Player Discussion: Erik Cernak

[BowDownToVasilevskiy]

NHL debut tonight should be interesting

 

[LightningStrikes]

7D with KK and him? Cut Martel?

 

[Rschmitz]

The day has arrived. Get pumped, all eyes on EC tonight!

 

[Ivo]

How was he in his debut? I see he played a solid 17 minutes and has a +1 in a loss, but that in itself does not mean much.

 

[RegularSznAllStars]

How was cernak? I wasn’t really able to follow the game.

 

[Rschmitz]

How was he in his debut? I see he played a solid 17 minutes and has a +1 in a loss, but that in itself does not mean much.

Looked nervous. Lots of hesitation or he rushed the play too much, didn't look smooth at all. Having said that, you noticed him physically and he made some nice plays, gonna be a good one.

 

[DFC]

Looked nervous. Lots of hesitation or he rushed the play too much, didn't look smooth at all. Having said that, you noticed him physically and he made some nice plays, gonna be a good one.

Agreed. Nervous, but definitely not out of place. And he seemed to gain confidence as the game went along. He had that play in the second where he handled the puck around the net and then into the semi-slot for, if I remember correctly, an A-grade chance.

It wasn't an "Oh my God!" debut or anything. But it was definitely promising. We don't need him to be Sergachev. To me, Cernak's just a guy who can fill the role Dotchin almost did, but with a much more well-rounded skillset. There will be plenty of mistakes, and I think I recall at least one from last night, but, overall, I think it was pretty solid passing grade.

I doubt anybody in management, or even us fans, walked away from that game thinking Cernak doesn't belong in the NHL.

Kind of crazy that we might have gotten real value from the Bishop deal, given the circumstances.

 

[CupsOverCash]

How was cernak? I wasn’t really able to follow the game.

He played ok. He looked to me like a guy who was still learning the speed of this level of the game.Not that he was getting caught a lot he just looked like he was still adjusting sometimes. Its still too early to tell with him but he looked fine in his first game. Made some good passes and and broke up some plays too.

 

[LightningStrikes]

One time he stepped up aggressively towards the attacking player and got burned badly. He'll learn that things are a bit different on NHL level.

 

[CupsOverCash]

One time he stepped up aggressively towards the attacking player and got burned badly. He'll learn that things are a bit different on NHL level.

Yea he looked like he was still adapting to the speed. Which you expect in a first game in the nhl.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Made a few mistakes but overall his first game was promising imo. We didn’t exactly shelter him, he was next to McDonagh out against top dogs and playing in crunch time down a goal. He performed admirably. Glad he’s getting a cup of coffee this year.

 

[DFC]

Made a few mistakes but overall his first game was promising imo. We didn’t exactly shelter him, he was next to McDonagh out against top dogs and playing in crunch time down a goal. He performed admirably. Glad he’s getting a cup of coffee this year.

Yeah, he had plenty of shifts against Eichel.

 

[The Macho King]

How was cernak? I wasn’t really able to follow the game.

He plays physical - I like it. Over committed on one or two plays. Showed more offensive flair than I expected (has a really good shot from the point, but he also jumped up in the play a few times). I think he settled in and got more confident as the game went on.

Honestly? I'd take him over KK on this roster any day.

 

[The Macho King]

 

[HoseEmDown]

I don't get the last part of that quote from bolts prospects. Koekkoek was a good puck mover in his time with the Crunch and shown some climpses up here. If they wanted him to be a puck mover here they should pair him with Stralman but they never have. Playing with Coburn it's a hit the red line and dump style, they aren't really wanting them two to carry too much.

Cernak plays such a smart game that he isn't going to wow you unless he catches someone like you see Stralman do occasionally. He's just going to make the smart plays and get the puck out of the zone. You won't really notice the small things he does but you also won't notice many mistakes either which is even better. I like that they played him with Hedman as he's a perfect partner for him, a Dotchin with smarts and skating ability.

 

[The Macho King]

Looks like Strals will be back. Cernak paired with KK in practice.

 

[DFC]

He plays physical - I like it. Over committed on one or two plays. Showed more offensive flair than I expected (has a really good shot from the point, but he also jumped up in the play a few times). I think he settled in and got more confident as the game went on.

Honestly? I'd take him over KK on this roster any day.

Cooper showed a lot of faith in him. He was even out for a short stint after we'd pulled Dom. I think simpler styles transition a lot more easily to the NHL. There's just fewer things that can go wrong. The beauty of Cernak is, on top of that simple, more/less stay-at-home game, he has a really nice physical skillset. He seems like a solid, well-balanced athlete. That's something we haven't seen with a lot the stay-at-home guys we've tried to develop.

Speaking of development, something just went wrong with Koekkoek, somewhere along the line. It might have been that that third shoulder surgery set his development back too far. I don't know. It might have been that first year in Syracuse where, rather than focusing on his strengths (offense), we put ALL the focus on his weaknesses (defense) and tried to remold him. Whatever the case, the skills he was drafted for are the ones that have regressed, or just not developed. I think he's shown some promising signs lately, but I don't think even the most optimistic among us believe he can be more than a third pairing guy now.

 

[The Macho King]

KK was a bad draft pick. That was the issue. We've hung on to him this long because of that, not because of any merit.

He's a great skater but he doesn't have the brains to be a Dman. I think he'd be a good winger though.

 

[LightningStrikes]

KK was a bad draft pick. That was the issue. We've hung on to him this long because of that, not because of any merit.

He's a great skater but he doesn't have the brains to be a Dman. I think he'd be a good winger though.

We briefly used him as a winger before no?

 

[Werewolf]

Cernak has no practice time ... came in and went straight into the game. I thought he played well given the circumstances.

 

[The Macho King]

We briefly used him as a winger before no?

I don't think so? I just remember I think two of his goals last season came straight out of the penalty box where he was streaking down the wing. His speed really made a difference there.

 

[LightningStrikes]

I don't think so? I just remember I think two of his goals last season came straight out of the penalty box where he was streaking down the wing. His speed really made a difference there.

I thought we tried him at forward for a game or so but could be wrong. But I think we should. And I agree with your assessment here. Hell, even Luke freaking Witkowski has played wing for us before.

 

[2020 Cup Champions]

KK was a bad draft pick. That was the issue. We've hung on to him this long because of that, not because of any merit.

He's a great skater but he doesn't have the brains to be a Dman. I think he'd be a good winger though.

Chia time.

 

[JoVel]

We briefly used him as a winger before no?

I'm pretty sure he was a winger at some point for like half a game or something like that. Could've been because of an injury that happened mid game and KK replaced whoever that player might've been.

 

[Lightning1995]

I thought KK looked pretty good while Heddy was out, no?