RW Kaapo Kakko - TPS, Liiga (2019 Draft) Part 2

[BleedWell]

He may drop maybe to 5th because of the huge center depth in this draft. Dach, Cozens, Turcotte and Hughes may all go ahead of him. Then there is winger Podkolzin, who also has been great.

So you started drinking early today?

 

[FinPanda]

No way José. You don’t draft Kotka ahead of Svech even though he is a center. Tbh Kakko is more likely to play Center in the NHL than Hughes in my opinion.

Not a fan of Turcotte at all. Mediocre stats against kids isn’t a good look.

Mediocre stats? He just put up 4 points against a college team. He has been injured most of the year, not sure why you think he has mediocre stats.. Only thing dropping him has been his injury.

So you started drinking early today?

I don't drink at all, last time I drank something was in January 2018. I just think some teams may prefer potential 1st line centers instead of 1st line winger. It is possible Kakko will play center in the NHL but I think these guys are more sure bets.

 

[Ibumax]

So you started drinking early today?

He could easily drop to 5th. It depends entirely on the teams who are picking in the top 5. Like i said in the other thread, there was a rumor that Bob McKenzie said that not every team has Kakko 2nd. Some have Dach and some have Cozens. Teams value centers very highly, as last years draft showed.

 

[FinPanda]

He could easily drop to 5th. It depends entirely on the teams who are picking in the top 5. Like i said in the other thread, there was a rumor that Bob McKenzie said that not every team has Kakko 2nd. Some have Dach and some have Cozens. Teams value centers very highly, as last years draft showed.

And it was said they had Cozens or/and Dach over Kakko, so some had Kakko 4th.

I mentioned Turcotte as he has been incredible since coming from an injury. It wouldn't surprise me at all to see him go 2nd.

And I've been a huge fan of Kakko since last year. I hope he goes 2nd, just saying that he hasn't locked it and some teams could prefer other guys. He won't go before Hughes.

 

[fr9dd9]

Kakko will be the first fin to be drafted #1

 

[FinnishSniper]

Mediocre stats? He just put up 4 points against a college team. He has been injured most of the year, not sure why you think he has mediocre stats.. Only thing dropping him has been his injury.

I don't drink at all, last time I drank something was in January 2018. I just think some teams may prefer potential 1st line centers instead of 1st line winger. It is possible Kakko will play center in the NHL but I think these guys are more sure bets.

You don’t draft a center over a winger when the winger is BPA. You only take the center if you are in a big need of one.

 

[FinPanda]

You don’t draft a center over a winger when the winger is BPA. You only take the center if you are in a big need of one.

I am happy if you are correct. I am not so sure about it though.

 

[ijuka]

I am happy if you are correct. I am not so sure about it though.

You don't consider that a team might draft Kakko as a center?

 

[FinPanda]

You don't consider that a team might draft Kakko as a center?

It is possible yeah, it changes things a bit. I could see that.

 

[Blade Paradigm]

@KillEmAll83, creator of Prospects Shifts, is one of our resident prospects shift-by-shift video developers. He's created hundreds of prospect shift-by-shifts over the past few years.



I understand that Emmanuel Perry's analytics can be controversial and I don't swear by them, but here are his midterm statistical rankings for this draft class:



Also, here's an HD version of Kakko's golden goal:

 

[FinnishSniper]

I am happy if you are correct. I am not so sure about it though.

The kid is a special talent. People will notice it soon enough.

 

[BleedWell]

Mediocre stats? He just put up 4 points against a college team. He has been injured most of the year, not sure why you think he has mediocre stats.. Only thing dropping him has been his injury.

I don't drink at all, last time I drank something was in January 2018. I just think some teams may prefer potential 1st line centers instead of 1st line winger. It is possible Kakko will play center in the NHL but I think these guys are more sure bets.

Those guys are more potential 2nd line centers in a good team going forward. Kakko is way more likely to go 1OA than fourth or fifth overall.

 

[kelsier]

Wonder what kind of damage he could've caused with lets say 18-19 minute per game. Kakko averaged maybe some 14-15 aTOI in this competition which was ridiculously low. I think he'd have done so much more than just "the golden goal" with better utilization. When someone brings home the gold and is rewarded with the BP in the Finals, that's still quite alright.

 

[Peeps]

He may drop maybe to 5th because of the huge center depth in this draft. Dach, Cozens, Turcotte and Hughes may all go ahead of him. Then there is winger Podkolzin, who also has been great.

So you started drinking early today?

 

[SoundAndFury]

I think FinPanda is overthinking this pretty hard.

 

[FinPanda]

It wasn't nice comment. I am fine if people disagree with me this and mostly happy but if someone thinks I am drinking because I am not sure about something and thinking about other options, I don't know what made you think about it.

I think FinPanda is overthinking this pretty hard.

Yeah I think so too. You just see those center prospects playing so well so you begin to think if Kakko has done enough. Maybe I should just trust him as he has been also exceptional this year and there is no reason to drop him lower. Thanks.

 

[Hokinaittii]

Was Aho even playing center in Liiga before he was 18yo? He probably was but I can't remember.

I'm sure the scouts see Kakko's center potential. He hasn't looked out of place at all in his 1st games as center in Liiga, usually that takes some time for people to adjust in a new role but not with Kakko whose skill and IQ is sky high. Aho has slightly higher IQ (hell, it's probably top-5 hockey in the NHL) but Kakko has more invidual skill to compensate than Aho had at 17 so I think you can expect them to have somewhat similar career.

He is not a strong finisher in Liiga either...

I agree that Kakko still needs to learn get better utilizing the chances he get, but as far as I'm concerned, it's always better to be creating a ton and get into those scoring chances during a game than be a player who has better finish but just won't get into those scoring chances nearly as often.

As soon as 17yo gets stronger, his shot and finishing ability gets better but for example with Laine we've seen how useless his great scoring ability is when he isn't even capable of getting into those chances. He just doesn't have room in NHL for his shot and his game isn't about getting into dirty areas which is excactly the opposite with Kakko who actually plays with a grit and never looks to be giving up.

If you are good as Kakko at winning your own battles and excelling when you don't have the room on top of being skilled, you are more than set for the NHL.

 

[Ibumax]

Was Aho even playing center in Liiga before he was 18yo? He probably was but I can't remember.

I'm sure the scouts see Kakko's center potential. He hasn't looked out of place at all in his 1st games as center in Liiga, usually that takes some time for people to adjust in a new role but not with Kakko whose skill and IQ is sky high. Aho has slightly higher IQ (hell, it's probably top-5 hockey in the NHL) but Kakko has more invidual skill to compensate than Aho had at 17 so I think you can expect them to have somewhat similar career.


I agree that Kakko still needs to learn get better utilizing the chances he get, but as far as I'm concerned, it's always better to be creating a ton and get into those scoring chances during a game than be a player who has better finish but just won't get into those scoring chances nearly as often.

As soon as 17yo gets stronger, his shot and finishing ability gets better but for example with Laine we've seen how useless his great scoring ability is when he isn't even capable of getting into those chances. He just doesn't have room in NHL for his shot and his game isn't about getting into dirty areas which is excactly the opposite with Kakko who actually plays with a grit and never looks to be giving up.

If you are good as Kakko at winning your own battles and excelling when you don't have the room on top of being skilled, you are more than set for the NHL.

Well, all i said is that he's not a strong finisher. Then again a lot of these top tier kids seem to score a lot more goals when they enter the NHL, compared to what they did before. I really wonder why that is.

 

[Hokinaittii]

Well, all i said is that he's not a strong finisher. Then again a lot of these top tier kids seem to score a lot more goals when they enter the NHL, compared to what they did before. I really wonder why that is.

I know and I only commented that I agree what you said and then just added my two cents on the subject.

 

[Lepardi]

for example with Laine we've seen how useless his great scoring ability is when he isn't even capable of getting into those chances. He just doesn't have room in NHL for his shot and his game isn't about getting into dirty areas

104 goals in 197 career games is pretty good for someone who doesn't have room for his shot.

 

[Ibumax]

I know and I only commented that I agree what you said and then just added my two cents on the subject.

How dare you?

 

[Hokinaittii]

104 goals in 197 career games is pretty good for someone who doesn't have room for his shot.

Sure but you often see what kind of struggle it is for him to get that space, and the struggles have only gotten worse recently.

Laine didn't generate as much chances in Liiga as Kakko has generated. Laine was just magnificent at utilizing on the chances he got. And even though Laine is still scoring with good percent every time he gets a chance, the chances are so few that not even Laine is that good at finishing that he doesn't need to get better at creating more chances for himself if he ever wants to break 50.

 

[FinPanda]

Agenttivelhon mielestä "käyntikortin jättänyt" Kakko voi tehdä historiaa, vaikka tähden tilanteessa on paljon samaa kuin Laineen vastaavassa

Interview with Kakko's agent Petteri Lehto. I won't translate the whole interview but some things from there.

"– Kaapon kielitaito on ikäisekseen parempi kuin aikanaan Jari Kurrilla ja monella muulla. Kielitaito on varmasti samalla tasolla kuin esimerkiksi Olli Jokisella, Joni Pitkäsellä tai Aleksander Barkovilla oli samassa vaiheessa, agentti huomauttaa."
"Kaapo's English skills are better for his age than for example Jari Kurri etc. It is on a similar lever with Olli Jokinen, Joni Pitkänen or Aleksander Barkov at this time."

"– Kaapo jätti nyt sellaisen käyntikortin, että Hughes ei välttämättä olekaan se ykkönen. Samaan aikaan on kuitenkin syytä pistää jäitä hattuun. Yksi turnaus tai yksi maali ei muuta tarkkailijoiden silmissä mitään, Lehto korostaa. "
"Kaapo played so well that maybe Hughes won't be the first overall. At the similar time you should remember that one tournament or one goal won't change anything in the eyes of the scouts, Lehto points out."

Lehto is also Laine's agent and he says this about them both:
"– Molemmat ovat mukavia sällejä, joilla on luonteessaan positiivisella tavalla sopivaa mielenvikaisuutta – heidän täydellinen keskittymisensä työntekoon on jotain sellaista, mitä on jopa itsekin vaikea ymmärtää. Se on niin äärettömän kovalla tasolla, Lehto ihastelee."
" - They both are nice dudes who have positive kind of insanity on their personality - their absolute focus to work is something what even I found hard to understand. It is in so high level."

--

Kaapo Kakon agentti valaisi superlupauksen kevään maajoukkuesuunnitelmia – "Poikien kisat eivät mene ammattilaiskiekkoilun edelle"

Kakko will be playing with TPS if they make the finals, no U18 tournament for him if that happens. His goal is to make to the WHC's.

 

[Star Ocean]

@KillEmAll83, creator of Prospects Shifts, is one of our resident prospects shift-by-shift video developers. He's created hundreds of prospect shift-by-shifts over the past few years.



I understand that Emmanuel Perry's analytics can be controversial and I don't swear by them, but here are his midterm statistical rankings for this draft class:



Also, here's an HD version of Kakko's golden goal:

Garbage goal in scramble

 

[Hokinaittii]

Garbage goal in scramble

One of the many in his career. Not surprised he was the one who found the puck first in scramble and to be honest, he looked like the most determinated to get that puck anyway. He didn't have much time with the puck but I liked how he quickly reacted and kicked the puck back with his skate and immediately put it top shelf. I've seen players screw up simple scoring chances like those too many times to take that goal granted.