Nashville Vs St Louis forward group

[RR10]

Blues fan here. You guys have obviously better G and D, but im curious how you would rank the teams forwards overall?

Tarasenko – Forsberg
Schwartz – Arvidsson
Ryan O’Reilly – Johansen
Schenn – Turris
Fabbri – Fiala
Perron – Smith
Bozak – Järnkrok
Steen – Bonino
Maroon – Sissons
Thomas - Tolvanen
Kyrou - Hartman
Barbashev - Watson
Soshnikov - Salomaki

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[predfan24]

I'm not a big fan of comparing rosters player to player. It doesn't work that way on the ice.

On paper the Blues are undoubtedly improved up front. I think they are going to be back in the playoffs this year. ROR is a great pick up. Bozak is okay IMO. He can put up more points than Berglund but I don't see that switch as an upgrade necessarily. Schenn will probably level out as a 50-60 point player. Overall, the center depth is solid now. I think it compares well with Nashville. Perron was a part of a group of overachieving forwards last year. He will come back down to earth.

I think young players like Thomas, Kyrou and Tolvanen are wildcards in this battle.

We will just have to wait until the season starts to see which one is better. I see potential for a really good deep forward group with STL but you just never know how things will play out on the ice. I still see WPG/NSH as the clear class of the central but if the Blues' new acquisitions can form chemistry right away and Allen can play good hockey then they it wouldn't be a huge surprise if the Blues are right up there with them at the end of the year.

 

[RR10]

I would like to add that Fabbri is back from injury and he is very good when healthy. My favorites in central are Preds and Jets followed by the Blues. I think the forward groups are pretty even but maybe a slight favor for the Blues depth wise. Steen - Thomas - Bozak is probably a better third line than Järnkrok - Bonino - Tolvanen.

 

[triggrman]

Guess it depends on how you see Tolvanen. If he's the elite sniper he was in the KHL, things could be interesting. Bozak is 32 and he is what he is, Steen is 34 and for sure in a decline but both of those guys should still be above Jarnkrok and Bonino, although, Jarnkrok has made improvements every year so far and outscored both of those guys last season despite missing 15 games and is a fantastic penalty killer.

I think for Nashville, Fiala and Tolvanen will be the players to watch this year for growth.

I'd also guess Smith will play more on the 3rd line than Tolvanen by years end.

I also really like our bottom line of Hartman - Sissons - Watson

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

Wonder who was better up front "on paper" going into last season. Going to guess it wasn't us. Funny how these types of comparisons turn out.

 

[RR10]

although, Jarnkrok has made improvements every year so far and outscored both of those guys last season despite missing 15 games and is a fantastic penalty killer.

How?

Steen 46pts
Bozak 43pts
Järnkrok 35pts

And btw Thomas = Tolvanen. Thomas is more talented and projects better (1C/2C). He will be the Blues top center in 2 years.

 

[triggrman]

Jarnkrok scored more goals, sorry should have been more specific, he also missed 8-12 more games. Steen is aging though and has declined each of the last the 4 seasons, Jarnkrok likely out scores him this season.

And well see about Tolvanen.

Id like your take on Fiala v. Fabbri

 

[predfan24]

How?

Steen 46pts
Bozak 43pts
Järnkrok 35pts

And btw Thomas = Tolvanen. Thomas is more talented and projects better (1C/2C). He will be the Blues top center in 2 years.

Tolvanen is a more regarded prospect than Thomas at this point. Tolvanen did his magic in the second best league in the world. He did it at the Olympics. He did it in a man’s league that is known for chewing up and spitting out 18/19 year olds. Plenty of guys who tore up Major Junior never experienced anywhere near the same success at the NHL level. Tolvanen at this point has proven he is more likely to achieve success st the NHL level. I respected most of your views on this thread but now you are coming off as a homer.

 

[Pr0fet]

Think its a pretty even forward group on paper with a small advantage to the Blues due to Tarasenko. I’m hoping Forsberg keeps up the PPG pace this season and shows he can play on Tarasenkos level though.

 

[RR10]

Tolvanen is a more regarded prospect than Thomas at this point. Tolvanen did his magic in the second best league in the world. He did it at the Olympics. He did it in a man’s league that is known for chewing up and spitting out 18/19 year olds. Plenty of guys who tore up Major Junior never experienced anywhere near the same success at the NHL level. Tolvanen at this point has proven he is more likely to achieve success st the NHL level. I respected most of your views on this thread but now you are coming off as a homer.

You can´t make that point because none of them has been tested in NHL. There are plenty of players who does very well in KHL and are mediocre in NHL. I think Tolvanen will be pretty good but my gut feeling says Thomas will be the better of the two. He's also a center which is a plus. I'm not really a homer since I have the Preds 1st in central next season.

 

[RR10]

Id like your take on Fiala v. Fabbri

Right now Fiala but mainly because of Fabbris injuries. I think they will be even pretty soon if Fabbri can stay healthy. Fabbri had 15 pts in 20 Playoff games which shows what he is capable of.

 

[LeafingTheWay]

You can´t make that point because none of them has been tested in NHL. There are plenty of players who does very well in KHL and are mediocre in NHL. I think Tolvanen will be pretty good but my gut feeling says Thomas will be the better of the two. He's also a center which is a plus. I'm not really a homer since I have the Preds 1st in central next season.

That's where you are wrong (about plenty players doing well in KHL). Not only did he play in the KHL at 18 years old, he also set the record for points and PPG by an 18 year old.

The top-3 PPG 18 year old KHL players of all-time:
Tolvanen: 0.735
Kuznestov: 0.727
Tarasenko: 0.571

 

[glenngineer]

I think Tolvanen has potential but he looked lost in the few games he played last year. I think people are counting on him way too much to have any sort of impact. I don't think he's a good enough skater at this point. I sure hope I'm wrong but I was not impressed.

 

[FilthyScoresberg]

I think Tolvanen has potential but he looked lost in the few games he played last year. I think people are counting on him way too much to have any sort of impact. I don't think he's a good enough skater at this point. I sure hope I'm wrong but I was not impressed.

He’s a nervous kid. Now he’s been with the team for awhile, and his comfortability level should be better. And surely he’ll get more ice time this go-round.
It’s no coincidence that he put up better numbers as a rookie in the KHL than Kusnetsov and Tarasenko. Not to say he’s gonna be as good or better than them, but I’m hard-pressed to believe that he won’t be an impact player at some point in his career.

 

[Armourboy]

I got the feeling watching him play that he was spending lots of attention making sure he was covering his defensive assignments because he didnt want to mess up. Plus remember he stepped right into the middle of playoff push hockey. Fisher was in the league for years and was only off a few months and never did look like he caught up, so it shouldn't be surprising that it would be a shock to the system for Tolvanen.

I think getting to start from the beginning will do him some good instead of trying to step in mid stream.