Prospect Info: Prospect Talk PART XI

[PWJunior]

Continue from the previous thread.

Part X: http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showthread.php?t=1604037

Click to read more...

 

[Destiny]

I win!!!!

 

[N Ireland Nets Fan]

Not only is that going against everything the Islanders have done since the start of the John Tavares era (which I necessarily don't agree with, but understand), but when was the last time the Islanders signed a high profile UFA?

Maybe you are rooting for the wrong team here.

What a load of rubbish. We could target someone like Vrbata in free agency and move Bailey on in any trade just to dump his salary.

As a franchise we have to start spending, it's part of the reason Wang is looking to sell. The lease agreement has sort of triggers in the Barclays agreement to stop Islander ownership spending to the cap floor instead of icing the best team possible. Money is going to be spent going to Brooklyn.

 

[N Ireland Nets Fan]

Thought I'd bring over Ultimat Warriors scouting report having watched Bridgeport last night. A few really interesting observations.

Saw Pulock's debut last night. He had a solid, yet unspectacular game defensively. Seemed to struggle a bit at times in D zone coverage but was good at defending the rush. He didn't really jump into the play offensively at all, which was surprising to me. He saw time on both special teams units but didn't really do as mudh on the PP as I expected. Unleashed a wicked 1 timer though, which was blocked. Thought his decisions with the puck could use some improvement.

Jesse Graham is an unbelievable skater. I think he will make it just because of his skating. I don't know if/where he fits in here, but I could easily see him catching on with another team and becoming the new Jared Spurgeon. With Graham, he took a lot of risks. Almost played like a 4th forward at times jumping into the play but his skating allowed him to get back quickly.

Burroughs impressed me a lot for a kid who's just 18 years old. He made a lot of solid plays on both sides of the puck and doesn't back down even though he's a smaller player. I think long term he will get lost in the shuffle in a numbers game due to our depth.

Pedan is the guy I've seen the most and every single time I come away with the exact same impression. Some very good tools, no tool box. His size/skating/snarl combo has always intrigued me, and he can even stickhandle very well for a bigger dman. I see big issues with his hockey sense and decisions. He is the anti de Haan. There is no poise or calmness under pressure with him. Seems to make a few bonehead plays a game. Injury this year hurt his development, so let's hope he can get some decent ice time next season and work on improving in some of these areas.

Thanks for the scouting report. I had a feeling Pulock was going to be quite a way from being ready for any NHL time. It will likely take a few years for Pulock to get his defensive coverage and ability up to scratch so he isn't a liability at the next level. Probably will be Brooklyn before we can expect him to make the move up to getting some NHL time.

I still believe Pokka is the guy who could surprise everyone when he comes over to North America. It's game 1 of the playoff finals for him and Karpat tonight. Hopefully as soon as the playoffs end we will see an announcement for Pokka to sign his ELC. Can't wait for him to be playing in North America. Due to him having 3 years of full professional hockey against men, the learning curve shouldn't be as big as the other prospects. Here's hoping he hits the ground running.

 

[blinkman360]

What a load of rubbish. We could target someone like Vrbata in free agency and move Bailey on in any trade just to dump his salary.

As a franchise we have to start spending, it's part of the reason Wang is looking to sell. The lease agreement has sort of triggers in the Barclays agreement to stop Islander ownership spending to the cap floor instead of icing the best team possible. Money is going to be spent going to Brooklyn.

Don't get why people want Bailey gone, just for the sake of being rid of him. He's not a liability - he can produce points from the 3rd line if need be, which is pretty valuable - he steps his game up during the home stretch, which is a valuable trait for a team that would like to be a contender - and, whether you want to admit it or not, still has upside for much, much more(see Kyle Okposo).

I know that for some reason, the go-to argument for the anti-Bailey crowd is that he only produces when the games are meaningless, but what's ironic is that without Bailey stepping up in those 'meaningless' games last year, we probably wouldn't have made the playoffs.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

April 15
SM-Liiga Finals, Game One
Karpat 2, Tappara 1-Pokka, no points.
Game 2 on Thursday.

Tonight, Game 7, QMJHL
Blainville-Broisbriand at Rimouski.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

Thought I'd bring over Ultimat Warriors scouting report having watched Bridgeport last night. A few really interesting observations.




Thanks for the scouting report. I had a feeling Pulock was going to be quite a way from being ready for any NHL time. It will likely take a few years for Pulock to get his defensive coverage and ability up to scratch so he isn't a liability at the next level. Probably will be Brooklyn before we can expect him to make the move up to getting some NHL time.

I still believe Pokka is the guy who could surprise everyone when he comes over to North America. It's game 1 of the playoff finals for him and Karpat tonight. Hopefully as soon as the playoffs end we will see an announcement for Pokka to sign his ELC. Can't wait for him to be playing in North America. Due to him having 3 years of full professional hockey against men, the learning curve shouldn't be as big as the other prospects. Here's hoping he hits the ground running.

Excellent report by the Warrior, spot on with everything. Can't wait until Friday night's game at Adirondack.

 

[doublechili]

Thought I'd bring over Ultimat Warriors scouting report having watched Bridgeport last night. A few really interesting observations.




Thanks for the scouting report. I had a feeling Pulock was going to be quite a way from being ready for any NHL time. It will likely take a few years for Pulock to get his defensive coverage and ability up to scratch so he isn't a liability at the next level. Probably will be Brooklyn before we can expect him to make the move up to getting some NHL time.

I still believe Pokka is the guy who could surprise everyone when he comes over to North America. It's game 1 of the playoff finals for him and Karpat tonight. Hopefully as soon as the playoffs end we will see an announcement for Pokka to sign his ELC. Can't wait for him to be playing in North America. Due to him having 3 years of full professional hockey against men, the learning curve shouldn't be as big as the other prospects. Here's hoping he hits the ground running.

I agree that Pokka could be in the NHL pretty soon since he's been playing against men and seems to be a good decision-maker and puck-mover. With prospects it's always:

*are they physically mature?
*are they emotionally mature?
*can they think the game fast/well enough?
*can they move fast/well enough?

I wouldn't read too much into Pulock's 1st AHL game though. It makes sense that he'd focus on his defensive assignments at the expense of getting involved offensively.

 

[PWJunior]

I agree that Pokka could be in the NHL pretty soon since he's been playing against men and seems to be a good decision-maker and puck-mover. With prospects it's always:

*are they physically mature?
*are they emotionally mature?
*can they think the game fast/well enough?
*can they move fast/well enough?

I wouldn't read too much into Pulock's 1st AHL game though. It makes sense that he'd focus on his defensive assignments at the expense of getting involved offensively.

If Pokka were to come over next season, I'd write it off as a developmental year. He's going to be coming over to a new country, a new lifestyle, new teammates, everything. Maybe I'm still scarred from his painful draft interview, but I'd want him to focus on off ice life as well as his on ice progression to make the transition as easy as possible for him. It's nice that we have a decent Scandinavian presence at the Bridge with Sundstrom, Collberg (he'll need this to), and Persson already around. That small amount of comfort can really go a long way for a 19/20 year old just starting his professional career on this continent.

As for Pulock, I reserve judgement until we see how good he looks in training camp. He just flew across NA to join a new team with no real preparation. Let him get comfortable first before we start dissecting his game.

 

[doublechili]

If Pokka were to come over next season, I'd write it off as a developmental year. He's going to be coming over to a new country, a new lifestyle, new teammates, everything. Maybe I'm still scarred from his painful draft interview, but I'd want him to focus on off ice life as well as his on ice progression to make the transition as easy as possible for him. It's nice that we have a decent Scandinavian presence at the Bridge with Sundstrom, Collberg (he'll need this to), and Persson already around. That small amount of comfort can really go a long way for a 19/20 year old just starting his professional career on this continent.

As for Pulock, I reserve judgement until we see how good he looks in training camp. He just flew across NA to join a new team with no real preparation. Let him get comfortable first before we start dissecting his game.

Yeah, I didn't mean that Pokka would start next year in the NHL. That will probably be Reinhart (Griffin). But Pokka could get a taste of the NHL next year for a few games and could be ready by the following year. Ditto for Pulock.

 

[seafoam]

What a load of rubbish. We could target someone like Vrbata in free agency and move Bailey on in any trade just to dump his salary.

As a franchise we have to start spending, it's part of the reason Wang is looking to sell. The lease agreement has sort of triggers in the Barclays agreement to stop Islander ownership spending to the cap floor instead of icing the best team possible. Money is going to be spent going to Brooklyn.

Listen I understand your viewpoint, I really really do. But the ENITRE team underperformed, and you want to move ONE of the many guys who struggled, let alone the one who was your fourth highest scorer? I'd be on your side if this team was playing this week in the playoffs and Bailey was still struggling, but there is really no need to dump a player you invested in after one year when your entire team SUCKED.

 

[MikeT98213]

Listen I understand your viewpoint, I really really do. But the ENITRE team underperformed, and you want to move ONE of the many guys who struggled, let alone the one who was your fourth highest scorer? I'd be on your side if this team was playing this week in the playoffs and Bailey was still struggling, but there is really no need to dump a player you invested in after one year when your entire team SUCKED.

The entire team did NOT underperform. Tavares, Okposo, Nielsen, Nelson, Lee, DeHaan, Strome, Hickey...all played well on a fairly consistent basis with some performing at very high levels and others more on the order of being "pleasant surprises."

Bailey was one of the more obvious disappointments considering that he had a strong final 20 games last season, played well in the playoffs and signed a long term deal at $3.3 million per season.

You should also know that Bailey has been around for much more than one year and his play has not yet improved to a significant extent.

I'm on the fence when it comes to Bailey although I would not hesitate to include him in any potential deal that might upgrade the team in goal or on defense.

 

[seafoam]

The entire team did NOT underperform. Tavares, Okposo, Nielsen, Nelson, Lee, DeHaan, Strome, Hickey...all played well on a fairly consistent basis with some performing at very high levels and others more on the order of being "pleasant surprises."

Bailey was one of the more obvious disappointments considering that he had a strong final 20 games last season, played well in the playoffs and signed a long term deal at $3.3 million per season.

You should also know that Bailey has been around for much more than one year and his play has not yet improved to a significant extent.

I'm on the fence when it comes to Bailey although I would not hesitate to include him in any potential deal that might upgrade the team in goal or on defense.

Tavares, Okposo, Neilsen, de Haan, and maybe Hickey are the only players that performed at a consistently high level and de Haan is a Rookie and Hickey is a second year player. Nelson, Lee, and Strome had impressive rookie stints, but at the end of the day, they are rookies.

This team never has a chance of contending since Vis went down and everyone besides Tavares, Okposo, and Nielsen underperformed.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

April 15
Blainville-Broisbriand 8, Rimouski 7-Leduc, + 1. BB wins series 4-3.

 

[Renbarg]

April 15
Rimouski 7, Blainville-Broisbriand 7, in OT.

Seems like a real wild game.

Leduc has been on the ice for many goals, both for and against.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

Seems like a real wild game.

Leduc has been on the ice for many goals, both for and against.

Listening to the game, he has been on the ice for goals both ways.
Rimouski had a 4-0 lead after one, been wild since.

 

[BillD]

Thought I'd bring over Ultimat Warriors scouting report having watched Bridgeport last night. A few really interesting observations.




Thanks for the scouting report. I had a feeling Pulock was going to be quite a way from being ready for any NHL time. It will likely take a few years for Pulock to get his defensive coverage and ability up to scratch so he isn't a liability at the next level. Probably will be Brooklyn before we can expect him to make the move up to getting some NHL time.

I still believe Pokka is the guy who could surprise everyone when he comes over to North America. It's game 1 of the playoff finals for him and Karpat tonight. Hopefully as soon as the playoffs end we will see an announcement for Pokka to sign his ELC. Can't wait for him to be playing in North America. Due to him having 3 years of full professional hockey against men, the learning curve shouldn't be as big as the other prospects. Here's hoping he hits the ground running.

What's the chances that Pedan is re-fitted as a power forward? Is his skating good enough for that role? Brent Burns did it very successfully.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

Tonight in the WHL, game 7, Kootenay at Medicine Hat, winner plays against Edmonton Friday night to open the WHL eastern conference finals.

Erie plays Guelph in the OHL western conference finals starting tomorrow night.

Karpat plays Tappara in game 2 of the SM-Liiga Finals Thursday, Karpat won game one 2-1.

 

[blinkman360]

Tavares, Okposo, Neilsen, de Haan, and maybe Hickey are the only players that performed at a consistently high level and de Haan is a Rookie and Hickey is a second year player. Nelson, Lee, and Strome had impressive rookie stints, but at the end of the day, they are rookies.

This team never has a chance of contending since Vis went down and everyone besides Tavares, Okposo, and Nielsen underperformed.

What I don't get is when people list Bailey's salary as a reason to move him. Meanwhile Cal Clutterbuck makes all of $550K less with half the offensive production. Clutterbuck hits people and gets under their skin. They both are solid defensively.

Why is one an asset and the other a liability?

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

What I don't get is when people list Bailey's salary as a reason to move him. Meanwhile Cal Clutterbuck makes all of $550K less with half the offensive production. Clutterbuck hits people and gets under their skin. They both are solid defensively.

Why is one an asset and the other a liability?

Just a guess, expectations. Clutter does what everyone expects, Bailey is looked as someone who should be on the top two lines. Never though Bailey was going to be a highly skilled scorer, more of a reliable two way player. He is a good third line player, accept him as such, if somehow he blossoms like KO great. Personally feel that Kyle has more talent.

 

[kasper11]

Just a guess, expectations. Clutter does what everyone expects, Bailey is looked as someone who should be on the top two lines. Never though Bailey was going to be a highly skilled scorer, more of a reliable two way player. He is a good third line player, accept him as such, if somehow he blossoms like KO great. Personally feel that Kyle has more talent.

Agree completely. Bailey is not the reason the isles lose. The fact that they rely on him (and others) to do more than they are able is why the isles lose.

Bailey matches up against other teams' top lines while producing 35-40 points. That has value.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

Agree completely. Bailey is not the reason the isles lose. The fact that they rely on him (and others) to do more than they are able is why the isles lose.

Bailey matches up against other teams' top lines while producing 35-40 points. That has value.

Agree Kasper, as you say play Bailey in the proper role and he'll do a good job. The way the top two lines are being put together there really isn't any need or pressure anymore to ask Bailey to do more than he's capable of, which is a good thing for him and the team.

 

[PWJunior]

Agree Kasper, as you say play Bailey in the proper role and he'll do a good job. The way the top two lines are being put together there really isn't any need or pressure anymore to ask Bailey to do more than he's capable of, which is a good thing for him and the team.

Snow will give Bailey another chance. He gave him that big contract, he's not going to cut bait at such a loss considering he fell slat on his face in the whole Vanek situation. Bailey won't hurt you in a 3rd line role. He is solid defensively and can chip in some points. That does have value to the team.

It looks like it's Bailey's make it or break it season. Okposo broke out this year and I think the Isles expect Bailey to really step up because another down season like this past one shouldn't be tolerated. There are murmurs that he is being shopped, just like Okposo was and it's a sign that he's on notice. I honestly expect to hear that he'll be training with Tavares in the Dungeon and that he's seeing a sports shrink. If he doesn't do that, then I'd be very concerned about how badly he wants it.

Give him his chance and put him with Tavares and Okposo to begin the season at ES at least. It's boggles my mind that we've never seen this line for a stretch. Is it that unfathomable to at least try it? If he can just be a nice defensive presence on that line and contribute offensively, he won't hurt them. That also lets the lower lines have more talent to contribute secondary scoring against easier defensive matchups. This team wants to roll 4 lines, that will even out the lines instead of stacking the top line. Are you awake coaching staff? HELLLLOOOOOO?

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

Snow will give Bailey another chance. He gave him that big contract, he's not going to cut bait at such a loss considering he fell slat on his face in the whole Vanek situation. Bailey won't hurt you in a 3rd line role. He is solid defensively and can chip in some points. That does have value to the team.

It looks like it's Bailey's make it or break it season. Okposo broke out this year and I think the Isles expect Bailey to really step up because another down season like this past one shouldn't be tolerated. There are murmurs that he is being shopped, just like Okposo was and it's a sign that he's on notice. I honestly expect to hear that he'll be training with Tavares in the Dungeon and that he's seeing a sports shrink. If he doesn't do that, then I'd be very concerned about how badly he wants it.

Give him his chance and put him with Tavares and Okposo to begin the season at ES at least. It's boggles my mind that we've never seen this line for a stretch. Is it that unfathomable to at least try it? If he can just be a nice defensive presence on that line and contribute offensively, he won't hurt them. That also lets the lower lines have more talent to contribute secondary scoring against easier defensive matchups. This team wants to roll 4 lines, that will even out the lines instead of stacking the top line. Are you awake coaching staff? HELLLLOOOOOO?

Don't know PW, always felt his offensive skills were overrated, Brock plays well defensively if they play him with JT. Just don't think he has enough offensive skills for the top line. There is enought depth now where Bailey shouldn't be handed anything.

With Bailey also from Ontario, there no excuse why he hasn't been to the dungeon to train with JT. KO made the trip, Josh should be ther too.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

Medicine Hat beat Kootenay 4-1, to advance to the WHL eastern conference finals so no battle of the Reinhart brothers.