Jake Gardiner tops first grouping of HF's Top 50 NHL prospects

Michael Gary Scott

Toronto Maple Tron's
Apr 27, 2010
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Hate to see where Colborne will end up if Gardiner is getting this much heat. Jeez, how fast anahiem fans forget how much they liked Gardiner once he gets traded. But, I guess the thought around here is that once you have the Leaf crest on your jersey youre immediately ****.
 

Markus078

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Feb 26, 2003
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Honestly, after reading about him i wasn't so excited and really even doubted he would make the NHL. But after i actually watched him, IMO he was absolutely underrated in Anaheim. A 20 year old with elite skating ability, a good shot, creativity with the puck on the rush, a good defensive game and decent physicality. The only thing i noticed is he has good defensive awareness and great awareness on the rush, but as soon as he enters the offensive zone he seems like he doesnt know what to do? Am i the only one who noticed this?

No, you are not - the only thing I found on this quickly http://thecheckingline.com/blog/mitch-h/toronto-maple-leafs/who-jake-gardiner

Basicly it has:
In an interview with TSN's Bob McKenzie, legendary Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves stated that Gardiner's strengths were his skating and his ability to be a defensive outlet. He makes a great first pass and he can skate the puck out of his zone at an elite level.

What Mike Eaves also said to Bob McKenzie is that he doesn't see Gardiner as a first unit powerplay defenseman. For a guy whose recently coached both Jamie McBain and Brendan Smith, that's a key statement. Both those players have turned into guys at the pro level that are without question first unit powerplay defenders. Eaves' argument was that Gardiner lacks the kind of hockey sense that allows him to see the moving parts on the powerplay.


These things are the main reasons why Justin Schultz surpassed him. Schultz has the hockey sense, in terms of skating they are close. Defensively I would give my money to Gardiner. But I think the lack of hockey sense in the offensive zone made him expendable. During the draft there have been more voices about his hockey sense overall. He progressed well in the defensive zone so maybe he will overcome his offensive flaws.

Hate to see where Colborne will end up if Gardiner is getting this much heat. Jeez, how fast anahiem fans forget how much they liked Gardiner once he gets traded. But, I guess the thought around here is that once you have the Leaf crest on your jersey youre immediately ****.

We still like him, IMO most of us do. But Beachemin has been fine here and we have Fowler + Sbisa being young and progressing that well. We have Schultz and Sami Vantanen making big strides. We have Matt Clark, Jake Newton and Mark Mitera in Syracuse. We have Valentine and Lind who do well in Junior/College. He is expendable even with his upside. The Ducks will have a lot of work to do to get those kids to the lineup over the next years.

Didn't his coach at Wisconsin say the same thing. I noticed that at Ducks rookie camp last year. He looks great rushing the puck up the ice but then he looks quite uncomfortable with it in the offensive zone. Strange too considering he is used to be a forward. The Ducks had a similar player in Brendan Mikkelsson who never panned out for the Ducks.

I remember the draft very well and most of the reports mentioned that for a forward his upside would have been a 4th line forchecker. The transition to D. made him much more valuable.
 
Last edited:

Selanne138

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Nov 18, 2009
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Him having his best season might have something to do with it...

a season where he was completely outplayed by Ducks prospect, Schultz.

But same thing happened with Tangradi. He shoots up the rankings once he moves to a bigger market team. Definitely expected it this time though.
 

Beleafer4

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Apr 4, 2010
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We will see...
I will only believe this ducks curse if shultz doesnt make the top 40- because that would be appalling.
 

Hunter Gathers

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Dont be a homer bro, Mcdonagh had 18 points in 43 games in his third year in NCAA while Gardiner had 41 points in 41 games in his third year.
Nothing against Ryan mcdonagh he is a pretty good prospect but give credit were credit is due (in your case Gardiner)

You're kidding, right? Points mean nothing, really, as they are different d-men.

McDonagh was a rock defensively and an anchor with whoever he played with. And he's already doing the same in the NHL.

Gardiner, while a nice prospect, has never been very good defensively and needs quite a bit of work. McDonagh is a better prospect now and has always been the better prospect.
 

mooseOAK*

Guest
We still like him, IMO most of us do. But Beachemin has been fine here and we have Fowler + Sbisa being young and progressing that well. We have Schultz and Sami Vantanen making big strides. We have Matt Clark, Jake Newton and Mark Mitera in Syracuse. We have Valentine and Lind who do well in Junior/College. He is expendable even with his upside. The Ducks will have a lot of work to do to get those kids to the lineup over the next years.

That makes it a good trade for both teams. The Ducks get Beauchemin to help the playoff run and the Leafs get a badly needed top 6 winger and a good defenceman prospect.

Burke says that he feels that Gardiner can play in the NHL next season after some AHL time.
 

Blue Line Monster

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Apr 4, 2010
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Man, this must be the greatest list of prospects ever. Can't wait to see the rest. I mean, the 50th best prospect is +17 playing 20 mins a game on an NHL playoff team.
Hockey has a very bright future.
:sarcasm:
 

RogerRoeper*

Guest
a season where he was completely outplayed by Ducks prospect, Schultz.

But same thing happened with Tangradi. He shoots up the rankings once he moves to a bigger market team. Definitely expected it this time though.

What does that have to do with anything though? It doesn't take away the fact he had his best season yet and went from 13 points to 41 in the same amount of games.
 

R S

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Sep 18, 2006
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You should be more upset about the player at #48 than Gardiner.

Stefan Elliott might be the best pure offensive defensive prospect in the entire CHL buddy, he is absolutely deserving to be in the top 50.

Hell I think he should easily be in the top 25.
 

The Management

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Jun 8, 2009
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You're kidding, right? Points mean nothing, really, as they are different d-men.

McDonagh was a rock defensively and an anchor with whoever he played with. And he's already doing the same in the NHL.

Gardiner, while a nice prospect, has never been very good defensively and needs quite a bit of work. McDonagh is a better prospect now and has always been the better prospect.

Haven't watched enough of Gardiner to make my own assessment, but you're the first I've heard cite his defensive game as a weakness.

The biggest knock I've heard on the guy is his ability to play at the other end of the ice, not in his own.

Haven't had time to do my own homework, though.
 

RogerRoeper*

Guest
No, you are not - the only thing I found on this quickly http://thecheckingline.com/blog/mitch-h/toronto-maple-leafs/who-jake-gardiner

Basicly it has:
In an interview with TSN's Bob McKenzie, legendary Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves stated that Gardiner's strengths were his skating and his ability to be a defensive outlet. He makes a great first pass and he can skate the puck out of his zone at an elite level.

What Mike Eaves also said to Bob McKenzie is that he doesn't see Gardiner as a first unit powerplay defenseman. For a guy whose recently coached both Jamie McBain and Brendan Smith, that's a key statement. Both those players have turned into guys at the pro level that are without question first unit powerplay defenders. Eaves' argument was that Gardiner lacks the kind of hockey sense that allows him to see the moving parts on the powerplay.


These things are the main reasons why Justin Schultz surpassed him. Schultz has the hockey sense, in terms of skating they are close. Defensively I would give my money to Gardiner. But I think the lack of hockey sense in the offensive zone made him expendable. During the draft there have been more voices about his hockey sense overall. He progressed well in the defensive zone so maybe he will overcome his offensive flaws.



We still like him, IMO most of us do. But Beachemin has been fine here and we have Fowler + Sbisa being young and progressing that well. We have Schultz and Sami Vantanen making big strides. We have Matt Clark, Jake Newton and Mark Mitera in Syracuse. We have Valentine and Lind who do well in Junior/College. He is expendable even with his upside. The Ducks will have a lot of work to do to get those kids to the lineup over the next years.



I remember the draft very well and most of the reports mentioned that for a forward his upside would have been a 4th line forchecker. The transition to D. made him much more valuable.

Regardless. I think giving up your second prospect for a guy you had, and wanted to re-sign in Ahaheim is quite a steep price.
 

Nasty Nazem

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Apr 5, 2010
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I loved Gardiner. Sad to see him go and think he will turn into a great player however it seems to me he's on the Tangradi program. Gets no recognition in the Ducks organization then as soon as they are traded they are legitimate sure fire prospects! lol Not saying they aren't but just more so the lack of respect the writers show towards Anaheim's prospects.

I think Gardiner just had a better overall year than last year... I've read he didn't get much PP time which is why his point production was so low but Gardiner playing on the PP and putting up PPG sure has helped his case this year. Ducks list at the beginning of the year has him at 8.0C which is still the grade now, but has made it to the rankings. He was likely on the bubble last year and has moved up after a good year.

Playing well for the Marlies helps too.

Points wont matter, Patrick Wiercioch had 35 points in 36 games as a rookie in the NCAA but will be left odd the list entirely. Gardiner hasnt done anything to prove he is a better prospect and his College coach was pretty unsure of his ability to even reach the NHL. Now we are going to be told how great a prospect he is from several annoying Leaf fans that post alot on this board and will all use this as reference.

His college coach said he sees Gardiner as a top 4 defender rather than a top 2.

No one is saying he is a great prospect. He is a good prospect that has had a solid year. I am excited to see him at camp next year.

You're kidding, right? Points mean nothing, really, as they are different d-men.

McDonagh was a rock defensively and an anchor with whoever he played with. And he's already doing the same in the NHL.

Gardiner, while a nice prospect, has never been very good defensively and needs quite a bit of work. McDonagh is a better prospect now and has always been the better prospect.

I believe Gardiner strength is great skating and the fact he can play good defense. He is not expected to be a big point producer because he lacks hockey sense in the offensive zone but his defense is good. I believe he played as the shutdown pairing in WJC as well.
 

Hunter Gathers

The Crown
Feb 27, 2002
106,463
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Haven't watched enough of Gardiner to make my own assessment, but you're the first I've heard cite his defensive game as a weakness.

The biggest knock I've heard on the guy is his ability to play at the other end of the ice, not in his own.

Haven't had time to do my own homework, though.

He's never, ever been anything great defensively. I think his hockey IQ at both ends is a real question mark (which is the exact opposite of McDonagh). I've always questioned his decision making.
 

Static

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What does that have to do with anything though? It doesn't take away the fact he had his best season yet and went from 13 points to 41 in the same amount of games.

The point is the prospects with the bigger market teams seem to get more play. Justin Shultz outplayed Gardiner this year (he's a Hobey Baker finalist as a sophomore) and probably isn't going to be on this list. If he was traded instead of Gardiner, who would be number 41 on this list?
 

SprDaVE

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Sep 20, 2008
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While you work on the write ups, maybe you should work on the list. A guy whos been so solid at the NHL level is behind 9 other guys who either haven't even had their cup of tea yet or cant consistently stay up.

There is no way Mcdonagh can be at 50 and Gardiner at 41.

It's incredibly frustrating how people fail to really understand how this list works. Every. Year.

It's not about who's doing what at the NHL level. It's what they think his top potential is.

The "rankers" believe Gardiner's potential at this point is a tad higher than McDonagh, not because Gardiner is better than McDonagh right now but he probably will be in the (near) future.

You can surely disagree with the ranking if you believe that McDonagh has a better ceiling but seems like the only argument I've seen from the angry Rangers fans is that because McDonagh is at the NHL level, it makes him a better prospect automatically.
 

Minister of Offence

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Oct 2, 2009
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:cry:

Has anyone even read the rest of the rankings, or should we just continue talking about Gardnier? I swear - anytime a Toronto player gets a little love, it's soapbox time.

It's true...but this one is kind of timely. Gardiner always struck me as basically irrelevant until he got traded to Toronto. Whether I'm right or wrong to think that way...I dunno. But I can't blame anyone for finding it "interesting" that as soon as he gets traded to Toronto he gets into this list. Considering these lists are always criticized for bias and what not....
 

Man Bear Pig

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Aug 10, 2008
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For anyone that said that, and I'm not one of them, I really doubt this changes their mind. These lists don't exactly get much respect.

I don't get why there's so much hate for Leafs prospects, Gardiner makes the top 50 and it's a big deal apparently. The top 50 lol. Some are making it seem like he made the top 10 or something. The guys a good prospect but the Leaf hate definitely blinds some people. I'm sure Kadri will end up near the top somewhere and people will say he's a 50 point player in the NHL. Same ol' song and dance.
 

Dylbot

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Sep 10, 2009
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It's true...but this one is kind of timely. Gardiner always struck me as basically irrelevant until he got traded to Toronto. Whether I'm right or wrong to think that way...I dunno. But I can't blame anyone for finding it "interesting" that as soon as he gets traded to Toronto he gets into this list. Considering these lists are always criticized for bias and what not....

Hockeys Future had him rated as an 8.0C long before he came to Toronto. He gets talked about more now for sure, but to claim that he suddenly got a ratings boost upon arriving in Toronto is simply wrong.
 

Pick Six

@Lafortune_FC
Jan 1, 2009
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Stefan Elliott might be the best pure offensive defensive prospect in the entire CHL buddy, he is absolutely deserving to be in the top 50.

Hell I think he should easily be in the top 25.

You need to watch a little bit more than the WHL buddy. A guy named Ryan Ellis comes to mind, that should pretty easily win CHL Defenseman of the Year.

Being a WHL/Blades and Colorado fan I'm not surprised you replied. Thing is, I never said he didn't deserve to be in the top 50. But rather I found it amusing that the poster pointed out a Leafs prospect over one two spots ahead of McDonough that is not as good of a prospect.
 

Minister of Offence

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Oct 2, 2009
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Hockeys Future had him rated as an 8.0C long before he came to Toronto. He gets talked about more now for sure, but to claim that he suddenly got a ratings boost upon arriving in Toronto is simply wrong.

Yeah that's fair. I'm not knocking him either, I really don't know much about him. But as far as HF ratings go...who makes those? Some teams hand out rankings much easier than others do.
 

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