Hockeypete49
How you like me now!
I wish him good luck but he made the right decision for his career. He saw what the Flyers have on the big club and in the system.
Could you share your opinion of his skill set please?
I have to think if he thought he couldn’t sign him last summer he would have looked to move him; maybe he did who knows. Doubt he let himIt was after, but being unable to get him signed should've been the first hint and that should've gone back to last summer.
Thank youI don't like to view cases like this as an asset wasted. Not signing Hogberg, despite player interest, would have been a wasted asset -- and Hogberg might well have not been signed, if not for Kalynuk leaving. They wanted to sign Kalynuk; he wanted to return for his junior season; he used a loophole to hit free agency after his junior season; but they took the chance they could still sign him. Persistence worked with signing Laczynski.
It's not really similar to Marody -- from a talent and contract perspective. Fun fact though: that Marody pick was used to trade up for Brink.
I think he was in the #5-7 range in our prospect pool. For some reason -- double re-entry, 7th round status, bias -- he never got the attention he deserved, except from the hardcore watchers. Wisconsin was a team with poor structure, poor team defense, and mediocre offense. Kalynuk always rose above the stink of it to put up strong counting numbers, look like one of their better players nightly, and give hope to his pro potential.
Kalynuk oozes puck skills and creativity, and while he'll need to tone down the risks, he has an uncommon aggressiveness on entries/exits. He always reminded me of a less toolsy Sanheim. He'll need to clean his defensive technique, but he's aggressive and smart and decently sized and no shrinking violet, and I'll be damned if he's not a superb transition player fit for the modern game. Perhaps #4/5 + PP2 potential. He's a fun player, and it's a loss.
A Chicago fan's view on Kalynuk's competition:
There's room on the left side.
Boqvist and Mitchell, our best young defenders, are right handed.
Maatta probably gets moved or bought out for cap space.
Carlsson has been okay, but nothing special.
Regula and Vlasic will top out as bottom pairing defenders.
Tuulola is never making the NHL lol.
Beaudin is the only LHD with good upside.
So in reality it's not that crowded.