The Kingslayer
Registered User
Did he? He went back to the long ass stick he was using prior to Sakic getting a hold of him?
Confirmed with Link: COL acquire F Vlad Namestnikov from OTT for 2021 4th round pick
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Foppa2118
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- Oct 3, 2003
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Yeah not bad. 6 goals 11 points in the final 20 regular season games.
Pretty sure he did. I'm fairly certain there's an Athletic article about it. I mean, he was good with the first stick until he got hurt the first time, so...
Zynbanejad
To Blais or Not To Blais
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Nihiliste
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Zynbanejad
To Blais or Not To Blais
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Ah I’d like to see what he can do with some talent on the first line. Any PP time expected?
Probably not in his first game, but if they continue to struggle I don't see why they wouldn't use him. Bednar overdoes it a little IMO when it comes to keeping his best PK and PP guys separate. There's no reason you can't use Namestnikov on the top unit on both.
Papa Francouz
Registered User
Looked decent tonight. Seems to be good at puck retrieval and possession. Wonder how much offense he has in his game.
MarkT
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- Nov 11, 2017
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Following up on what some others have said, here's my ideal PP lineup once everyone is healthy:
PP1:
[TBODY]
[/TBODY]
I feel like Nuke is our best net-front presence/puck retrieval guy, and Rantanen is the best from that wall. If Namaste is as advertised he should be ideal for the bumper spot.
[TBODY]
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I honestly hate Kadri in the bumper spot, and feel like he's the only guy outside of MacKinnon who can reliably score from outside the faceoff dot. - he doesn't even need a one-timer to do it. Graves is there for his shot, which I think gives this PP a more threatening look than if it had Girard. Bura and Donny can carry the puck into the zone, and Landy and Donny can rotate around a lot depending on which side the puck is on, so someone is always available for a one-timer in the bumper position. Plus, if you really need a goal, leave MacKinnon on in place of Graves (yeah, 5 forwards when he need a goal is something I would totally do).
PP1:
Nichushkin | ||
MacKinnon | Namestnikov | Rantanen |
Makar |
I feel like Nuke is our best net-front presence/puck retrieval guy, and Rantanen is the best from that wall. If Namaste is as advertised he should be ideal for the bumper spot.
Landeskog | ||
Kadri | Donskoi | Burakovsky |
Graves |
I honestly hate Kadri in the bumper spot, and feel like he's the only guy outside of MacKinnon who can reliably score from outside the faceoff dot. - he doesn't even need a one-timer to do it. Graves is there for his shot, which I think gives this PP a more threatening look than if it had Girard. Bura and Donny can carry the puck into the zone, and Landy and Donny can rotate around a lot depending on which side the puck is on, so someone is always available for a one-timer in the bumper position. Plus, if you really need a goal, leave MacKinnon on in place of Graves (yeah, 5 forwards when he need a goal is something I would totally do).
Eeeeeeehhhhhh I wouldn't put Graves back there. Dude has a heavy shot but he struggles at times to get it through traffic, which leads to turnovers and breaks the other way. Also, he's not nearly good enough with the puck to really QB a power play.
I get that Sammy doesn't have a great shot but he's still the best option for the 2nd unit until Byram or Timmins is ready.
The power play proved last night what it needs to do to be successful (and thankfully the league's worst penalty kill obliged). Get shots from in-close, quit relying so much on one-timers and snipes from distance. And above everything else, get more movement. Too often the bumper is scurrying around and everyone else just stands there.
I get that Sammy doesn't have a great shot but he's still the best option for the 2nd unit until Byram or Timmins is ready.
The power play proved last night what it needs to do to be successful (and thankfully the league's worst penalty kill obliged). Get shots from in-close, quit relying so much on one-timers and snipes from distance. And above everything else, get more movement. Too often the bumper is scurrying around and everyone else just stands there.
Every player looks like hes deciding what to do with the puck after it gets to him. Very few one touch passes, and a lot of telegraphing.
I think its relying too much on talent and not enough structure.
Its looked like that all year, even when they've been a bit faster at moving it.
Watching other teams really makes it stand out.
MarkT
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I really think we need to get rid of the idea that the defenseman needs to "QB" the powerplay. Who is the QB on the top unit? If you answered Makar you're wrong - it's clearly MacKinnon. On the powerplays I posted, Kadri or Burakovsky would be the QB. Graves would just stand at one of the points and be ready to one-time bombs - he wouldn't even carry it in; Bura and Donskoi can do that.
Yeah, he tends to get his shot blocked, but so does nearly every defender in the league at 5-on-5. We've never seen Graves try to shoot on the powerplay. Plus I think his puck skills are underrated. I don't really think he'd be a problem on PP2. That being said, I don't think either he or Sammy are ideal there. We're all just waiting for Timmins and/or Byram to get here.
GirardSpinorama
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- Aug 20, 2004
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Not good enough on the faceoffs for pp1. We should take Makar off pp1 and have him be the primary weapon on his own pp. It might hurt his numbers but overall help the team.
MarkT
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Makar needs to be on PP1 because the Avs sometimes don't even use PP2, and I don't want to see an entire 2 minute powerplay go by without Makar.
Also, we don't know if Namaste can take faceoffs. I agree though faceoffs might be an issue there. You could flip Landy and Nuke if it became an issue.
He can take faceoffs and he's pretty much break-even, so he's an option at least.
Faceoffs aren't a huge deal in the long-run, though it has been nice with Kadri taking draws when the power play didn't automatically have to go back and retrieve the puck to start every single time. It's just too bad this year they haven't finished worth a damn.
cgf
FireBednarsSuccessor
The guy patrolling the blueline doesn't need to be the primary QB for a PP, but it's really important to have that last man back be able to QB the PP. Even when not the primary QB on a unit that guy ends up with the puck on his stick a lot and has to be comfortable walking that line when keeping pucks in, or you'll see that unit really struggling to maintain control.
Sammy's shot is worse than Barrie's was at the same (st)age, but if he can make similar progress (from that lower starting point) with his shot, he would become a highly effective PP guy. Spurgeon is another smurf who turned his shot into a weapon once already in his prime, and in the process added a lot to his game / the impact he was able to make.
That all said, I do expect Timmins (or Byram) to take over that spot before Samwise's shot comes around, as well.
Aaaaand you lost me.
MacK handles the puck about as much as Makar maybe but one is dictating the flow more than the other.
The Kingslayer
Registered User
Watched the game last night he is using a longer stick but still not as long as the one he used when he broke in.Pretty sure he did. I'm fairly certain there's an Athletic article about it. I mean, he was good with the first stick until he got hurt the first time, so...
cgf
FireBednarsSuccessor
We can use last season's PP as an example for what he's saying. MacK was definitely the primary one pulling the strings for that unit, with Mikko & Barrie both being secondary QBs as well as shooting threats. So he's right that that guy doesn't need to be the primary PPQB...where he loses me is that that last guy needs to be able to be a secondary PP QB if they aren't the primary one.
That's not true, unless you believe JTC QBs the 2nd unit.
The QB is generally the guy who goes back and gets the puck and starts with it, and then anchors the point. Just because the Avs utilize the drop pass with MacKinnon does not mean he "quarterbacks" the power play. And recently they've tried to switch that up and make lateral passes in the NZ to free things up.
There have been forwards in the past who QB'd the power play, Ray Whitney and Daniel Alfredsson are the most recent examples I can think of. But with so many puckmoving D in today's game I really can't remember the last team to do that.
But the point is, Graves cannot be on the power play--he isn't good enough. He can't pass well enough, isn't good enough with his shot to get it through traffic consistently, and he isn't nearly good enough defensively in the event of a shorthanded break. Like it or not, Sammy is the 2nd best option on the 2nd unit power play, especially one that barely gets used. EJ would be the next-best option. Graves would be behind him, followed by Z, and then Cole (though Cole was on that crazy scoring binge for a while so...).
It may function fine with MacK pulling the strings but imo Makar got more comfortable with that <1 month into the season and has been the more active PPQB since.
I love me some T-boobs but pretty much his sole function was getting the puck to MacK, for either the shot or cross-ice pass to Mikko. Cale is much more active in moving the PKers around and manipulating lanes and space.
If I were running the PP I’d have MacK and Makar out as much as they’re able, keeping them out for when the fresh second unit joins them has looked really promising. They stayed on while G joined part way through the PP a game or two ago and the three of them looked as dangerous as any other PP combo we’ve had this year.
That's a real bad distillation of what actually took place. Barrie did not just feed the puck to MacKinnon, he had (and probably still does have) a very effective shot from the point. Makar's is still not quite on the same level, though it's getting there. Makar is indeed better at moving in tight spaces and finding lanes, but Barrie just knew how to get his shot through traffic. I'd also say that Makar is the better passer.
AvsCOL
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- Jul 16, 2013
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Any clue what's going on with Burakovsky? They said he was ill last week, and he's still in a non-contact jersey...
Is there a franchise in hockey who's less transparent when it comes to injuries? I get that you want to hold your cards close to your chest, but you can't trust a word they say when it comes to injuries lol
The Colin Wilson situation continues to be a complete mystery
Is there a franchise in hockey who's less transparent when it comes to injuries? I get that you want to hold your cards close to your chest, but you can't trust a word they say when it comes to injuries lol
The Colin Wilson situation continues to be a complete mystery
