Randall Graves*
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three defensemen taken pretty close to each other in the draft, i've seen Mitera play plenty but am kinda wondering about the other two as well, and how all three stack up.
For now Fischer would be behind the others. He's playing well on the 3rd pairing, getting a regular shift just not on the PP (except for when Eric Johnson was at the wjc's) I've been impressed with Fischer's defensive play, he's good with his stick and positionally sound. His best asset is likely his puck moving ability and vision plus he's a good skater. But so far he's not done much offensively, although he almost scored against CC this past weekend which would have been his first goal.
So for now he's still very raw, just turned 19, so I suspect he will be at Minnesota for at least 2 more years. That said I really like his upside down the road and think he has the highest upside of the Habs D prospects.
Right now, it could be it...in the future, I'm pretty sure it will change.Mitera would be my top choice then Wishart then Fischer
I would add U Minnesota has one of the world's best development programs for offensive defensemen.
I would add U Minnesota has one of the world's best development programs for offensive defensemen.
Ty Wishart plays for the Prince George Cougars, who have an impressive list of d-men graduates, too...
That being said, I won't weigh in since I've never seen Lewis or Mitera play.
That's not a bad comparison, I kinda liken him to Regehr as a guy who could possibly play on your top shutdown D pairing, same is true for Willie Mitchell. But he is pretty physical, especially in the corners.So would you say Mitera may be like Willie Mitchell? Good with the stick work but not overally physical but still strong in his own end?
That's not a bad comparison, I kinda liken him to Regehr as a guy who could possibly play on your top shutdown D pairing, same is true for Willie Mitchell. But he is pretty physical, especially in the corners.
For now Fischer would be behind the others. He's playing well on the 3rd pairing, getting a regular shift just not on the PP (except for when Eric Johnson was at the wjc's) I've been impressed with Fischer's defensive play, he's good with his stick and positionally sound. His best asset is likely his puck moving ability and vision plus he's a good skater. But so far he's not done much offensively, although he almost scored against CC this past weekend which would have been his first goal.
So for now he's still very raw, just turned 19, so I suspect he will be at Minnesota for at least 2 more years. That said I really like his upside down the road and think he has the highest upside of the Habs D prospects.
Be honest, have you watched him play this season? not trying to be a smartass here, i'm being serious. His defensive fundamentals are outstanding, he's been physical in the games i've watched and uses his reach very well. Do you equate offense to upside? he'll never be a big scorer but he is very very good in his own end.Mitera will never be as good as Regehr. Mitera's upside was always talked about as a 2nd pairing d-man. Not a top line shut down guy like Regehr. He was a safe pick but a guy without TONS of upside.
Be honest, have you watched him play this season? not trying to be a smartass here, i'm being serious. His defensive fundamentals are outstanding, he's been physical in the games i've watched and uses his reach very well. Do you equate offense to upside? he'll never be a big scorer but he is very very good in his own end.
He went a dozen game stretch where teams only scored ONE ES goal against him on the ice. He has played outstanding in the 2nd half of the college season.
It doesn't really matter what people 'thought' vs what someone is doing right now..
I've watched him play about 7 games this season & I agree with this post. Not fair to judge him just yet, he's gonna take time but I like what I see so far.
He's way quicker than Brenden Witt.Of course I've watched him play. I love Michigan (I try and stay away from favorites, but Michigan has always been a team I've loved since I was a kid).
The reason I don't see him as a Regehr is simply because I don't think he plays that style well enough at this age and the fact that his game really hasn't gotten much better in a while. I don't think he's topped out or anything, he just isn't the type of player I see improving enough to reach that level of play. He's not a dominating player by any means even at the college level. Just a very solid, dependable guy.
When I see him, I can see a Brendan Witt (with a bit less of a mean streak). You know, a dependable defensive player who plays physical, has a decent but unspectacular stride, and who you know can log some minutes and give you solid play out there without worrying you.
To me, that's Mitera in a nutshell.
Mitrera will be a good top 4 defenceman. Wishart will as well, while Fischer will be an all around defenceman.
He's way quicker than Brenden Witt.
Things I think he does well
-Outlet passes
-Using the boards and angles to clear pucks instead of making dangerous passes
-Physical in the corners and in front of the net
-Positioning
-Usage of the stick, of the 7/8 games i've watched this year it seems like he takes alot of pucks off sticks
I like his defensive fundamentals alot, like I said before he had a stretch where teams just never scored when he was on the ice recently and I think he was paired with offensive guys while that streak occured.
*****in college*****
He could get better, he could regress, but lots changes once you get to the pros.
He's a good skater for his size, Witt has always seemed slow to me, Mitera looks faster. and his wingspan seems larger too.He's not "way quicker" than Witt. He's a slightly better skater. Witt is not an awful skater. He has an awkward stride, but he's not a plodding, stuck in mud kind of guy.
You like everything that he has that I like as well, but I still fail to see how he somehow translates from a pretty good college kid to an all world shut down defender like Regehr. Either I'm REALLY overrating Regehr or you're really overrating Mitera.
He's improved over last season, I would call that progress. You can attach this to any player.*****in college*****
He could get better, he could regress, but lots changes once you get to the pros.