Player Discussion: Erik Cernak

[bigdaddio]

The way he ragdolls people with his upper body strength is as fun to watch as big checks. I just love what he does in the neutral zone and on defense. If he can figure out offense just a little bit all the better.

 

[HoseEmDown]

I wouldn't call him a Weber light, I don't think he has the offense and definitely not the shot, I would call him a Manson light. An absolutely stud physical shutdown guy and any offense he brings is a bonus. Just the perfect sidekick who does all the work that allows your star defender to shine and get all the credit.

 

[Lord Stan 2020]

I wouldn't call him a Weber light, I don't think he has the offense and definitely not the shot, I would call him a Manson light. An absolutely stud physical shutdown guy and any offense he brings is a bonus. Just the perfect sidekick who does all the work that allows your star defender to shine and get all the credit.

disagree lets set up a vote on anyone who agrees with me

do you notice MR. Cernak every shift yes or no? yep pretty easy vote

edit disagree on the the perfect sidekick and allows your stud defender to shine and get all the credit. lol i notice mcd when he makes a mistake i notice cernak cause hes a frigging beast at all times lol and he really does a great job at lines and being aggressive especially on the puck etc... he attacks the offensive guys ............. i notice mcd also plenty but pretty much notice remember mistakes im like on edge of seat if cernak is near a play...
so no to the sidekick unrecognized thing this guy always holds my attention and for me thats been a long time since a dman at 20 has done that....

 

[Rschmitz]

I am so happy for Erik. I've been watching him since he was 15 and I always knew he can be a NHL player in the future. Btw, I saw some Shea Weber comparisons here. Weber is actually Eriks favourite player and he models his game after him.

That's pretty cool. One of the nice things about hfboards is you get people like you volunteering information like that, you would never get this kind of info otherwise.

My Weber comparison comes from two things. Hard and low right handed shot, which is going to create lots of juicy rebounds, and his bone crushing hits. Not many comparables in the league

 

[Rschmitz]

I wouldn't call him a Weber light, I don't think he has the offense and definitely not the shot, I would call him a Manson light. An absolutely stud physical shutdown guy and any offense he brings is a bonus. Just the perfect sidekick who does all the work that allows your star defender to shine and get all the credit.

His low accurate shot is underrated. He's going to flourish in this offense because of it. I guess that's to TBD, but looks like everyone agrees on the Mason comparison. IMO that could very well be the floor.

 

[LightningStrikes]

 

[Rschmitz]

Basically verbalizing what we've noticed. Lack of confidence in the beginning has disappeared and he's now opened up his game(with some encouragement from others) to some untapped offensive potential.

He's beginning to realize that potential. I noticed three or four times Peckam confused Cernak for Stamkos. He's trying to activate at every opportunity now, and he's smart enough to know when those opportunities are. This is a guy who's supposed to be slow, but there were several neutral Habs fans who thought he was one of our fastest skaters.

That makes two prospects, Cernak and Point, who've turned their skating from a negative to a positive. Is this the work of Barbara, or just some hard work?

 

[DFC]

He dominated for two periods last game. Gotta say, I didn't picture him getting to that point.

 

[DFC]

Basically verbalizing what we've noticed. Lack of confidence in the beginning has disappeared and he's now opened up his game(with some encouragement from others) to some untapped offensive potential.

He's beginning to realize that potential. I noticed three or four times Peckam confused Cernak for Stamkos. He's trying to activate at every opportunity now, and he's smart enough to know when those opportunities are. This is a guy who's supposed to be slow, but there were several neutral Habs fans who thought he was one of our fastest skaters.

That makes two prospects, Cernak and Point, who've turned their skating from a negative to a positive. Is this the work of Barbara, or just some hard work?

It's not a coincidence. Drouin's skating was considered a weakness at the draft.

I'm pretty sure Boltprospects listed Cernak's skating as a strength at the time of the trade though, so this could be LA's handiwork.

 

[Rschmitz]

It's not a coincidence. Drouin's skating was considered a weakness at the draft.

I'm pretty sure Boltprospects listed Cernak's skating as a strength at the time of the trade though, so this could be LA's handiwork.

Here is boltprospects analysis.

Scouting Comments:
Černák is a big defenseman with excellent reach and strength. Is brilliant defensively and in front of his own net. Can also play on the powerplay thanks to his hockey sense. Doesn't take a lot of penalties for a physical player. However, he could improve his skating ability.
- Vladimir Kubik EP
Strengths:
A huge defenseman with both size and a great stick, he is also strong enough to compete against big NHL opponents already. Also boasts pretty good hockey sense and some offensive upside.
Weaknesses:
Doesn't have optimum skating ability, which may become an issue as he climbs the organizational ladder. Also, his long-range scoring upside is limited. Must focus on being a shutdown blueliner.
Projection:
Big shutdown defenseman with upside.

 

[TeslaCoilFan]

Well, we do know that Barb Underhill and another of the skating coaches has been spending a good bit of time working with our boys relatively recently so if Barb got hold of Cernak, she could definitely be part of the reason behind his improved skating.

 

[DFC]

Here is boltprospects analysis.

I don't think that was from the write up when he got traded here. Don't think they went with the scouting report, but I'm just going from memory.

 

[Rschmitz]

I don't think that was from the write up when he got traded here. Don't think they went with the scouting report, but I'm just going from memory.

Can't find anything. Must have been in one of their prospect ranking articles.

 

[DFC]

Can't find anything. Must have been in one of their prospect ranking articles.

Possibly, but I think it was an article when the trade broke. There was a lot of talk about Cernak the proverbial No Toolbox player.

 

[EXTRAS]

How good could he be in his prime? 35 point top pairing guy?

 

[Bolt 45]

I definitely wouldn't consider Cernak a slow or weak skater. At worst he just doesn't accelerate as quickly as "fast" skaters. Serg is kind of the same way. Both guys are plenty fast and agile once they get up to speed. Cernak might even be the better of the two on his edges at speed. He's got great balance. I've been impressed given his size.

 

[ccman68]

Cernak brings some good value

 

[bigdaddio]

My critique of Cernak so far this season.

 

[Stormbreaker]

Ben Bishop started 7 games for the Kings went 2-3-2 and missed the playoffs. This trade hasn't and will not age well for LA. His skill set fits in perfectly with this team. Thank you SFY!

 

[Rschmitz]

Ben Bishop started 7 games for the Kings went 2-3-2 and missed the playoffs. This trade hasn't and will not age well for LA. His skill set fits in perfectly with this team. Thank you SFY!

Coulda had a second rounder too. ..and at the time of the trade everyone was thinking "that's it?", little did we know...

 

[alko]

Coulda had a second rounder too. ..and at the time of the trade everyone was thinking "that's it?", little did we know...

That was very surprising move by Kings. They needed offense, but suddenly they brought another goalie. "We need Nr. 1 goalie in every game" was the quote from GM of LA Kings... And so they ended.

 

[DFC]

That was very surprising move by Kings. They needed offense, but suddenly they brought another goalie. "We need Nr. 1 goalie in every game" was the quote from GM of LA Kings... And so they ended.

Well, I mean, at the time, the pricetag was considered cheap as hell. It was like we gave them another #1 goalie virtually for free.

It's a deal that feels like a hail mary that connected for a clean TD.

 

[Lord Stan 2020]

he was a damned wrecking ball last night I LOVE THIS KID unreal... yes barb worked with him last two years at times not sure of recently who she has worked with.... hes sooooo solid

that tripping call was bullshit that was a perfect play by a dman he will get those in time no calls just shitty assed refs

 

[The Macho King]

he was a damned wrecking ball last night I LOVE THIS KID unreal... yes barb worked with him last two years at times not sure of recently who she has worked with.... hes sooooo solid

that tripping call was bull**** that was a perfect play by a dman he will get those in time no calls just ****ty assed refs

Tbf the tripping on Bogosian was a bad call too.

 

[DFC]

Tbf the tripping on Bogosian was a bad call too.

Yeah. They missed a blatant one (on Gourde, I believe) and then it felt like they were looking for anything to make it up.