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Jake Virtanen - Part 08

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beachcomber

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Apr 6, 2015
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I think if things don't pick up the Baertshi train may be steaming out of town, not Virtanen.
 
Raistlin

Raistlin

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even HF is hedging their bets on him becoming an offensive prospect. At this stage, with the limited minutes he's been getting, there is no reason to believe that he deserved to be drafted where he was. Which is not to say that he won't dominate if we send him back down. I want to see what he will do on the WJ team as a returnee in a leadership role. Willie is not a rookie friendly coach for him to waste his development with.
 
Raistlin

Raistlin

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GPNuck said:
So Good. He's getting confidence with every shift! What a beast this kid is. He's 19 years old and already one of the best hitters in the league
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I remember Button saying that he has the floor of a Torres (and a ceiling not far from that). Good to see at least him getting the hitting part right. I'm still hoping for a Tocchet.
 

maroon 6

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Dec 31, 2009
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He's looking better as the games go on. Still needs to work on a lot of stuff though. He completely skated past the net on the Dorsett goal.
 

Roy Baby*

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Sep 28, 2015
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maroon 6 said:
He's looking better as the games go on. Still needs to work on a lot of stuff though. He completely skated past the net on the Dorsett goal.
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Yeah...no he didn't


On another note: Kid played awesome...I actually kinda feel bad for people around here that substitute the box score for the actual games...not hard to put the phone down for 2 hrs
 
realist99

realist99

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Gotta keep him up. Keep the pressure off him while he develops. Bring him along like Horvat by letting him grind, hit and bring energy. He can do that in his sleep. The offense will come around on it's own.Don't drag the kid down by making him think he needs to produce.

Same as McCann. Sit him down once in a while and let him regroup. He has to play 10+ minutes a game or no point keeping him up
 
polarbearcub

polarbearcub

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realist99 said:
Gotta keep him up. Keep the pressure off him while he develops. Bring him along like Horvat by letting him grind, hit and bring energy. He can do that in his sleep. The offense will come around on it's own.Don't drag the kid down by making him think he needs to produce.

Same as McCann. Sit him down once in a while and let him regroup. He has to play 10+ minutes a game or no point keeping him up
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Agreed. Keep them both. Jakes offebse will come with time. The game played last night is perfect. Just going out and doing what he's best at, hitting and hitting hard. Just like bo last year, played fundamental hockey, won his draws, and the offense came.
 

coldsteel79

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Sep 28, 2015
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Roy Baby said:
Yeah...no he didn't


On another note: Kid played awesome...I actually kinda feel bad for people around here that substitute the box score for the actual games...not hard to put the phone down for 2 hrs
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But I watch the game on my phone!!!
 
GPNuck

GPNuck

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He has shown some signs of brilliance and I think once he gets his offensive confidence going he's going to be a force to be reckoned with. I have no doubt that the confidence will come once he scores a couple of goals for now i'm happy with his play and i'm sure the offence will come
 
CanaFan

CanaFan

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Still think Chris Kreider is Virtanen's closest style and ceiling comparable. Difference is Kreider didn't hit the NHL until he was 22 so I think some patience around Jake's offensive game may be required. I think 10-12 goals would be a good rookie season at 19 (assuming he stays up) and then improving to 15-20 in the next couple of seasons as he gains confidence in his tools and decisions at this level. Probably not the same level of offensive upside as McCann who is showing a lot more natural "instinct" at 19 but I think it will come in time.
 

Phenomenon13

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Oct 10, 2011
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CanaFan said:
Still think Chris Kreider is Virtanen's closest style and ceiling comparable. Difference is Kreider didn't hit the NHL until he was 22 so I think some patience around Jake's offensive game may be required. I think 10-12 goals would be a good rookie season at 19 (assuming he stays up) and then improving to 15-20 in the next couple of seasons as he gains confidence in his tools and decisions at this level. Probably not the same level of offensive upside as McCann who is showing a lot more natural "instinct" at 19 but I think it will come in time.
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I would be fairly disappointed in Virtanen if his ceiling was Kreider given his draft position.
 
Red

Red

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Phenomenon13 said:
I would be fairly disappointed in Virtanen if his ceiling was Kreider given his draft position.
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6th overall doesn't mean a surefire first liner, far from it. People sometimes have really unrealistic expectations of prospects imo. There's a few 6th thought 10th overall picks in the last 10 years that have busted, many others are "just" 2nd liners/2nd pairing defensemen (ex. Zibanejad, Couturier, Connolly, Wilson, Gagner and many more), and just a few are genuine first line/top pairing players.

Of course the hope is Jake becomes a 30 goal 1st line wrecking ball, but I'd still be quite content if he becomes a 40-50 point 2nd liner like Kreider given the draft position (...I still would have preferred we picked Ehlers and that would be the regret for me). I would be disappointed in Virtanen though if he tops out as a 30 point 3rd liner, or busts completely.
 
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