Discussion: Will Tom Sestito Make The Team?

[me2]

That's before we got Dorsett who does the same thing and is a much better player. Dorsett might not be a heavyweight (much smaller than Sestito) but based on hockeyfights voting system and youtube videos (again from there), he seems like a better fighter. His fight with Sestito last year showed that despite his size, he is probably a better fighter.

He's not even close as evidenced by some of his fights vs other heavies. Sestito might not be win but at least he's able to hang and get out of these fights in good shape.

Still if the plan is not to fight these guys at all, but instead just ignore them and enjoy the fact the other team is starting a few short on the bench, no place for Sestito.

 

[me2]

I wonder if edmonton fans had a 13 page thread on Stortini or Brown at some point?

Sestito has his place and role, both are very limited and shrininkng in today's NHL.

they have 13 pages complaining about a non-hand pass, is that close enough?

 

[MS]

In other threads when I've asked, posters have actually told me that he needs to be on the roster because we need to scratch somebody, and he's perfect for scratching because he sucks. They were serious too.

That blew my mind, too.

It's like they got as far as 'well it wouldn't be good for one of our top prospects to be a healthy scratch!' and just stopped there.

A guy like Adam Cracknell was on waivers last week, is 10x the player that Sestito is, and would also not have caused a fuss if he was a healthy scratch. But who needs quality depth, anyway?

It's pretty obvious he doesn't fit what Desjardins wants on his roster (didn't carry a goon in the AHL last year, lowest PIM total in the league) and Desjardins has pretty much come out and said as much, he's been terrible all preseason, and he's been a healthy scratch against the only teams he was deemed to matter against. Again, why is he still here?

 

[me2]

That blew my mind, too.

It's like they got as far as 'well it wouldn't be good for one of our top prospects to be a healthy scratch!' and just stopped there.

A guy like Adam Cracknell was on waivers last week, is 10x the player that Sestito is, and would also not have caused a fuss if he was a healthy scratch. But who needs quality depth, anyway?

It's pretty obvious he doesn't fit what Desjardins wants on his roster (didn't carry a goon in the AHL last year, lowest PIM total in the league) and Desjardins has pretty much come out and said as much, he's been terrible all preseason, and he's been a healthy scratch against the only teams he was deemed to matter against. Again, why is he still here?

If the team wants a goon around he is fine, he is cheap, yes it fine if he sits rather than a rookie. If Willie had no interest in playing him then replacing with a better player.

 

[Wilch]

That blew my mind, too.

It's like they got as far as 'well it wouldn't be good for one of our top prospects to be a healthy scratch!' and just stopped there.

A guy like Adam Cracknell was on waivers last week, is 10x the player that Sestito is, and would also not have caused a fuss if he was a healthy scratch. But who needs quality depth, anyway?

It's pretty obvious he doesn't fit what Desjardins wants on his roster (didn't carry a goon in the AHL last year, lowest PIM total in the league) and Desjardins has pretty much come out and said as much, he's been terrible all preseason, and he's been a healthy scratch against the only teams he was deemed to matter against. Again, why is he still here?

They should pay me league minimum to be a healthy scratch.

I can help boost morale of the team and do some stand up comedy during intermissions.

 

[Ernie]

My guess is that there are people in the organization (perhaps even some players) who feel like they should have a goon on the roster. Desjardins doesn't, but doesn't have the standing to get rid of him yet.

Yes, it would be nice to drop him completely, but on the bright side, at least he's not playing.

I used to really love the fighting, even enjoyed the staged fights, but even in the fight last game I couldn't take any enjoyment in watching RNH get beat down. All I could think about is a good young player having serious mental health issues when he gets older. Hamhuis probably threw a couple more punches then he needed to.

 

[Bleach Clean]

If the team wants a goon around he is fine, he is cheap, yes it fine if he sits rather than a rookie. If Willie had no interest in playing him then replacing with a better player.

For a goon, he does his job.

I think they have kept him on the roster at the expense of other options because they don't know if they need him or not. They're still undecided. If they pick up Cracknell, then they have 2 players that they would have to 'decide on', instead of just one.

Seems logical to me. There's no assurance that Sestito gets picked up if he is waived. Costing them an extra contract slot.

I found this particularly interesting when Panik hit waivers. That was a quick little test as to whether management considered goonery to be valueless. Even at the expense of an extra contract slot. I don't believe Benning does, hence why Sestito is still here.

 

[Ho Borvat]

Context my friend. My comment was in response to those who were trying to use the Edmonton game as an example for Sestito running around, taking penalties, and hurting the team. But that clearly was not the case.

Ahhh, my apologies.

 

[Wolfhard]

Ahhh, my apologies.

 

[skyo]

Another crushing hit by Sestito, dude is one of the best of NHL's best at hits!!!
100% guaranteed.

 

[nucksfan8888]

Looks like Sestito may have been benched for the end of the 3rd, both Kassian and Matthias took a turn in his spot in the 3rd.

Nothing against him, but he just doesn't fit what this team is trying to do, which is be a 4 line team. I think he gets waived once Burrows is back. I think he gets 1 more chance tomorrow, but unless he magically improves his conditioning overnight, it's probably his last game as a canuck.

 

[timw33]

Needs to be booted off the team as soon as possible. Not a valuable hockey player.

 

[a Fool]

Nice game for limited minutes. A couple big hits and a nice pass to Dorsett on the Vey goal.

The question is if the coach thinks he can play more minutes - doesn't look like it so far.

 

[Nucker101]

The fact that WD played him limited minutes despite regularly giving everyone at least 8-9 mins even in close games says a lot. His days are numbered, unless Benning is insisting to WD to keep him on the roster and playing him on some nights.

 

[Jack Tripper]

Nice game for limited minutes. A couple big hits and a nice pass to Dorsett on the Vey goal.

The question is if the coach thinks he can play more minutes - doesn't look like it so far.

desjardins praised his play after the game and said his contributions were 'huge' (even though every contribution is 'huge' according to the coach), but also benched him in the third period, so who knows

 

[denkiteki]

The fact that WD played him limited minutes despite regularly giving everyone at least 8-9 mins even in close games says a lot. His days are numbered, unless Benning is insisting to WD to keep him on the roster and playing him on some nights.

Considering how well we are doing, i think Benning is likely to go with a hands-off approach with WD. More so when Benning's boss has a much longer relationship with WD than Benning.

Sestito's day should be numbered. Him going to management to complain about playing time is probably the last strew. I can see Benning trying to get any value for him now (not likely) then probably putting him on waivers in the not so distant future. I guess it all depends on:

a) If someone is put on waiver that interest us (basically serve the role as the "extra" forward... not possible to always call someone up in Utica to play in case someone gets hurt last minute)
b) Horvat's tryout... if Horvat wins a job here, Sestito is pretty much gone on the spot

Based on everything the announcers have been saying since pre-season. Seems like fighting/enforcer isn't something really in WD's plans. Take that out of Sestito's game and he really doesn't bring a ton to the table. He will hit and hit a lot but besides that, he's somewhat of a liability defensive and a black-hole offensively.

 

[denkiteki]

desjardins praised his play after the game and said his contributions were 'huge' (even though every contribution is 'huge' according to the coach), but also benched him in the third period, so who knows

Generally speaking, if you're trying to get value from a player or trying to trade a player... the last thing you'll say is "he did nothing". You want to show-case him before trading him.

For what Sestito can do, he did have a very good game tonight. But also remember he was playing against the Oilers. The other thing to note is he played 6 minutes tonight. No one else play less than 11:43 (Dorsett). In the MTL game, everyone played 12m plus too. Carolina game, Hansen was at the bottom @ 11:07. Notice the trend?

 

[LeftCoast]

Generally speaking, if you're trying to get value from a player or trying to trade a player... the last thing you'll say is "he did nothing". You want to show-case him before trading him.

For what Sestito can do, he did have a very good game tonight. But also remember he was playing against the Oilers. The other thing to note is he played 6 minutes tonight. No one else play less than 11:43 (Dorsett). In the MTL game, everyone played 12m plus too. Carolina game, Hansen was at the bottom @ 11:07. Notice the trend?

He also hasn't played in 11 games, so it's not surprising he got limited ice time.

I think Sestito plays fine in the offensive zone; he has some skill and decent hands. His problems are in the D zone.

 

[Zaddy91]

Jensen and gaunce look really really promising for injury call ups, if horvat makes the team i think its fair enouh to think sestito being waived isnt a big deal.

kassian bieksa and stanton all fiht and i know it isnt ideal but roster spots are valuable if youre using players like jensen and gauncd, we have no room and kids pushing the floor up on the depth chart for the first time in years

 

[denkiteki]

He also hasn't played in 11 games, so it's not surprising he got limited ice time.

I think Sestito plays fine in the offensive zone; he has some skill and decent hands. His problems are in the D zone.

The argument kinda goes both ways tho... yes he hasn't played for a while but at the same time it also means he should be more fresh. Its not like he's hurt and hasn't been practicing.

Remember after Stanton got hurt, Weber (who didn't play all season at that time) filled in and played the same amount of minutes as his partner (Sbisa). Basically he got his regular shift and no one else got double'd. For Sestito, other players did get double shifted to cover the time he didn't play since Dorsett and Vey both had about 10 minutes of ES time. Matthias, ZK, and Richardson had 13-14 minutes of ES time (i think those ZK and Matthias did most of the double shifting since they didn't play much on special teams).

It is comparing forward and D but since we have been lucky so far with injuries, its the only comparison to go on.

 

[denkiteki]

Jensen and gaunce look really really promising for injury call ups, if horvat makes the team i think its fair enouh to think sestito being waived isnt a big deal.

kassian bieksa and stanton all fiht and i know it isnt ideal but roster spots are valuable if youre using players like jensen and gauncd, we have no room and kids pushing the floor up on the depth chart for the first time in years

You forgot Dorsett who probably fights more than any of the 3 mentioned above. He even beat Sestito in a fight last year (at least imo, arguable but you can goto hockey fights/youtube and find the video to judge for yourself). I'm sure Matthias will fight in a pinch too given his role on the team now (that he seems to be more than willing to accept). He did fight in the pre-season so my guess is he's willing to step up if needed.

 

[alternate]

I thought Sestito played a very solid game. At one point the announcers said he had 4 hits in the first period. Earned an assist on a nice pass, made another nice pass at the side of the net, and moved the puck quickly and accurately through out the night. I also didn't notice the 4th line penned in their own zone any more frequently than before.

Didn't play much in the 3rd, but 14th forward playing his first game, 1 goal game on the road, Matthias and Kassian playing <13 minutes a night, it's good coaching to shorten the bench. I know some have their minds made up on Tom, but he showed tonight he can play smart possession hockey, and once he gets up to speed imo he'll be able to handle 10+ minutes.

 

[denkiteki]

I thought Sestito played a very solid game. At one point the announcers said he had 4 hits in the first period. Earned an assist on a nice pass, made another nice pass at the side of the net, and moved the puck quickly and accurately through out the night. I also didn't notice the 4th line penned in their own zone any more frequently than before.

Didn't play much in the 3rd, but 14th forward playing his first game, 1 goal game on the road, Matthias and Kassian playing <13 minutes a night, it's good coaching to shorten the bench. I know some have their minds made up on Tom, but he showed tonight he can play smart possession hockey, and once he gets up to speed imo he'll be able to handle 10+ minutes.

How does he "get up to speed"? Realistically, at most, he'll get 3 games until someone gets hurt. Today was the 1st of a back to back so generally speaking you want everyone to play a regular shift. It was a tight game and everyone except Sestito did play, which meant WD thought Sestito was a liability.

Honestly if Sestito sticks, i don't see him getting the ice time that others would get. He'll get 5 - 8 minutes each night when he plays and others will fill in the other time. If he plays that 5 - 8 minutes like he played tonight, that would be amazing but its unlikely he can (since this is probably as good as he'll be).

Remember Horvat still has his 9 game try-out that's waiting to happen. Burrows will be back in 2 more games. In that window, you probably expect Horvat to play at least 1 game so Sestito really won't get game action to get into game shape. He needs to get up to speed in practice if he wants any chance of getting playing time here. Or i guess wait for someone to get hurt... but if someone gets hurt for an extended period, you have to wonder if we'll just call someone up instead of playing Sestito.

 

[alternate]

How does he "get up to speed"? Realistically, at most, he'll get 3 games until someone gets hurt. Today was the 1st of a back to back so generally speaking you want everyone to play a regular shift. It was a tight game and everyone except Sestito did play, which meant WD thought Sestito was a liability.

Honestly if Sestito sticks, i don't see him getting the ice time that others would get. He'll get 5 - 8 minutes each night when he plays and others will fill in the other time. If he plays that 5 - 8 minutes like he played tonight, that would be amazing but its unlikely he can (since this is probably as good as he'll be).

Remember Horvat still has his 9 game try-out that's waiting to happen. Burrows will be back in 2 more games. In that window, you probably expect Horvat to play at least 1 game so Sestito really won't get game action to get into game shape. He needs to get up to speed in practice if he wants any chance of getting playing time here. Or i guess wait for someone to get hurt... but if someone gets hurt for an extended period, you have to wonder if we'll just call someone up instead of playing Sestito.

Fine, IF he gets the chance to get up to speed. I agree that a long term injury is probably replaced by a call-up. If he holds his own through 2 periods and sees the end of the bench in the 3rd...okay. Most teams shorten their bench late, our 3rd liners won't be worn out getting an extra shift in the third.

Bottom line for me, Sestito showed more than dragging knuckles tonight. As long as his attitude stays right, he's a solid 14th forward (especially considering our potential call up options ).

 

[skyo]

desjardins praised his play after the game and said his contributions were 'huge' (even though every contribution is 'huge' according to the coach), but also benched him in the third period, so who knows

Happy to hear that a NHL pro coach was givin Sestito props.