Player Discussion Jonas Brodin

[SomethingGeneric]

That is the question that I keep asking myself. I think that as he matures, he will realize his mobility is elite and that he can be more aggressive with the puck because he has the wheels to get back. I think he is still in the mindset of deferring to Suter and not making mistakes. He can walk the blueline, he can enter the zone, etc....it's just up to him to recognize those opportunities and have the confidence to do so, imo.

It's hard to realize hes just 21 years old...I would be shocked if he does not start putting up the points by the time hes 25.

And we have him locked up for SEVEN (OR SIX) MORE YEARS. Oh my does this kid ever make me excited. He could easily stand to improve the most out of our young guys simply by adding the offensive side to his game. He's gonna be fun to watch for a long time.

 

[BurnsyMN]

How was he not a finalist for the Lady Byng? Only 8 PIMS playing big minutes against top forwards.

 

[Engebretson]

How was he not a finalist for the Lady Byng? Only 8 PIMS playing big minutes against top forwards.

Yeah, the finalists were:

Datsyuk - 8 PIMS
Kopitar - 10 PIMS
Hudler - 14 PIMS

You look at that list and see that not only are those guys stars, but they're also forwards. Brian Campbell (2012) was the first defenseman to win the Lady Byng since Red Kelly in 1954.

 

[PAYHA]

Yeah, the finalists were:

Datsyuk - 8 PIMS
Kopitar - 10 PIMS
Hudler - 14 PIMS

You look at that list and see that not only are those guys stars, but they're also forwards. Brian Campbell (2012) was the first defenseman to win the Lady Byng since Red Kelly in 1954.

Plus Campbell had deeecent offensive numbers that season if i Recall

 

[hockeey]

That is the question that I keep asking myself. I think that as he matures, he will realize his mobility is elite and that he can be more aggressive with the puck because he has the wheels to get back. I think he is still in the mindset of deferring to Suter and not making mistakes. He can walk the blueline, he can enter the zone, etc....it's just up to him to recognize those opportunities and have the confidence to do so, imo.

It's hard to realize hes just 21 years old...I would be shocked if he does not start putting up the points by the time hes 25.

You think he has potential to put up ~40 points in a season or does he project more average defensively ~30 points?

 

[Dampland]

As best as I can tell, Brodin has never produced high offensive numbers at any level.

Unlike the majority of Wild fans, I have never expected him to suddenly flip a switch, and become a major point getter. I think as he gets older, he will continue to be a solid defensively, minute munching, breakout passing, puck carrier, who is always "safe" when on the ice, and capable of 5 goals and 20 assists (at most) per season.

 

[Wild11MN]

As best as I can tell, Brodin has never produced high offensive numbers at any level.

Unlike the majority of Wild fans, I have never expected him to suddenly flip a switch, and become a major point getter. I think as he gets older, he will continue to be a solid defensively, minute munching, breakout passing, puck carrier, who is always "safe" when on the ice, and capable of 5 goals and 20 assists (at most) per season.

Yeah, I don't get it either. People keep saying he'll start getting points anytime now.. I don't see it. I don't care what age he is. He's been playing major minutes every game and only put up 17 points. He has an average shot (that he never uses), and he's unlikely to ever get any significant PP time. I agree that I don't really ever see him putting up anymore than 25 points.

 

[TJL48]

It is there. He scored 6 points in 10 games last year before he broke his cheek bone and looked like he was jumping into the offense more. And when he does he looks good. I don't think he will flip a switch and become Karlsson, but do expect him to average at least 25 pts a year in a couple years. He is still only 21.

 

[sloughfeg]

I think his range is ~20 points a season, and I think that's perfectly fine. I really don't care if he's an offensive beast, he's just so damn good at defense it doesn't matter. His skating is amazing, watching him close the gap is awesome, he retrieves pucks and moves them up so fast, always has his stick in the right place, rarely goes to the box... Brodin just does defense right, and I for one am grateful.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

He's the king of the 3rd assist.

 

[Jbcraig1883]

You think he has potential to put up ~40 points in a season or does he project more average defensively ~30 points?

Does he have the potential to? I believe so. Again, his mobility and vision are elite so he has the skills, its just a matter if he will realize those skills.

I think that 30-35 is very realistic in his mid to late 20s and it would not shock me to see him get to 40 points. The skating, the passing, the vision, the ability the walk the blue line, etc. are all there. It's just mental with him...still plenty of room to mature...only 21 years old.

 

[AKL]

It's still so hard to believe that he's already this good, and there's still at least 6 years before his "prime"

 

[Dee Oh Cee]

Got my Brodin sweater on today

 

[Nino Noderreiter]

Does he have the potential to? I believe so. Again, his mobility and vision are elite so he has the skills, its just a matter if he will realize those skills.

I think that 30-35 is very realistic in his mid to late 20s and it would not shock me to see him get to 40 points. The skating, the passing, the vision, the ability the walk the blue line, etc. are all there. It's just mental with him...still plenty of room to mature...only 21 years old.

This.

 

[purexed]

I haven't been able to watch any games yet, how is Brodin doing so far? How is the new pairing with Dumba?

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

The answer to both your questions is 'meh'.

 

[Digitalbooya]

I'd give them at least 30 games to show their full potential.

 

[hirawl]

Brodin's basically babysitting Dumba right now.

 

[Minnesota]

Brodin's basically babysitting Dumba right now.

Brodin has picked up a few tricks from Dumba, too. He's playing more physical, and I think his slapshot has improved. He's playing more aggressive in general.

 

[Jesus comma Brodin]

Brodin's basically babysitting Dumba right now.

Exactly this.

 

[MNRube]

Exactly this.

Some truth to that, but Brodin was pretty shaky for his standards to start the year as well. He looked great last night and has mostly the last week. That's encouraging. I think when he is aggressive it makes the whole team way better. He was the fastest player on the ice last night, very assertive on his pinches and doing his usual great work at neutralizing opponents along the boards and behind the net. He's one of the best in the NHL at snubbing out opponents and quickly closing gaps. And he makes a terrific first pass usually. That's really what any elite defenseman should do above all else and Brodin thrives at it.

Dumba played OK too though I thought, he had a couple "baby giraffe" moments trying to stop a rush but for the most part was pretty composed. I just wish we had a Leopold type again so we could run Scandella-Brodin behind Suter-Spurgeon or just go back to usual pairings of Suter-Brodin and Scandella-Spurgeon but sadly both Prosser and Folin seem like they aren't capable of covering for Dumba. I do think, in a year or so, either Olofsson or Reilly will step in and give us at least one more capable LH shot to fill out the third pairing. Personally I think Olofsson would work well with Dumba on that pairing as Reilly/Dumba would be like the defense version of Vanek/Pominville.

 

[Jesus comma Brodin]

Some truth to that, but Brodin was pretty shaky for his standards to start the year as well. He looked great last night and has mostly the last week. That's encouraging. I think when he is aggressive it makes the whole team way better. He was the fastest player on the ice last night, very assertive on his pinches and doing his usual great work at neutralizing opponents along the boards and behind the net. He's one of the best in the NHL at snubbing out opponents and quickly closing gaps. And he makes a terrific first pass usually. That's really what any elite defenseman should do above all else and Brodin thrives at it.

Dumba played OK too though I thought, he had a couple "baby giraffe" moments trying to stop a rush but for the most part was pretty composed. I just wish we had a Leopold type again so we could run Scandella-Brodin behind Suter-Spurgeon or just go back to usual pairings of Suter-Brodin and Scandella-Spurgeon but sadly both Prosser and Folin seem like they aren't capable of covering for Dumba. I do think, in a year or so, either Olofsson or Reilly will step in and give us at least one more capable LH shot to fill out the third pairing. Personally I think Olofsson would work well with Dumba on that pairing as Reilly/Dumba would be like the defense version of Vanek/Pominville.

Great post. Well said and accurate.

 

[saywut]

Brodin's in a tough situation in that he's the 2nd best RD and 3rd best LD on a team with 5 options on the right side and only 3 on the left(counting Brodin on both sides). So he's forced to play a large portion of his shifts on the left side, where he's not the same player. And playing those shifts with the unreliable Dumba only makes it harder for him. If this team had a steady 3rd left D we could pair that player with Dumba on the 3rd pair and have Brodin playing exclusively on the right side in the top-4, but we don't. Unless we want to try the Prosser-Dumba pairing that we used at times last year.

 

[melinko]

He started a little rough the first week or so, but hes the same as he has always been now imo.

Would have liked to see some more points but realistically if he never improves its easy to see he is valuable.

 

[Jarick]

Brodin's been great the last couple weeks. Dumba looks like he isn't ready for the NHL in my eyes, but GMCF didn't give Yeo any other options.