Player Discussion Kole Lind

MS

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Mar 18, 2002
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Vancouver, BC
Lind had a decent first game but since has been about what I expected and totally not ready.

Last 5 games - 0 points, 1 SOG, -5.

Just too slow and weak for this level, at both ends of the rink.
 
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The Vasili Jerry

Serenity now!
Jun 11, 2011
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Lind had a decent first game but since has been about what I expected and totally not ready.

Last 5 games - 0 points, 1 SOG, -5.

Just too slow and weak for this level, at both ends of the rink.
Yeah I was thinking there was something there in the first couple of games but the skating really is a huge issue and the rest of his game would have to be huge to overcome it. I’m still hoping he can improve that aspect so he can have a shot at a regular role. Big off-season for him.
 
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VanJack

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Jul 11, 2014
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Lind was overmatched in his first year in the AHL.....and didn't become an impact player until the start of his third season. All you can hope is that he can replicate that improvement as he transitions to the NHL.

But clearly he's now more of a 'project' than a 'prospect'...and it won't be long before he gets passed on the depth chart by come of the other prospect wingers the Canucks have coming.
 
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WetcoastOrca

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Jun 3, 2011
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Hopefully he sees where he needs to improve (skating) and works hard this off season to compete for a job next year. He’s taken a while to adjust at every level so it’s not a surprise that he struggled a bit.
 
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Cupless44

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Jun 25, 2014
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Wondering why a 33rd pick was used on Lind. I wanted Hague with that pick.
 

LordBacon

CEO of sh*tposting
Oct 31, 2017
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All I can say is he’s just not quite nhl ready yet.
Pretty low event player,
but he can throws big hits for his size though.
 

MS

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Mar 18, 2002
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It's too bad no one listened to HFboards that day. We could've had Gabe Vilardi and Hague.

What a silly post.

1) People who liked Vilardi obviously couldn't predict that his development would be completely derailed by missing most of the next 3 years after the draft with a major back problem. He was the best player in the CHL in the season after the draft and has been very solid breaking into the NHL this year despite all his issues, and there's nothing to indicate the positive takes on him were incorrect. Unfortunately, you can't replace the lost time and he'll probably never be quite what he could have been.

2) People following the draft have limited resources. I can't speak for everyone, but I *repeatedly* said before and after the draft that Pettersson looked good on paper but that I had never really seen him play (one game at the WJCs where I honestly couldn't remember him) so I couldn't have a strong opinion on him positive or negative. This was not 'rating Vilardi ahead of Pettersson' but rather just not really ranking Pettersson at all because he was an unknown quantity. And a lot of us still follow the draft and will be comparing/contrasting the players we did see regularly. This isn't unfair and doesn't mean that fans are 'wrong' if a player they didn't have the resources to follow ends up succeeding.

3) The player that Vilardi was most often compared to in discussions was Cody Glass, and Vilardi is unequivocally a better player/selection than Glass, even despite all the injuries. So we were 100% correct in this discussion.

4) Benning rated Glass over Vilardi, so the fans were more correct on this than Benning.
 
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bandwagonesque

I eat Kraft Dinner and I vote
Mar 5, 2014
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What a silly post.

1) People who liked Vilardi obviously couldn't predict that his development would be completely derailed by missing most of the next 3 years after the draft with a major back problem. He was the best player in the CHL in the season after the draft and has been very solid breaking into the NHL this year despite all his issues, and there's nothing to indicate the positive takes on him were incorrect. Unfortunately, you can't replace the lost time and he'll probably never be quite what he could have been.

2) People following the draft have limited resources. I can't speak for everyone, but I *repeatedly* said before and after the draft that Pettersson looked good on paper but that I had never really seen him play (one game at the WJCs where I honestly couldn't remember him) so I couldn't have a strong opinion on him positive or negative. This was not 'rating Vilardi ahead of Pettersson' but rather just not really ranking Pettersson at all because he was an unknown quantity. And a lot of us still follow the draft and will be comparing/contrasting the players we did see regularly. This isn't unfair and doesn't mean that fans are 'wrong' if a player they didn't have the resources to follow ends up succeeding.

3) The player that Vilardi was most often compared to in discussions was Cody Glass, and Vilardi is unequivocally a better player/selection than Glass, even despite all the injuries. So we were 100% correct in this discussion.

4) Benning rated Glass over Vilardi, so the fans were more correct on this than Benning.
It's a silly post if you assume I mainly intended to call out HFBoards for being poor at evaluating prospects, which I'm pretty sure you realize isn't what I was doing. My point is that it's dumb to criticize teams for missing particular prospects outside the top of the first round that every other team also missed when a) they weren't considered to have reached on the player the did draft and b) have measurably average or better drafting success in general.
 

HockeyWooot

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Jan 28, 2020
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Yeah I was thinking there was something there in the first couple of games but the skating really is a huge issue and the rest of his game would have to be huge to overcome it. I’m still hoping he can improve that aspect so he can have a shot at a regular role. Big off-season for him.

Fully agree. Skating is his obvious area for improvement, as it’s preventing him from playing effectively at this level.

Well see how this goes.
 

lawrence

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May 19, 2012
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-3 came in one game against the oilers where horvat and Pearson was also -3. Some extra time in the a is needed but he’s close.
 

MS

1%er
Mar 18, 2002
53,367
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Vancouver, BC
It's a silly post if you assume I mainly intended to call out HFBoards for being poor at evaluating prospects, which I'm pretty sure you realize isn't what I was doing. My point is that it's dumb to criticize teams for missing particular prospects outside the top of the first round that every other team also missed when a) they weren't considered to have reached on the player the did draft and b) have measurably average or better drafting success in general.

1) There have been countless uninformed posts from the usual suspects over the past 4 years to the effect of 'LOL, HFBoards wanted Vilardi!' and there was no reason to think yours was anything different.

2) Generally speaking, I agree with your 2nd sentence. However, when this terrible GM is being propped up as a Super Scout by his supporters (to the extent that all his other failings don't matter), then pointing out situations where he was clearly not a Super Scout and this board knew better is totally valid.

3) I'd also add that Mike Gillis was skewered for missing on picks in the late 20s of the draft, so I'd think it's fair game to call out Jim Benning for missing badly on a pick in basically the same range.
 

SeawaterOnIce

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Aug 28, 2011
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-3 came in one game against the oilers where horvat and Pearson was also -3. Some extra time in the a is needed but he’s close.

It's very hard to do anything in the NHL nowadays when you are top 6 or bust and have below average skating. He certainly has the skill to make plays happen in the AHL but looks completely sunk in the NHL game. Players like Shinkaruk and Gaudette are examples of players with top tier offensive talent being held back by their skating.

You can see Kole Lind has decent offensive vision but acceleration is a major issue.
 

tradervik

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Jun 25, 2007
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Lind's skating reminds me of the Sedins when they debuted for the Canucks. It looks like he's skating in quicksand when he tries to accelerate. The feet are moving but he's just not going. He'll have a long off-season to work on it assuming the Canucks qualify him.
 

MS

1%er
Mar 18, 2002
53,367
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Vancouver, BC
Lind's skating reminds me of the Sedins when they debuted for the Canucks. It looks like he's skating in quicksand when he tries to accelerate. The feet are moving but he's just not going. He'll have a long off-season to work on it assuming the Canucks qualify him.

Yeah, there's zero leg drive there. And also very weak on his feet.

The problem is that this isn't some new thing that we're just realizing - it's been an obvious major issue since he hit Utica in 1998 and presumably he's been working hard to improve the entire time since. And it has got better, but not nearly better enough.
 

F A N

Registered User
Aug 12, 2005
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The hope is that Lind has traditionally needed time to adjust to the league he is in but I'm not sure he will ever be afforded the opportunity to "adjust" to the NHL.

It's very hard to do anything in the NHL nowadays when you are top 6 or bust and have below average skating. He certainly has the skill to make plays happen in the AHL but looks completely sunk in the NHL game. Players like Shinkaruk and Gaudette are examples of players with top tier offensive talent being held back by their skating.

You can see Kole Lind has decent offensive vision but acceleration is a major issue.

Lind isn't a top 6 or bust guy though. He's kind of like McCann who always played with some chippiness to his game. He'll need to figure things out of course.
 

Get North

Registered User
Aug 25, 2013
8,472
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B.C.
It's very hard to do anything in the NHL nowadays when you are top 6 or bust and have below average skating. He certainly has the skill to make plays happen in the AHL but looks completely sunk in the NHL game. Players like Shinkaruk and Gaudette are examples of players with top tier offensive talent being held back by their skating.

You can see Kole Lind has decent offensive vision but acceleration is a major issue.
Lind’s skating technique seems fine but his stride needs to be generate more power. This off-season is big for Lind and Gadjovich, they got to contact Horvat for some skating advice. I think their skating is better than Gaudettes, but Lind’s speed reminds me of Shinkaruk.
 

F A N

Registered User
Aug 12, 2005
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Wondering why a 33rd pick was used on Lind. I wanted Hague with that pick.

Hague's skating scared me. I seem to remember reading scouting reports where he had trouble pivoting and retrieving pucks. Curiously, Lind's skating was seen as good IIRC, at least vis a vis Robertson.
 

wavaxa2

Registered User
Sep 24, 2010
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Yeah, there's zero leg drive there. And also very weak on his feet.

The problem is that this isn't some new thing that we're just realizing - it's been an obvious major issue since he hit Utica in 1998 and presumably he's been working hard to improve the entire time since. And it has got better, but not nearly better enough.

It does seem that long with this franchise, doesn't it?
 

VanJack

Registered User
Jul 11, 2014
21,047
14,079
The Canucks could lose one of either Lind or Gadjovich to the Seattle Kraken in the upcoming expansion draft.

There's every indication that Lind is the guy they're going to protect, but I really hope Gadjovich gets into a couple of games next week so we can compare.

With the Canucks you always get that sinking feeling that they'll choose to protect the wrong guy.
 

bandwagonesque

I eat Kraft Dinner and I vote
Mar 5, 2014
7,108
5,416
1) There have been countless uninformed posts from the usual suspects over the past 4 years to the effect of 'LOL, HFBoards wanted Vilardi!' and there was no reason to think yours was anything different.

2) Generally speaking, I agree with your 2nd sentence. However, when this terrible GM is being propped up as a Super Scout by his supporters (to the extent that all his other failings don't matter), then pointing out situations where he was clearly not a Super Scout and this board knew better is totally valid.

3) I'd also add that Mike Gillis was skewered for missing on picks in the late 20s of the draft, so I'd think it's fair game to call out Jim Benning for missing badly on a pick in basically the same range.
A few posters -- literally maybe 2 or 3 -- think of Benning as a super scout. Many more posters who bring up Benning's solid draft record, myself included, only do so in response to other posters going shopping for increasingly nonsensical ways to undermine it because they can't accept him having even isolated, minor or largely collaborative success of any kind.

Also, Gillis has never been skewered for missing out on one pick in that range, or several, but for missing out on literally all of those picks.
 

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