So I've watched some tape since yesterday and I still see a lot of the Burakovsky comparison that @Richard88 mentioned in the corporate greed thread. There are some differences of course as neither player is the same, but both are quite good goalscorers. How each other scores is eerie similar in both the location and how each skates off the boards and does that half moon in the upper slot to snipe it. Now with that said, Olausson clearly doesn't have Burakovsky's shot, Andre's shot is probably top 15 in the entire league and you just can't compare to it. Olausson's accuracy is as good as Bura even if it doesn't have the heaviness nor the insane release to it as the latter has.
Olausson has some other strengths to his game, I suggest he's a much better and faster skater than Burakovsky. He also has very underrated hands and is able to stickhandle in heavier traffic than Andre as well. That already sounds like a more serviceable player than Bura who really is only noticeable when he's one-on-one with the goaler with some open space. Olausson's play away from the puck is still a work in progress, but from what I've seen he reads the game higher and is a better back-chequer than Burakovsky is. I think he has some higher intelligence for the overall game than just in the offensive zone.
I do see some similar weaknesses between both players, one of them is that neither player is very good in the corners and along the boards. Olausson might become a bit better because he's still quite lanky and has a lot of room left to grow into. Neither has a mean streak though and as we saw in the last playoffs that could lead to him being easier to shutdown than someone at Calvert's style of play. I have more faith in Olausson in being the better two-way and doing the details if the puck isn't going in the net, but in the end like Burakovsky, Olausson's best attributes happen when he has the puck on his stick. I do think Avs drafted him to eventually replace Andre in the long-run when he prices himself out of Avs cap structure and that's still a very good selection. Additionally, another *potential* weakness I saw and I use that word lightly is that Olausson got an absurd number of goals this season on the powerplay. If there is something I want to see from him in the future as he continues to develop is his goalscoring record at even strength (perhaps one of you lot has some stats to beg a differ, but something I noticed).
Olausson has some other strengths to his game, I suggest he's a much better and faster skater than Burakovsky. He also has very underrated hands and is able to stickhandle in heavier traffic than Andre as well. That already sounds like a more serviceable player than Bura who really is only noticeable when he's one-on-one with the goaler with some open space. Olausson's play away from the puck is still a work in progress, but from what I've seen he reads the game higher and is a better back-chequer than Burakovsky is. I think he has some higher intelligence for the overall game than just in the offensive zone.
I do see some similar weaknesses between both players, one of them is that neither player is very good in the corners and along the boards. Olausson might become a bit better because he's still quite lanky and has a lot of room left to grow into. Neither has a mean streak though and as we saw in the last playoffs that could lead to him being easier to shutdown than someone at Calvert's style of play. I have more faith in Olausson in being the better two-way and doing the details if the puck isn't going in the net, but in the end like Burakovsky, Olausson's best attributes happen when he has the puck on his stick. I do think Avs drafted him to eventually replace Andre in the long-run when he prices himself out of Avs cap structure and that's still a very good selection. Additionally, another *potential* weakness I saw and I use that word lightly is that Olausson got an absurd number of goals this season on the powerplay. If there is something I want to see from him in the future as he continues to develop is his goalscoring record at even strength (perhaps one of you lot has some stats to beg a differ, but something I noticed).