Andrei Kostitsyn
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Blind Gardien
nexus of the crisis
I'd say the happy middle ground on predicting his future is still that he'll be one of those reasonably generic 2nd line wingers, 20-30 goals, popular when you need the offensive injection, a pariah to some teams at other times.
But the other two extremes are still in play, IMO.
He did look good in camp for the Habs this year. He still seems to be missing a certain fundamental "hockey IQ" or ability to read plays and use his teammates that sort of stands between his natural skill set and the kind of productivity that most similarly talented players seem to achieve. If it all falls into place, he can still become more of a 1st line 30+ goal threat. Plus he is learning quite satisfactorily how to mind his defensive responsibilities and deal with the physical side of the game.
Or the other extreme of course is that he could still turn out to be a total "bust". If he can't manage to hit that 20+ goal 2nd-line offensive winger status (and, yes, he's still never scored 20 even in the AHL), then he doesn't do enough else to stay in an NHL lineup.
I think it's probably something like a 70-15-15 split... 70% odds that he's the nice comfy little 2nd line scoring type. With 15% odds on either of the two extremes. (Oversimplifying, of course, since there's still a spectrum in between).
But the other two extremes are still in play, IMO.
He did look good in camp for the Habs this year. He still seems to be missing a certain fundamental "hockey IQ" or ability to read plays and use his teammates that sort of stands between his natural skill set and the kind of productivity that most similarly talented players seem to achieve. If it all falls into place, he can still become more of a 1st line 30+ goal threat. Plus he is learning quite satisfactorily how to mind his defensive responsibilities and deal with the physical side of the game.
Or the other extreme of course is that he could still turn out to be a total "bust". If he can't manage to hit that 20+ goal 2nd-line offensive winger status (and, yes, he's still never scored 20 even in the AHL), then he doesn't do enough else to stay in an NHL lineup.
I think it's probably something like a 70-15-15 split... 70% odds that he's the nice comfy little 2nd line scoring type. With 15% odds on either of the two extremes. (Oversimplifying, of course, since there's still a spectrum in between).
My Personal prediction is either he's going to bust or have a career path similar to Markus Naslund or Daniel Briere (skilled but didn't seem to put it altogether until their mid to late 20's).
There's just something about the guy. He'd rip it up during WJC but never had good (compared to his WJC performances) regular season numbers.
I don't know what turned it around for the other guy's. Maybe one day you just realize that you have to give 100% every shift or you have to start working for a living. Anyways the skills there I don't know what's missing or if he'll ever find it.
There's just something about the guy. He'd rip it up during WJC but never had good (compared to his WJC performances) regular season numbers.
I don't know what turned it around for the other guy's. Maybe one day you just realize that you have to give 100% every shift or you have to start working for a living. Anyways the skills there I don't know what's missing or if he'll ever find it.
Paxton Fettel
Registered User
- Mar 3, 2006
- 7,238
- 309
what's the name on the back of his jersey?
Is it Kastsitsyn (that's what NHL.com says) or Kostitsyn?
Is it Kastsitsyn (that's what NHL.com says) or Kostitsyn?
I think he's a very talented player...but his success at WJC cant be generalized too easily, from what I saw it was very much of the end to end do it all yourself nature, which though projecting incredible talent, is rarely how it works in the NHL
Andrei is getting more mature. When he was drafted, people were saying that he had incredible offensive skills and good size but lacked the rest. After 2 full AHL seasons, he has developped a lot of intangibles and is now considered a complete player. Like some other posters have said in this thread, he's still lacking a bit of consistency, but remember, it will only be his 3rd season in North-America. In his first season, he couldn't even say one word in english, and was taking medicine for his epilepsy.
We all expected a breakout season the next year, but he kept on quietly improving every hole in his game and even got a couple of games with the big team, doing fairly well.
Now, we're seeing an NHL-ready player in every aspect of the game. He's big and strong enough for the NHL, he's playing smart hockey and knows what to do in the defensive zone. His 'hockey sense' is now fully adapted to the N-A rinks, and because of all that, he almost made the team this season.
My guess is that he'll be one of the main pieces down in Hamilton, who will have a pretty good team BTW, and will more than likely play on the first line with fellow Belarussian Grabovski and AHL-star Eric Manlow.
He won't score 20 goals though. You know why? Because the Habs will make room for him and he'll be on the NHL roster soon enough. It will take time, but IMO Kosty will become a 30-40-70 man in the NHL. He has the tools to do it.
We all expected a breakout season the next year, but he kept on quietly improving every hole in his game and even got a couple of games with the big team, doing fairly well.
Now, we're seeing an NHL-ready player in every aspect of the game. He's big and strong enough for the NHL, he's playing smart hockey and knows what to do in the defensive zone. His 'hockey sense' is now fully adapted to the N-A rinks, and because of all that, he almost made the team this season.
My guess is that he'll be one of the main pieces down in Hamilton, who will have a pretty good team BTW, and will more than likely play on the first line with fellow Belarussian Grabovski and AHL-star Eric Manlow.
He won't score 20 goals though. You know why? Because the Habs will make room for him and he'll be on the NHL roster soon enough. It will take time, but IMO Kosty will become a 30-40-70 man in the NHL. He has the tools to do it.
Not a bust AT ALL! He was better than Perezhogin, which is two years older. If it wasn't of the large amount of wingers like him on our roster, he would be with the club right now. I hope he will tear it up with Gabrovski in Hamilton this season.
I don't know if he's a bust, but he's been very overrated in the past. He doesn't even have the top-notch skills everyone was talking about.
cassius
Registered User
- Jul 23, 2004
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I think he is a bit over-hyped, but if he can get his consistancy issues together he can be a solid fixture on the 2nd line
Dr_Hook
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- Jun 4, 2006
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I mostly agree with that; he more than likely will be on somebody's 2nd line at some point, but chances are getting slimmer that he'll become a real impact player. Because of the part that I put in bold, which I painfully agree with !! Every time I see this guy play, I see super-soft hands, I see great release on a quality wrist shot, but I see total cluelessness as what is actually going on on the ice surface...
Dominator13
Registered User
I mostly agree with that; he more than likely will be on somebody's 2nd line at some point, but chances are getting slimmer that he'll become a real impact player. Because of the part that I put in bold, which I painfully agree with !! Every time I see this guy play, I see super-soft hands, I see great release on a quality wrist shot, but I see total cluelessness as what is actually going on on the ice surface...
ya but he's still 21, he's still learning, witch he has alot to do since can't even speak english yet... how can he make the team when he has so many players to beat for a spot.
Archijerej
Registered User
I agree that this is the most reasonable projection. Kinda dissapointing considering that he was a #10 pick in a top heavy draft, but on the other hand not bad. Don't think we'll need that kind of player in the near future but if he ends up like that he could always be a good trade asset.
Redwingsfan
Global Moderator
- Jul 15, 2006
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habs fans still cant accept tha fact that he is as close to busting as you can get.
. i bet every night when you go to sleep you dream about the habs picking one of carter, getzlaf, parise, bernier, richards, perry, eaves, nilsson. and i could go on. just look at the amazing talent picked after him. exept from maybe belle and jessiman, kostitsyn is the worst player in the first round. and to say that he will get 70 points in the nhl is just stupid. he haven't even got 50 in the AHL. there isn't one team in the entire league that would use him on the top 2 lines. in a year or two he will probably be back in russia and never come back. and when that time comes we will start to see the same threads as this one about he's brother.
. i bet every night when you go to sleep you dream about the habs picking one of carter, getzlaf, parise, bernier, richards, perry, eaves, nilsson. and i could go on. just look at the amazing talent picked after him. exept from maybe belle and jessiman, kostitsyn is the worst player in the first round. and to say that he will get 70 points in the nhl is just stupid. he haven't even got 50 in the AHL. there isn't one team in the entire league that would use him on the top 2 lines. in a year or two he will probably be back in russia and never come back. and when that time comes we will start to see the same threads as this one about he's brother. 
montreal
Go Habs Go
habs fans still cant accept tha fact that he is as close to busting as you can get.
So you have no clue what your talking about is what your saying. Close to busting as you can get is a biglaugh. He was the last cut from the Habs this year and will see time with them again this year. He was the teams top player in the AHL last year imo, 2nd on the team in scoring a non playoff team.
I understand that people are sick of hearing about him and I understand that things have not gone as expected or hoped but he's still a good hockey player with a lot of skills but clearly has had a problem putting it all together. He could easily end up a bust and back in Russia, but he clearly got the attention of management at camp but his lack of consistent hard work is not going to fly as it continues to hurt his game. There's still hope he gets the message and he will be given more chances with the Habs this year cause injuries will hit and Perezhogin will need to play hard to stay out of the press box.
Redwingsfan
Global Moderator
- Jul 15, 2006
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take a look at what brendl did in the ahl and then what he turned out to be. he also had mediocre season in the ahl and he is also all about offense. he didnt turn out to good.and the hype for him was also big. same goes for vorobiev and yakubov. if you are a player thats all about offense and you cant even produce in the ahl how are you going to do it in the nhl. i'm not saying he is a bad hockey player. i just dont think he will ever be good enough for a top 2 line with any team in the league. and imo he will never hit 60 points in one season. i think he's numbers last year was pretty bad considering he was 21 and playing in the ahl. just look at o'sullivans season int the same league and they are the same age. and dont pull the crap about him having better players on he's team. he's linemates was kirby law and eric westrum. just compare their stats from 04/05 and 05/06.
kurby law: with o'sullivan. 80gp 43g 67a 110 points without o'sullivan 80gp 25g 24a 49 points
eric westrum: with o'sullivan 71gp 34g 64a 98 points without o'sullivan (on another team btw) 80gp 18g 15a 33 points.
kurby law: with o'sullivan. 80gp 43g 67a 110 points without o'sullivan 80gp 25g 24a 49 points
eric westrum: with o'sullivan 71gp 34g 64a 98 points without o'sullivan (on another team btw) 80gp 18g 15a 33 points.
Jason Ward won AHL MVP, did that translate into the NHL (although J.Ward's still a solid bottom 6 player).
Some players are better in the NHL with better players...given what we've seen with Kostitsyn, it might be the case. However, I agree, i'd like for him to be more of an impact player in the AHL before coming up, he's got a little more talent surrounding him this year, so hopefully he'll be able to achieve that.
Althouhg something tells me he won't see too much AHL time
montreal
Go Habs Go
His numbers last year weren't great but 2nd on the team in scoring as one of the youngest players on the team (only 3 players were younger, by 2-3 months) He got off to a very poor start but after his call up to the NHL he turned around his play and was very solid. Yes his defense is poor but he's made great strides in his part of his game to the point where he's only below average now and hopefully he will continue to get better, although I don't expect that while playing under Coach Don Lever.
Who cares what Brendl or anyone else has done, each player is there own. Kostitsyn will likely see time in the NHL this year. He's shown improvement in each of the two years he's been in North America, he's one of the teamest top prospects and most gifted offensive prospects, so he is not close to being a bust. There is a great chance he can bust, just as there is a good chance he will be a full time NHLer with a year or two.
O'Sullivan is better then Kostitsyn, so what, what does that have to do with Kostitsyn being as close to a bust as can be as you put it.
So is Grigorenko finally coming over? He's what now, 27? What's up with him? How about Hudler, is he still in North-America? What is he up to these days, flipping burgers at Burger King? And.. oh yeah, I don't think the Wings have any more prospects...
See? I have no clue what I'm talking about, because I havn't followed the Wings enough. I think it's the same case with you and the Habs.
If you actually need O'Sullivan as a comparison to prove your point, you might want to take a look again at the logic behind your point... O'Sullivan was top5 player in the AHL last year, most players/prospects wont match, it's obvious and fairly irrelevant imo.
Kostitsyn is alot closer to busting than he is to becoming the player he was originally projected to be (1st liner). Odds of becoming a 1st liner 100 to 1, odds of busting 4 to 1, something like that IMO. I think he will turn out to be a 3rd liner that can chip in on the 2nd line, Or make a career in the RSL, either or. I have seen alot of Kostitsyn in Hamilton and I can tell you that there were a couple forwards (JF Jacques and MA Pouliot) that showed more promise than Kostitsyn, and I will be suprised if they become worse hockey players than AK. The kid is imensely overrated, him being on the top 50 prospect list is a joke. He has a great shot and is a decent passer, an alright skater, can be really lazy at times etc.
oli500
Registered User
Kositsyn is far from being a bust. Hes only 20,21 years old. Still very young and still has lots of upside. You know kositsyn did not look out of place when he played with koivu in training camp. He was still a teen who did not now how to speak a word of english when he first came to north america. Its allways going to take time to develope that kind of player. Hes got a future ahead of him if he keeps working hard and keeps adapting to the nhl. Its about hard work because the skill level is certainly there.
I love Kost. I think the kid can become a first liner. People are just upset that his development hasn't gone as planned, but it has gone very good. When he was drafted, he was SO raw, but he's finally turning that skill into something.
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