Player Discussion: Michael Dal Colle

[buud]

at the start of the year, i did not give MDC more than 1% chance to make it. i thought he was destined for a career in the A.

he certainly should have been better, IMO, but there are lots of intangibles that we aren't privy to seeing. oe thing that comes to mind, is the dreaded 'practice player' syndrome. he looks great in practice, but chokes in games. i know more than a few guys like this.

anyway, just glad that he now has become a useful player. i almost cry when i think of what we could have had, instead of him and JHS. gotta look forward though. can't go back and change things.

 

[dlawong]

Maybe he is a late bloomer and one Isles do not at this point need to protect nor likely lose him to waiver or Seattle if unprotected. If he starts to show more of what we saw in his draft year after the Seattle waiver draft and put more numbers up on the scoreboard then maybe is it a blessing in disguise.

I remember that Patrick Sharp was a real late bloomer played 3 years in AHL after 2 years of college hockey before becoming full time NHL player and contribute and he had all stars to play with, like Patrick Can and then very good young Toews .

 

[Tres Peleches]

Woof.

looks like we’ll be seeing more of MDC

 

[MJF]

Woof.

looks like we’ll be seeing more of MDC

Nothing wrong with that, imo. He skates with Brock and Bailey, JGP with Tito and Wahlstrom work well together too.

 

[Tres Peleches]

Nothing wrong with that, imo. He skates with Brock and Bailey, JGP with Tito and Wahlstrom work well together too.

The woof was more about Bellows than MDC haha

 

[danteipp]

The woof was more about Bellows than MDC haha

It is crazy, in that draft I was really hoping to move up a few spots and grab Jakub Chychrun (thinking all of the reports of him dropping were just because people had unfairly scrutinized him since he was 15 years old) or sit tight and maybe snag Luke Kunin.

I never thought Bellows would be there, so I didn't watch much of him. That said, it appears a lot of his issues at this point are self-inflicted. He has had a few years now to learn what Lou and Trotz want to see from him, yet has clearly not adjusted his game and also made poor decisions overall.

I think his time might be coming to an end, given the way Wahlstrom has stepped up and MDC has evolved his game. It will be interesting to watch how he is handled over the next few weeks.

 

[scottywiper]

No MDC no Isles.

 

[MJF]

The woof was more about Bellows than MDC haha

Ok gotcha.

 

[BrockLobster]

MDC shows me more than bellows TBH

 

[Big L]

 

[Nassau Revisited]

He probably was embarrassing his teammates because he kept going to the toy department.

 

[blinkman360]

He was given all the time on the earth to develop, other players are not given that same luxury for some reason even if they look better in the brief time they are given

Not really though. I mean, it might seem like that because he's a former top-5 pick, but in reality his trajectory was that of a mid-round pick. 2 full years in the AHL then working his way up from the bottom of the lineup. By this logic guys like Pelech and Mayfield were given all the time in the world. Cizikas had a similar development arc if you don't want to look at defensemen. I think as long as you show improvement and bring at least some kind of value to the team, you'll get a spot. MDC has at the very least been bringing value to the 4th line for a couple of years now. He wouldn't have been playing under Trotz if he was a liability. Trotz doesn't exactly enjoy playing kids over vets, and I don't think he could have given two fawks about whether or not our top-5 pick from 2014 panned out.

Either way, I think we need to learn from the Bailey situation. Once you forget about draft placement and teenage hype, it's a lot easier to look at a player and determine whether or not they're a net-positive.

 

[Strait2thecup]

I don’t wanna rain on the MDC parade and yes his board play and compete have been good this year, but he has 2 shots on goal in 8 games. Still don’t know if I’m sold on him being a real nhler

 

[Isles Junkie]

he certainly has had trouble getting quality chances, but he is playing a solid game. working hard, checking, some smart passes. if he can play a defensively responsible game, allowing Brock and Eberle to cheat down low. he may be good in front of the net, on the PP. tipping shots and battling for dirty goals.

trying to think of a comparable.

Trent Hunter?

Without looking it up, Trent scored 25 goals his rookie year. At this rate, it'll take MDC the next 10 years to get to 25 career goals. MDC is also a significantly better skater than Trent was.

I don't know what MDC will be. But there aren't many players in the league who don't score, play sound defensively but don't play a physical game.

I just don't understand what he is at this point.

 

[Nassau Revisited]

Without looking it up, Trent scored 25 goals his rookie year. At this rate, it'll take MDC the next 10 years to get to 25 career goals. MDC is also a significantly better skater than Trent was.

I don't know what MDC will be. But there aren't many players in the league who don't score, play sound defensively but don't play a physical game.

I just don't understand what he is at this point.

He is a plug. He can fill in as 13th or 14th forward and he won’t make you lose but he won’t help you win

 

[Quickdraw2828]

No MDC no Isles.

I actually think its No Isles no MDC. I can't think of another team that would want him and his lack of scoring. He fits in on the Isles because he works hard on the ice and doesn't make costly mistakes that lead to goals for the other team. Since every game for the Islanders seems to be 2-2 in the final period Lou wants to make damn sure no one does anything stupid on the defensive end. I think thats why Ho Sang and Bellows aren't trusted.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Looks like a 3rd line do the dirty work winger, would like some more offence, but he is a net positive and not a negative. Maybe he will rotate with Komarov to keep him and whomever Trotz slides in on the 3rd line. I did like the way the Pageau, Wally, MDC line played tonight. Perhaps give them an extended run.

 

[CupHolders]

Looks like a 3rd line do the dirty work winger, would like some more offence, but he is a net positive and not a negative. Maybe he will rotate with Komarov to keep him and whomever Trotz slides in on the 3rd line. I did like the way the Pageau, Wally, MDC line played tonight. Perhaps give them an extended run.

I wonder if he can be worked into the penalty kill? Doesn’t have the best first step. But if he can utilize his reach and anticipation he may be pretty successful.

I bring this up more from the perspective of what would benefit Dal Colle’s career, rather than something the Isles NEED to investigate.

 

[Bill Herlyn]

I think that Dal Colle was killing penalties at Bridgeport a few seasons back if I recall correctly. Might not be a bad idea to allow him to kill a few for the
Islanders.

 

[Richie Daggers Crime]

I wonder if he can be worked into the penalty kill?

I get the sense that Trotz trusts veterans with PK duty. My guess is once the Komarovs and Clutterbucks fall away, he'll gain responsibility there. His skating has improved quite a bit and he's a good, conservative decision maker, so I think he'll eventually thrive in that role.

 

[MJF]

I get the sense that Trotz trusts veterans with PK duty. My guess is once the Komarovs and Clutterbucks fall away, he'll gain responsibility there. His skating has improved quite a bit and he's a good, conservative decision maker, so I think he'll eventually thrive in that role.

I agree with the bolded.

I think Trotz sets a low bar for rookies, gives them a chance to succeed at that, gives them more ice time, then increases their responsibilities. It's when they fail to succeed at the low bar that the player ends up a healthy scratch, and that's when the fans get cranky and start complaining about the coach favoring vets, not letting the rookie learn on the fly, and "how is he going to get any better if he sits and Leo plays".

We've already seen Noah Dobson on the ice in overtime. At some point this season I expect to see Dobson on the ice in the last minute of a game we're trying to close out. That will come as he continues to do well with the minutes Trotz gives him.