Offseason Moves Part IV

[xECK29x]

Previous Edition: http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showthread.php?t=1920985

Carry on

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[TexMurphyPI]

the biggest problem with the Isles power play is their lack of effective one-timers

The entire forward group is horrible at one-timers. Not just lack of scoring, but the amount of just flat out whiffs and shanks is incredible.

 

[Brunomics]

The entire forward group is horrible at one-timers. Not just lack of scoring, but the amount of just flat out whiffs and shanks is incredible.

Boychuk at the left point on the power play makes too much sense. His shot is useless from the right side on it.

 

[SLAPSHOT723]

Boychuk at the left point on the power play makes too much sense. His shot is useless from the right side on it.

Same with Tavares on the left side, he's much better on the right. He actually has a pretty awesome one-timer, he just never uses it.

 

[Felix Unger]

Boychuk at the left point on the power play makes too much sense. His shot is useless from the right side on it.

I don't think Boychuk has a good enough release to merit organizing a power play around him.

Pulock is the magic bullet wrt the PP situation. He'll open up ice down low. That's all there is to it.

 

[SI90]

--------------[net ]-------------
..............Nelson/Lee............

Strome...........................Tavares
.
.
.
........ Pulock...............Leddy

PP unit #1

 

[rockhouse15]

From my perspective Tavares not having an exact role on the PP is killing their consistency. Out of all the forwards, and maybe all lefties on the team, Tavares has the best shot but spends too much time floating up and down the right side boards from the top of the circle to the goal line and not creating a threatening situation by stepping in with the puck then passing or moving himself in to a shooting lane to use his shot.

I don't mind him being versatile on the PP and using his skill sets as a puck-handler shooter, distributor, or presence in front but he's got to fully commit to a role when he gets there and be a threat as a shooter or passer. Maybe I'm looking at this wrong and he's simply trying to adjust to the PK set-up but those "transitional" moves he takes going up or down the side board completely slow down the player and puck movement on the PP.

 

[Brunomics]

I don't think Boychuk has a good enough release to merit organizing a power play around him.

Pulock is the magic bullet wrt the PP situation. He'll open up ice down low. That's all there is to it.

He can still let it rip. I'm not saying organize a power play around him. I think that's the wrong way to go about things. They need variety in what they do on the power play. Getting the puck to Boychuk for the one timer can work but as long as teams can respect it because 3 or 4 other options are available and dangerous as well.

 

[Felix Unger]

He can still let it rip. I'm not saying organize a power play around him. I think that's the wrong way to go about things. They need variety in what they do on the power play. Getting the puck to Boychuk for the one timer can work but as long as teams can respect it because 3 or 4 other options are available and dangerous as well.

Yeah, but it's hard to get him on the left side when Leddy likes to carry the puck up the middle/left. They have to switch in the zone, and Boychuk isn't the most agile guy with a ton of confidence at the point. There's a reason he's never been a really significant PP weapon.

 

[seafoam]

Pulock is the triggerman of the future. Whether he will be that guy this year or not remains to be seen (I think the Isles Brass wants it to be this year). When that happens, Boychuk will fit like a glove as the second unit triggerman. Leddy is our other #1 unit point man, and I'd like to see de Haan get a legit shot on the point on the second powerplay. I love Hammer, but his Orr-esque rushes at even strength are enough for me. Plus his ability to get shots through from up top is poor and I like opposite handedness points.


Nelson and Lee are the net guys. Personally, I like Nelson on the #1 unit. Can't go wrong with either though.

Then we have Tavares as the de facto #1 left dot guy. I really hope the presence of Pulock ends that left point/left side crap. Look at JT's highlights, he is deadly from his off side. Nielsen or Grabovski is my #2 left dot guy.

Last but not least....Strome is my #1 right dot guy. He's simply a better playmaker compared to K.O., who would get relegated to the #2 unit if I was Weight.

So in conclusion...

Strome-Nelson-Tavares
Pulock-Leddy

Okposo-Lee-Grabovski/Nielsen
Boychuk-de Haan

 

[CupHolders]

Same with Tavares on the left side, he's much better on the right. He actually has a pretty awesome one-timer, he just never uses it.

I recall him having a good one-timer in highlights at the junior level. However, at the NHL level I recall him woefully missing more often then actually scoring. These of course, are anecdotal observations only. I have no numerical evidence to back it up.

I actually, think the Isles move the puck well in the PP. However, they are so slow at getting their shots off that it almost makes it moot; goalie/defender are back in position for the save/block.

 

[seafoam]

 

[CodeE]

I have this rare photograph of Garth Snow being told that every year, on July 1st, you can sign free agents to play for your hockey team and add talent without sacrificing defensive prospects or draft picks.

 

[SDIsles34]

Pulock is the triggerman of the future. Whether he will be that guy this year or not remains to be seen (I think the Isles Brass wants it to be this year). When that happens, Boychuk will fit like a glove as the second unit triggerman. Leddy is our other #1 unit point man, and I'd like to see de Haan get a legit shot on the point on the second powerplay. I love Hammer, but his Orr-esque rushes at even strength are enough for me. Plus his ability to get shots through from up top is poor and I like opposite handedness points.


Nelson and Lee are the net guys. Personally, I like Nelson on the #1 unit. Can't go wrong with either though.

Then we have Tavares as the de facto #1 left dot guy. I really hope the presence of Pulock ends that left point/left side crap. Look at JT's highlights, he is deadly from his off side. Nielsen or Grabovski is my #2 left dot guy.

Last but not least....Strome is my #1 right dot guy. He's simply a better playmaker compared to K.O., who would get relegated to the #2 unit if I was Weight.

So in conclusion...

Strome-Nelson-Tavares
Pulock-Leddy

Okposo-Lee-Grabovski/Nielsen
Boychuk-de Haan

Agreed, it is time to retire Nielsen as the PP #1 point guy. Please!

I think Cappy will always give Okposo first unit PP minutes but Strome is a much better fit IMO.

 

[SDIsles34]

I have this rare photograph of Garth Snow being told that every year, on July 1st, you can sign free agents to play for your hockey team and add talent without sacrificing defensive prospects or draft picks.

I don't get it. Who exactly should they be adding on July 1st? The overpayments are drastic and not sure it makes sense to break the bank/ cap on FA- especially with the underwhelming class of 15'.

Again, we made our big free agency splash in March when we signed Boychuk.

 

[danteipp]

I don't know where the Blackhawks are going to get the money from to clear cap space. They had an interesting trade chip in Saad and ultimately appear to have settled for $0.50 (maybe even less) on the dollar. Taking back Anisimov and extending him at $4.55 million per just jammed them up again.

No team in their right mind should be looking to take on that Hossa contract. Versteeg is cheap at $2.2 million per so trading him just creates more problems than it solves. I guess they could just give Bickell and/or Sharp away for futures.

If they really wanted Dano that badly, they would probably have been better served just insisting on a package built around the Blue Jackets #8 pick and Dano for Saad (maybe Morin as a throw-in since he is familiar with Chicago's system). It is perplexing to me.

 

[stranger34]

Pulock is the triggerman of the future. Whether he will be that guy this year or not remains to be seen (I think the Isles Brass wants it to be this year). When that happens, Boychuk will fit like a glove as the second unit triggerman. Leddy is our other #1 unit point man, and I'd like to see de Haan get a legit shot on the point on the second powerplay. I love Hammer, but his Orr-esque rushes at even strength are enough for me. Plus his ability to get shots through from up top is poor and I like opposite handedness points.


Nelson and Lee are the net guys. Personally, I like Nelson on the #1 unit. Can't go wrong with either though.

Then we have Tavares as the de facto #1 left dot guy. I really hope the presence of Pulock ends that left point/left side crap. Look at JT's highlights, he is deadly from his off side. Nielsen or Grabovski is my #2 left dot guy.

Last but not least....Strome is my #1 right dot guy. He's simply a better playmaker compared to K.O., who would get relegated to the #2 unit if I was Weight.

So in conclusion...

Strome-Nelson-Tavares
Pulock-Leddy

Okposo-Lee-Grabovski/Nielsen
Boychuk-de Haan

I don't get why they seem to encourage Hamonic to be offensive minded. I too am tired of pinches and rushes to nowhere and shots into opponents shins. Hamonic's solid defenseive play should facilitate CDH's playmaking not vice versa... but it's just one gripe in a long list of befuddling decisions by this coaching braintrust.

 

[CodeE]

I don't get it. Who exactly should they be adding on July 1st? The overpayments are drastic and not sure it makes sense to break the bank/ cap on FA- especially with the underwhelming class of 15'.

Again, we made our big free agency splash in March when we signed Boychuk.

Drastic overpayments? Besides the O'Reilly extension and maybe the Mike Green contract the vast vast majority of UFA contracts have been completely fair. Garth not taking advantage of this market strengthens our rivals as we pencil in kids who haven't earned their NHL spots yet.

 

[Sparksrus3]

So nhl.com has a picture of Mathias . Saying he signed with TML.
Of course in the picture he is skating around Brian Strait.

 

[SDIsles34]

Drastic overpayments? Besides the O'Reilly extension and maybe the Mike Green contract the vast vast majority of UFA contracts have been completely fair. Garth not taking advantage of this market strengthens our rivals as we pencil in kids who haven't earned their NHL spots yet.

Who? I can think of 1 spot you are referring to - 3rd pairing defense w/ Mayfield or Pulock...

I don't see why the Islanders should spend for the sake of spending when the roster as it stands looks pretty damn good. Not to mention, we are in a great position cap-wise moving forward with flexibility to add at the deadline which most playoff teams from last season don't necessarily have.

Maybe an example of who exactly you think Snow should have signed in the last 6 days (or attempted to sign)?

 

[Macch]

Drastic overpayments? Besides the O'Reilly extension and maybe the Mike Green contract the vast vast majority of UFA contracts have been completely fair. Garth not taking advantage of this market strengthens our rivals as we pencil in kids who haven't earned their NHL spots yet.

What kids haven't earned a spot on the team?

 

[Macch]

Who? I can think of 1 spot you are referring to - 3rd pairing defense w/ Mayfield or Pulock...

I don't see why the Islanders should spend for the sake of spending when the roster as it stands looks pretty damn good. Not to mention, we are in a great position cap-wise moving forward with flexibility to add at the deadline which most playoff teams from last season don't necessarily have.

Maybe an example of who exactly you think Snow should have signed in the last 6 days (or attempted to sign)?

This guy gets it!

 

[blitzkriegs]

I don't know where the Blackhawks are going to get the money from to clear cap space. They had an interesting trade chip in Saad and ultimately appear to have settled for $0.50 (maybe even less) on the dollar. Taking back Anisimov and extending him at $4.55 million per just jammed them up again.

No team in their right mind should be looking to take on that Hossa contract. Versteeg is cheap at $2.2 million per so trading him just creates more problems than it solves. I guess they could just give Bickell and/or Sharp away for futures.

If they really wanted Dano that badly, they would probably have been better served just insisting on a package built around the Blue Jackets #8 pick and Dano for Saad (maybe Morin as a throw-in since he is familiar with Chicago's system). It is perplexing to me.

They have to move Sharp or Bickell, but everyone knows that. So, it's a matter of CHI finding the best package they can get and plenty of teams have cap space.

 

[OlTimeHockey]

Agreed, it is time to retire Nielsen as the PP #1 point guy. Please!

I think Cappy will always give Okposo first unit PP minutes but Strome is a much better fit IMO.

Agreed! Neilson should be the PK head and match up lines for defense and any offense he gives should be BONUS....not counted on. We REALLY need stronger team defense, and with Lee and Nelson showing their stuff, I see no reason in Hades why they should be anywhere but in Neilson's spot, with Neilson's energy going towards what he excels at: DEFENSE.

You show me the best, hardest slap shots in camp and then decide who gets the point on the power play.......and if it ain't a defenseman, it's a sniper with a capable defenseman covering his butt.

 

[SDIsles34]

Blackhawks 2015 Stanley Cup Champions
2014's July Activity-
July 2, 2014 Agreed to terms with D Kyle Cumiskey on a one-year contract.
July 1, 2014 Agreed to terms with Fs Brad Richards, Peter Regin, Cody Bass and Pierre-Cedric Labrie and G Scott Darling on one-year contracts.

Los Angeles Kings 2014 Stanley Cup Champions
2013's July Activity-
July 10, 2013 Signed LW Maxim Kitsyn to a three-year entry level contract and RW Brian O'Neill to a one-year contract.
July 5, 2013 Signed D Jeff Schultz.
July 4, 2013 Agreed to terms with D Keaton Ellerby on a one-year contract.

Chicago Blackhawks 2013 Stanley Cup Champions
2012's July Activity
July 1, 2012 Agreed to terms with D Sheldon Brookbank on a two-year contract.

Los Angeles Kings 2012 Stanley Cup Champions
2011's July Activity
July 12, 2011 Agreed to terms with F Brad Richardson on a two-year contract.
July 8, 2011 Agreed to terms with D Alec Martinez on a two-year contract.
July 2, 2011 Agreed to terms with LW Simon Gagne on a two-year contract.