Confirmed with Link: Burakovsky signs 1 x 3.25M

[MarkT]

Having watched every game (I luckily live in a place where blackouts aren't a thing), I have to say I really like his game so far. He seems to really like to play a north-south game with speed, he backchecks hard, and he's physical when he has the puck (I'd absolutely love if he added physicality to his forecheck and defensive game though). The best thing though his shot is 100% legit and if he keeps shooting he's definitely going to produce some secondary scoring for us, which is all we really need from him.

It of course remains to be seen if he can keep this up, but so far, so good.

 

[Star Ocean]

Including playoffs, he has almost 400 NHL games played. There isn't much that will change, at this point.

Swedish players tend to mature late sometimes. William Karlsson and Elias Lindholm are recent examples that played many NHL games before breakin out on a new team.

Burakovsky has the talent to do the same. I am not sure why people in this thread trashed him in favor of f***ing preseason.

 

[Foppberg]

You know I appreciate some of the more knowledgeable posters on here, but I'm not going to lie a part of why I'm rooting for Bura so much is because of how much everyone has shit on him the second the trade happened. This place can be such a debbie downer.

 

[Ivan13]

Swedish players tend to mature late sometimes. William Karlsson and Elias Lindholm are recent examples that played many NHL games before breakin out on a new team.

Burakovsky has the talent to do the same. I am not sure why people in this thread trashed him in favor of ****ing preseason.

Or you know the assessment is based on his entire body of work. He's been good for 7 games. Great, it helps the team so it's been a nice experience, but let's wait to crown him. He had plenty of stretches like that, the problem was he then disappeared for 30 games.

 

[henchman21]

Or you know the assessment is based on his entire body of work. He's been good for 7 games. Great, it helps the team so it's been a nice experience, but let's wait to crown him. He had plenty of stretches like that, the problem was he then disappeared for 30 games.

This... Bura looks really good right now and his talent is showing. He has done this a number of times in his career where he looks good for a 10-15 game stretch to come crashing back down for a couple months after. I hope he keeps this up and looks great the whole season. A lot of us would have to eat our crow and we’d enjoy it. Let’s just wait more than 7 games...

 

[Freudian]

The problem with him in the past isn't the physical or hockey skill part. He can skate, he can shoot and he has good size. It's consistency and confidence. We've all seen how much it can hold back a player at times with Duchene.

If Avs are a good fit for Burakovski and he is able to consistently find the net, he's a good add.

 

[Star Ocean]

Or you know the assessment is based on his entire body of work. He's been good for 7 games. Great, it helps the team so it's been a nice experience, but let's wait to crown him. He had plenty of stretches like that, the problem was he then disappeared for 30 games.

A 3m player is not suppose to put up 70+ points.

 

[MarkT]

I think the issue with Bura in Washington is he would go through periods where he played well and earned minutes with great players, then go through a few games where he didn't play as well. Then he'd get shuffled down the lines and get less minutes, which probably only hurt his confidence even more. It's not a good feeling to know that if you struggle, you'll be moved down the lineup and not get as many opportunities to perform well. And now that I've seen him play, I see why he wouldn't impress a coach as a bottom 6 player - he's not that kind of guy. I think he's the type that if he's given a top 6 role and is allowed to struggle from time to time without losing that role, then he'll be worth it. If Bednar pushes him down the lineup when he inevitably struggles, he seems like the type who will start to doubt himself and perform even worse as a result.

In any case, I for one hope he's a classic case of a player moving to a new team with a system that fits him better, who becomes consistently good and earns a long contract as an impactful player for his new team.

 

[flyfysher]

Caps fans sound like us vs Kerfoot

Actually I think Kerfoot will fit in and do well for the TML and I hope he does. Best to him except against the Avs. And I don't want him back.

 

[21]

Or you know the assessment is based on his entire body of work. He's been good for 7 games. Great, it helps the team so it's been a nice experience, but let's wait to crown him. He had plenty of stretches like that, the problem was he then disappeared for 30 games.

I for one am basing my take on him on all the games I saw him with the Caps. He is an absolutely useless player whose on ice product doesn't come close to matching the hype.

It most definitely wasn't a worthwhile risk to take on another project. In two years time this guy will play for a team like SKA.

You have a big mouth and impressive self confidence Ivan, many times really strong opinions and kind of black or white in your opinions, nothing in between but this time I won't forget. ;-)

It's fine for me (and fun) us playing experts but sometimes I miss some humbleness or whatever you say in English.

I do agree that it's too early though, he is known to be rather streaky and not an overly hardworking player, yes.

Is 30 games what you think we should give him, 30, not 25 or 20, hmmm or why not 40 or 50 games, the entire season?

Why not applaud him and root for him instead?

 

[Bubba Thudd]

42

 

[AllAboutAvs]

I was one of group that didn't like the trade at the time. I have to admit that so far he has played really well. However like others have said it's only 7 games. I hope he can sustain that kind of play (or close to it) through the season. If he does I will happily eat any crow coming my way. I have no problem admitting I'm wrong but 7 games is much too early for that. I am enjoying it so far though.

 

[The Abusement Park]

A 3m player is not suppose to put up 70+ points.

And he's never come close to putting up 70 points.


But on the Bura talk I know I've been one of the more vocal people here on my dislike for the trade and I've been pleasantly surprised. He's gone to the dirty areas more than he did with the Caps and seems much more engaged. I do think that we as a team are a better fit for his skillset than the Caps so I think that is a part of where his success is coming from. But in the back of my mind I know that streakiness has plagued him his entire career so I'm hoping that a change of scenery really has done him a world of good.

 

[Gurglesons]

I for one am basing my take on him on all the games I saw him with the Caps. He is an absolutely useless player whose on ice product doesn't come close to matching the hype.

It most definitely wasn't a worthwhile risk to take on another project. In two years time this guy will play for a team like SKA.

How’s this going for you?

 

[Gurglesons]

And he's never come close to putting up 70 points.


But on the Bura talk I know I've been one of the more vocal people here on my dislike for the trade and I've been pleasantly surprised. He's gone to the dirty areas more than he did with the Caps and seems much more engaged. I do think that we as a team are a better fit for his skillset than the Caps so I think that is a part of where his success is coming from. But in the back of my mind I know that streakiness has plagued him his entire career so I'm hoping that a change of scenery really has done him a world of good.

What is the issue with being a streaky. As a Pens fan people say this consistently about Bryan Rust and Nick Bonino.

If they weren’t streaky they wouldn’t get paid below 4 mil.

Much like in the Caps run you need a player like Burky to win a few games for you in the playoffs. Not be one of your main weapons. You have Rantanen, Landy, MacKinnon and Kadri as the core up front. Jost, Burky, Bellemare, etc. these are support pieces that will occasionally take the pressure off.

 

[cgf]

A 3m player is not suppose to put up 70+ points.

True, but a top 6er is expected to top 50; which Bura has yet to do in his career...and helping to address our holes in the top 6 behind the big line, is what he was brought in to do. So it's not just about his pts/caphit, if that's all we wanted we could've kept Kerfoot...it's also about our needs that could have been addressed elsewise, had we not been content with spending a 2nd & 3rd on Bura and instead gone after a "true solution"; even if that required a higher price.

Either way, he's been fun so far & here's to hoping that this isn't just one of his hotstreaks, that he'll inevitably cool off from...as I would love nothing more than having to eat crow in the summer because guys I've questioned, like Bura, played key roles in helping this core win its first cup.

 

[cgf]

What is the issue with being a streaky. As a Pens fan people say this consistently about Bryan Rust and Nick Bonino.

If they weren’t streaky they wouldn’t get paid below 4 mil.

Much like in the Caps run you need a player like Burky to win a few games for you in the playoffs. Not be one of your main weapons. You have Rantanen, Landy, MacKinnon and Kadri as the core up front. Jost, Burky, Bellemare, etc. these are support pieces that will occasionally take the pressure off.

The problem with streaky is that streaky is unreliable and so should be restricted to your bottom 6, not your top 6. You could get a Bonino that wins you games in the playoffs, or you could get a Kerfoot who wins you games in October. The former helps you win cups, the latter hurts your chances of winning if you get suckered in by the early season hotstreak & don't prepare for the later coldstreak...ending up heading into the playoffs with an ice-cold Kerfoot muffin'ing pucks right into the goalies chest, next to MacK n Landy.

We love compher on here and he's extremely streaky, but he's also not expected to fill a top 6 gig, he's just expected to chip in here & there. That's why some of the most vitriolic anti-Jost posts recently have come from folks who had been hoping for him to fill a top 6 hole for us, rather than those of us who have been expecting a capable 3C and nothing more.

 

[Gurglesons]

The problem with streaky is that streaky is unreliable and so should be restricted to your bottom 6, not your top 6. You could get a Bonino that wins you games in the playoffs, or you could get a Kerfoot who wins you games in October. The former helps you win cups, the latter hurts your chances of winning if you get suckered in by the early season hotstreak & don't prepare for the later coldstreak...ending up heading into the playoffs with an ice-cold Kerfoot muffin'ing pucks right into the goalies chest, next to MacK n Landy.

We love compher on here, and he's extremely streaky, but he's also not expected to fill a top

Well, the question is how does the player work when they aren’t producing. Burky IMO is still a threat that needs respected.

 

[The Abusement Park]

What is the issue with being a streaky. As a Pens fan people say this consistently about Bryan Rust and Nick Bonino.

If they weren’t streaky they wouldn’t get paid below 4 mil.

Much like in the Caps run you need a player like Burky to win a few games for you in the playoffs. Not be one of your main weapons. You have Rantanen, Landy, MacKinnon and Kadri as the core up front. Jost, Burky, Bellemare, etc. these are support pieces that will occasionally take the pressure off.

When you have no depth you need consistent scoring in your top 6 spots. Not someone who will be good for 10 games than crap for 20 then good for 7 than bad for 10.

 

[cgf]

Well, the question is how does the player work when they aren’t producing. Burky IMO is still a threat that needs respected.

I sure hope that's what he'll be for us if/when he cools off; but unfortunately that's not what his Washington-days demonstrated...when Bura went cold for them he went invisible.

But honestly, in the top 6, even if you have a player who does good work when not producing; that's not enough if we're talking about a guy who's cold as often as hot. Maybe if we paired Rantanen with Kadri while leaving MacK n Landy together, we could get away with inconsistent third-wheel types on both lines. But with the big line together, we need more than that from Kadri's wingers...because, even though I really like Donskoi (and have for a few years now), he really should be the third-wheel on a scoring line himself, not the winger that gets leaned on when their third-wheel goes cold.

Things would be totally different if Panarin had signed with us, and we were talking about Bura third-wheeling for Panarin & Kadri, but (unfortunately) that's not the timeline we live in.

 

[TruePowerSlave]

I take back all the bad words I have said. Bura has been really good so far, a bargain for the price that we paid.

 

[Balthazar]

Let's not forget that he is on a contract year as well. Financially it's the most important season of his pro career, he has a huge incentive to put up big numbers.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

Let's not forget that he is on a contract year as well. Financially it's the most important season of his pro career, he has a huge incentive to put up big numbers.

Last year was a contract year too. This is Burky’s 3rd contract year of his career

 

[Bone Breaker]

If Bura keeps this up and ends the season with more than 60 pts, they will need to build Bednar a temple for performing such a miracle.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

I should have known the hockey IQ concerns weren’t accurate. Everyone knows there’s no such thing as a dumb Swede.