Player Discussion Artturi Lehkonen

[ProspectsFanatic]

You are joking right? The PP is 30th. The blueline is a bandaid of castaways and a 5'7 guy who has a wristshot that he can almost raise from the 35ft on a good day. If numbnuts can fix the PP instead of the 4th line, this team would make it a round.

Leks sucks.

I mean for the equivalent Lehkonen could provide us in return. Obviously, I wouldn't complain about a Panarin falling on our 1st line.

No way he only gets a 5th dman. I'm sure a decent add to him can get us a good top 4 dman.

Let's just say I don't share your optimism.

 

[Habssince89]

He might be an ideal trade chip, as much as he brings positives to the team. He has value, and packaging him with say a third round pick could fetch an upgrade that fills a different need like powerplay specialist winger that can play on KKs line or for a solid Dman who would stabilize the defense by pairing with Weber or Petry. I would especially consider moving him if there was a Dman with term and an age that fits the plan.

All of that being said, he's a tenacious winger who does alot of things well. He is an asset and there's no need for him to go. I just see him as the only non-scratched forward that is going to be moved. MB isn't trading Byron

 

[BehindTheTimes]

I'm still super high on Lehkonen, I think an offensive breakout for this kid is inevitable. I see many saying he's got no offense etc, sure that's what it looks like so far, but I still think he's had a terrible run of bad luck and might explode at any time. Kid is a keeper imo. I'm not surprised when GMs are calling MB, often it is to discuss this kid. I love Lehkonen.

 

[BehindTheTimes]

I think moving him at this juncture would be a huge mistake. This kid has got game, but he's hit a rough patch, I would not sell low on this guy.

 

[Whitesnake]

It's all about asset management....do we drain his value till we can't get anything.....part 13235233423, or do we wake up and move till he has any value to bring something fine.

 

[BehindTheTimes]

It's all about asset management....do we drain his value till we can't get anything.....part 13235233423, or do we wake up and move till he has any value to bring something fine.

Not all progression or regression is linear. Just because he is struggling now doesn't mean the only options are to continue struggling to the point of reaching no value. Kid does too many good things to ever reach zero value imo, even when he's not producing he can help in other ways. Personally I love the kid and think he will breakout.

 

[Habs Icing]

I'm still super high on Lehkonen, I think an offensive breakout for this kid is inevitable. I see many saying he's got no offense etc, sure that's what it looks like so far, but I still think he's had a terrible run of bad luck and might explode at any time. Kid is a keeper imo. I'm not surprised when GMs are calling MB, often it is to discuss this kid. I love Lehkonen.

Maybe they should room him with Mete. The bad luck could cancel out each other.

 

[Whitesnake]

Not all progression or regression is linear. Just because he is struggling now doesn't mean the only options are to continue struggling to the point of reaching no value. Kid does too many good things to ever reach zero value imo, even when he's not producing he can help in other ways. Personally I love the kid and think he will breakout.

It's all about evaluating his offensive potential. We all recognize that he does all those little things. Sorry, but this management has not proven to me that they know what to do with assets they have. Should have taken an earlier decision on Beaulieu instead of bashing him publicly. Should have taken a decision earlier on Tinordi. And at one point, I think we will say to each other than they should have done the same thing for Lehkonen. OBVIOUSLY not comparing all 3 players, Lehkonen in his bad day is twice the players the other 2 are together.....but his ceiling is seeing as much higher too.

 

[Habs Halifax]

I think moving him at this juncture would be a huge mistake. This kid has got game, but he's hit a rough patch, I would not sell low on this guy.

Agreed. Plus he is doing so much out there that don't show up on the score sheet. This kid is just touching his potential. Might not ever be a consistent 20+ goal guy but he provides a lot of value other than point production.

 

[Habs Halifax]

It's all about evaluating his offensive potential. We all recognize that he does all those little things. Sorry, but this management has not proven to me that they know what to do with assets they have. Should have taken an earlier decision on Beaulieu instead of bashing him publicly. Should have taken a decision earlier on Tinordi. And at one point, I think we will say to each other than they should have done the same thing for Lehkonen. OBVIOUSLY not comparing all 3 players, Lehkonen in his bad day is twice the players the other 2 are together.....but his ceiling is seeing as much higher too.

It's a gamble to give up on players early in the development process. If they look good, you keep them, if they don't look good, you are not getting value from them. This is applied to every single NHL GM in the history of the NHL.

When you trade young players, you usually do this from a position of strength where you can spare some assets in certain areas. It's been a very long time the Habs have been in this position and it's starting to form now. We have stopped trading our 2nd round picks and we have had two very good draft years (it appears).

 

[Deebs]

Not all progression or regression is linear. Just because he is struggling now doesn't mean the only options are to continue struggling to the point of reaching no value. Kid does too many good things to ever reach zero value imo, even when he's not producing he can help in other ways. Personally I love the kid and think he will breakout.

Very much agree. Not every player is going to be a 1st liner. Lehky does everything well, works his sack off and has a good contract. Of course nobody is untouchable but I'm not sure why we would want to move the kid who fills a need for us. Solid bottom 6 player, penalty killer and chips in offensively. Works for me.

 

[Whitesnake]

It's a gamble to give up on players early in the development process. If they look good, you keep them, if they don't look good, you are not getting value from them. This is applied to every single NHL GM in the history of the NHL.

When you trade young players, you usually do this from a position of strength where you can spare some assets in certain areas. It's been a very long time the Habs have been in this position and it's starting to form now. We have stopped trading our 2nd round picks and we have had two very good draft years (it appears).

I often say....it's not always who you trade, it's who you receive. You don't trade Lehkonen for Gomez here. If you give up on a Lehkoknen, you need to get a guy that could also be in the same mold as far as potential not entirely achieved that could do it here. Even if Lehkonen suddenly explodes, you get a return who can do the same. You build a package with Lehkonen that gets you Lindholm or something....who cares if Lehkonen becomes 20-25?

 

[Habs Halifax]

I often say....it's not always who you trade, it's who you receive. You don't trade Lehkonen for Gomez here. If you give up on a Lehkoknen, you need to get a guy that could also be in the same mold as far as potential not entirely achieved that could do it here. Even if Lehkonen suddenly explodes, you get a return who can do the same. You build a package with Lehkonen that gets you Lindholm or something....who cares if Lehkonen becomes 20-25?

I just don't see other teams giving us the value we deserve for Lehkonen. If we are going to make a hockey trade, I'd trade Gallagher for Nurse. We will get our value for Gallagher. If we wait, we might not. Imagine the difference in return we get for Patch with 2.5 years left vs Patch on a sign and trade?

I like Lehkonen a lot but based on various conversation with other teams, they consider him 3rd line and nothing special. Heck, even some of our own Habs fans think that. Were not going to get the value we should if we dangle Lehkonen. He has more value to us on our roster IMO.

The time to dangle Lehkonen is when he is trending high. Just like it was when there was trade talk with Gallagher a few seasons ago when he was dealing with wrist injuries. Trading players who are not trending well won't work. Look at Drouin... Yzerman flipped him at the best time where he was just starting to show his potential. He didn't trade him when he was playing in the AHL the season before.

You have to have the guts to move players when they are trending well. Trading from a position of strength also helps.

 

[GSP2018]

I often say....it's not always who you trade, it's who you receive. You don't trade Lehkonen for Gomez here. If you give up on a Lehkoknen, you need to get a guy that could also be in the same mold as far as potential not entirely achieved that could do it here. Even if Lehkonen suddenly explodes, you get a return who can do the same. You build a package with Lehkonen that gets you Lindholm or something....who cares if Lehkonen becomes 20-25?

Great post ! The who you get back and not who you give up is so right !!

 

[Scriptor]

I just don't see other teams giving us the value we deserve for Lehkonen. If we are going to make a hockey trade, I'd trade Gallagher for Nurse. We will get our value for Gallagher. If we wait, we might not. Imagine the difference in return we get for Patch with 2.5 years left vs Patch on a sign and trade?

I like Lehkonen a lot but based on various conversation with other teams, they consider him 3rd line and nothing special. Heck, even some of our own Habs fans think that. Were not going to get the value we should if we dangle Lehkonen. He has more value to us on our roster IMO.

The time to dangle Lehkonen is when he is trending high. Just like it was when there was trade talk with Gallagher a few seasons ago when he was dealing with wrist injuries. Trading players who are not trending well won't work. Look at Drouin... Yzerman flipped him at the best time where he was just starting to show his potential. He didn't trade him when he was playing in the AHL the season before.

You have to have the guts to move players when they are trending well. Trading from a position of strength also helps.

Absolutely.

With Gallagher, however, after him on the RW depth chart, there is a sudden fall off a cliff. You can't trade him at this time. it's not Byron, Shaw or Armia that will replace what he brings to the ice and in the room.

Beyond that, you're left with Suzuki and Ylonen which are just prospects that have yet to prove their mettle at the NHL level.

Unfortunately, for both Gallagher and Petry, if we were to trade them, it would unfortunately be as rentals (hopefully trade and sign deals where we would get more in return like we did for Pacioretty).

With Petry, Juulsen's injuries came at the wrong time. If he had gotten the time playing to progress and at least prove that he was ready for a 4th line role in a more defensive capacity, MON could have more easily taken a gamble on Brook's upside and flipped Petry sooner rather than later when his value was at its highest. MON's ability to absorb up to half of Petry's contract for two more years without any dire consequences to our cap structure is also an added bonus that could optimize the veteran RD's value on the trade front.

Unfortunately, MON will need next year to properly evaluate its prospects at RD before pulling the plug on any trade involving Petry. That puts him in his last year for his current contract an into rental territory.

The same goes with Gallagher, IMO. There's no way we don't need the next two years to determine where Suzuki and Ylonen stand on the depth chart at RW. The only thing that would enable MON to trade Gallagher sooner would be landing a valuable UFA RW like Stone who can play a solid two-way game and replace the lost goal-scoring from Gallagher. Even then, I'd be more inclined to keep Gallagher and be much stronger on RW with two prospects in the wings as well -- since landing a Stone would have cost zero assets.

Drouin - Domi - Stone
Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Lehkonen - Kotkaniemi - Suzuki
Byron - Poehling - Shaw
Armia, Deslauriers

I think that such a lineup would be balanced and threatening to any opponent.

 

[Zorba]

Absolutely.

With Gallagher, however, after him on the RW depth chart, there is a sudden fall off a cliff. You can't trade him at this time. it's not Byron, Shaw or Armia that will replace what he brings to the ice and in the room.

Beyond that, you're left with Suzuki and Ylonen which are just prospects that have yet to prove their mettle at the NHL level.

Unfortunately, for both Gallagher and Petry, if we were to trade them, it would unfortunately be as rentals (hopefully trade and sign deals where we would get more in return like we did for Pacioretty).

With Petry, Juulsen's injuries came at the wrong time. If he had gotten the time playing to progress and at least prove that he was ready for a 4th line role in a more defensive capacity, MON could have more easily taken a gamble on Brook's upside and flipped Petry sooner rather than later when his value was at its highest. MON's ability to absorb up to half of Petry's contract for two more years without any dire consequences to our cap structure is also an added bonus that could optimize the veteran RD's value on the trade front.

Unfortunately, MON will need next year to properly evaluate its prospects at RD before pulling the plug on any trade involving Petry. That puts him in his last year for his current contract an into rental territory.

The same goes with Gallagher, IMO. There's no way we don't need the next two years to determine where Suzuki and Ylonen stand on the depth chart at RW. The only thing that would enable MON to trade Gallagher sooner would be landing a valuable UFA RW like Stone who can play a solid two-way game and replace the lost goal-scoring from Gallagher. Even then, I'd be more inclined to keep Gallagher and be much stronger on RW with two prospects in the wings as well -- since landing a Stone would have cost zero assets.

Drouin - Domi - Stone
Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Lehkonen - Kotkaniemi - Suzuki
Byron - Poehling - Shaw
Armia, Deslauriers

I think that such a lineup would be balanced and threatening to any opponent.

Byron and Shaw are better and more offensive than Lehkonen. Lehkonen is a 3rd -4th line tweener.

 

[Archijerej]

You build a package with Lehkonen that gets you Lindholm or something....who cares if Lehkonen becomes 20-25?

Now that IS reasonable. If it's a package for a player like Lindholm, then yeah. Otherwise it's a lateral move that can do more harm than good.

 

[Archijerej]

Byron and Shaw are better and more offensive than Lehkonen. Lehkonen is a 3rd -4th line tweener.

How is a player that's on pace for 10 goals and 35 points/82 games, and who was scoring on a pace for almost 18 goals/82 games the last two seasons is a 3-4th line tweener?

 

[Archijerej]

It's all about evaluating his offensive potential. OBVIOUSLY not comparing all 3 players, Lehkonen in his bad day is twice the players the other 2 are together.....but his ceiling is seeing as much higher too.

Since you correctly state there's no comparison between Lehkonen and those players, your entire point is invalidated. Because we can just keep Lehkonen and he'll contribute even if he doesn't find his offensive game. We didn't have that option with Beaulieu or Tinordi, because we couldn't use them without hurting our team, and their value diminished with every passing day. Completely different situation.

 

[Whitesnake]

Since you correctly state there's no comparison between Lehkonen and those players, your entire point is invalidated. Because we can just keep Lehkonen and he'll contribute even if he doesn't find his offensive game. We didn't have that option with Beaulieu or Tinordi, because we couldn't use them without hurting our team, and their value diminished with every passing day. Completely different situation.

And again, not true. Lehkonken cannot be compared to those 2 because of where he is NOW. But if his offensive play keeps taken a hit, he very well might be. When they were drafted, or even 1 year or even 2 years after, Tinordi AND Beaulieu were still seen as our potential top 4 of the future. They had value. Lehkonen cannot be compared 'cause he is a better player....but he still can have a greatest return. Look at this roster, and tell me who can go for a nice return if the other team want a roster player???? Give me the huge list. And I'm obviously talking about a roster player with some value.

 

[Whitesnake]

How is a player that's on pace for 10 goals and 35 points/82 games, and who was scoring on a pace for almost 18 goals/82 games the last two seasons is a 3-4th line tweener?

Ah the famous "on pace" stat. A whole lot of BS there. There's nothing like on pace. 'Cause that's why differentiates great player from good players. The great players keep their pace. The good player might have a stretch but will NEVER keep it. Just look at Lehkonen all year long.....when do you decide with stretch of games define a pace? First 10 games of season....7 points in 10 games....A PACE OF 57 POINTS!!!! And now...you are at 38. Pace means absolutely nothing.

I don't agree that he is a 4th liner though, that's for sure. Very fine 3rd liner. What if a team t hinks he's more than that and is willing to pay more than to receive a 3rd liner?

 

[BehindTheTimes]

Ah the famous "on pace" stat. A whole lot of BS there. There's nothing like on pace. 'Cause that's why differentiates great player from good players. The great players keep their pace. The good player might have a stretch but will NEVER keep it. Just look at Lehkonen all year long.....when do you decide with stretch of games define a pace? First 10 games of season....7 points in 10 games....A PACE OF 57 POINTS!!!! And now...you are at 38. Pace means absolutely nothing.

I don't agree that he is a 4th liner though, that's for sure. Very fine 3rd liner. What if a team t hinks he's more than that and is willing to pay more than to receive a 3rd liner?

If they think hes more than a 3rd liner, Id agree with them and listen to what any team has to offer for anyone, but thats a far cry from saving we need to trade before his value reaches zero because that happened before with different players who have completely different tools.

Im actually kind of surprised more of this board doesnt see untapped offensive potential that i think is there. Its possible he continues to struggle offensively all season and explodes next year. I dunno i think this kid has it in him to become a pretty dominant 2 way force. Love his game. Ive been wrong plenty of times before and ill b wrong plenty of times again, but im not willing to turn the page on him yet.

 

[le_sean]

A player with true offensive instincts and potential would have 40 points by now with all of the chances Lehkonen has had.

 

[Belial]

Byron and Shaw are better and more offensive than Lehkonen. Lehkonen is a 3rd -4th line tweener.

Just like Danault right?

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

I wonder if he is injured.
He wasnt scoring a lot in the 1st half of the season, but he was getting a lot of scoring chances. Now he's not producing and he's not generating scoring chances either.
He just seems to take perimeter shots now. We need to see him drive towards the net more like he did here: