-Maatta hybrid.

Aka a legit as hell #3 dman

 

[Gurglesons]

Every now and again I stop and think to myself that if Pettersson fills out his frame and grows his game just a little more, and crucially is capable of maintaining what he's doing against that higher level of opposition with some more minutes, he's very close to being a Dumo-Maatta hybrid.

Aka a legit as hell #3 dman

If he’s scratched, that is when I’ll start accepting some questions about Sullivan.

No chance in hell he deserves that given what he’s done this year for our team

 

[Peat]

If he’s scratched, that is when I’ll start accepting some questions about Sullivan.

No chance in hell he deserves that given what he’s done this year for our team

Basically anyone other than Johnson getting scratched. But this movie looks awfully familiar.

This is why I have decided to forsake all hope and embrace the sweet inevitability of the void that awaits us all.

 

[Gurglesons]

Basically anyone other than Johnson getting scratched. But this movie looks awfully familiar.

This is why I have decided to forsake all hope and embrace the sweet inevitability of the void that awaits us all.

Pretty much.

Also, remarkable how Gudbranson is still playing solid hockey this far after us losing that trade.

 

[Corvidae]

I never claimed Johnson helps the Penguins in terms of possession or in their transition game. Schultz having bad possession stats is way more damning than JJ having bad possession stats because Schultz is supposed to have good stats based on his strengths.

lol what? I was just making a childish joke that you have bad possession stats.

 

[Empoleon8771]

lol what? I was just making a childish joke that you have bad possession stats.

Oh I thought you meant Johnson there, my bad

 

[Tom Hanks]

Phil Kessel has a shooting percentage of 4.6% since the start of February

 

[ChaosAgent]

Phil Kessel has a shooting percentage of 4.6% since the start of February

I just did a quick mental calculation, and it's actually 0.0% at even-strength.

 

[ZeroPucksGiven]

What is our PP% the past like 15 games? I believe we're still 4th overall but lately it's been trash and I think Kessel needs off of it