Is Hedman overrated?

[angusyoung]

one of the best 2 way d in the league,how can one ask if overrated? crazy!

 

[Fork]

hedman is better than sbisa

 

[Alwalys]

the number seem to speak for themselves, but in the few chances i got to see him last season vs my team he didn't really stand out.

 

[JFG]

Recently he was ranked #2 in a poll series here. I think that is fair.

Saying he is a better overall defenseman than Karlsson though? Yeah, I would call that overrating him.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Hedman/Karlsson (I prefer Hedman)

why does everyone use this to meme me? it is a real discussion. hedman carries the puck up ice more and turns it over less, had more points albeit a lower ppg, is (at least arguably) better defensively, is bigger, and is the statistical best PP QB in the league.

 

[Aladyyn]

why does everyone use this to meme me? it is a real discussion. hedman carries the puck up ice more and turns it over less, had more points albeit a lower ppg, is (at least arguably) better defensively, is bigger, and is the statistical best PP QB in the league.

Ristolainen, #1 PP etc.

 

[Sky04]

Sorry, I know your post is constructed to be objective and respectful, but nonetheless, no: there is no legitimate argument that Hedman had a better season than Karlsson.

Frankly there's no legitimate argument that Burns had a better season than Karlsson either.

That said since you were nice, I'll be nice too and say that Hedman is in my opinion the 2nd best defenseman in the NHL, I think he had the 2nd best year last year, and I think he'll be the 2nd best this year as well.

Hey Macho, found one of those Karlsson fanboys we were talking about earlier this year.

Love Karlsson but man, his fanbase resembles Justin Biebers.

 

[ManofSteel55]

I think for Hedman to be overrated, he would have to be widely considered to be on par with Karlsson. Because it is quite clear that Karlsson is the best defenseman on the planet, and that Hedman is in the small tier of 5 or so defensemen who would be in the discussion if Karlsson didn't exist.

 

[Sureves]

I think Karlsson is better offensively and Hedman better defensively. Hedman also has a huge size advantage on Karlsson. Here's the thing though, Karlsson didn't produce much more than Hedman last season, so the gap between them was very small if any.

If we ignore that Karlsson was better defensively, then ya you're right. It seems talking about defensive superiority only is relevant when it works against Karlsson not when it works for him.

Anyways, I'm just going to link to this thread. Have a look through and hear what Tampa fans were saying about Hedman's abilities through January, then go try and find me Sens fans criticizing Karlsson's defensive game this season.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showthread.php?t=1582635&page=13

Just a sample of comments:

Victor Hedman is currently sitting second in the league in points by a defenseman (2 off of Burns, 1 ahead of Karlsson), and on pace for ~70 points.

That being said, he's having his worst possession stat season since the Boucher era (although decent rel stats still), and has been a little up and down on his defense and turnovers this season.

So where do we place him? This is by far his best offensive season (if he didn't play another game it would be his fourth highest scoring season of his career and he's a few points from his third highest), and he's getting some buzz as a Norris nominee (or is likely to).

How do we feel about his season to date?

The latter.

Hedman is learning to adjust to BIG minutes. He's getting the same level of ice time that Chicago throws Keith during the playoffs, except he's now getting it the whole season.

I'm not worried about a whiff or anything like that whatsoever, mainly because that just indicates he might be a bit tired by the end of the game and is learning to adjust to that pace.

I think he's had a ton of subpar defensive games this season, imo his most dominant season was 2015.

Norris finalist at this rate but I both Burns and Karlsson have been better players this year.

It's going to be sad when this season gets Hedman a ton more votes than a season where he played much better defensively in. Stupid voters only watching points.

It's amazing how he looks so pedestrian in the defensive zone this year but he is just sneezing points. Every game he's getting an assist or two.

He's really been up and down. I love the points but I feel like he's played better in other seasons. Last night for example was very poor and I'd rather Hedman go 5 games without a point to have another night like that. But I'm not gonna bag on the big guy when his defensive partner in Stralman is fast turning into Swedish Nesterov overnight with some of the nights HE has been having. But back on subject I'm pleasantly surprised that he's managed to string together so much point production. I always knew the big guy had it in him but never thought I would actually see it happen considering that a guy like Erik Karlsson can drop a 4 point night without even trying.

I've always felt Hedman was the best kept secret in the NHL and this only goes to prove it.

Agreed, he's not doing the best in the d-zone but he's the last of our worries, if he were on top of his game in that area I think we'd all be pushing his name in Norris talks.

I actually think Karlsson has been a better two-way player this year, something I thought I'd never say.

Not sure if it's an improvement but he's finally learned how to pass across the ice tape to tape in the offensive zone, huge difference when racking up PP points. or maybe he's just been getting all those LH-forwards (Drouin and Kucherov) instead of Stamkos regularly in the left circle which makes it easier to pass to.

Anyways, let's drop that and get back on track since he's still an incredible defenseman.

 

[Never]

I hate Tampa, but no.

 

[Sureves]

Hey Macho, found one of those Karlsson fanboys we were talking about earlier this year.

Love Karlsson but man, his fanbase resembles Justin Biebers.

In what way does his fanbase resemble Justin Bieber's? In what way do I resemble a Justin Bieber fan?

Very peculiar commentary.

 

[oobga]

i think his rating (accounting for fans, bashers, neutral observers) is just right. Top 5 D I would say is the general consensus.

 

[Sky04]

If we ignore that Karlsson was better defensively, then ya you're right. It seems talking about defensive superiority only is relevant when it works against Karlsson not when it works for him.

Anyways, I'm just going to link to this thread. Have a look through and hear what Tampa fans were saying about Hedman's abilities through January, then go try and find me Sens fans criticizing Karlsson's defensive game this season.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showthread.php?t=1582635&page=13

Yes, but that's also because we're also much more objective than the Karlsson fans. The Tampa fanbase can be hypercritical at times but at least they're critical. I've numerous dumb plays by Karlsson in the past only to pop over the Sens board and everyones playing his partner, the forwards, the coach, the system the goalie or no mention at all.

I mean there's also the factor of high insecurity among Karlsson fans, I really don't care if anyone thinks Hedman is 1st, 5th, 8th or 20th best in the league (if you're that dumb I'll leave you to it), he's great, I have him on my team - it's awesome, but some of you guys throw a fit when Karlsson isn't unanimously considered #1 in every discussion. I've seen thread long discussions because some guy said Karlsson was #2, then some more threads discussing the distance between him and #2

 

[Sureves]

Yes, but that's also because we're also much more objective than the Karlsson fans. The Tampa fanbase can be hypercritical at times but at least they're critical.

Sorry, but this is straight garbage. Total falsehood. This kind of statement is actually showing the opposite of what you're intending to show: it's showing you are self-absorbed and don't recognize that the exact same criticism happens on the Sens board for any Sens player (including Karlsson) when it is earned.

We are absolutely just as "hypercritical" as Tampa fans: as are most teams' fanbases. You are not a special snowflake and neither is your team (nor mine).

I mean there's also the factor of high insecurity among Karlsson fans, I really don't care if anyone thinks Hedman is 1st, 5th, 8th or 20th best in the league (if you're that dumb I'll leave you to it), he's great, I have him on my team - it's awesome, but some of you guys throw a fit when Karlsson isn't unanimously considered #1 in every discussion. I've seen thread long discussions because some guy said Karlsson was #2, then some more threads discussing the distance between him and #2

Similar kind of comment. You seem to be very vain and self-involved when you make these kind of comments.

The reality is Karlsson is - clearly - the best defenseman in the NHL - hell in a poll asking who was the best defenseman in the NHL, 88% of HF voted him as #1 - so no, saying "he's really great, but he's not #1" is not an acceptable response.

It's like Crosby before McDavid. You can't just say "he's really great, but Kane is better". It's just a wrong opinion. There's no emotion involved or anything, it's just factually incorrect. Kane's still a really great player, but he's not as good as Crosby.

Again for clarity, I am fully saying that I think Hedman is the 2nd best defenseman in the league. I am not a hater: I love the guy and think he's extraordinary.

EDIT: I'm also not sure I subscribe to your comment that "I really don't care if anyone thinks Hedman is 1st, 5th, 8th or 20th best in the league". It seems quite out of character from the vibe I'm getting from you, but hey, good on you if that's the case, but the reality is a lot of people who post on HF do care about player rankings.

 

[Fandlauer]

I think he's pretty fairly rated.

Any given season he is somewhere between #2-#5 best defenseman in the league. Fantastic player.

 

[Pukboy5kroner]

I think he's in the discussion for top 5 in the league, and one of the better two-way defensemen (largely due to his skating allowing him to cover so much ground). Like Ekman-Larsson, admittedly, he might get more credit for his defensive game than he deserves when compared to Burns or Karlsson.

 

[BBB24]

As of this moment, if I was building a team, he would be the first dman I would pick, he really is a beast.

 

[Pinto Bean]

He's my choice for 2nd best d-man in the game and seems to be for most others as well.

I'd say he's fairly rated around these parts at least.

 

[nowhereman]

Not in my books. There are only two defensemen in the NHL that I would take over him: Karlsson and Doughty.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Ristolainen, #1 PP etc.

he led all dmen in power play points per 60 by a big margin

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

he led all dmen in power play points per 60 by a big margin

So you are saying no? like most everyone else

 

[VoluntaryDom]

So you are saying no? like most everyone else

I am saying hedman is not overrated, correct.

I wanted to see some non-bolts fans opinions.

 

[Shruggs Peterson]

Validation thread for op

It very much looks like this. Didn't offer context or any kind of argument.