Kapanen or Nylander?

[Willchel Marlynder]

Kapanen seems comparable to Nylander in other ways than just their physical appearances.

He's fast, he assists, and he scores.

What's the difference between him and Nylander?

He BATTLES. He isn't afraid to get dirty. He has heart and he grinds. He is exactly what you need come playoff time.

Nylander? He's a soft, furry little kitten- a very talented kitten at that, and more talented for sure - but he lacks the heart, grit and braveness of Kapanen. He floats around like a cute little butterfly and he does indeed score those goals - but he's a timid, young, small little butterfly and he'll get bulldozed come playoff time. It's like the other team dismisses him and he'll just sit in the corner.

The playoffs are what matter here. We ARE getting there. And come that time, we're going to need some serious grit to make it through even the first round. We already know we have current defensive problems and at the moment we have a lack of grit to go anywhere in the post-season.

So who will help you come post-season? Nylander or Kapanen?

You guys know the answer.

Keep Kapanen, and compliment him with a stud defenseman via a Nylander trade.

You do realize that Nylander has been at worst just as good a playoff performer as Matthews has been right? This talk about playoff toughness is getting out of hand and to be quite frank, shows just how misinformed some posters are.

Nylander is a cerebral player. I'm surprised people don't understand that. He doesn't bang and crash as much as Hyman because that's not his game. Same could be said about Hyman as he doesn't skate into the opposition's zone effortlessly or make jaw dropping passes because that's not his game. Instead of using his body to get possession Nylander uses excellent stick work to retrieve the puck.

This talk about no heart is ridiculous, but this is the fan base that ran no heart, Conn smythe worthy 2x Stanley Cup Champ Kessel out the door so can I really be surprised...?

 

[SomethingWild77]

I like the thought of Nylander on the 3rd line with Kadri to try to make 3 dangerous scoring lines. Dunno if the chemistry is there but it sounds like a solid plan at least. Only thing is, I think it's hard to justify paying a 3d liner 6-7m (whatever the hell he could end up signing for). So for that reason alone I'd say move him up in the line up, give him his minutes management would hypothetically be paying him for.

I also wanna call out the posters calling out Nylander for being soft. Yes, he's soft. I completely agree he doesn't appear to be built for playoff hockey. End of discussion. The people calling him a "delicate kitten" or trying to coin the phrase "Melander" just come off as 13 year olds trying to meme their way into a hockey discussion. Smarten up.

What are you going on about? I was serious about it being a great post, thats why there was no behind it.

That's why there's a like button, you don't have to post "I like this post" when there's a like button. C'mon man.

 

[member 300185]

I like the thought of Nylander on the 3rd line with Kadri to try to make 3 dangerous scoring lines. Dunno if the chemistry is there but it sounds like a solid plan at least. Only thing is, I think it's hard to justify paying a 3d liner 6-7m (whatever the hell he could end up signing for). So for that reason alone I'd say move him up in the line up, give him his minutes management would hypothetically be paying him for.

I also wanna call out the posters calling out Nylander for being soft. Yes, he's soft. I completely agree he doesn't appear to be built for playoff hockey. End of discussion. The people calling him a "delicate kitten" or trying to coin the phrase "Melander" just come off as 13 year olds trying to meme their way into a hockey discussion. Smarten up.



That's why there's a like button, you don't have to post "I like this post" when there's a like button. C'mon man.

See thats where you freak out over nothing. I WAS A BAD BOY, I DONT HAVE A LIKE BUTTON. So I give a nice comment and a thumbs up.

See, you made a conclusion without the evidence. Typical HFboard poster. "you blah blah blah, and you have a like button blah blah blah.

I get my like button back October 20, I will make sure to come in and like one of your posts.

 

[Lauro]

Leivo/Johnsson - Kadri - Nylander
sounds good.

And in difficult games, when Matthews can't do it alone on the 1st line, change Nylander and Kapanen.

 

[sittler rules!!!]

I like that. Bumps Hyman off Kadris line too. Good balance and serious speed.

Hyman is not on Kadri's line.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

My old grandpappy used to say "if it aint broke, dont fix it". But what did he know, he was a crazy old blind man)

As of right now, Kapanen is a PPG and has a better shooting percentage than Nylander.

And, Kapanen is faster than Nylander. Gets more pucks than Nylander. Kapanen is also helping Matthews score goals. I like when Matthews scores goals.

So would you keep Kapanen on the Matthews line or put Nylander there and put Kappy somewhere else?

I'm obviously going with Kapanen.

How about this?

Kapanen Matthews Nylander

Hyman Tavares Marner

Marleau Kadri Brown

That's amazing

 

[member 300185]

Hyman is not on Kadri's line.

I know. I'm saying Hyman gets bumped down also.

 

[member 300185]

Man, I hope you're wearing your Huggies?

I am, but at my age they call them "depends" lol

 

[thewave]

Nylander is far better he can drive a like. Kappy is looking like the ideal complimentary player and opportunist.

If you bother to read back last year, I wanted Kappy with Matthews and Nylander as 2C but what do I know

 

[PromisedLand]

Kappy is ppg 6 points in 6 game at the moment!

And Willy is going to be a stud when he gets back.

Why have one when you can have them both!

 

[Alerion]

I think I'll go with 135 points in 185 games over 16 points in 61 games. Kappy will look great on Kadri's wing when Nylander returns.

 

[mallory67]

I just find it unfair that when comparing Nylander to Pastrnak, people are allowed to bring up Marchand, yet when I'm comparing Kappy to Nylander, I'm apparently not allowed to bring up Matthews. All I want is consistency.

Give it time. You need a larger sample size.
If Kappy plays with Matthews all season and puts up 20G, 40A ... we got a player.

But so far in his NHL career Kappy has not scored at the level Nylander did 3 years ago.
Remember they are from the same draft class ...

 

[Oan]

Same draft class: Nylander has 135 NHL points vs 14 for Kapanen

How is this even a debate? I mean, I love Kapanen but he also has a high PDO at the moment, don’t let small sample sizes fool you.

Exactly, so far Kapanens career in NHL has been two short stints + one half of a season, and every time in 4th line in a grinder role. Kapanen is not a 4th line grinder, he is a skilled top winger, he wasn't drafted in first round for no reason after all, and was a ppg player in AHL.

So, all you have on Kapanen is small sample size, he is capable of much more when in a top 6 position. Until now he just hasn't been given a proper chance to show what he can bring.

 

[Babcocks Marner]

Nylander, and it's not even close.
Although Kappy has never had such an opportunity and possibly flourish in this role.
The longer Nylander doesn't sign, the more we will find out.

 

[LeafGrief]

Shift Kappy to the LW and bump Marleau down. Kapanen-Matthews-Nylander and laugh our way to the bank. That line can beat you in every way you can imagine.

If I have to pick between keeping one of the two I take Nylander 1000 times out of 1000. Kappy is awesome but he's not on Nylander's level.

 

[Jmo89]

How about this?

Kapanen Matthews Nylander

Hyman Tavares Marner

Marleau Kadri Brown

That's amazing

This is my ideal lineup as well. I get a feeling Marleau will stick with Matthews though (Babs can be a bit stubborn sometimes.)

Willy is better than Kapanen, but Matthews is so talented that I'm not sure he's a huge upgrade to Kap. The puck can only be on one stick at a time, and it's clear this year that Matthews wants that stick to be his.

I think Nylander's talent would be more evident on the "third" line with Kadri, and for that reason see him impacting that line more than Kapanen; assuming Marleau sticks on the first line.

In short, I think the upgrade from Kapanen to Nylander on the first line won't be as impactful as Kapanen to Nylander on Kadri's line; though my personal preference is for them to both be with Matthews.

For the record I like Kapanen, and have been rooting for him since we traded Kessel. I think he's a top 6 guy; not quite as talented as Nylander, but a better grinder. I also think all this talk of Nylander suddenly being super soft is way overstated. Just my opinion though.

 

[rumman]

I'll stick with Kappy, he's up to speed and killing it with AM. Nylander IF he ever returns should be immediately sent to the Marlies for a conditioning stint if such a thing is waiver exempt. Once up to speed insert him on Kadri's line and see how that works out. Playing against opposition's best lines is a good way to judge Nylander's over all game.

 

[A1LeafNation]

Johnsson Kadri Nylander would be some teams first line.

 

[Silver91]

Willy is obviously the better player, but without a clear need for Naz to be the shutdown C, putting Willy on his wing gives us three legitimate 1st lines, something no other team can match. It’s basically the same thing as having Marner on that line last year, except Kappy is better than Brown, and Marleau has the hands to figure it out and start putting pucks in the net.

Reading this thread though, it’s pretty poisonous and full of hot takes.

 

[LeafingTheWay]

Recency bias.

Nylander is amazing, I think people have forgotten how good he is (Not a slight on Kapanen, who's fantastic, but he's not on the same level as Willy). His lackluster performance late-last season and playoffs + holding out this year has really made people forget. He's on the same level as Marner, although Marner has pulled ahead with his performance thus far.

Kapanen- Matthews - Nylander
or
Kapanen - Tavares - Marner
or
xxx - Kadri - Kapanen

Kapanen could literally fit anywhere in the above lineup, but Nylander should be locked to Matthews's wing.

 

[loki2185]

apples to oranges. kapanen is not nylanders replacement he is hymans. the real question is nylander or marleau. i say nylander, as marleau would do better with kadri

 

[thas]

Are some of you people for real?! You're crazy if you're willing to take Kapanen over Nylander. Kapanen is the Hyman replacement on that line currently not the substitute for Nylander. Maybe Kapanen can grow into something more, but I'm not going to assume that based on so few games.

But as some have said ideally Marleau is the one that gets demoted once Nylander is back.

 

[member 298589]

Wow, really?

Hockey fans have the shortest memories.

 

[DarkKnight]

You do realize that Nylander has been at worst just as good a playoff performer as Matthews has been right? This talk about playoff toughness is getting out of hand and to be quite frank, shows just how misinformed some posters are.

Nylander is a cerebral player. I'm surprised people don't understand that. He doesn't bang and crash as much as Hyman because that's not his game. Same could be said about Hyman as he doesn't skate into the opposition's zone effortlessly or make jaw dropping passes because that's not his game. Instead of using his body to get possession Nylander uses excellent stick work to retrieve the puck.

This talk about no heart is ridiculous, but this is the fan base that ran no heart, Conn smythe worthy 2x Stanley Cup Champ Kessel out the door so can I really be surprised...?

Marner is a cerebral player. Who cares what Hyman does in this context.

 

[DarkKnight]

Wow, really?

Hockey fans have the shortest memories.

Loving Kap, but come on. Things can change, but right now Willie no question.