Player Discussion Noah Hanifin

[Mobiandi]

I see it as:

PP1:
Gaudreau-Monahan-Tkachuk
Gio-Lindholm

PP2:
Bennett-Backlund-Neal
Brodie-Stone/Andersson

 

[Rubi]

Hamonic is a modern day Regehr, he has no place on the PP.

And no, neither Brodie or Giordano are just like forwards.

Well, both Gio and Brodie are excellent at jumping into the rush and are quite effective when they do it, which in my mind makes them the 4th forward on 5 on 5 play, so why wouldn't that hold true on the pp? On the PP I'd rather have two offensive minded D-man that know how and when to pinch and that can almost read each other's minds, than a 4th forward guarding the blue line.
As for Hamonic I think he would look fine on the PP teamed up with Hanifin. Hamonic guarding the line while Hanifin pinches when the opportunity arises.

 

[Lunatik]

Well, both Gio and Brodie are excellent at jumping into the rush and are quite effective when they do it, which in my mind makes them the 4th forward on 5 on 5 play, so why wouldn't that hold true on the pp? On the PP I'd rather have two offensive minded D-man that know how and when to pinch and that can almost read each other's minds, than a 4th forward guarding the blue line.
As for Hamonic I think he would look fine on the PP teamed up with Hanifin. Hamonic guarding the line while Hanifin pinches when the opportunity arises.

Jumping into the rush and running a powerplay are nothing alike. There will be 4 forwards on the top unit, you can take that to the bank, basically every NHL team does this now because it results in more goals for. So the guy we want playing the point needs to be able to skate, adept at keeping the puck in, has a good shot and can move the puck. The 4th forward rarely guards the line, they move up and play the half wall.

I love Hamonic, but using him on the PP over any of our top 10-11 forwards would be an absolutely stupid decision.

 

[super6646]

I would think Hanifin and Stone could be decent PP quarterbacks. Brodie and Hamonic shouldn't get much time on the PP, and Giordano is maybe.

 

[Volica]

I would think Hanifin and Stone could be decent PP quarterbacks. Brodie and Hamonic shouldn't get much time on the PP, and Giordano is maybe.

Stone doesn't skate or think the game at a high enough level to be a PP Quarterback. He's pretty much your blueprint RH Bomb. You'd run the PP through their the LD or a forward.

 

[Lunatik]

Stone doesn't skate or think the game at a high enough level to be a PP Quarterback. He's pretty much your blueprint RH Bomb. You'd run the PP through their the LD or a forward.

He's also a bit too slow getting off the bomb, so it's not a steady weapon you can use either. Not like when we had Wideman, where he could get it off pretty quickly.

 

[Rubi]

Jumping into the rush and running a powerplay are nothing alike. There will be 4 forwards on the top unit, you can take that to the bank, basically every NHL team does this now because it results in more goals for. So the guy we want playing the point needs to be able to skate, adept at keeping the puck in, has a good shot and can move the puck. The 4th forward rarely guards the line, they move up and play the half wall.

I love Hamonic, but using him on the PP over any of our top 10-11 forwards would be an absolutely stupid decision.

I guess I'm old fashioned then. I think back to all those Canada - Soviet games I saw where the Soviets would operate in 5-man units whether it was 5 on 5 or the PP. Watching those units was like watching a well oiled machine work. Each man in each unit knew each other so well there weren't a lot of mistakes made and everyone knew where they were supposed to be for the next pass.
I see JG-Mony-Lindholm/Gio-Brodie as one unit and Chucky-Backs-Neal/Hanifin-Hamonic as the other unit with perhaps Hamonic being replaced by Andersson or Valimaki if either of those two make the team this year (just on the PP... not on the 2nd D line.).
I could see Hanifin being the lone d-man on the 2nd PP unit if he's up to it. I just hate to split Gio and Brodie up (on the PP) as they've played so well together in the past. I don't want to see Brodie as the lone d-man on a PP unit. I just don't think he's responsible enough defensively.
As for the 4th forward guarding the line, he has to move back to protect the line if the other team gains possession on his side and his d-man is on the other side.... and frankly in a lot of cases that's a recipe for disaster. I'd rather have a d-man playing the half wall on either side.
My preference has always been 3-2 units if you have the horses (offensively talented d-men) to do it..... but then again maybe that's my age showing. I look at a 4-1 unit being great if you don't have the offensive d-men horses to do two 3-2 units.

 

[Siignal]

The main boards' constant yammering about sheltered minutes and production up until this point is nauseating and would lead one to believe he's peaked.

He was consensus top 5, and 50% had him third behind McD/Eichel.

People have serious myopia when looking to criticize.

 

[Volica]

The main boards' constant yammering about sheltered minutes and production up until this point is nauseating and would lead one to believe he's peaked.

He was consensus top 5, and 50% had him third behind McD/Eichel.

People have serious myopia when looking to criticize.

Calgary may actually be one of the most disliked teams on this site for our size. I wouldn’t take much the main boards says with any kind of impact.

 

[DomBarr]

The main boards' constant yammering about sheltered minutes and production up until this point is nauseating and would lead one to believe he's peaked.

He was consensus top 5, and 50% had him third behind McD/Eichel.

People have serious myopia when looking to criticize.

I have no problem with it usually but when it comes to Hanifin and even Lindholm they keep forgetting that Calgary had hired Peters before the trade so if Peters thought that both players had hit their ceilings or if Hanifin will always need sheltering then chances are we would not have made the trade with them. This was a trade that Treliving HAD to win and Peters has a vested interest in ensuring that he had the best possible players on the Flames.
Calgary held all the cards in the trade. We had a player that everyone that counts views as a bonifide young top pairing RH Dman signed to a good value contract (one of the rarest of all assets) plus in depth knowledge that only a coach would know of the players being offered in return.

 

[JPeeper]

I see it as:

PP1:
Gaudreau-Monahan-Tkachuk
Gio-Lindholm

PP2:
Bennett-Backlund-Neal
Brodie-Stone/Andersson

I'd switch Lindholm and Neal. I think they use Neal for the off side one timer which has been lacking for years and is actually stupidly dangerous. Lindholm as the front man on the 2nd unit (where Tkachuk is for the 1st unit), as Lindholm is also really good at tipping the puck in front. Hanifin over Stone though, better at every aspect of the game. If they really want to load it up put Janko instead of Brodie.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

I’m probably in the minority here, but I’d play Gio on the top unit PP and Hanifin on the 2nd. I love Brodie but he doesn’t have the offensive upside that Hanifin has. I would bet Hanifin outscores Brodie pretty much every season going forward for the rest of their careers.

 

[Mobiandi]

I'd switch Lindholm and Neal. I think they use Neal for the off side one timer which has been lacking for years and is actually stupidly dangerous. Lindholm as the front man on the 2nd unit (where Tkachuk is for the 1st unit), as Lindholm is also really good at tipping the puck in front. Hanifin over Stone though, better at every aspect of the game. If they really want to load it up put Janko instead of Brodie.

I think Lindholm is going to be there purely because he's a RHS and Peters likes have a righty to take faceoffs on the right side.

I think Brodie is a top 2 playmaker on this team when given free rein. The guy racks up a lot of assists. Him and Neal on the same unit could be deadly. Stone is there because I'm old fashioned and like a guy with a good slapper from the point on at least one unit. Although I could see either of Hanifin or Andersson taking his spot.

Janko on the PP reminds too much of Joe Colborne. Until he shows another gear, no thanks

 

[Ace Rimmer]

 

[OvermanKingGainer]

I think Lindholm is going to be there purely because he's a RHS and Peters likes have a righty to take faceoffs on the right side.

I think Brodie is a top 2 playmaker on this team when given free rein. The guy racks up a lot of assists. Him and Neal on the same unit could be deadly. Stone is there because I'm old fashioned and like a guy with a good slapper from the point on at least one unit. Although I could see either of Hanifin or Andersson taking his spot.

Janko on the PP reminds too much of Joe Colborne. Until he shows another gear, no thanks

Janko's never been used properly on the PP. His game is sniping absolute one-time blasts from the right circle top corner. If Geoff Ward wants to use his personnel to the max potential he should be doing something like:


Hanifin/Brodie (Point)
Czarnik/Ryan (Left) - Bennett/Backlund (Slot) - Jankowski/Giordano (Right)
Neal (Net Front)

With Neal and Jankowski constantly moving and switching places as both guys can absolutely snipe from that spot. The confusion would be great. Czarnik plays the left side half-wall, which puts him in perfect position to set up a left shot forward in the middle for a quick shot. In this setup, you've got Czarnik able to set up everyone with a quick shot.

Right now the PP2 setup is:

Brodie (Point)
Backlund (Left) - Ryan (Slot) - Czarnik (Right)
Neal (Net Front)

There are quite a few issues with this setup in my opinion:

- The first is that Czarnik as our "setup guy" can't rotate around to set up Neal for a one-timer. There are only two places Neal can move to for a one-timer, a quick switch with Ryan to the center of the ice or switch with Czarnik at the right circle. But Czarnik can't elude PKing pressure if the puck is on his stick, which it will be as he is our de facto QB. But even if Neal switches with Ryan, Czarnik from the right would have to pass across from the LHS Neal's body and take away the quick shot. It doesn't make any sense (and that applies to our PP1 too - if Monahan's your slot guy, Lindholm can't pass across to him from the right, so Lindholm on the left makes more sense even from a passing perspective). What we end up with is Neal rarely in ready position for one-timer if Czarnik has the puck.

- The second issue with the current setup is that Ryan has a worse shot than Giordano, Neal, Jankowski, and Bennett. He's a passer, not a shooter.

- Perhaps the biggest issue is that in these positions neither Backlund or Czarnik are ready to unload, so Brodie's passing skill becomes neutralized. We've seen Brodie at his best on the PP when he has a Versteeg to his left or a Giordano to his right. You have to give Brodie targets to set up, he's not a guy who you want as the shooter on a PP.

- Finally, the last issue is again the one of passing across the body. Czarnik from the right safely can't set up Brodie at the point without Brodie needing to collect the puck. Meanwhile if Brodie passes to Backlund on his left, there is very little threat and teams will give them that all day every day. It's doomed to fail. Either replace Brodie/Hanifin with a RHS or have the passer on Brodie's left so they can play an actual dangerous two man game to open up a shooting lane from the point.

It's not rocket science.

 

[Lunatik]

He seems like a very excitable chap

 

[Fig]

He seems like a very excitable chap

Unlike Neal, I guess he's not a golfer.

 

[Volica]

So. I was reading an article this morning on SN, about this trade and the ramifications and results so far.
One thing I saw in the article was the: Hanifin's ceiling, is well, Hamilton.

Anyone else see them as two very, very different players? Would making that assessment seem kind of lazy at this point of time?

What's everyone's thoughts? What can this guy be for us? I really see 1D in the making; a guy who could be a team's number 1D very shortly. He's already getting hammered on match-ups and defensive starts, taking it all in stride.

 

[Anglesmith]

Yes, that's extremely lazy. It's hard for me to compare Hamilton to other NHL defencemen, because he has a bit of a unique style. Hanifin is a lot more prototypical, IMO.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

In all honesty, Dougie will be likely the safer bet to produce more points year in and year out. But Hanifin is the dman every single team in the league wants. He’s an elite skater and passer, has good size, excellent all around awareness and good positioning. Can run a PP as a QB and has top offensive instincts. As others have mentioned, the only thing Hamilton has on Hanifin is a point shot. Just a really smart guy.

Dougie is also an excellent skater, but he’s not as good of a passer and his overall IQ and discipline are much much lower than Hanifin’s.

 

[Ace Rimmer]

I think Hanifin's ceiling is less Dougie, and more Giordano.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

I think Hanifin's ceiling is less Dougie, and more Giordano.

I think he’s very similar to Seth Jones.

 

[thefutures]

Hows he lookin, only produced 1 point. Is he gettin chances?

 

[SKRusty]

Hows he lookin, only produced 1 point. Is he gettin chances?

The kid was really thrown a curve ball after the first game because Hammer's injury. After that the Flames played musical pairing partner until Hammer came back so his play reflected that turmoil.

That being said you can see the talent this kid has and it is only a matter of time until him and Hammer find their groove. Long term I see Hanifin as a first pairing d-man playing on the second pairing but that is only because Valimaki is going to be that good. Seth Jones does appear to be a good reference point.

 

[FerklundCGY]

Noah Hanifin's last 29 games:

- 19 points, including 13 5v5 points
- 54.73% CF% (1.84 Rel)
- 53.92% FF% (0.77 Rel)
- 54.73% SF% (2.12 Rel)
- 55.20% SCF% (1.19 Rel)
- 50.56% HDCF% (-3.93 Rel but whatevs)

Preeetty good.