Prospect Info: Matt Hackett

[BCS]

So that means we will for sure move one of Miller/Enroth in the offseason, am I right?

The writing's on the wall when it comes to Miller. His time in Buffalo is just about up.

 

[S319R11S16]

.........huh?

Unless Leggio is the 2nd coming of Tim Thomas, he is what he is -- a very solid starting AHL goalie that may or may not get a couple of cups of coffee in the NHL as a backup.

Leggio isn't really in the conversation of Sabres starting goalie. At all.

Why not? Obviously he isn't 22 years old but the guy is putting up killer numbers in the AHL. Why would you NOT give him a look at the gig for a few years before one of the younger guys is ready to take over?

 

[S319R11S16]

That .921 SVP his rookie year has me excited. Shocked he went 3-6 with those numbers but that probably had more to do with the wild last year. Since he's already 23 will he be ready for next year as atleast a backup job? I wouldn't mind if he got a start or two down the stretch, we got 4 call ups might as well use one on him.

They've already used 3 of them.

Flynn, Adam, and Pysyk were sent down and called up yesterday.

 

[SatanwasaSlovak]

Seriously, trade Enroth because that guy will never be a solid NHL-goalkeeper.

 

[vcv]

Seriously, trade Enroth because that guy will never be a solid NHL-goalkeeper.

Or let him be a backup which he seems alright at...

 

[RazielMoshman]

I'm interested in what this means, do we go with Enroth and Hackett or is Enroth on the block now? Thanks for the info Minnesota fans. Like what I see in him.

And no Ruff to ruin him. *sRacial Slur*.

 

[RazielMoshman]

They've already used 3 of them.

Flynn, Adam, and Pysyk were sent down and called up yesterday.

By all accounts thats all that'll happen as well. Darcy mentioned something about keeping the 4th as an emergency.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I'm obviously not a Wild fan, but having seen Hackett and the Aeros a fair bit both in last year's AHL playoffs and this season against OKC during the lockout I can tell you that he is a solid goaltender and not a bit prospect like what Calgary got in the Iginla trade. He played very well against our NHL level talent when they were down there: Hall, RNH, Eberle, Paajarvi (who has looked better at the NHL level than AHL level this year), and Justin Schultz. So if he can do that while having a hybrid AHL/NHL defense in front of him, then you know that the guy has the talent to be a good goaltender.

 

[sens83]

I posted this in the draft thread but it seems more appropriate here.

Do you think the trade for Hackett has future implications for Miller being traded this Summer or in the future? From your experience is Hackett one of the top 5 goalie prospects in the league. His grade of 7.5C is equivalent to Lehner (7.5C) who many consider the top goalie prospect in addition to Markstrom.

Sens fan coming in peace. Well actually a B-Sens fan. Watched Hackett vs. Lehner in the Calder Cup Finals a few years back. While Hackett is a decent goalie, he seemed to really struggle under pressure. A 19 yr old Robin Lehner beat him out that year. I haven't seen Hackett play in two years because of the AHL scheduling but if he's developing alongside Lehner and Markstrom he could be a decent pick.

Frankly, I'm a little irritated that BMurray didn't flip you guys Bishop and a prospect/pick for Pomm.

 

[vcv]

Sens fan coming in peace. Well actually a B-Sens fan. Watched Hackett vs. Lehner in the Calder Cup Finals a few years back. While Hackett is a decent goalie, he seemed to really struggle under pressure. A 19 yr old Robin Lehner beat him out that year. I haven't seen Hackett play in two years because of the AHL scheduling but if he's developing alongside Lehner and Markstrom he could be a decent pick.

Frankly, I'm a little irritated that BMurray didn't flip you guys Bishop and a prospect/pick for Pomm.

And a 1st and another pick.

 

[CarlWinslow]

And a second 1st just because they are Ottawa.

 

[Jame]

I'm interested in what this means, do we go with Enroth and Hackett or is Enroth on the block now? Thanks for the info Minnesota fans. Like what I see in him.

And no Ruff to ruin him. *sRacial Slur*.

I hope we get to see Enroth and Hackett battle it out for starts next year...

Goalie Controversy?!??!?!!

 

[Zip15]

One of my favorite goalie prospects in the league. Glad to have him. It'll be interesting to see where he is next year.

Also I don't expect ROC to use him much because of Leggio. Which is unfortunate.

Given how overused Leggio has been to date, I hope they get a near 50-50 split the rest of the way, with Leggio being the (rested) #1 heading into the playoffs.

 

[Sean McG]

Finally got around to watching Hackett's first game against San Jose. I didn't write anything down, but a couple of things stood out to me:

General facts:
- Link to a boxscore of the game.
- Played December 6, 2011.
- Minnesota won 2-1.
- San Jose outshot them 42-21.
- Josh Harding actually started this game, but got hurt 71 seconds in. Hackett came in and made 34/34 saves.
- It was Hackett's first ever NHL appearance.

Good:
- He was incredibly poised. I know as a goalie growing up that it was difficult enough as a kid coming into a game that you didn't think you were playing in, let alone your first NHL game, on the road.
- Basically didn't look flustered the entire game. Really didn't make it look difficult.
- Lots of kick saves. Does an alright job of kicking pucks out of harms way.
- The fact he didn't get beat is obviously a positive.
- Came into the game down 1-0 and his team won 2-1. I'd say San Jose dominated most of the play, and in the final minute they were pressing pretty hard but he made at least 3-4 saves in the last minute.
- Lateral quickness looked nice.
- Glove hand. Heard this a lot about him, and it seemed as-advertised. Made a really nice glove save with just over a minute left.

Bad:
- Rebound control. It wasn't hurting the team or anything, but it could be improved. Would've preferred to see him absorb more shots.
- San Jose had a lot of shots, but he wasn't really challenged that often. Felt like most of his saves came off of pretty clear shots. That's not really a negative for him, he still needs to make those stops, but his 34 saves look a lot nicer on paper.
- There were a couple of chances where the puck slid around the crease/net area that would've been goals if someone was there. I'm kinda nitpicking there, cause it's pretty hard to list a bunch of negatives when a guy doesn't let in a goalie and doesn't really get tested that much...


If you have GameCenter or any other way of watching archived games, it's definitely worth a watch to get a better idea on how he plays. If I can find the time I'll try and take a look at some of his other NHL starts, and this time I'll write some stuff down as I watch. Will try and get to Larsson's first (and only) NHL game as well.

 

[ZZamboni]

Thanks Sean


It would be nice to keep a running evaluation of his past and future games.

 

[sjci]

Hackett may be getting the start tomorrow

 

[Woodhouse]

Via Bakes:

 

[ZZamboni]

Well, from that video at least, it seems Hackett rarely overcommits. Quick lateral movement, good glove hand, has good patience. Good to see.

 

[vcv]

Well, from that video at least, it seems Hackett rarely overcommits. Quick lateral movement, good glove hand, has good patience. Good to see.

Obviously hard to make conclusions from limited viewing, but I see:
- Technically sound
- Quick lateral movement
- Reads the play well

Excited to see what he can do.

 

[Mit Yarrum]

Finally got around to watching Hackett's first game against San Jose. I didn't write anything down, but a couple of things stood out to me:

General facts:
- Link to a boxscore of the game.
- Played December 6, 2011.
- Minnesota won 2-1.
- San Jose outshot them 42-21.
- Josh Harding actually started this game, but got hurt 71 seconds in. Hackett came in and made 34/34 saves.
- It was Hackett's first ever NHL appearance.

Good:
- He was incredibly poised. I know as a goalie growing up that it was difficult enough as a kid coming into a game that you didn't think you were playing in, let alone your first NHL game, on the road.
- Basically didn't look flustered the entire game. Really didn't make it look difficult.
- Lots of kick saves. Does an alright job of kicking pucks out of harms way.
- The fact he didn't get beat is obviously a positive.
- Came into the game down 1-0 and his team won 2-1. I'd say San Jose dominated most of the play, and in the final minute they were pressing pretty hard but he made at least 3-4 saves in the last minute.
- Lateral quickness looked nice.
- Glove hand. Heard this a lot about him, and it seemed as-advertised. Made a really nice glove save with just over a minute left.

Bad:
- Rebound control. It wasn't hurting the team or anything, but it could be improved. Would've preferred to see him absorb more shots.
- San Jose had a lot of shots, but he wasn't really challenged that often. Felt like most of his saves came off of pretty clear shots. That's not really a negative for him, he still needs to make those stops, but his 34 saves look a lot nicer on paper.
- There were a couple of chances where the puck slid around the crease/net area that would've been goals if someone was there. I'm kinda nitpicking there, cause it's pretty hard to list a bunch of negatives when a guy doesn't let in a goalie and doesn't really get tested that much...


If you have GameCenter or any other way of watching archived games, it's definitely worth a watch to get a better idea on how he plays. If I can find the time I'll try and take a look at some of his other NHL starts, and this time I'll write some stuff down as I watch. Will try and get to Larsson's first (and only) NHL game as well.

Great post.

 

[Woodhouse]

Well, from that video at least, it seems Hackett rarely overcommits. Quick lateral movement, good glove hand, has good patience. Good to see.

Obviously hard to make conclusions from limited viewing, but I see:
- Technically sound
- Quick lateral movement
- Reads the play well

Excited to see what he can do.

I agree .. if you want to see how his GA compare, see below:

 

[Paxon]

Sens fan coming in peace. Well actually a B-Sens fan. Watched Hackett vs. Lehner in the Calder Cup Finals a few years back. While Hackett is a decent goalie, he seemed to really struggle under pressure. A 19 yr old Robin Lehner beat him out that year. I haven't seen Hackett play in two years because of the AHL scheduling but if he's developing alongside Lehner and Markstrom he could be a decent pick.

Frankly, I'm a little irritated that BMurray didn't flip you guys Bishop and a prospect/pick for Pomm.

There's no doubt Lehner is a better prospect, he's one of a few guys a definite cut above Hackett. With regards to Bishop, you got a really nice return. He's an intriguing guy but most of the people I've talked to agree Tampa Bay made a bad move there. Conacher is going to help provide the Sens with scoring depth. Really interested to see them play next season fully healthy.

 

[rsg87]

Won his first start today in a shootout 3-2. He was the game's first star.

 

[Paxon]

Won his first start today in a shootout 3-2. He was the game's first star.

39 stops. From those who watched the game, it sounds like the team got handily outplayed. I hope the Amerks show a bunch of his saves when they put the game highlights up.

Excited to see how this kid's career turns out. Good size, lots of athletic ability, and a very good pedigree. You can never tell if a goalie will be an above-average starter, an average starter, or a back-up, but he very much looks like an NHLer at this point.

 

[Mit Yarrum]

Good to hear. The Sabres badly needed someone at his level of development in the system. There was a huge hole.