Player Discussion Mark Jankowski, Still Not Best of his Draft; Better than Yakupov

[Johnny Hoxville]

He’s like a prettier version of Colborne that can finish. Actually Colborne was pretty to, he just has more finish.

 

[SKRusty]

He’s like a prettier version of Colborne that can finish. Actually Colborne was pretty to, he just has more finish.

I actually think Mark's projection is somewhere between Paul Stastny and Zach Parise. His game is still developing because of his tall lanky frame and in 2-3 years will likely be looked as being in the top 10 of his draft class and by career end he could be in the top 5.

 

[Volica]

I actually think Mark's projection is somewhere between Paul Stastny and Zach Parise. His game is still developing because of his tall lanky frame and in 2-3 years will likely be looked as being in the top 10 of his draft class and by career end he could be in the top 5.

Yeah, that’s a no for me dawg. Both guys were premier players in their primes.

Janko for me will be a rich mans Brian Boyle. 30-40 point Center. Plays the right way, kills penalties, gets the B rate tough matchups. His 5v5 play has a long way to go for him to be in the same universe as Parise or Statsny. Keep in mind, he is a sophomore, but he’s also in his mid20s.

 

[Fig]

Jankowski's draft profile listed Spezza as a comparable I believe.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Jankowski's draft profile listed Spezza as a comparable I believe.

College Janks was very similar to Spezza. He hasn’t transferred that level of skill to the NHL, yet. He’s a nice player.

 

[Fig]

College Janks was very similar to Spezza. He hasn’t transferred that level of skill to the NHL, yet. He’s a nice player.

Fair comment. I was just tossing Spezza's name into the player comparison pile.

 

[Nanuuk]

Jankowski is faster than he looks and has size. He just needs that NHL strength and the confidence to go where he wants to go. When he discovers that he can do that and basically shrug defenders off, or better yet have them bounce off, he will be a force to be reckoned with. He has the shot, he likes the slot, so his day will come.

 

[CraigsList]

I firmly believe that Jankowski is going to be that key 2-way center that we desperately need after Backlund. I am calling it now, Jankowski bumps Backlund down to the third line in 2 years. Hopefully sooner.

 

[FerklundCGY]

I actually think Mark's projection is somewhere between Paul Stastny and Zach Parise. His game is still developing because of his tall lanky frame and in 2-3 years will likely be looked as being in the top 10 of his draft class and by career end he could be in the top 5.

Lmao slow your roll.

Janko has been absolutely dominant on the PK this season but his play 5v5 has been very poor by every metric.

He has to improve in a lot of areas 5v5 before we can consider him a solid 3C, let alone a mix between Stastny and Parise, two players who had dominant spurts in their primes

 

[Anglesmith]

The important thing with Jankowski is that we're seeing progression. His goals will be down this year from last barring a miracle, but I think we're definitely seeing progression in his game. He's a trusted penalty-killer who is consistently able to generate offence short-handed, and a trusted faceoff guy. He makes smart plays all over the ice, and is even capable of generating scoring chances with Neal.

 

[Mr Snrub]

The important thing with Jankowski is that we're seeing progression. His goals will be down this year from last barring a miracle, but I think we're definitely seeing progression in his game. He's a trusted penalty-killer who is consistently able to generate offence short-handed, and a trusted faceoff guy. He makes smart plays all over the ice, and is even capable of generating scoring chances with Neal.

This. Jankowski is not done developing and will be a good or even excellent 2C in his prime. As long as we continue to get that internal growth from our young players, this team has not yet reached its ceiling, which is awesome to consider when you think about how good we've been this year.

 

[Volica]

The important thing with Jankowski is that we're seeing progression. His goals will be down this year from last barring a miracle, but I think we're definitely seeing progression in his game. He's a trusted penalty-killer who is consistently able to generate offence short-handed, and a trusted faceoff guy. He makes smart plays all over the ice, and is even capable of generating scoring chances with Neal.

He's the type of depth guy that helps teams win.
He'll never be much of a top 6 player, but he could be that 3C/4C that helps you win a Stanley Cup. Think Kruger in his prime. The PK stuff is fantastic, and I'm happy he's found a niche. His 5v5 play still lacks a lot of polish, but it's a fair trade off for a guy who's among the elite PKer's in the league.

In a perfect world, Janko would be our trusted 4C, with Backlund playing the elite shutdown 3C and Flames having that more offensive minded 2C behind Monahan. But you play the cards you were dealt.