Player Discussion Lucas Johansen expectations thread

[Hinterland]

I think Johansen surprises people in a good way this year. In my opinion he just needs to stay healthy and get consistent minutes and once he gets his confidence back he'll remind people why he was a 1st round pick.

I agree...but he also needs to hit the gym in order to play in the NHL.

 

[Hivemind]

Level in the NLA is higher than in the AHL. Now the NLA does allow teams to ice two additional players so some players might survive on the roster without playing much. But an NLA player with regular ice time is usually better than an AHLer.

This is an even worse hot take than Johansen going to the ECHL. Great to hear that you have such high regard for the home of star players like Chris DiDomenico and Casey Wellman.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

This is going to be a fun year.

 

[Hinterland]

This is an even worse hot take than Johansen going to the ECHL. Great to hear that you have such high regard for the home of star players like Chris DiDomenico and Casey Wellman.

Good luck trying to convince those two to play ECHL...try again in 10 years and you might have a chance.
At this point, they wouldn't even consider AHL. DiDomenico scored 18 in 13 during AHL-playoffs. Way too easy for him. Probably also sick of riding the bus and staying in shabby hotels I imagine.

 

[Hivemind]

Good luck trying to convince those two to play ECHL...try again in 10 years and you might have a chance.
At this point, they wouldn't even consider AHL. DiDomenico scored 18 in 13 during AHL-playoffs. Way too easy for him. Probably also sick of riding the bus and staying in shabby hotels I imagine.

DiDomenico ended up in Europe the first time because he couldn't stick to the AHL, and was in the ECHL in two consecutive seasons. After five seasons in Europe he tried a North American return, and ended up bouncing between three different AHL teams in a single season. He had 38 points in 50 regular season AHL games that year. Pointing to a 13 game playoff run as it being "far too easy" for him, while ignoring the much larger body of work, is rather silly.

NLA is where guys go when their North American options run out. It's a similar caliber of player to the AHL, but with an older age bracket thanks to it not being a developmental league. It is most definitely not in a tier above the AHL. It's a bunch of 30-something AHL guys with no NHL potential combined with home grown Swiss guys with no NHL potential. Mark Arcobello, Tommy Wingels, and Garrett Roe are among the early season leaders in NLA scoring. It's where former Caps like Eric Fehr, Daniel Winnik, and even Anton Gustafsson have gone when their North American options ran out. Nobody is going to contest that NLA is better than the ECHL (it very obviously is), but it's on equal footing (at best) to the AHL.

 

[Hinterland]

DiDomenico ended up in Europe the first time because he couldn't stick to the AHL, and was in the ECHL in two consecutive seasons. After five seasons in Europe he tried a North American return, and ended up bouncing between three different AHL teams in a single season. He had 38 points in 50 regular season AHL games that year. Pointing to a 13 game playoff run as it being "far too easy" for him, while ignoring the much larger body of work, is rather silly.

NLA is where guys go when their North American options run out. It's a similar caliber of player to the AHL, but with an older age bracket thanks to it not being a developmental league. It is most definitely not in a tier above the AHL. It's a bunch of 30-something AHL guys with no NHL potential combined with home grown Swiss guys with no NHL potential. Mark Arcobello, Tommy Wingels, and Garrett Roe are among the early season leaders in NLA scoring. It's where former Caps like Eric Fehr, Daniel Winnik, and even Anton Gustafsson have gone when their North American options ran out. Nobody is going to contest that NLA is better than the ECHL (it very obviously is), but it's on equal footing (at best) to the AHL.

So you're saying that DiDomenico left for Switzerland because he didn't get a contract after scoring 18 in 13 during playoffs?
He couldn't have done the same in the NLA. It's extremely difficult to score more than ppg during NLA playoffs because of the competitiveness of the league.

Also, NHL teams tend to struggle when playing Swiss teams. Flyers lost against one of the worst NLA teams. Lausanne lost their last game 1-7 and the game vs the Flyers was just close because Lausanne changed goalies at half time when leading 4-1. I get that the bigger ice plays into the hands of the NLA teams...nevertheless, AHL teams wouldn't be able to hold their own against an NHL roster.

 

[Hivemind]

So you're saying that DiDomenico left for Switzerland because he didn't get a contract after scoring 18 in 13 during playoffs?
He couldn't have done the same in the NLA. It's extremely difficult to score more than ppg during NLA playoffs because of the competitiveness of the league.

Also, NHL teams tend to struggle when playing Swiss teams. Flyers lost against one of the worst NLA teams. Lausanne lost their last game 1-7 and the game vs the Flyers was just close because Lausanne changed goalies at half time when leading 4-1. I get that the bigger ice plays into the hands of the NLA teams...nevertheless, AHL teams wouldn't be able to hold their own against an NHL roster.

If that was what I was saying, I would have said that. I'm simply pointing out that the AHL wasn't "too easy" for DiDomenico as you claimed. His career PPG in NLA is significantly higher than his career PPG in the AHL. And while he could have probably fished around for an AHL contract, it wouldn't surprise me if there was no team willing to offer him an NHL two-way deal.

NHL teams don't care about exhibition games against NLA teams. That's the reason Lausanne beat the Flyers. NHL teams simply don't gear up for a game against an opponent in a foreign league, played several time zones away, on a different sized ice sheet, with a different roster size, that has no consequences on their season. The game means a hell of a lot more to NLA players than it does to NHL ones. We've seen NHL teams struggle with DEL, RSL, and Liiga teams as well in these European exhibitions. They aren't a good metric.

 

[Hinterland]

If that was what I was saying, I would have said that. I'm simply pointing out that the AHL wasn't "too easy" for DiDomenico as you claimed. His career PPG in NLA is significantly higher than his career PPG in the AHL. And while he could have probably fished around for an AHL contract, it wouldn't surprise me if there was no team willing to offer him an NHL two-way deal.

NHL teams don't care about exhibition games against NLA teams. That's the reason Lausanne beat the Flyers. NHL teams simply don't gear up for a game against an opponent in a foreign league, played several time zones away, on a different sized ice sheet, with a different roster size, that has no consequences on their season. The game means a hell of a lot more to NLA players than it does to NHL ones. We've seen NHL teams struggle with DEL, RSL, and Liiga teams as well in these European exhibitions. They aren't a good metric.

Di Domenicos recent AHL stats are much higher than his NLA stats. Also, because the NLA isn't a development league, the best players get more ice time than in the AHL making it easier to score.

Well, if Lausanne cared about the result as much as you say, then they wouldn't have taken a step back after half time and even changed goalies. They did it because they were in the position to rest their nr.1. It's midseason for Lausanne and coming off a 1-7 loss they couldn't afford to tire out their best players. The Flyers changed their goalie because they had to and Hart sucking ass.

 

[Hivemind]

Di Domenicos recent AHL stats are much higher than his NLA stats. Also, because the NLA isn't a development league, the best players get more ice time than in the AHL making it easier to score.

That's objectively false. DiDomenico had 38 points in 50 regular season AHL games, spread across three teams, in 2017-18. Even if you include his playoff stats, it's still 56 points in 63 games. He had 55 points in 54 regular season games since returning to NLA, and 60 points in 61 total games. So no, his AHL stats are NOT much higher than his NLA stats. He was a <1 point/game player in the AHL who got hot when he was traded to Rockford. He returned to NLA and has been a point/game player since.

Well, if Lausanne cared about the result as much as you say, then they wouldn't have taken a step back after half time and even changed goalies. They did it because they were in the position to rest their nr.1. It's midseason for Lausanne and coming off a 1-7 loss they couldn't afford to tire out their best players. The Flyers changed their goalie because they had to and Hart sucking ass.

You think changing goalies indicates how hard the two teams are skating or how much passion they're putting into their play? Sure thing, bud. Once again, we've seen NHL teams struggle against plenty of Euro teams in the past. DEL teams have lost by 1 to LA, taken Edmonton to OT, and taken San Jose to a shootout in the past, and I think we're both in agreement that DEL is not a top tier league.

 

[Hinterland]

That's objectively false. DiDomenico had 38 points in 50 regular season AHL games, spread across three teams, in 2017-18. Even if you include his playoff stats, it's still 56 points in 63 games. He had 55 points in 54 regular season games since returning to NLA, and 60 points in 61 total games. So no, his AHL stats are NOT much higher than his NLA stats. He was a <1 point/game player in the AHL who got hot when he was traded to Rockford. He returned to NLA and has been a point/game player since.


You think changing goalies indicates how hard the two teams are skating or how much passion they're putting into their play? Sure thing, bud. Once again, we've seen NHL teams struggle against plenty of Euro teams in the past. DEL teams have lost by 1 to LA, taken Edmonton to OT, and taken San Jose to a shootout in the past, and I think we're both in agreement that DEL is not a top tier league.

DEL is on the rise because their teams, just like the Swiss teams, have money and spectators. Scandinavian leagues are losing ground because their stadiums are empty and more and more of their clubs bankrupt. If you actually knew anything about European hockey, you'd know about that. Success of the German national team doesn't come out of nowhere. I probably watch 100x more AHL than you watch NLA so I don't know why I'm even talking to you about this, let alone in this thread where it doesn't belong. Laughable. Stupid me.

 

[Hivemind]

DEL is on the rise because their teams, just like the Swiss teams, have money and spectators. Scandinavian leagues are losing ground because their stadiums are empty and more and more of their clubs bankrupt. If you actually knew anything about European hockey, you'd know about that. Success of the German national team doesn't come out of nowhere. I probably watch 100x more AHL than you watch NLA so I don't know why I'm even talking to you about this, let alone in this thread where it doesn't belong. Laughable. Stupid me.

This isn't about DEL or NLA vs Scandinavian leagues. You made a ridiculous comment about the NLA being a tier above the AHL, and now you've spun it off to "the success of the German national team" vs empty Scandinavian arenas. Moreover, many of those games were played in 2010 or 2011 (the last time NHL teams went to Europe for exhibition games prior to these last couple years), so the results of the 2018 Olympics aren't even relevant.

You can continue bragging about how you watch every hockey game in every team in every league (despite getting factual statements wrong about the supposed things you watch, like stating Jensen was a healthy scratch for Detroit). Nobody believes you. And if you want to talk about posting in threads where stuff doesn't belong, may I remind you this sub-forum is for Capitals fans.

 

[Hinterland]

This isn't about DEL or NLA vs Scandinavian leagues. You made a ridiculous comment about the NLA being a tier above the AHL, and now you've spun it off to "the success of the German national team" vs empty Scandinavian arenas. Moreover, many of those games were played in 2010 or 2011 (the last time NHL teams went to Europe for exhibition games prior to these last couple years), so the results of the 2018 Olympics aren't even relevant.

You can continue bragging about how you watch every hockey game in every team in every league (despite getting factual statements wrong about the supposed things you watch, like stating Jensen was a healthy scratch for Detroit). Nobody believes you. And if you want to talk about posting in threads where stuff doesn't belong, may I remind you this sub-forum is for Capitals fans.

Jensen was a healthy scratch in Detroit. I'd need to look up when but he was. You trying to claim that AHL is at least as good as NLA, based on your posts even without watching NLA, is a joke let alone in this thread which is supposed to be about Lucas Johansen. Therefore I'm not gonna answer you here about anything other than Lucas Johansen.

 

[hb12xchamps]

A player who was a regular in the NLA will never play in the ECHL. The minute you make the transaction, 99,9% of those players will pack their bags...but not to go to the ECHL.
Level in the NLA is higher than in the AHL. Now the NLA does allow teams to ice two additional players so some players might survive on the roster without playing much. But an NLA player with regular ice time is usually better than an AHLer. Of course it can be difficult to adjust to the different playing style and smaller surface...especially for a player as young as Geisser. There might also be some off ice adjustments necessary. But Geisser is easily good enough to play in the AHL. He has zero business in the ECHL.

Geisser told the Caps he wanted to come to North America last year not vice versa. He wasn’t in their plans to play for the Hershey Bears and the Bears had no clue he was coming over until training camp began. He’s a young prospect coming over, he doesn’t dictate where he plays. If it wasn’t for LuJo and Bindulis getting injured early in the year, Geisser would have either been sent to the ECHL or sent back to his “superior” NLA team. There was no use in having him rarely get into games at the AHL level.

He’s going to have quite the competition this season again to carve out a role in the AHL with LuJo, AA, Nardella, Bindulis and possibly Fehervary all taking ice time from him. He needs to learn to provide some kind of offensive production if he’s going to be a successful NA player. 1 point ain’t gonna cut it

 

[Hinterland]

Geisser told the Caps he wanted to come to North America last year not vice versa. He wasn’t in their plans to play for the Hershey Bears and the Bears had no clue he was coming over until training camp began. He’s a young prospect coming over, he doesn’t dictate where he plays. If it wasn’t for LuJo and Bindulis getting injured early in the year, Geisser would have either been sent to the ECHL or sent back to his “superior” NLA team. There was no use in having him rarely get into games at the AHL level.

He’s going to have quite the competition this season again to carve out a role in the AHL with LuJo, AA, Nardella, Bindulis and possibly Fehervary all taking ice time from him. He needs to learn to provide some kind of offensive production if he’s going to be a successful NA player. 1 point ain’t gonna cut it

Fehervary had just 10 points in 54 games last season in Sweden. Geisser scored 6 in 43 in the NLA 17/18. Does it make them bad players? I don't know. If the Caps ever expected Geisser to contribute offensively then I don't know what their scouts saw. Geisser is a big body who was NLA ready earlier than most defenders, let alone with his size. Has a solid skillset, too but he's not gonna wow anybody with his offensive abilities. If all goes well, he'll be a 3rd pairing guy.

Geisser won't play ECHL though. I'd be surprised if he did but I don't think the Caps would risk it at this point anyway. I also don't think they want Djoos in Hershey. If they can't jettison the guy then they'll recall him. I don't think any of the current Hershey defenders are NHL ready and I don't think Fehervary is but those guys all need ice time. Johansen is a good player and had a good camp but I think he needs another full AHL season.

Djoos is of no use in Hershey.