Player Discussion Jesse Puljujarvi '18-19 Season

[guymez]

Yakupov ....
You aren’t wrong about the lack of perspective and blind homerism that filled any thread about Yakupov. Some of us picked up on Yakupov’s horrible sense of where to go on the ice very early and got crucified for it. I think Puljujari is a very different player though so I’m not sure the comparison survives a deeper look. I’ve seen Puljujarvi look tentative. I’ve seen him look confused. I’ve even seen him look like what I felt was lazy. I’ve not seen him consistently and repeatedly be out of position and/or have no idea what to do with the puck when it came to him. I think Puljujarvi is going to be a damn fine player in this league. Like you, I look forward to watching his progress this season.

Oh...I totally agree.
I dont think the players are comparable at all. I think Jesse has very real potential which is something I didnt get the sense that Yakupov had at all.
I was just comparing the backlash against anybody that questioned Yak...it seems to be almost the same for Jesse.

I actually think that Jesse has a very real chance to be a 2nd line player and maybe even a 1st line player if he can keep progressing his game. I hope he knocks it out of the park.
The sense I get that posters are like....how dare you suggest that Jesse hasnt been held back....how dare you suggest that Jesse has holes in his game. That is just like the Yak support IMO.

Like you though I am really looking forward to watching him play. I couldn't say the same for Yak.

 

[Risingwind]

defensively hopeless

I can relate to your point except for this part. Did you witness Pulju being defensively hopeless last season, even during his slump? I saw him being defensively aware on multiple occasions over last seasons, sometimes playing like a second D when 3 guys had gotten lost in the O-zone.

 

[GameChanger]

The sense I get that posters are like....how dare you suggest that Jesse hasnt been held back....how dare you suggest that Jesse has holes in his game. That is just like the Yak support IMO.

Our conversation started well, but I was honestly disappointed by your last posts. I'm sure you didn't mean to offend me though. It seems you consider yourself objective, but IMO also struggle in that regard, which is a shame as you also have many good points and clearly can be a nice person.

By the way, I never said Jesse did everything perfectly, I've even mentioned he's played his part, too. Please read my messages and don't put words to my mouth as it's offending.

 

[GameChanger]

Actually if I could be given some facts or even clear answers to my questions I'd be happy as it'd be great to know there's been logical reasons for the odd way Puljujarvi's been handled at times.

1. I repeat myself, but like I said his first 15-20 games last season were a success by many meters. Stats-wise he was actually the most efficiently scoring winger until the last weeks of the season.

So why didn't he deserve to have a look on the PP or OT? What did Camalleri, Caggiula, Abeg and some others do to deserve it? Did Letestu deserve such a long look despite the previous season as it was clearly not working and the terrible PP was ruining the whole season? Did Lucic deserve PP and even OT usage more than Jesse?

2. Like I said in his first season Jesse and McDavid played together 4 games. Before that McDavid played 9 games without scoring and in those 4 games he scored 5+4. Puljujarvi scored 0+4 (plus one not counted) with no PP time. Media wrote positively about the two and fans were excited.

Why is it unreasonable to think it's possible Jesse might've made good enough numbers at the end of the year if he'd been given a chance to continue in the 1st line for longer and maybe given some PP time?

3. At the beginning of last season he started very well in the 1st line, but was dropped down to the 2nd line. Again, he did well, but was dropped to the 3rd line. McLellan said Pulju was playing so well he wanted him to help the bottom6 do better.

Does that sound like a good reward, especially with the lack of PP and OT time?

Now I'll try to fade myself out and apologize if someone feels I'm pushing my opinion too much.

 

[The Panther]

I can relate to your point except for this part. Did you witness Pulju being defensively hopeless last season, even during his slump? I saw him being defensively aware on multiple occasions over last seasons, sometimes playing like a second D when 3 guys had gotten lost in the O-zone.

Maybe I exaggerated, but I refer to his occasional lapses in evident hockey IQ. I didn't see all the games (I frickin' live in Tokyo!), but I recall seeing him turning the puck over at the blue-line or taking risky plays when safe ones were called for, etc.

Anyway, to re-state it: I expect him to be a lot better this season.

About McLellan's comments at the presser: I think he said the right thing. The coach's job is not to pat the players on the back for a good pre-season. The coach's job is to motivate the players. That's part of why Scotty Bowman was great -- even after his players won 4 Cups in a row, he still didn't congratulate them. If the coach start congratulating people on their pre-season, we know we're in for a disaster real season.

 

[PulYou]

Pulju's Englis has improved. He is not any more afraid to use it on ice like he said it was a matter of last season. I guess the language barrier played more role in his confidence than I for one presumed.

A story in Iltalehti titled "Before I did not dare to"

Mitä Jesse Puljujärvelle tapahtui kesällä? Suomalaisen puheissa ja teoissa on huomattu valtava muutos: ”Ennen en uskaltanut” https://www.iltalehti.fi/nhl/13792dec-5733-4fda-86e5-71351482d49e_nh.shtml

And in Ilta-Sanomat about the progression of his English skills "It is no longer a problem"

Jesse Puljujärvi kommentoi kielitaitonsa kehittymistä: ”Ei ole enää ongelma” https://www.is.fi/nhl/art-2000005854865.html

 

[nabob]

I recall seeing him turning the puck over at the blue-line or taking risky plays when safe ones were called for, etc.

That’s odd. One of the biggest criticisms of his game has been that he isn’t assertive enough and always takes the safe and low event play. We’ve seen a much more assertive and confident player in preseason.

 

[ManWithNoName]

Jesse is yet another failed prospect in this organization. If it’s on TM or the management I don’t know, but he is clearly being put in the dog house.

They should trade him for an established RW and let him develop elsewhere. Both the team and Jesse himself would benefit from this.

 

[nabob]

Jesse is yet another failed prospect in this organization. If it’s on TM or the management I don’t know, but he is clearly being put in the dog house.

They should trade him for an established RW and let him develop elsewhere. Both the team and Jesse himself would benefit from this.

Did you watch the preseason?

I actually think part of the plan this year is to hold him back a bit and keep his next contract as cheap as possible.

 

[ManWithNoName]

Did you watch the preseason?

I actually think part of the plan this year is to hold him back a bit and keep his next contract as cheap as possible.

I watched two of the games and he looked great. The problem is no matter how good he plays, he’s stuck in the bottom six. Holding someone back is something you do when you have a team stacked of good players, that’s not the case here.

You always play to win, not to make the team worse so you can get a better deal on the contract. He will ask for a trade himself if this continues so it doesn’t really matter if they try to hold him back, he’ll be gone before any ”cheap contract” is signed.

 

[Laineux]

I watched two of the games and he looked great. The problem is no matter how good he plays, he’s stuck in the bottom six. Holding someone back is something you do when you have a team stacked of good players, that’s not the case here.

You always play to win, not to make the team worse so you can get a better deal on the contract. He will ask for a trade himself if this continues so it doesn’t really matter if they try to hold him back, he’ll be gone before any ”cheap contract” is signed.

If he does well in the 3rd line... doesn't that mean that he can stay there, if it works?

Don't get me wrong. The road to 2nd and 1st lines isn't shut by any means. Let Jesse prove that he belongs there by consistently excelling in the 3rd line. Let him force his way up the lineup.

 

[nabob]

If he does well in the 3rd line... doesn't that mean that he can stay there, if it works?

Don't get me wrong. The road to 2nd and 1st lines isn't shut by any means. Let Jesse prove that he belongs there by consistently excelling in the 3rd line. Let him force his way up the lineup.

Is the goal to have him become a Pouliot or a Hossa-lite type of player. I guess if we’re grooming him to be the next Pouliot he can stay on the 3rd line forever while other players are given multiple chances to fail in the top 6.

 

[HockeyHistorian]

Is the goal to have him become a Pouliot or a Hossa-lite type of player. I guess if we’re grooming him to be the next Pouliot he can stay on the 3rd line forever while other players are given multiple chances to fail in the top 6.

Why settle for Hossa-lite when he could be every bit as good as he was and even better?

 

[GameChanger]

Don't get me wrong. The road to 2nd and 1st lines isn't shut by any means. Let Jesse prove that he belongs there by consistently excelling in the 3rd line. Let him force his way up the lineup.

I can't resist, I'm weak... I'm fine with that, but last year I expected him to get a reward after 20 games or so. He didn't play at the start of the season, but here's some thoughts from the EJ:

Player grades, Games 11-20: Edmonton Oilers spinning their wheels, going nowhere fast in the standings

Games 11-20 (5 games played): 6.0, the best (withKhaira) outside of goalies, "promising early run of games"
* Strome 4.4, Yamamoto 4.5, Letestu 4.5, Camalleri and Maroon 5.0

Player grades, Games 21-30: Edmonton Oilers can't seem to break the vicious cycle of win-one-lose-one

Games 21-30: 5.8 points, the 3rd best score of the forwards, "starting to live up to his enormous potential"
* Caggiula, Letestu and Maroon had 4.7, Camalleri 4.8, Strome 5.0, Nuge 5.1

The main thing that bothers is he was the best goal scoring winger (or any player actually), but didn't get any PP or OT time at that time. At the same time some of the players I mentioned got "rewarded". Anyway, past is past and all I wanna say now is that hopefully next season the needed period won't be longer than that, as I don't think any players were consistently good for long periods at that time.

 

[nabob]

Why settle for Hossa-lite when he could be every bit as good as he was and even better?

That’s my realistic expectation for Puljujarvi a 60-70 point player who is a very good two way player. He very well could be better than that in his prime if he plays with Connor or Drai, but I’m not fully convinced Edmonton is where he’ll reach his full potential. The again he could never put it all together and never get off the 3rd line.

 

[GameChanger]

A new season and another fresh start. I'm disappointed if Pulju doesn't play at least as well as at the beginning of last season, keeping that level pretty consistently, and I'm also disappointed if McLellan rewards other players more easily in that case. However, I'm actually feeling pretty optimistic.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

When asked about Pulju Todd basically said that he has to bull his way to the net, etc. I guess he doesn't see him as a scoring threat from anywhere but between the circles and in the blue paint. I really hope that Jesse doesn't get down when things aren't going well for him and he forces McLellan to bump him up the roster or face some serious flak for it.

 

[McAsuno]

When asked about Pulju Todd basically said that he has to bull his way to the net, etc. I guess he doesn't see him as a scoring threat from anywhere but between the circles and in the blue paint. I really hope that Jesse doesn't get down when things aren't going well for him and he forces McLellan to bump him up the roster or face some serious flak for it.

Its like Todd has amnesia when it comes to JP scoring one timer goals. Bull his way to the net? That should apply to Lucic's ass, but that's one of Todd's favorite guys. Makes no sense how they employed Letestu as a RH PP option on the first PP, but now that he's gone, they ran a PP system that had 5 LH and 5 RH? That's just baffling.

 

[nabob]

Its like Todd has amnesia when it comes to JP scoring one timer goals. Bull his way to the net? That should apply to Lucic's ass, but that's one of Todd's favorite guys. Makes no sense how they employed Letestu as a RH PP option on the first PP, but now that he's gone, they ran a PP system that had 5 LH and 5 RH? That's just baffling.

“Give me Letestu or give me death!”

 

[HockeyHistorian]

One bad penalty and two scoring chances and some nice defensive play through the middle part of the third period. At least he hasn't embarrassed himself in this game unlike some.

Edit: Interested to see the final TOI. Not many shifts in the third.

 

[GameChanger]

When asked about Pulju Todd basically said that he has to bull his way to the net, etc. I guess he doesn't see him as a scoring threat from anywhere but between the circles and in the blue paint. I really hope that Jesse doesn't get down when things aren't going well for him and he forces McLellan to bump him up the roster or face some serious flak for it.

If anyone now reads this as a way of saying Puljujarvi is perfect as a player he/she can look into the mirror, but I'm not surprised if turning a player who's never been a grinder into one can be confusing.

 

[Risingwind]

Edit: Interested to see the final TOI. Not many shifts in the third.

I’m seeing 13:16. Yamo got 15:09, seems like he has earned it with his history in the Oilers. Is this what panda meant when he talked about demanding more from Pulju?

Well, jokes aside, not much of a game from Pulju. He did cover for the RD again in one shift, would have resulted in a 2 on 1 against otherwise. Stats say he took a faceoff and won it, I missed that.

 

[GameChanger]

I managed to see a part of the game and from what it also sounds Pulju was solid, but had a quieter start offensively than I was hoping. Strome and Khaira were quiet tonight and the one (?) shift with Drai ended with a good opportunity to score, so I was hoping to see those two together for the 3rd period.

 

[GameChanger]

I don't seem to be the only one thinking Pulju and Drai should be given a look together without Pulju first having to prove his consistency for dozens of games. I think a Jesse would bring some tools that could assist Drai and I also believe some trust and a more creative center would give a bit of a boost for Pulju. Before the NHL he's been very creative in the offensive side, getting the most out of him with similar players.

If this continues I'm afraid at the back of his mind Jesse may start worrying that things will start to go as they ended on the 3rd line last season, and while it's also his job to handle the mental side of it, TM could also give a bit of help for change.

 

[ManWithNoName]

If he does well in the 3rd line... doesn't that mean that he can stay there, if it works?

Don't get me wrong. The road to 2nd and 1st lines isn't shut by any means. Let Jesse prove that he belongs there by consistently excelling in the 3rd line. Let him force his way up the lineup.

Doesn’t really matter. He plays bad he stays there or is scratched. He plays good, he is kept there to ”lift the 3rd line”. All according to the logic of TM.

As I said in my first post, he is yet another wasted talent. Trade him and move on already. Then watch him excel in the next team where he is used properly, or atleast is given a real chance to be used properly.