Prospect Info: Martin Kaut RW (2018 #16 overall) l ELC signed 7/5/18

[Tommy Shelby]

Really hoping they find a Czech free agent to add to the Eagles to help the guy out. He'll have Franc but who knows for how long with the way Varly is an injury magnet.

 

[Ararana]

Any contract nuts know if the first year of his ELC will slide like Rantanen's? Isn't that based on his birth month?

 

[BleedWell]

Any contract nuts know if the first year of his ELC will slide like Rantanen's? Isn't that based on his birth month?

No. It's based on does he play more than 9 games or not.

 

[GirardSpinorama]

We needed size, a RHS, and he fits our team going after; high hockey sense all-around players that can compliment each other. He can easily take Landy's spot or play next to Jost. He also will get seasoning in the AHL (where we have a need for another forward), and we know how well it worked for Rantanen.

 

[GirardSpinorama]

I see a slightly slower but similar path to Rantanen.

1 full year in the AHL. (full slide, 9 game tryout), not as dominant as Rantanen, but solid first line AHLer numbers (maybe 60 point pace). Half year in the AHL in year 2, dominant all star numbers in the AHL (ppg), 4th line role in the NHL. 3rd year, full year in the NHL, 20 goals-40 points. 4th year, Rantanen 2.0

 

[cgf]

Exactly, and it's the perfect type of pick to make at that range in a draft like this. I know some here are enamored with a swing for the fences approach but no team will base their whole draft strategy on that philosophy. The NHL is a results-driven business.

I can get behind riskier picks in later rounds and weaker drafts (like last year) but I'll always be on the more cautious side when it comes to drafting.

It's not that we philosophically think every pick should be a swing for the fence type pick for every team. It's that we look at the Avs' u25 roster & prospect pipeline, and our extra picks next year, and we see a lot of B-pieces but few top-end forwards beyond the top line. So our camp believes in rolling the dice with our picks this year & next because our circumstances; rather than a belief that our team should base their whole draft strategy on a swing-for-the-fences-at-all-times philosophy.

 

[the_fan]

Love the pick, hopefully he's 100% healthy and wont have anymore heart issues

 

[Tommy Shelby]

It's not that we philosophically think every pick should be a swing for the fence type pick for every team. It's that we look at the Avs' u25 roster & prospect pipeline, and our extra picks next year, and we see a lot of B-pieces but few top-end forwards beyond the top line. So our camp believes in rolling the dice with our picks this year & next because our circumstances; rather than a belief that our team should base their whole draft strategy on a swing-for-the-fences-at-all-times philosophy.

Fair enough. Like I said, it's okay to have a mix of boom or busts and sure things, but it's about when to make the which selection that matters most. (For the record I was a huge Bokk pusher but I think Kaut will be the better player and it was the right call)

 

[cgf]

Fair enough. Like I said, it's okay to have a mix of boom or busts and sure things, but it's about when to make the which selection that matters most. (For the record I was a huge Bokk pusher but I think Kaut will be the better player and it was the right call)

True, I just think this draft & next is the right time to make those kinds of picks given just how many middle-6 prospects we already have & how good the blueline is looking moving forward.

 

[GirardSpinorama]

the steady “sure things” can turn into star players. rantanen for example. Nothing truly elite but his size. Hockey sense borders on elite, but just superb everywhere else and no real deficiencies.

 

[cgf]

the steady “sure things” can turn into star players. rantanen for example. Nothing truly elite but his size. Hockey sense borders on elite, but just superb everywhere else and no real deficiencies.

Rantanen wasn't a sure thing at all, his offensive upside was a big boom or bust thing since he only seemed to realize just how good he was at his draft year WJC.

Crouse was the "safe" pick.

 

[GirardSpinorama]

Rantanen wasn't a sure thing at all, his offensive upside was a big boom or bust thing since he only seemed to realize just how good he was at his draft year WJC.

Crouse was the "safe" pick.

Not how i remembered it. Rantanen was already producing in a men’s league. There was no concern he would bust, unlike Crouse who had major deficiencies in his offensive game. Crouse was just a big power guy who if he doesnt produce offensively can still be a contributor. A boom lucic or bust kassian type. Rantanen’s biggest question was not using his size enough.

 

[Tommy Shelby]

Not how i remembered it. Rantanen was already producing in a men’s league. There was no concern he would bust, unlike Crouse who had major deficiencies in his offensive game. Crouse was just a big power guy who if he doesnt produce offensively can still be a contributor. A boom lucic or bust kassian type. Rantanen’s biggest question was not using his size enough.

I can't remember any question marks about Rantanen either. Basically he just needed to get bulkier and stronger (which he did)

I was always worried that Crouse was a big body dominating a boy's league.

 

[cgf]

There were a lot of questions about Mikko ever being a scorer in the nhl, thus all of the media folks comparing him to defensive forwards like Lehtonen. Many of us were sold on his skill & used the Wheeler/Voracek comps right away, but there was a lot of the press that didn't

Whereas Crouse was viewed the way Tkachuk is now by a lot of national draft press.

 

[BleedWell]

There were a lot of questions about Mikko ever being a scorer in the nhl, thus all of the media folks comparing him to defensive forwards like Lehtonen. Many of us were sold on his skill & used the Wheeler/Voracek comps right away, but there was a lot of the press that didn't

Whereas Crouse was viewed the way Tkachuk is now by a lot of national draft press.

Nonesense. Nobody thought or said he's gonna be a bust Only question was will he be a first or a second liner.

 

[cgf]

Nonesense. Nobody thought or said he's gonna be a bust Only question was will he be a first or a second liner.

Fair enough. Nobody reasonable thought he would bust, but I don't think anyone's really worried about Bokk busting either, are they? The boom or bust comes in with whether Bokk be a dynamic scorer who rounds out his two way game or if he ends up just a ghetto/kerfoot type tweener.

 

[BleedWell]

Fair enough. Nobody reasonable thought he would bust, but I don't think anyone's really worried about Bokk busting either, are they? The boom or bust comes in with whether Bokk be a dynamic scorer who rounds out his two way game or if he ends up just a ghetto/kerfoot type tweener.

Yeah don't know enough about Bokk but Rantanen was never gonna be a bust.
But one thing about Rantanen that I don't think anyone saw developing so much and so fast was he's shot. That was kind of bad and he didn't use it before coming to the Ahl/Nhl. And now he has elite wrister and slapshot.

 

[cgf]

It was more that he never used it, but when he did he scored some clutch lazers with it. Learning to rely on it more was huge for him.

 

[CobraAcesS]

It was more that he never used it, but when he did he scored some clutch lazers with it. Learning to rely on it more was huge for him.

I do hope he hasn't permanently traded a high end offensive game for a complete lack of defense. He was a real responsible two way player before this year.

 

[Sea Eagles]

Guys, our top line is pretty set: Landeskog - Mackinnon - Rantanen

I also think Josty has got some stuff.

I really think Kaut could be the perfect winger (Big, skilled, and a set-up guy for him).

Know what, I'd love to get JVR through free agency so sometime this coming season or next, we have a second line of:
Van Reimsdyk - Jost - Kaut

Good medium term plan?

 

[GirardSpinorama]

Kerfoot-Jost-Kaut is solid imo

 

[Freudian]

You had me at "two-way".

 

[Bender]

Had Bender's draft guide on the laptop, had to scroll waaaaaaay down to find him at #40.

Tool-wise he's precisely what the Avs need, a guy who plays a 200-foot game and doesn't hesitate to head into the greasy areas to make plays. Also a good skater and isn't a beast, but has some size.

That said this feels like a "need" draft pick than a "best player available." Still, I like the kid and sure hope Hepple & Co. made the right choice.

Yeah lets hope this is a @Bender miss this time. We give Pronman **** for Landeskog still, so hopefully Bender gets some for a while lol.

So after watching that video, I can safely say that "I get it". Seems like a great kid with the right kind of attitude for sure.

On my end, I only get one part of the equation...I don't get to meet any of these kids...I don't know what they are like in real life; if they are humble or conceited a-holes or what not.

A few people in this thread, I think really hit the nail on the head...the Avs swung for the fences last year with Makar so this year, they went with a player they felt was going to be a solid pro but maybe not necessarily a superstar.

For pick #16, I definitely wanted Serron Noel and if not, Jonatan Berggren. I believe those guys have tremendous potential and it will be very interesting to see who has the better career out of those 3 guys along with Kaut.

In my draft guide, I compared him to 'Jason Pominville at his peak' as a best case scenario and I stand by that. If I'm wrong and he's way better than that, I'll be thrilled!

 

[S E P H]

Hepple says that they scouted him hard after his WJC performance, where they really liked what they saw. Also said that he plays a very mature style of game and never really looked like an 18 year old kid out there against men. Additionally, he mentioned that the Avs doctors and trainers passed him with flying colours with their own physical alongside all the paperwork they got from the Czech doctors.

Lastly, Hepple said that him coming over or staying in Czech is entirely up to him. He likes that already played against men, so the AHL shouldn't be that much of a change if he does decide to come over.

 

[Balthazar]

IMO he's nearly 30lbs away from being an NHLer. 6'2 174lbs is skinny as f*** even for his age group.

 

[quesosauce]

IMO he's nearly 30lbs away from being an NHLer. 6'2 174lbs is skinny as **** even for his age group.

hes only 18, id expect that by the time hes NHL ready he will be 200lbs or more

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

IMO he's nearly 30lbs away from being an NHLer. 6'2 174lbs is skinny as **** even for his age group.

I'm fine with that, I'd prefer to draft the guys that you can tell have the talent and smarts to play in the NHL but just aren't physically ready yet. Especially as he did pretty good in a men's league for his age. I'm not concerned about him getting stronger, I think he'll realize he needs to bulk up a bit when he joins the AHL team.