Pittsburgh Penguins Prospects Thread

[Burgs]

Wow... Tiffels is the only skater to score in the shootout. Germany beats Latvia, 4-3.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

And Tiffels wins it in the SO.

Wow

The last guy to shoot from both sides(no goals)

 

[Deutschland Dangler]

It's been a small sample size and a rink size and style that favours his skill set, but Tiffels seems like he can definitely play at the AHL level next year.
His advanced stats were great all tournament (I'll try to find them again later) and the hype train in Germany is about to take off.

 

[WayneSid9987]

Kid can fly and you can tell hes been coached well. ie. defensive awareness

Really nice to see him in this tourney and get a little taste of what we might have in him.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Think he announced that he intended to go to free agency. Would have been nice to have him but given we brought in ZAR, I can't complain too much.

Yeah I feel like Botterill will get him signed in Buffalo.

 

[clefty]

Think he announced that he intended to go to free agency. Would have been nice to have him but given we brought in ZAR, I can't complain too much.

He didn't announce anything. In the last interview he gave to a Maine local TV station in March he said he was still talking with the Penguins, and maybe he signs, maybe he doesn't. I'm sure it'll play out either way over the summer, but I don't think it's something worth losing too much sleep over if he doesn't sign.

 

[Jacob]

No reason for him to sign now. Might as well wait until August.

 

[66-30-33]

What is Tiffels ceiling? can he be another Guentzel for us? aka top 6 guy who can score and setup.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

What is Tiffels ceiling? can he be another Guentzel for us? aka top 6 guy who can score and setup.

Definitely not Guentzky. But a Rust/Hagelin type player? If everything goes well.

 

[66-30-33]

Definitely not Guentzky. But a Rust/Hagelin type player? If everything goes well.

Good enough for me if he can be a Rust type.

 

[Maverick41]

Kid can fly and you can tell hes been coached well. ie. defensive awareness

Really nice to see him in this tourney and get a little taste of what we might have in him.

They said during one of the brodcasts that Tiffels has worked with or at least gotten himself some advice from Jochen Hecht, who gave him a few pointers on how to play against men and in particular on faceoffs, since he seems to make the transition from Wing to Center.
Maybe his new focus on defense and move to center this past season caused his offensive numbers to go down.

I think at best Tiffels could turn into a 3rd line center/winger and PK specialist who can provide some secondary scoring.

 

[wej20]

No reason for him to sign now. Might as well wait until August.

Yeah, I don't know what the percentage of guys who go to August end up signing with the team that drafted them, but I imagine it has to be pretty low.

 

[Burgs]

If Tiffels permanently moves to C and focuses on his defense he could become another Marcel Goc. For this tournament Goc serves as studio analyst for German TV, and he too praised Tiffel's skating, two-way play and overall composure. Which were exactly his own strengths as an NHL player.

Sturm had a real good hunch keeping Tiffels on the roster over much more established pros. Yesterday his three shootout selections were all only 21 years old: Kahun, Draisaitl and Tiffels. He's not afraid to go with youth, and it helped both the team and raised Tiffels' profile a lot. He has been playing in North America for 5 years now. I think nobody outside of Cologne, Mannheim (where he played youth hockey) and Pens fans knew this kid before this month. Dominik Kahun is Germany's top scoring forward with 7 points in 7 games. He's probably going to get some looks now, too. He had back-to-back great DEL playoffs for Munich and is a quick and shifty little guy.

Fun trivia: apparently Draisaitl and Tiffels are best buddies since childhood. Both born and raised in Cologne, Draisaitl said yesterday they'd known each other basically since birth. So... Draisaitl to Pittsburgh E4.

 

[wej20]

If Tiffels permanently moves to C and focuses on his defense he could become another Marcel Goc. For this tournament Goc serves as studio analyst for German TV, and he too praised Tiffel's skating, two-way play and overall composure. Which were exactly his own strengths as an NHL player.

Sturm had a real good hunch keeping Tiffels on the roster over much more established pros. Yesterday his three shootout selections were all only 21 years old: Kahun, Draisaitl and Tiffels. He's not afraid to go with youth, and it helped both the team and raised Tiffels' profile a lot. He has been playing in North America for 5 years now. I think nobody outside of Cologne, Mannheim (where he played youth hockey) and Pens fans knew this kid before this month. Dominik Kahun is Germany's top scoring forward with 7 points in 7 games. He's probably going to get some looks now, too. He had back-to-back great DEL playoffs for Munich and is a quick and shifty little guy.

Fun trivia: apparently Draisaitl and Tiffels are best buddies since childhood. Both born and raised in Cologne, Draisaitl said yesterday they'd known each other basically since birth. So... Draisaitl to Pittsburgh E4.

Being able to play centre would be a useful skill to have. Pens looking ok for guys who can play 4th line centre (Sundqvist, Bleugers, Rowney), hopefully one of them breaks out and can be a 3rd line centre.

 

[jmelm]

Fun trivia: apparently Draisaitl and Tiffels are best buddies since childhood. Both born and raised in Cologne, Draisaitl said yesterday they'd known each other basically since birth. So... Draisaitl to Pittsburgh E4.

All the more reason to sign him now!! Otherwise, he could choose the UFA route and go to EDM.

 

[Jacob]

It seems like most German NHL players are either from Cologne or Bavaria. Are those the hockey hotbeds? Like the Massachusetts & Minnesota of Germany.

 

[Burgs]

It seems like most German NHL players are either from Cologne or Bavaria. Are those the hockey hotbeds? Like the Massachusetts & Minnesota of Germany.

Pretty much, yes. There are many smaller towns in Bavaria with lower-tier clubs that produce the mass of German hockey players. Sturm, Schubert, Sulzer, Greiss, Holzer, Kühnhackl, Grubauer, Rieder and Wiederer are all Bavarians developed by 2nd tier clubs like Landshut, Kaufbeuren or Rosenheim.

The Rhineland would be the second stronghold but there development is more focused on a few elite junior programs (Draisaitl and Tiffels are from Cologne, Ehrhoff is from Krefeld, Greiss transferred from Bavaria to Cologne's junior program at age 16).

Baden-Württemberg in the southwest would be #3, with a mix of a big market program in Mannheim (Hecht, Wolf) and smaller clubs in and around the Black Forest (e.g. Seidenberg and Goc).

The rest of the country is more or less a hockey wasteland, at least in terms of player development. But if you want to have a chance at a serious career you have to move to one of the big programs in your mid-teens either way, unless you're from Bavaria.

 

[Le Magnifique 66]

Good enough for me if he can be a Rust type.

Absolutely. Would be solid for a 6th rounder

 

[wej20]

Absolutely. Would be solid for a 6th rounder

Getting 100 NHL games out of a 6th rounder is a success, if we got a solid 3rd liner then that would be a huge success.

 

[TorstenFrings]

Fun trivia: apparently Draisaitl and Tiffels are best buddies since childhood. Both born and raised in Cologne, Draisaitl said yesterday they'd known each other basically since birth. So... Draisaitl to Pittsburgh E4.

I feel like I read some hero saga trilogy about them (and Kahun to a lesser extend, since apparently all three shared a room) in the last week and a half. That is how much I know about their lives and friendship now.

 

[Dipsy Doodle]

Pretty much, yes. There are many smaller towns in Bavaria with lower-tier clubs that produce the mass of German hockey players. Sturm, Schubert, Sulzer, Greiss, Holzer, Kühnhackl, Grubauer, Rieder and Wiederer are all Bavarians developed by 2nd tier clubs like Landshut, Kaufbeuren or Rosenheim.

The Rhineland would be the second stronghold but there development is more focused on a few elite junior programs (Draisaitl and Tiffels are from Cologne, Ehrhoff is from Krefeld, Greiss transferred from Bavaria to Cologne's junior program at age 16).

Baden-Württemberg in the southwest would be #3, with a mix of a big market program in Mannheim (Hecht, Wolf) and smaller clubs in and around the Black Forest (e.g. Seidenberg and Goc).

The rest of the country is more or less a hockey wasteland, at least in terms of player development. But if you want to have a chance at a serious career you have to move to one of the big programs in your mid-teens either way, unless you're from Bavaria.

Burgs droppin' knowledge.

Pays to have quality posters in non-traditional hockey countries.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Any young defensemen in the tournament that is worth discussing that isn't signed to an NHL team?

Edit:

Why are the Penguins not in on Jan Rutta?
6'3" RHD, puts up good offensive numbers, solid defenseman....sure we don't need that. The Oilers and Flames are in on him.

How?

Flames D: Giordano, Hamilton, Brodie - This would make sense, sure.
Oilers D: Klefbom, Nurse, Benning, Larsson, Russell (Chiarelli wants him back), and Sekera (back after a few months into the season).

We literally have a worse defense than the Oilers. Lmao...jesus. Flames make sense, but yeah.

 

[Jacob]

Who says we aren't?

 

[Jag68Sid87]

So, obviously I hope we pick 31st in Round 1 next month. Thinking about the draft a little bit, is there any chance a guy like Pierre-Olivier Joseph could be available at the end of Round 1?

I heard Craig Button speaking about him yesterday and he compared his upside to that of Mattias Ekholm, which to me is huge praise.

I also like the fact he played with Sprong in Charlottetown, which also means Pens scouts were there to watch him a fair amount one would suspect.

Anyway, could Joseph be an option for us? Or is that a pipe dream and he will be long gone before we select?

Ideally, I'd like to select a puck-moving defenseman (preferably one who can play either side), a big power forward or a skilled center with our first pick.

 

[Kasperi kapanen]

So, obviously I hope we pick 31st in Round 1 next month. Thinking about the draft a little bit, is there any chance a guy like Pierre-Olivier Joseph could be available at the end of Round 1?

I heard Craig Button speaking about him yesterday and he compared his upside to that of Mattias Ekholm, which to me is huge praise.

I also like the fact he played with Sprong in Charlottetown, which also means Pens scouts were there to watch him a fair amount one would suspect.

Anyway, could Joseph be an option for us? Or is that a pipe dream and he will be long gone before we select?

Ideally, I'd like to select a puck-moving defenseman (preferably one who can play either side), a big power forward or a skilled center with our first pick.

There is a high chance he will be there but I would prefer they draft a center in the 1st. Unless Suzuki, Anderson or Poehling are on the board, then you pick a dman.