Andrej Nestrasil

[jaster]

I've read a lot of projections of him becoming like Kopecky. That'd be A.O.K with me.

I can see that, average about 25 points from a bottom-6 position. Which is in the realm of a less-defensive, more-offensive Andersson, value-wise.

 

[Cyborg Yzerberg]

Netrasil really raises the question of what the make up of the team will look like over the next season, two, or three.

We have some clear top 6 players who will be in top 9 roles in Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Nyquist, Sheahan, Tatar, Jurco, presumably Pulkkinen and Mantha. Maybe Weiss? Helm and Abdelkader? Netrasil? Barring any trades, the make up our top 9 over the next couple of seasons will be very interesting.

 

[jaster]

Netrasil really raises the question of what the make up of the team will look like over the next season, two, or three.

We have some clear top 6 players who will be in top 9 roles in Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Nyquist, Sheahan, Tatar, Jurco, presumably Pulkkinen and Mantha. Maybe Weiss? Helm and Abdelkader? Netrasil? Barring any trades, the make up our top 9 over the next couple of seasons will be very interesting.

Yeah. It's always said around here, but there truly is somewhat of a logjam on the horizon, at forward and defense, and I suspect that when it starts clearing itself out over the next few seasons, there will be a lot of angst on this forum

 

[Flowah]

Yeah. It's always said around here, but there truly is somewhat of a logjam on the horizon, at forward and defense, and I suspect that when it starts clearing itself out over the next few seasons, there will be a lot of angst on this forum

I can deal with this kind of angst. Angst that comes because we have too many NHL caliber players and not a bunch of fringers who probably wouldn't get a job on any other team.

 

[Cyborg Yzerberg]

I can deal with this kind of angst. Angst that comes because we have too many NHL caliber players and not a bunch of fringers who probably wouldn't get a job on any other team.

It'll be like 2008 on here all over again. Arguing about things while we're winning is pretty sweet. Before the summer of 2009, where all hell broke loose.

 

[RedMachine87]

I can deal with this kind of angst. Angst that comes because we have too many NHL caliber players and not a bunch of fringers who probably wouldn't get a job on any other team.

As long as mgmt. does a good job of valuing/projecting out value of our prospects. IMO good asset management means consolidating at the expense of quantity for quality...haven't seen much of that from Holland lately.

 

[Flowah]

As long as mgmt. does a good job of valuing/projecting out value of our prospects. IMO good asset management means consolidating at the expense of quantity for quality...haven't seen much of that from Holland lately.

It's a very tough line to walk. Quantity gives you extreme flexibility. We've had injury problems before. Severe problems. Quantity helps there. Quantity also helps if you've got a deep pipeline that can keep your team competing for years to come and not just the next few seasons. On the other hand, if you can sacrifice some quantity and futureproofing for a couple of pieces to help you make a run right now, that can be very tempting. Though it might bite you a few years down the line.

What really sucks is when people confuse artificial quantity built up by a logjam of substandard players for true quantity of legitimate players.

 

[Mijatovic]

Nestrasil isnt destined to be here very long. We have a fair few better prospects coming through. Athanasiou would easily take a top 9 role over Nestrasil in the future just from his puck handling and speed. Pulkinnen/Mantha/Holmstrom/Larkin/Bertuzzi. All these players show at least something special.

Nestrasil does enough things well enough to get a few games. I dont see anything special though.

 

[petesrw]

I completely agree Mijatovic. I see so many comments on various sites where people are saying they hope Nestrasil doesn't get waived, what a bad decision it would be, how he is going to get claimed if he is, HollandSucks rabblerabble etc...

I'm somewhat confused by this sentiment.

He had a good half year last year and a good preseason, but nothing I've seen from him this season makes me excited for him. We forgot about him after he was drafted because he never put a long stretch of distinguishable play up. And this is his fourth year as a pro? I know it's only five games in and it would make a great story for him to succeed, but I'm having trouble envisioning what kind of success he'll find in this league like I could with Tatar and Nyquist in some of their first games.

He looks to have some skill, but given his history and his mediocre play, I wouldn't be upset if he gets sent down and I wouldn't be upset if he was claimed (though I would be surprised).

I don't think his ceiling is high, so why not use a guy in his role who is more likely to light it up like Pulk, or Weiss?

 

[waltdetroit]

Datsyuk was magic in his limited role. You could see from day one that he was special. Nestrasil is not special in the slightest. Literally the most exciting thing about him is that he is essentially a revived asset and with a few points and a sustained level of energy/physicality, he might actually become a player that teams covet as the lesser piece in a package deal.

With that said, I like Nestrasil enough. As of now, he wins a decent amount of board battles, but often looks lost once he comes up with the puck and has blown a couple great opportunities to get the puck to the net and/or to an open teammate near the net after winning the battle. But if he can learn how to distribute the puck a touch better after winning those battles, he could be a valuable player. I'm all for giving him several months (yes, months) worth of games to see if he can survive the learning curve and progress, largely because he hasn't given up on himself thus far and seems to recognize career opportunities when he gets them.

I also wouldn't be that opposed to sending Jurco down at the expense of keeping Nestrasil around for now. I haven't been as impressed with him as I was last year and he had a pretty mediocre pre-season in my book. There's some fine-tuning he could do in Grand Rapids. Also, I'm going to commit sacrilege here and say that I would welcome the kid line being broken up. I love it because its an exciting line but it isn't productive enough as a 2nd line just yet.

I agree with most of this. I think it is important to get Jurco scoring goals again - even AHL goals, If that something clicks with Nesty this year, like last year with GRG, you'll all see a player that can change a game on ocassion

 

[The Zetterberg Era]

Very good on the boards and shows patience with the puck and a solid passing game. Will it improve as he gets more used to NHL speed? I don't know, but the gains he has made have been fantastic, I don't think we pull the plug now a risk exposing him to waiver. A couple of weeks in with injuries piling up you have to think a team like Carolina for instance would claim him now, not a huge worry coming out of camp but he might not pass, I would say he won't given the glimpses he has given in terms of a skill set most will believe they can work with and develop.

Not against him seeing press box time, but considering where he was this is a gain for the organization and we have a little time to see more.

 

[Eye of Ra]

another non-hitting player. someone kill me.

 

[jaster]

another non-hitting player. someone kill me.

I'm sensing a theme But yeah, Nestrasil is not a physical player, never has been. No reason to think he'll become one. Still, I'm not going to kill you