Player Discussion Jesse Puljujarvi Part 10: Connor's RW

[Evilsports]

GOLDEN RETILO

I couldn't stop watching that when it first came out.

If these Oilers have any hope of amounting to a thing, somebody on the team needs to make sure JP's nickname become Retilo.

 

[HockeyHistorian]

From Zach Laing on twitter:

tippett on puljujarvi, with a smile that would make jesse proud: "i love jesse, he's always having fun. when he scores, he looks like he's having so much fun — he's like a kid in a candy store."

tippett on puljujarvi cont'd: "he's playing really well. he plays hard, he's on pucks, he's around it. he plays hard all the time. he's come in and he's really given us a boost. he's a top-six forward that can play in a lot of different situations."

Feels good, man. After McLellan, it's so great that he has a coach that appreciates him, for the Oilers too I think. You are much more likely to get the best out of your player when he feels more comfortable.

 

[Canovin]

Jesse getting some pointers from Drai..

This wasn't the only time Drai has been mentoring Pulju and caught on cam. It's very pleasant to see

 

[Whyme]

Just rechecked the stats. The beginning of the season tarnishes them a bit, but Pulju's ESG/60 is the 2nd best of the team and the 3rd best of all the Finns in the NHL (e.g. Aho, Rantanen and Granlund behind).

He's had just 1:37 of PP usage per game (Rantanen 4:24, Barkov 3:09, Aho 2:59, Granlund 2:42) but his goals/60 is very close to Rantanen's and Barkov's and higher than Aho, Granlund and many others.

Nice to see that there's some actual results, not just "great playing". I believe he'll start to get more PP time and then we'll hopefully see another step. There should be more assists with the passes his given, but they'll come in time. I share Tippett's belief that there's still room for much more.

 

[Whyme]

This wasn't the only time Drai has been mentoring Pulju and caught on cam. It's very pleasant to see

It's not just that Pulju doesn't seem to be an outsider in the team anymore, it seems like the top guys have really taken him under their wings. And it all is paying off, even more as the season progresses I believe.

 

[nafrelio]

Big KUDOS to Holland, Tippett and to Puljujarvi.

To Holland - Imagine watching Puljujarvi breaking out on another team after we traded him for a 2nd or 3rd, or for another struggling prospect. That Holland didn't bend to the whims of the player and his agent gives hope to the team and to the fans.

To Tippet - I really like his hands-on approach with him over the last 12 months - reassuring him, providing realistic expectations, and giving him hope of success. He has handled him really well in terms of usage and will continue to up his ice time as he develops more.

To Pulju - I am just so impressed that he had the courage to show his face again in the room after holding out and wanting a trade. Imagine if you told your boss that you hated working there and were going to quit and then not having a choice but to return, try to make amends and have a good attitude and high end effort.

I can't wait to see what this kid can develop into. It is difficult to overestimate the value of not having (yet) ruined another top pick. Adding other top prospects to the lineup like Broberg, Samorukov, Holloway, Savoie, etc. is going to make the next several years even better. Although things can still go sour this season, there is hope in the air. These days are fun to be a fan!

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Big KUDOS to Holland, Tippett and to Puljujarvi.

To Holland - Imagine watching Puljujarvi breaking out on another team after we traded him for a 2nd or 3rd, or for another struggling prospect. That Holland didn't bend to the whims of the player and his agent gives hope to the team and to the fans.

To Tippet - I really like his hands-on approach with him over the last 12 months - reassuring him, providing realistic expectations, and giving him hope of success. He has handled him really well in terms of usage and will continue to up his ice time as he develops more.

To Pulju - I am just so impressed that he had the courage to show his face again in the room after holding out and wanting a trade. Imagine if you told your boss that you hated working there and were going to quit and then not having a choice but to return, try to make amends and have a good attitude and high end effort.

I can't wait to see what this kid can develop into. It is difficult to overestimate the value of not having (yet) ruined another top pick. Adding other top prospects to the lineup like Broberg, Samorukov, Holloway, Savoie, etc. is going to make the next several years even better. Although things can still go sour this season, there is hope in the air. These days are fun to be a fan!

Very well said. Development isn't a straight line, Puljujarvi is a perfect example so far.

 

[bobbythebrain]

Feels good, man. After McLellan, it's so great that he has a coach that appreciates him, for the Oilers too I think. You are much more likely to get the best out of your player when he feels more comfortable.

How could McLellan appreciate him.? He couldn't understand or speak. Even his own teammates threw him under the bus...and JP admitted it was his own fault he didn't feel "comfortable "

No point throwing Tmac under the bus for no reason on this. Tmac actually praised him several times in the media...just like Tipp. Only difference is, he couldn't keep it up. It was square peg in a round hole at that time.

It's crazy with all the info that has come out ppl still think coaching is the reason it didn't work out the first time

 

[Bryanbryoil]

Jesse getting some pointers from Drai..

Not trying to stir anything up, but this is why communication is critical. Now that Jesse is more comfortable with the English language (since we don't have any Finn's in prominent skater roles) he can learn lots from really bright hockey minds like Connor, Leon and Nuge as well as the coaching staff.

 

[tellermine]

This wasn't the only time Drai has been mentoring Pulju and caught on cam. It's very pleasant to see

Drai is quite a gem. You can see that he really wants to help Puljujärvi!
Respect!

 

[Whyme]

How could McLellan appreciate him.? He couldn't understand or speak. Even his own teammates threw him under the bus...and JP admitted it was his own fault he didn't feel "comfortable "

No point throwing Tmac under the bus for no reason on this. Tmac actually praised him several times in the media...just like Tipp. Only difference is, he couldn't keep it up. It was square peg in a round hole at that time.

It's crazy with all the info that has come out ppl still think coaching is the reason it didn't work out the first time

I'm not going into who's right or wrong here, but if one would write history according to what the fans in general commented here it would be close to what @HockeyHistorian wrote. I know already at that time you and a few others saw things in a different way so I know you genuinenly believe what you're posting. And that's fine, again I'm not putting my thoughts above you or anyone.

Pulju's leash kind of became a thing here, I'm sure there were dozen's of posters using/saying that here at the time. It turned to a kind of a joke at one time, but to me it was sad.

But it wasn't all bad with McLellan. He was just different compared to Holland. He also didn't have an as ready player and he got all the pressure from years of no success.

One big difference was that McLellan never explained why he benched Pulju or why he wouldn't get PP time when he was playing his best hockey so far and when the Oilers PP was terrible. To me it also looked like McLellan never bothered to study what kind of a player he had in Pulju, while Tippett had been watching Pulju's games in Finland and seemed to appreciate him from the beginning.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I remember saying early on in his career that he'd be better than Hall and that IMO he would rival Drai as our 2nd best player. After his career went off the tracks a bit and then seems to have gotten righted finally, I think that the first is entirely possible but the latter would be really hard (that was when Drai was awesome, but not Hart level). He likely ends up our 3rd best forward which is quite awesome in and of itself.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

How could McLellan appreciate him.? He couldn't understand or speak. Even his own teammates threw him under the bus...and JP admitted it was his own fault he didn't feel "comfortable "

No point throwing Tmac under the bus for no reason on this. Tmac actually praised him several times in the media...just like Tipp. Only difference is, he couldn't keep it up. It was square peg in a round hole at that time.

It's crazy with all the info that has come out ppl still think coaching is the reason it didn't work out the first time

This is a fair point. Though that blame passes to the guy who put him in that position and Chia.

Only now at 22 Pulju is showing to have his feet under him enough to succeed at the NHL. Chia expected it at 18/19, and then was disappointed and shocked that a teenager wasn't ready for the big leagues.

Same thing with Yamamoto. Chia was right that they NHL talents, but he had no patience or understanding that they still needed time to grow.

 

[joestevens29]

On LD and working with JP.

I think it's worth mentioning that on a few occasions now the way Leon has talked you can tell he's taking on a leadership role with the club. It quietly seems like more of these core players are stepping up in their own way to be leaders.

Heck is Connor not smiling instead of looking like someone just shot his dog not helping the club? There use to always be talk out there about pretend like you've scored before and McDavid seemed to be following that. But now he sure seems to be smiling a lot more and this really goes with what I was saying about Miller's body language in Vancouver. Whether you are a leader or not, when you are skilled player people look up to you. If you are happy others will be happy.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

I will also keep saying this until it's proven otherwise, Lucic's negative influence on this team had an effect on Puljujarvi and his situation at that time, like it did for the rest of the team.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I will also keep saying this until it's proven otherwise, Lucic's negative influence on this team had an effect on Puljujarvi and his situation at that time, like it did for the rest of the team.

If he was a grumpy bully in the room that is entirely possible.

 

[joestevens29]

I'm not going into who's right or wrong here, but if one would write history according to what the fans in general commented here it would be close to what @HockeyHistorian wrote. I know already at that time you and a few others saw things in a different way so I know you genuinenly believe what you're posting. And that's fine, again I'm not putting my thoughts above you or anyone.

Pulju's leash kind of became a thing here, I'm sure there were dozen's of posters using/saying that here at the time. It turned to a kind of a joke at one time, but to me it was sad.

But it wasn't all bad with McLellan. He was just different compared to Holland. He also didn't have an as ready player and he got all the pressure from years of no success.

One big difference was that McLellan never explained why he benched Pulju or why he wouldn't get PP time when he was playing his best hockey so far and when the Oilers PP was terrible. To me it also looked like McLellan never bothered to study what kind of a player he had in Pulju, while Tippett had been watching Pulju's games in Finland and seemed to appreciate him from the beginning.

It wouldn't surprise me if Tippett watched a lot of film on JP, that's just him he loves film

But even if he didn't watch any film, Tippett isn't stupid. He knows there was a reason why JP was a #4 overall pick. Tippett is quite a fair and honest man regardless of who you are. He talks to the players and tells them what his expectations are. We've seen countless times this year at practice him meeting one on one or with a line to discuss things. He's going to tell you want he likes and dislikes and if you listen you are going to get a lot further than if you don't.

And to be fair I don't know that a lot of coaches aren't like that. I honestly don't know that any other coach was a heck of a lot different with JP. The biggest difference I think is the maturity or JP himself. The willingness to learn english and listen is the best thing that happened to him.

Every other coach JP had here was here to win. If a player isn't doing the right things a coach that is here to win doesn't really care that you were a top pick. It wasn't like Blashill in Detroit this year or Smith in Ottawa who at the end of the day want to win, but at the same time they are also there to help develop for the future.

 

[Canovin]

On LD and working with JP.

I think it's worth mentioning that on a few occasions now the way Leon has talked you can tell he's taking on a leadership role with the club. It quietly seems like more of these core players are stepping up in their own way to be leaders.

Heck is Connor not smiling instead of looking like someone just shot his dog not helping the club? There use to always be talk out there about pretend like you've scored before and McDavid seemed to be following that. But now he sure seems to be smiling a lot more and this really goes with what I was saying about Miller's body language in Vancouver. Whether you are a leader or not, when you are skilled player people look up to you. If you are happy others will be happy.

I agree. The boys need to smile and celebrate more when they score. The good energy can really affect the mood of the team

 

[joestevens29]

I agree. The boys need to smile and celebrate more when they score. The good energy can really affect the mood of the team

And to be fair pissed off energy is something we've lacked too. Like the mean WTF are we doing to scare everyone else.

Just as long as it's not the depressed someone ran over my dog looks that just depress even me as a fan.

 

[Whyme]

It wouldn't surprise me if Tippett watched a lot of film on JP, that's just him he loves film

But even if he didn't watch any film, Tippett isn't stupid. He knows there was a reason why JP was a #4 overall pick. Tippett is quite a fair and honest man regardless of who you are. He talks to the players and tells them what his expectations are. We've seen countless times this year at practice him meeting one on one or with a line to discuss things. He's going to tell you want he likes and dislikes and if you listen you are going to get a lot further than if you don't.

And to be fair I don't know that a lot of coaches aren't like that. I honestly don't know that any other coach was a heck of a lot different with JP. The biggest difference I think is the maturity or JP himself. The willingness to learn english and listen is the best thing that happened to him.

Every other coach JP had here was here to win. If a player isn't doing the right things a coach that is here to win doesn't really care that you were a top pick. It wasn't like Blashill in Detroit this year or Smith in Ottawa who at the end of the day want to win, but at the same time they are also there to help develop for the future.

While I agree with you there's some things that are easily and understandably forgotten (or unknown). After the first season Pulju understood almost everything, just couldn't speak well. McLellan didn't say what he expected from Pulju or what he did wrong and Pulju really would've needed that guidance.

Another thing people forget easily is that Jesse did have a period of at least a couple of months when things were going great. In fact he was among the best goal scorers in the NHL, but McLellan didn't reward him for that. At the same time the PP struggled and they tried just about every other option but not Pulju. In fact McLellan put Pulju to the 3rd line with Lucic saying that Pulju plays so well he wants him to light some fire to the the bottom lines. Then his production stopped.

I've said this before, don't think I've received many likes and don't expect to get them this time either. But I know these things are true. Pulju is a vastly better player now, but he did have at least one longer good period in the Oilers. I firmly believe another coach would've got more out of him at the time.

 

[joestevens29]

While I agree with you there's some things that are easily and understandably forgotten (or unknown). After the first season Pulju understood almost everything, just couldn't speak well. McLellan didn't say what he expected from Pulju or what he did wrong and Pulju really would've needed that guidance.

Another thing people forget easily is that Jesse did have a period of at least a couple of months when things were going great. In fact he was among the best goal scorers in the NHL, but McLellan didn't reward him for that. At the same time the PP struggled and they tried just about every other option but not Pulju. In fact McLellan put Pulju to the 3rd line with Lucic saying that Pulju plays so well he wants him to light some fire to the the bottom lines. Then his production stopped.

I've said this before, don't think I've received many likes and don't expect to get them this time either. But I know these things are true. Pulju is a vastly better player now, but he did have at least one longer good period in the Oilers. I firmly believe another coach would've got more out of him at the time.

Do we actually know this? Just because he isn't publicly saying things doesn't mean it wasn't happening.

A lot of reports were JP wasn't listening and it was frustrating others on the team. Maybe McLellan just gave up on the guy and I wouldn't blame him. He was here to win not try develop rookies. I sooner blame the GM for forcing the coach to have to play a guy that clearly had issues

 

[Whyme]

Do we actually know this? Just because he isn't publicly saying things doesn't mean it wasn't happening.

A lot of reports were JP wasn't listening and it was frustrating others on the team. Maybe McLellan just gave up on the guy and I wouldn't blame him. He was here to win not try develop rookies. I sooner blame the GM for forcing the coach to have to play a guy that clearly had issues

I don't know if there were those kind of reports other than just some fans talk, but maybe I've missed something. It'd just be strange as in Finland there hasn't been problems on that side. I've got first hand information McLellan didn't talk to him and many former players have publicly said McLellan didn't talk to the players. But for sure Pulju's English caused problems. I believe he couldn't become part of the team because of that and I believe with better communication skills he'd done better with McLellan.

I didn't see it as giving up. I saw it that McLellan didn't give him the leash or support when Pulju needed and deserved that. When he started to do more on that side Pulju's game and confidence had already declined. So I think there's blame in both parties. And probably Chia as you said, it does seem possible he was pushing more for Pulju and McLellan wasn't happy about it. I think it's possible Chia thought he could trade Hall because they got Pulju and as Pulju wasn't ready to replace him McLellan got bitter.

Anyway, I've said enough about this, past is past and the future looks bright

 

[soothsayer]

This wasn't the only time Drai has been mentoring Pulju and caught on cam. It's very pleasant to see

You'll notice the usually stoic Draisaitl was extra pumped when Pulju scored. I wonder if Pulju followed Drai's directions from this chat.

Edit: Meant to quote the tweet.

 

[Laodongxi]

All of the behind-the-scenes speculation during that unhappy period aside, I would think that Jesse's hip condition played a huge part in his lack of success. As others have mentioned, he would look spectacular at times, and bursting with promise. And he would also look completely out of his league at other times. It's unfortunate that all of these complex factors came to bear on his situation. But the original Jesse, the one that makes you smile just looking at him, is back. lol... And he just could turn into a helluva player and teammate.

 

[Whyme]

All of the behind-the-scenes speculation during that unhappy period aside, I would think that Jesse's hip condition played a huge part in his lack of success. As others have mentioned, he would look spectacular at times, and bursting with promise. And he would also look completely out of his league at other times. It's unfortunate that all of these complex factors came to bear on his situation. But the original Jesse, the one that makes you smile just looking at him, is back. lol... And he just could turn into a helluva player and teammate.

Good point. I would say that there's maybe plenty of 10-25% pieces that all played a part. One of the biggest is the hip issue, another big one is how his FEL team prepared him. They used him in many different roles/situations, made him work with juniors, made him an assistant captain, placed him between English speaking players in the locker room, they said they were even tough to him to prepare him for the 2nd NHL stint.

Then there's Pulju's increased confidence and him feeling he can be himself in the team (remember when he pulled back the spontaneous smile earlier in his career) and of course him beging more mature. Then there's a coach who talks to him and who knows what to expect from him, a more relaxed fan base due to better success and older and inevitably more mature leading players who've really taken him under their wings.

I also think he's realised that in order to be effective he needs to push 100% in every game. He also used to make occasional bad looking mistakes (like missing the puck when he shot) or lose his balance too easily. I also believe some time in Finland made him appreciate the chance in the NHL more. After labelled a bust he also wanted to show to everyone that he can play at a high level in the NHL. Many things really, but all together they make a huge difference.