Erik Gudbranson

[Avelanche]

It was still a good gamble for the Panthers to take. He looked like a franchise dman coming in. Still could be. Look how long it took EJ to figure it out.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Gudbranson was always going to be a project. I said it at the time of the draft (having followed him closely when he played for Kingston), but he was the rawest of all the top picked defensemen that season. Guys like Fowler, Gormley, etc. were all more polished players at that point in time. Gudbranson was more an unfinished product.

He was drafted high because the package, if he put it all together, was very impressive. Great size and physicality, good mobility for a big guy, good in his own zone, good outlet passer, and has a hard (albeit inconsistently accurate) shot.

 

[ucanthanzalthetruth]

I remember watching a game last season where Gudbrandson went for a monster check, missed completly and it resulted in a 3 on 1 goal

Good to see him finally find his form

Yeah this was a staple of Gudbranson the last 2 years, it's really night and day, his play last year to this.

 

[SoupyFIN]

He can make some extra cash during the holidays too.

Yes, I know that's taken from their hospital visit.

 

[salsa man]

I'd still take him over Cam Fowler AINEC

That's a joke.

 

[batting1k]

I really like his physical play. It's unfortunate that he barely ever gets his shot on goal because he has a bomb for a shot.

 

[IceManCat]

He was raw and a project from the day we drafted him. His defense has come a long way this year. His offense is still pretty raw not sure if he'll ever be that 40pts dman we wanted. But he progressed every year.

 

[AwesomePanthers]

Defensive defenseman that does his job really well, and tons of character og captain-material. He has also had a couple of shots off the post in the last 3 games, so he could with some luck have scored 2 goals those last 3 games. It will come..

 

[fcpremix88]

How many people below the age of 25 have their life figured out? I don't understand how you can label a guy playing in the NHL a bust before he's in his mid-twenties. Defensemen take longer than forwards, and bigger guys take even longer.

 

[velodim]

Depends by how you judge him. He is Defensive defenseman. He is not going to have many points ever. He is there to intimidate, hit hard and just be a solid defender.