News Article: Kasperi Kapanen Discussion

[Funk21]

Just to put some numbers into context, this guy was dreadful the first 15 or so games. Now he looks like he will hit 20 goals and mid 40’s point totals again. What everyone has been saying:
Great in PK
Speed for days
Good on the forecheck and backcheck
Value contract and young

 

[Nylander88]

Soup is out for some time. Don't think it will be an issue

More so meant playoffs. I realize hes off a while. Either means Mikheyev or Johnsson moves to the 4th line. Or Kerfoot goes back to C and then Engvall is on the 4th line. Problem for another day i guess

 

[Nylander88]

Just to put some numbers into context, this guy was dreadful the first 15 or so games. Now he looks like he will hit 20 goals and mid 40’s point totals again. What everyone has been saying:
Great in PK
Speed for days
Good on the forecheck and backcheck
Value contract and young

Hes a keeper and wants to be here. As a perennial 40-50 point winger he'll always stay around his current 3.2 contract too so should be affordable to keep. All situations player for us that can play anywhere in the lineup

 

[Suntouchable13]

I just don't understand one thing: why is he considered a 3rd liner while a guy like Hyman is a sure fire top 6 guy? Watching Hyman playing with Matthews and Marner is painful to me. The guy is so devoid of skill.

 

[Nylander88]

I just don't understand one thing: why is he considered a 3rd liner while a guy like Hyman is a sure fire top 6 guy? Watching Hyman playing with Matthews and Marner is painful to me. The guy is so devoid of skill.

Im quite the opposite. I see Hyman with those two and think its a thing of beauty. Nobody on this team gets pucks back like Hyman. Kapanen has more skill sure. But Hyman is a beautiful fit with two skilled guys and knows his role unbelievably well. Hyman is there to get the puck back to the other 2 and bang in some garbage. Also nice having a winger there that you know will drop the gloves to defend Matty or Marner. Im in the club that thinks Hyman is extremely underappreciated

 

[Wafflewhipper]

Kappy isn’t going anywhere. Dubas and Keefe know what they have in him. Johnsson will be moved if neccessary first. There is nobody in the system coning up that matches kaspers complete skills. We need him

 

[HC7]

Leafs don't need D.

We have
Rielly
Muzzin
Dermott
Sandin

on the left side. On the right side we have

Barrie
Holl
Ceci
Liljegren

Timmy is having a similar season to Dermott the year he got called up for good. With 20 points in 30 games while playing top line matchups he's ready. The only question mark on D if Ceci, and I'd rather replace him with Timmy than trading Kappy for another D.

Plus with Keefe in charge we're not like every other elite team that can plug any player wherever and it will be the same because the system puts everyone in a position to succeed. Which is why with Babcock you heard about Ceci every night, but now nobody talks about him anymore.

 

[93LEAFS]

May be he can beat all #4,#5, #6 D in any given NHL team but cannot fool any #1 or #2 D in the long term. It is what it is. At the end, he is a good player

The issue is more chemistry with line-mates related to role than the specific defence he faces. He beats top defenders with his speed often.

 

[HamiltonNHL]

Liljegren

We'd be a much better team if he was ready to go in the NHL.

 

[RoadWarrior]

View attachment 303159


We'd be a much better team if he was ready to go in the NHL.

He’s very close. Starting to dominate the A.

 

[likecheese]

I just don't understand one thing: why is he considered a 3rd liner while a guy like Hyman is a sure fire top 6 guy? Watching Hyman playing with Matthews and Marner is painful to me. The guy is so devoid of skill.

I don't know if anybody considers him a 3rd liner. Every time he moves up in the lineup, he goes quiet. Then we he gets moved to the 3rd line, he picks it up.
Somebody on the Athletic was saying that, talking to scouts, there is significantly more demand for Kap then AJ. That may determine who gets traded in the end.
I still hope we can try out a Kap-AJ-Kerfoot line and Giraffe gets moved up when Johnsson is back.

 

[HamiltonNHL]

He’s very close. Starting to dominate the A.

Fingers crossed.
Babcock wouldnt bring him up this year.
Keefe might.

Hard to know.

 

[Bodybr3ak]

I just don't understand one thing: why is he considered a 3rd liner while a guy like Hyman is a sure fire top 6 guy? Watching Hyman playing with Matthews and Marner is painful to me. The guy is so devoid of skill.

Ya you’re entirely alone in that opinion.

Hyman brings so much to that top line. The only downside is that we can’t clone him to have him on both top lines.

 

[ImpartialNHLfan]

Love Kap, glad to have him.

 

[Boutette]

More so meant playoffs. I realize hes off a while. Either means Mikheyev or Johnsson moves to the 4th line. Or Kerfoot goes back to C and then Engvall is on the 4th line. Problem for another day i guess

If Engvall is pushed down to the 4th line due to overall forward talent. than the Leafs are a better team for it.

 

[sxvnert]

I just don't understand one thing: why is he considered a 3rd liner while a guy like Hyman is a sure fire top 6 guy? Watching Hyman playing with Matthews and Marner is painful to me. The guy is so devoid of skill.

Both are third liners but Hyman and Kerf compliment their duos and produce. Kap doesn't no matter where they put him.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

Leafs don't need D.

We have
Rielly
Muzzin
Dermott
Sandin

on the left side. On the right side we have

Barrie
Holl
Ceci
Liljegren

Timmy is having a similar season to Dermott the year he got called up for good. With 20 points in 30 games while playing top line matchups he's ready. The only question mark on D if Ceci, and I'd rather replace him with Timmy than trading Kappy for another D.

Plus with Keefe in charge we're not like every other elite team that can plug any player wherever and it will be the same because the system puts everyone in a position to succeed. Which is why with Babcock you heard about Ceci every night, but now nobody talks about him anymore.

Thats the truth too. We don’t need to trade period. Unless Pietrangelo cones our way with a extension we cant stand pat easily. No cap during playoffs and all that depth becomes gold.

 

[Merrrlin]

Leafs don't need D.

We have
Rielly
Muzzin
Dermott
Sandin

on the left side. On the right side we have

Barrie
Holl
Ceci
Liljegren

Timmy is having a similar season to Dermott the year he got called up for good. With 20 points in 30 games while playing top line matchups he's ready. The only question mark on D if Ceci, and I'd rather replace him with Timmy than trading Kappy for another D.

Plus with Keefe in charge we're not like every other elite team that can plug any player wherever and it will be the same because the system puts everyone in a position to succeed. Which is why with Babcock you heard about Ceci every night, but now nobody talks about him anymore.

Don't need D, but that right side looks a lot better with each guy being pushed one spot down in the lineup. A top pairing RD is a only true missing piece right now, and likely the hardest to acquire outside a top 6 C.

 

[nuck]

Both are third liners but Hyman and Kerf compliment their duos and produce. Kap doesn't no matter where they put him.

In fairness to Kap, he is now the same age as ZH was his rookie year and he is only 4pts back of Hyman's full season rookie production. We don't quite know what he will become if used in the optimum manner.
Kap is certainly a better in many ways but...people need to remember Hyman is only making $2.25M per so he is the best bargain on the club, plus they have almost nobody else who will go into the corners to retrieve the puck. He will never be a star but he will never drain them with an overpriced contract either. He is on a pace for a career high in points so there are probably some other areas that deserve more attention.

What I think this club maybe needs is a young Cal Clutterbuck that will play 3rd line minutes and throw 300 hits a year instead of someone like Kerfoot who has actually played okay, but isn't much different than all the rest of the forward group. The Leafs only threat is a track meet so they aren't exactly a Rubik's Cube to defend against. I am not saying Marcus Foligno will make the team a contender but he might make them harder to play against. The club is a pond hockey wrecking machine, but are they built to beat the last few Cup finalists.

Short answer is they should keep Kapanen but look at what the mix of the last few Cup champs has been, and how they line up against that.

 

[roggie13]

Both are third liners but Hyman and Kerf compliment their duos and produce. Kap doesn't no matter where they put him.

You can't say that... Babcock had him on the off wing for a lot of the season Kap has 14 assists and 10 goals this season even with that bad start. I don't mind Hyman but everybody thinks he is the second coming of Christ remember half his goals are scored into empty nets even led the league at one point last year (Empty netters as well). Not really much skill or effort is required to score into an empty net so there is no way in hell you can compare goal stats when he is on every time other teams pull their goaltender. Also Kap is shuffled around more then a deck of cards put Kap on his right wing in the top lineup keep him there for a season and if he plays like he has been playing (starting to pass more) there would be no contest he would crush Hyman stats all day long

 

[HC7]

Don't need D, but that right side looks a lot better with each guy being pushed one spot down in the lineup. A top pairing RD is a only true missing piece right now, and likely the hardest to acquire outside a top 6 C.

Muzzin and Holl were doing very well together as a shutdown pairing.
Mo, and Barrie are getting better and should be able to feast on matchups.
Dermott and Ceci are a good bottom pairing. Switch Tim for Ceci and they could be elite.

 

[mapleleaf979]

I just don't understand one thing: why is he considered a 3rd liner while a guy like Hyman is a sure fire top 6 guy? Watching Hyman playing with Matthews and Marner is painful to me. The guy is so devoid of skill.

ITs very simple. Hyman's role ,the forechecker dirty work guy on his line, is top 6 worthy. Hyman competes so hard, wins battles along the wall, screens goalies etc. U 100% under rate all the things he does for skilled guys. Kapanen doesn't have the skill to be Top 6 nor the Top 6 worker/grinder role like Hyman. Watching Hyman work his tail off to win battles and give it to Marner and Matthews is a treat to watch, imo.

 

[mapleleaf979]

May be he can beat all #4,#5, #6 D in any given NHL team but cannot fool any #1 or #2 D in the long term. It is what it is. At the end, he is a good player

That's basically it. Kapanen is a 3rd line player. 100% he is not a Top 6, deceive u and make plays based on IQ. Kapanen without his speed, isn't in the NHL, imo. The move and pass he made to Engvall was VERY nice but people in here are go wild about it. Lets be honest about that play, its the first time in 4 years he has done that move. Once in 4 years. Its not evidence of how skilled he is, he will not keep doing that, its a rare thing. The thing that sold me on Kapanen's IQ is how he handles odd man rushes, the D man is the one calling his bluff over and over to shoot and Kapanen forces pass. Also, Kapanen can not handle the puck cleanly at top speed, see him bobble pucks over and over again trying to carry it at speed.

 

[goleafsgo1990]

Im quite the opposite. I see Hyman with those two and think its a thing of beauty. Nobody on this team gets pucks back like Hyman. Kapanen has more skill sure. But Hyman is a beautiful fit with two skilled guys and knows his role unbelievably well. Hyman is there to get the puck back to the other 2 and bang in some garbage. Also nice having a winger there that you know will drop the gloves to defend Matty or Marner. Im in the club that thinks Hyman is extremely underappreciated

Thank you, I'm too buzzed to put this into words even close to yours. My "like" button is banned..

 

[roggie13]

That's basically it. Kapanen is a 3rd line player. 100% he is not a Top 6, deceive u and make plays based on IQ. Kapanen without his speed, isn't in the NHL, imo. The move and pass he made to Engvall was VERY nice but people in here are go wild about it. Lets be honest about that play, its the first time in 4 years he has done that move. Once in 4 years. Its not evidence of how skilled he is, he will not keep doing that, its a rare thing. The thing that sold me on Kapanen's IQ is how he handles odd man rushes, the D man is the one calling his bluff over and over to shoot and Kapanen forces pass. Also, Kapanen can not handle the puck cleanly at top speed, see him bobble pucks over and over again trying to carry it at speed.

You have to remember Kap is 23 Hyman is 28 give him a chance to blossom and in 5 years we will have this discussion again. You cannot bash Kap for his rough time in Toronto everyone has struggled under Babcock. Sure he was paired on the top lines and didn't fit in but this year it was his off wing and Matthews,Marner, and JT all struggled at the beginning of the season even without Kapanen. I like Hyman he is gritty and gets most of his goals on empty netters or sh** left behind from scrums in front of the net its rarely his shot or skill that puts the puck in the net. I have seen JT bobble the puck same with Marner and Matthews as well as every leaf on the bench does this mean they don't belong in the league give your f***** head a shake. Kapanen does a hell of a lot more then you give him credit for the blame falls on Babcock he couldn't utilize players to the best of their ability many players dried up and stopped producing under him look at Kadri under Babs now look at him totally different player. It didn't matter who was on Matthews or JT's wing the players didn't produce at the start of the year either they showed zero interest and little effort because they didn't want to play for some sucka** coach. Look at Nylander last year couldn't even put his skates on the right feet let alone put a puck in the net yet this is always trash Kapanen last time I checked it was a team effort and Kapanen does produce and does play hard. He puts forth more effort then Matthews every game the results may not be there every game but at least he hustles. I have been to a few Leafs practices my brother does PR for them Kaps is pretty skillful his hands just haven't caught up to his feet he still has a lot to learn as for Hyman he is good in the corners but skill wise he won't get much if any better on the other hand Kaps still has alot of years to develop.....give him a chance