Player Talk: Anthony Mantha

Frk It

Mo Seider Less Problems
Jul 27, 2010
36,201
14,683
3 points in his last 9 games. Think he hits 50 points this season?

I'm still hoping him and/or Larkin can hit 60 pts. With this little skid, they would have to go about .70-.75 PPG from here on out. I think that's doable.

Mantha would have to go .5 PPG or worse from here to miss hitting 50 pts, I don't see him doing that.
 

ElysiumAB

Registered User
Sep 12, 2013
5,902
5,549
Mantha, and I'm not trying to bag on him or be negative, visually looks like a pretty lazy player several times per game. I've been trying to be patient and watch closely, and try to differentiate on whether he's just smart/big/long strides, or just decides now and then that skating isn't worth the trouble.

Reminds me of how Franzen played in his later years. Sometimes a puck would just be too far away to be worth his trouble to skate hard for.

Anyone willing to tell me I'm on target or off base?
 

Rzombo4 prez

Registered User
May 17, 2012
5,980
2,698
Mantha, and I'm not trying to bag on him or be negative, visually looks like a pretty lazy player several times per game. I've been trying to be patient and watch closely, and try to differentiate on whether he's just smart/big/long strides, or just decides now and then that skating isn't worth the trouble.

Reminds me of how Franzen played in his later years. Sometimes a puck would just be too far away to be worth his trouble to skate hard for.

Anyone willing to tell me I'm on target or off base?

You aren't off base, but what took you so long to figure this out? This has been the book on Mantha since he was drafted and the reason he was available where he was in the draft. He has certainly gotten better since he was drafted, but a zebra never really changes its stripes. He will be productive, but will always leave us wanting more.
 

jiboy

la game dans la game
May 2, 2007
1,820
1,045
Mantha, and I'm not trying to bag on him or be negative, visually looks like a pretty lazy player several times per game. I've been trying to be patient and watch closely, and try to differentiate on whether he's just smart/big/long strides, or just decides now and then that skating isn't worth the trouble.

Reminds me of how Franzen played in his later years. Sometimes a puck would just be too far away to be worth his trouble to skate hard for.

Anyone willing to tell me I'm on target or off base?

I watched him a lot in junior , we used to play 8 games a year against him and he always has been this way. So talented (that shot wow) but so frustrating to watch. He could be so much better and its crazy when you think about it for a second.
 

Winger98

Moderator
Feb 27, 2002
22,756
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Cleveland
"He could be so much better if... ." is what has been said about nearly every player ever. Mantha still has three points in his last five games, and 22 in 28 on the season. If the guy had his skill set and went balls to the wall throughout the whole season he'd have been the consensus #1 pick in his draft year, and would be putting up north of a PPG every year in the NHL. But he doesn't, he wasn't, and he won't. If he ends up putting up Franzen-esque numbers, or even better Jeff Carter type numbers, we did very well with that pick.
 

BinCookin

Registered User
Feb 15, 2012
6,160
1,377
London, ON
"He could be so much better if... ." is what has been said about nearly every player ever. Mantha still has three points in his last five games, and 22 in 28 on the season. If the guy had his skill set and went balls to the wall throughout the whole season he'd have been the consensus #1 pick in his draft year, and would be putting up north of a PPG every year in the NHL. But he doesn't, he wasn't, and he won't. If he ends up putting up Franzen-esque numbers, or even better Jeff Carter type numbers, we did very well with that pick.

very well said.

I think we should be appreciating alot more than expecting...

Some people here need have some perspective sometimes.

Here is a list of players we could have selected if we had 1 higher pick in the last 5 drafts:

2013: Kerby Rychel
2014: Julius Honka
2015: thomas Chabot
2016: Keiffer Bellows
2017: Casey Mittelstadt

Nothing is ever for sure.
I try to appreciate what we have.
Dont worry everyone, we will be drafting much better the next few years
 

JPE123

Registered User
Jan 23, 2013
3,153
10
Some guys just don't have another gear. Mantha probably was always the biggest and most skilled guy coming up in his career. He was able to put up big numbers without a lot of effort. Then he got to AHL and then NHL where everybody is skilled and a lot of big guys. Maybe his makeup just isn't there to be the best. Still pretty good player but drive is usually what separates the elite from the very good. Still a good pick but we will probably always be saying "if only"
 

TheMule93

On a mule rides the swindler
May 26, 2015
12,466
6,512
Ontario
very well said.

I think we should be appreciating alot more than expecting...

Some people here need have some perspective sometimes.

Here is a list of players we could have selected if we had 1 higher pick in the last 5 drafts:

2013: Kerby Rychel
2014: Julius Honka
2015: thomas Chabot
2016: Keiffer Bellows
2017: Casey Mittelstadt

Nothing is ever for sure.
I try to appreciate what we have.
Dont worry everyone, we will be drafting much better the next few years

Personally, i don't find "perspective" very relevant. The only thing that matters to me is how good they are in a vacuum, not how good they are relative to the people drafted around them. Who cares if we got jonathan ericsson last in the draft - sure its cool we got an NHLer last in the draft, but he has no effect on us winning or losing games, he's as irrelevant to the franchise as his mr. irrelevant title.

I could be wrong but its just how i see things.
 

Shaman464

No u
May 1, 2009
10,212
4,422
Boston, MA
Mantha is what he is. Hes not quite a piece you can build around, but he's also not quite the type you can't. I strongly believe if they can draft an legit #1 center he's a guy that will be a perennial 30 goal scorer and probably have a peak as a guy who pots 35-45 for 2-3 seasons. If they don't he's going to be a 25g-25a guy with a couple 35g-30a seasons.
 

lomekian

Registered User
Oct 28, 2013
1,871
891
London
Mantha floats more than Franzen ever did, but is also bigger, stronger, a better passer and shooter. One of those guys who'll probably average between 50-65 points a season for much of his career, but will occasionally go on runs like Franzen did in 98 & 99 and absolutely terrify the opposition. Wouldn't surprise me if a deeper wings roster resulted in the odd 80+ season too. If he woke up one morning with the speed, energy and drive of someone like Larkin, he'd be an absolute superstar, and has been said, a player with his skillset at 18 would never have fallen out of the top 5 if he a real motor in his play.

Either way, he's a fine hockey player, and unusually for a scorer, is a very very good playmaker too.
 

Redder Winger

Registered User
May 4, 2017
3,700
730
If I was the coach of the Wings, I'd encourage his teammates to piss him off before the game. Guy needs to play angry.
 
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Pavels Dog

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Feb 18, 2013
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Even when playing ”lazy” he seems to be part of creating a handful of grade A chances every game. Imo he’s being wasted on the PP and too often his playmaking ability means nothing because others can’t finish. He needs to step up the intensity in some situations but he’s looking good this year.
 
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ElysiumAB

Registered User
Sep 12, 2013
5,902
5,549
You aren't off base, but what took you so long to figure this out? This has been the book on Mantha since he was drafted and the reason he was available where he was in the draft. He has certainly gotten better since he was drafted, but a zebra never really changes its stripes. He will be productive, but will always leave us wanting more.

I guess, for me, he was always getting low TOI or not playing on the big club consistently enough for me to really care to think too much about it. Now I'm hearing Mantha > AA and when I watch the games I'd take AA any day.

That basically got me wondering if I was missing that he has 100% effort but not the foot speed, and his stride is deceiving or something....... guess not.

With all that said, I don't follow the Griffins super closely or draft/scouting reports. So I'm sure I'm later to notice these things than most of the people here.
 

chances14

Registered User
Jan 7, 2010
10,396
499
Michigan
Personally, i don't find "perspective" very relevant. The only thing that matters to me is how good they are in a vacuum, not how good they are relative to the people drafted around them. Who cares if we got jonathan ericsson last in the draft - sure its cool we got an NHLer last in the draft, but he has no effect on us winning or losing games, he's as irrelevant to the franchise as his mr. irrelevant title.

I could be wrong but its just how i see things.

it's relevant because it should help keep expectations in check. Realistically, a guy drafted where mantha was should not be expected to become an elite franchise player like some posters on here seem to think he should
 

Tatar Shots

Registered User
Feb 2, 2014
5,703
1,702
So I was asking some friends about the 2013 draft, and was thinking about that 2 position trade down from 18 to 20th.

I have always wondered who Holland really liked in that draft, and how Mantha was choosen, and just for fun ill write what I think:

I theorize this was the state of mind of Holland and team:

their #1 player they were interested in at 18th was Alexander Wennberg. But he did not fall to 18th.
they then decided to trade back a few positions to pick up a 2nd rounder (58th OA - tyler bertuzzi)

With the 20th pick, they planned to take Mantha, and had he been choosen they were also looking at:
Gauthier, theodore and Hartman.

I theorize
Mueller (18th)
Rychel (19th)
were not on their radar

these were the actual draft positions of those players
Mantha (20th)
Gauthier went (21)
theodore went (26)
and Hartmen went (30)


Interesting. Wennberg was who I really wanted in that draft.
 

turkleton85

Registered User
Dec 12, 2017
1,002
520
When I watch Mantha, I see a smart winger. I see a player with talent that doesn't go to the stupid areas.

He isn't the driver, but a fantastic winger.


This is how i see it as well. Of course, he seems to be sometimes floating around, but i have the impression that its often due to him playing with slow linemates. When he's on a line with nyquist and zetterberg, they slow him down a lot. When he's playing with a center that has wheels, he rarely does it. The larkin-mantha- tatar/AA combination has worked really well this season, speed seems to "activate" him.

Even if he's not scoring as much atm, it's encouraging to see him and larkin creating a lot of high quality chances every game. At one point, they will start scoring again. If he stays healthy, 50 points should be the minimum
 

Redder Winger

Registered User
May 4, 2017
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730
There's a lot of He's like a harder, bigger but not as smooth version of Bobby Ryan.
Or a softer, not as skilled Corey Perry.
 

Frk It

Mo Seider Less Problems
Jul 27, 2010
36,201
14,683
There's a lot of He's like a harder, bigger but not as smooth version of Bobby Ryan.
Or a softer, not as skilled Corey Perry.

When you have to do that much disqualifying, it's probably not a good comparison to begin with.
 

Martinez

Go Blue
Oct 10, 2015
6,654
2,139
There's really no need to do a comparison for a player that is already in the NHL. We can all watch him play.
 

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