RW Kaapo Kakko - TPS, Liiga (2019 Draft) Part 4

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Kiekura

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Oct 6, 2013
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Don't know that much about rangers, but who could be his potential linemates and what kind of players are they?
 

teravaineSAROS

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Which doesnt say much for Kakko

Kakko will be much better than Laine

Kakko wont do better than Laine did his first two seasons. Laine did really well in the playoffs so who knows what next year looks like. If he keeps playing Fortnite and wont work on his skating Kakko will be better.
 

FlyguyOX

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Kakko will be a more complete player. Doesn't mean a goal scorer like Laine isn't super valuable, though.
 

bigdog16

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Don't know that much about rangers, but who could be his potential linemates and what kind of players are they?

Lot of different options but i would be pretty shocked if he didnt get a lot of time with Zibanejad
 

SuperScript29

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Nov 17, 2017
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I know the general census is that he's going to NYR, but what are the odds of him going 1st overall? From everything I read, is seems like Kakko is the most ready for the NHL in this draft and Hughes still needs some time. Also the Devils took Hischier ahead of Patrick when the latter for most year was ranked ahead.
 

BPD

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I know the general census is that he's going to NYR, but what are the odds of him going 1st overall? From everything I read, is seems like Kakko is the most ready for the NHL in this draft and Hughes still needs some time. Also the Devils took Hischier ahead of Patrick when the latter for most year was ranked ahead.

If the Devils pass on Hughes after he was basically the consensus #1 since his draft class was tracked through January of his draft year (when Kakko questions arose), and Hughes ends up being the better player for their crosstown rivals, they will never hear the end of it. It would be a franchise defining miss.

They're going to take Hughes. The Rangers will take Kakko. This will be the best, saltiest, most incredible top 2 pick debate for the next decade. We will enjoy every second of it, and it will be more intolerable than a Canadiens/Leafs conference final for all neutral spectators.
 

CaptTennille

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May 24, 2017
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Don't know that much about rangers, but who could be his potential linemates and what kind of players are they?

I would imagine he eventually ends up on a line with Zibanejad and Kreider(his game seems tailor made for them) but David Quinn has an "earn your minutes" mentality, so he would probably start on the third line with Howden/Andersson as his center and Namestikov as his other winger.
 

1OApick

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If the Devils pass on Hughes after he was basically the consensus #1 since his draft class was tracked through January of his draft year (when Kakko questions arose), and Hughes ends up being the better player for their crosstown rivals, they will never hear the end of it. It would be a franchise defining miss.

They're going to take Hughes. The Rangers will take Kakko. This will be the best, saltiest, most incredible top 2 pick debate for the next decade. We will enjoy every second of it, and it will be more intolerable than a Canadiens/Leafs conference final for all neutral spectators.
This is good debate. I as a fan wouldn't want my team handle the draft like this. **** public humiliation and just pick player you are going to think has the best potential/package. Giving any **** how things look outside is a way to ruin franchise.
 
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Zub

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I know the general census is that he's going to NYR, but what are the odds of him going 1st overall? From everything I read, is seems like Kakko is the most ready for the NHL in this draft and Hughes still needs some time. Also the Devils took Hischier ahead of Patrick when the latter for most year was ranked ahead.

I'd say the odds are very very slim. But there sure is the possibility. But looking at Hughes i don't really see why they would not pick Hughes first.
 

BPD

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This is good debate. I as a fan wouldn't want my team handle the draft like this. **** public humiliation and just pick player you are going to think has the best potential/package. Giving any **** how things look outside is a way to ruin franchise.

I'd normally agree with you, but this is an odd scenario wherein your chief rival gets whichever player you pass on. If you're wrong, that guy gets 5 chances a year to light you up - and if you're wrong, he's gonna light you up every time.

It's not like skipping on the consensus #1 gives a measure of insulation and sends Hughes to LA or something. It sends him to the Rangers. It's ALWAYS going to be under a magnifying glass.
 
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The Crypto Guy

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I know the general census is that he's going to NYR, but what are the odds of him going 1st overall? From everything I read, is seems like Kakko is the most ready for the NHL in this draft and Hughes still needs some time. Also the Devils took Hischier ahead of Patrick when the latter for most year was ranked ahead.
Just look at the Devils social media....they already chose Hughes.

0% chance they pass on him.
 

BB88

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Jan 19, 2015
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Kakko wont do better than Laine did his first two seasons. Laine did really well in the playoffs so who knows what next year looks like. If he keeps playing Fortnite and wont work on his skating Kakko will be better.

He has a shot at being better on the 2nd season.

Laine was even then way too inconsistent and not that great 5on5.
 

Pavel Buchnevich

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Dec 8, 2013
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Don't know that much about rangers, but who could be his potential linemates and what kind of players are they?

Zibanejad, Kreider, Buchnevich, Panarin, Chytil and Kravtsov are the players I think are potential line mates.

Unlike some good teams that have established lines, we don't have much of that because we are rebuilding and the parts on the team are constantly changing.

At the end of last season when we traded Hayes and Zuccarello, we only had three top six forwards, Zibanejad, Kreider and Buchnevich. Those three played on a line at the end of the season, and played very well. They've played on the same line many times before, and have largely done very well, but our last two coaches have often split up the line when its playing well. It usually revolves around the last two coaches giving Buchnevich a lesser role for strange reasons, but it does seem like that changed at the end of last season. If it did, I see no reason to split up that line. They play great together.

The other consideration with that line is that Kreider might be traded. He has one year left on his contract, and the team has to decide if they want to re-sign him. This one seems more 50/50 than re-signing Hayes or Zuccarello. I never got the sense that Hayes or Zuccarello were likely to be re-signed. Gorton likes to trade veterans for picks/prospects, so I think he would be more likely to trade Kreider than most GM's would, but I also think Kreider is a player the team wants to keep. But if he is traded, that opens up a spot on that line.

The current NHL team doesn't have much talent. Players such as Namestnikov, Vesey, Howden, Andersson, Strome are NHL players and some of the younger ones among them could maybe be 2nd liners eventually, but are bottom six players, at best, right now. Chytil is also a bottom six player, but should end up as a top six player within another season or two. I think the team will look to give him a top six role this upcoming season. Will he produce next season as a top six player? Its hard to tell. I think he could, but maybe he will need two seasons instead of one to produce as a top six NHL'er.

There's also the possibility we sign Panarin. Our team has long been considered a team that signs high priced UFA's, but we haven't been in on some of the recent ones like Stamkos and Tavares. Panarin seems to be the player that Gorton is going to try to sign. Most experts place us as the co-favorites to sign Panarin along with Florida. The other player who might get a top six role the upcoming season is Kravtsov. There are some people who think he's going to compete for rookie of the year, and immediately be an impact NHL'er. I don't see it as such. I think he might need to play another season in the KHL. That probably won't happen, as he's more likely to play in the AHL if he isn't NHL ready, but I'm not sure he is NHL ready. I'm not as convinced as some that he'll play in our top six this season, but its a possibility.

Who Kakko would play with also depends on if he's going to be played at center or wing. Thats also the consideration with Chytil. Is he a center or winger?

If I was to guess at what I think the lines will look like, I think something like this

Kreider-Zibanejad-Buchnevich
Panarin-Chytil-Kakko
Andersson-Howden-Namestnikov
Vesey-Strome-Fast

Some of that is my own predictions. I think we'll keep Kreider, I think we'll sign Panarin and I don't think Kravtsov is going to start in the NHL, but our forward group isn't very established, so there's a lot of unknown with our forward lines for next season.

As for their styles of play, this is how I would describe each.

Zibanejad: He's turned into a two way right-handed center in the last season. He's the minutes leader among the forwards, and was the best player on the team last season. Offensively, he has good 1v1 skills and stick handling. He's more of a goal-scorer than most players. He possesses a very good shot, and the team often looks to set him up for that one-timer on the PP in the Ovechkin spot. He's also a capable playmaker, but he looks for his shot, and so sometimes he'll miss open passes. I think he has average hockey IQ. Its not great, but not a liability. He's also a pretty big center and skates very well. He does't have McDavid or MacKinnon type speed, but definitely at least an above average skater. His defense has never been bad, but last season he become much better and is now one of our better defensive forwards.

Kreider: Kreider is one of the biggest and strongest skill forwards in the league. He has elite acceleration. He doesn't have such great edges, so his speed comes mostly from straight line skating, but he gets a lot of breakaways due to his size and speed. He also is known as one of the strongest players in the league. Kreider plays a power forward style as a left-handed on the LW. He's a capable passer and stick handler, but he's not a fancy passer or stick handler. He keeps his passing simple, and knows his role on his line. He's definitely a goal scorer more than playmaker. He has a slightly above-average shot, but scores most of his goals near the net. He's one of the best net front players in the league, and is very good at scoring on tip-ins and screening the goalie. Some accuse him of having a below average hockey IQ. I don't think its that bad, but somewhere around average, maybe a little below that. Defensively, he sucks. He's a physical player and works very hard, but takes a lot of dumb penalties. He's cut down on some of his gritty play in recent years after he got a lot of flack for some high-profile incidents.

Buchnevich: I would say there are actually some similarities to how Kakko plays. Left-handed winger, but capable of playing on either side. He's a very good stickhandler, passer and has a very high hockey IQ. He's probably the best on the team in those last two categories. Like Kakko, his skating acceleration isn't more than average/slightly above average. He has good edges and like Kakko uses his stick handling and smarts instead of pure acceleration to create zone entries and beat players 1v1, so I think he's more of an above average skater than average, but I think a reasonable range is somewhere between average and above average. He has a very good release on his shot, but has always had a problem with not shooting enough.

As the last season went on, he started shooting more and passing less. He has good size and has started scoring more goals near the net as the coach has coached him to play less on the perimeter and more near the net. He does still struggle at times with getting knocked off the puck. He has good size, but doesn't have that much weight on his frame, although he's near 200 pounds now, so he's improved in that area. Defensively, he's pretty average. Some use the typical Russian tropes here and accuse him of being lazy and bad defensively because he doesn't deliver many big hits or block that many shots, but he's a smart positional defender and plays defense more in an understated way.

Chytil: Chytil's best skills are his size and speed. He's an excellent skater with great acceleration and edges. He also has a good level of skill, and is capable of making some very nice passes and executing some nice 1v1 stick handling plays, but his skill and playmaking is more inconsistent, and is really only shown in flashes right now. He's a pretty average goal-scorer. He shoots the puck a lot, but doesn't have a great shot or great finishing ability yet. His hockey IQ is a little questionable. Some of that might be that he's one of the youngest players in the NHL, but I would say his hockey IQ is probably average, at best. Its not terribly low, but somewhere around average or just under that. Defensively, he still struggles some, but he's a younger player learning the NHL game. I think there's at least average defensively capability once he learns the NHL game better. Chytil is a left-handed player who has played all the three forward positions. Some think he might end up a center, others say wing. I think he could probably play either.

Kravtsov: Kravtsov has a lot of different offensive skills. He's a tall and lanky left-handed winger capable of playing on either wing, and maybe even center, although I think its much more likely he'll be a winger. He has at least above-average goal scoring ability due to a good release and a willingness to shoot the puck. He also has very good stick-handling and playmaking ability. His stick handling is close to elite, while his playmaking is more in the very good category. He's also at least above average, maybe very good in skating and hockey IQ. Defensively, his game is pretty good for a player his age. He's not going to win any Selke's, but I don't see many noticeable defensive problems in how he plays. But like most young players, he still has things to work on. He needs to get stronger, he needs to get more efficient at converting score chances, the coach will want him to play less on the perimeter. I think he could probably produce third line production next season, but I would prefer that he plays another season in the KHL.
 
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tellermine

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Ah ok,that's your answer. Yea that's it, probably a 15 year old kid in his basement is running the social media for the organization.
Nääh. More like 25 year old somepro just doing his/her job and making those high sellers.
My fried actually does this for a soccerclup. Knows 0 about soccer but writes flashy stuff.

Ofcourse he gets orders what to write.
So Yeah., it might be that also.
 

The Crypto Guy

Registered User
Jun 26, 2017
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Nääh. More like 25 year old somepro just doing his/her job and making those high sellers.
My fried actually does this for a soccerclup. Knows 0 about soccer but writes flashy stuff.

Ofcourse he gets orders what to write.
So Yeah., it might be that also.
K, well i'm not going to argue it anymore, we all know they are taking him. You can just wait to 2 months and be shocked if you want.
 

FlyguyOX

Registered User
Jun 29, 2018
3,691
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Zibanejad, Kreider, Buchnevich, Panarin, Chytil and Kravtsov are the players I think are potential line mates.

Unlike some good teams that have established lines, we don't have much of that because we are rebuilding and the parts on the team are constantly changing.

At the end of last season when we traded Hayes and Zuccarello, we only had three top six forwards, Zibanejad, Kreider and Buchnevich. Those three played on a line at the end of the season, and played very well. They've played on the same line many times before, and have largely done very well, but our last two coaches have often split up the line when its playing well. It usually revolves around the last two coaches giving Buchnevich a lesser role for strange reasons, but it does seem like that changed at the end of last season. If it did, I see no reason to split up that line. They play great together.

The other consideration with that line is that Kreider might be traded. He has one year left on his contract, and the team has to decide if they want to re-sign him. This one seems more 50/50 than re-signing Hayes or Zuccarello. I never got the sense that Hayes or Zuccarello were likely to be re-signed. Gorton likes to trade veterans for picks/prospects, so I think he would be more likely to trade Kreider than most GM's would, but I also think Kreider is a player the team wants to keep. But if he is traded, that opens up a spot on that line.

The current NHL team doesn't have much talent. Players such as Namestnikov, Vesey, Howden, Andersson, Strome are NHL players and some of the younger ones among them could maybe be 2nd liners eventually, but are bottom six players, at best, right now. Chytil is also a bottom six player, but should end up as a top six player within another season or two. I think the team will look to give him a top six role this upcoming season. Will he produce next season as a top six player? Its hard to tell. I think he could, but maybe he will need two seasons instead of one to produce as a top six NHL'er.

There's also the possibility we sign Panarin. Our team has long been considered a team that signs high priced UFA's, but we haven't been in on some of the recent ones like Stamkos and Tavares. Panarin seems to be the player that Gorton is going to try to sign. Most experts place us as the co-favorites to sign Panarin along with Florida. The other player who might get a top six role the upcoming season is Kravtsov. There are some people who think he's going to compete for rookie of the year, and immediately be an impact NHL'er. I don't see it as such. I think he might need to play another season in the KHL. That probably won't happen, as he's more likely to play in the AHL if he isn't NHL ready, but I'm not sure he is NHL ready. I'm not as convinced as some that he'll play in our top six this season, but its a possibility.

Who Kakko would play with also depends on if he's going to be played at center or wing. Thats also the consideration with Chytil. Is he a center or winger?

If I was to guess at what I think the lines will look like, I think something like this

Kreider-Zibanejad-Buchnevich
Panarin-Chytil-Kakko
Andersson-Howden-Namestnikov
Vesey-Strome-Fast

Some of that is my own predictions. I think we'll keep Kreider, I think we'll sign Panarin and I don't think Kravtsov is going to start in the NHL, but our forward group isn't very established, so there's a lot of unknown with our forward lines for next season.

As for their styles of play, this is how I would describe each.

Zibanejad: He's turned into a two way right-handed center in the last season. He's the minutes leader among the forwards, and was the best player on the team last season. Offensively, he has good 1v1 skills and stick handling. He's more of a goal-scorer than most players. He possesses a very good shot, and the team often looks to set him up for that one-timer on the PP in the Ovechkin spot. He's also a capable playmaker, but he looks for his shot, and so sometimes he'll miss open passes. I think he has average hockey IQ. Its not great, but not a liability. He's also a pretty big center and skates very well. He does't have McDavid or MacKinnon type speed, but definitely at least an above average skater. His defense has never been bad, but last season he become much better and is now one of our better defensive forwards.

Kreider: Kreider is one of the biggest and strongest skill forwards in the league. He has elite acceleration. He doesn't have such great edges, so his speed comes mostly from straight line skating, but he gets a lot of breakaways due to his size and speed. He also is known as one of the strongest players in the league. Kreider plays a power forward style as a left-handed on the LW. He's a capable passer and stick handler, but he's not a fancy passer or stick handler. He keeps his passing simple, and knows his role on his line. He's definitely a goal scorer more than playmaker. He has a slightly above-average shot, but scores most of his goals near the net. He's one of the best net front players in the league, and is very good at scoring on tip-ins and screening the goalie. Some accuse him of having a below average hockey IQ. I don't think its that bad, but somewhere around average, maybe a little below that. Defensively, he sucks. He's a physical player and works very hard, but takes a lot of dumb penalties. He's cut down on some of his gritty play in recent years after he got a lot of flack for some high-profile incidents.

Buchnevich: I would say there are actually some similarities to how Kakko plays. Left-handed winger, but capable of playing on either side. He's a very good stickhandler, passer and has a very high hockey IQ. He's probably the best on the team in those last two categories. Like Kakko, his skating acceleration isn't more than average/slightly above average. He has good edges and like Kakko uses his stick handling and smarts instead of pure acceleration to create zone entries and beat players 1v1, so I think he's more of an above average skater than average, but I think a reasonable range is somewhere between average and above average. He has a very good release on his shot, but has always had a problem with not shooting enough.

As the last season went on, he started shooting more and passing less. He has good size and has started scoring more goals near the net as the coach has coached him to play less on the perimeter and more near the net. He does still struggle at times with getting knocked off the puck. He has good size, but doesn't have that much weight on his frame, although he's near 200 pounds now, so he's improved in that area. Defensively, he's pretty average. Some use the typical Russian tropes here and accuse him of being lazy and bad defensively because he doesn't deliver many big hits or block that many shots, but he's a smart positional defender and plays defense more in an understated way.

Chytil: Chytil's best skills are his size and speed. He's an excellent skater with great acceleration and edges. He also has a good level of skill, and is capable of making some very nice passes and executing some nice 1v1 stick handling plays, but his skill and playmaking is more inconsistent, and is really only shown in flashes right now. He's a pretty average goal-scorer. He shoots the puck a lot, but doesn't have a great shot or great finishing ability yet. His hockey IQ is a little questionable. Some of that might be that he's one of the youngest players in the NHL, but I would say his hockey IQ is probably average, at best. Its not terribly low, but somewhere around average or just under that. Defensively, he still struggles some, but he's a younger player learning the NHL game. I think there's at least average defensively capability once he learns the NHL game better. Chytil is a left-handed player who has played all the three forward positions. Some think he might end up a center, others say wing. I think he could probably play either.

Kravtsov: Kravtsov has a lot of different offensive skills. He's a tall and lanky left-handed winger capable of playing on either wing, and maybe even center, although I think its much more likely he'll be a winger. He has at least above-average goal scoring ability due to a good release and a willingness to shoot the puck. He also has very good stick-handling and playmaking ability. His stick handling is close to elite, while his playmaking is more in the very good category. He's also at least above average, maybe very good in skating and hockey IQ. Defensively, his game is pretty good for a player his age. He's not going to win any Selke's, but I don't see many noticeable defensive problems in how he plays. But like most young players, he still has things to work on. He needs to get stronger, he needs to get more efficient at converting score chances, the coach will want him to play less on the perimeter. I think he could probably produce third line production next season, but I would prefer that he plays another season in the KHL.

Holy shit. Tl; dr.
 
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