Player Discussion Tage Thompson 1

[Chainshot]

He was awesome tonight. Wish he could have potted one.

I thought he stung Kinkaid (mind the spacing ) with that PP bomb. It certainly gives them another option on the wing. Him on Jack's RW might be interesting with how he creates turnovers with that long cue.

 

[Gabrielor]

When he's "on" he reminds me of Mario.

When he aggressive on steals and has an active stick, he reminds me of Mark Stone.

 

[CatsforReinhart]

I thought he stung Kinkaid (mind the spacing ) with that PP bomb. It certainly gives them another option on the wing. Him on Jack's RW might be interesting with how he creates turnovers with that long cue.

I hope if he plays on Jacks wing he stops playing around with the puck. I am not sure he is a good fit with Jack they both like to handle the puck.

 

[Gordo21]

One trick pony, hopefully he can be moved soon before the rest of the league figures that out. Hands are average, fumbles the puck too often when in close. Can’t see his linemates. Soft.

He only had six shots on goal tonight. How many 21 year old one trick ponies can do that?

Look forward to watching Thompson with the Sabres for many years to come!

 

[vcv]

I hope if he plays on Jacks wing he stops playing around with the puck. I am not sure he is a good fit with Jack they both like to handle the puck.

Yeah if he gets a chance with Jack he's going to have to learn to move the puck quickly. I think he tends to over-handle it because his line-mates generally give it away when he passes to them.

 

[enthusiast]

In my eyes at least he's improved considerably in his technique. Still has mental lapses but hey, that's forgivable if he can bring the size/skill combo.

 

[Chainshot]

Yeah if he gets a chance with Jack he's going to have to learn to move the puck quickly. I think he tends to over-handle it because his line-mates generally give it away when he passes to them.

He is confident in his own stick skills. I'd be interested to see what he can do using his reach to retrieve pucks for Jack and Skinner.

 

[sabrebuild]

To the overhandling point, I think it goes one of two ways.

Either Tage gets it that he is a human cannon 90% of the time, just bombing shots from everywhere and taking up space with his length and good stick.

Prince Joffrey is going to get a lot of space if Tage can be dangerous.

Or Tage is two steps behind Eichel and burns too many opportunities because the pace is too fast.

If he can just be 50/50 with Jack, that is an acceptable drop to get Reinhart on a separate line.

 

[1972]

In two years he’s a stud

 

[RecycledEichel]

This kid is still so young. I think he's a top 6 forward for us for a long time.

 

[jBuds]

You’re continuing to short-change his progress if you think the level of overhandling is the same now as it was at the beginning of the year.

It was so clearly a point of emphasis on tape; you see him (at times) want to try something but stop himself quick and move the puck up ice.

One of several areas in which the progress is quantifiable.

 

[dire wolf]

His improvement this year has been astounding. You can now really see the potential there. His ceiling is higher than I realized. Wouldn't it be funny if Botteril had his eye on the right Blues prospect after all.

 

[sabremike]

I surrender and will bask in the magnificent glow of MAGIC GIRAFFE!

 

[Icicle]

He’s confident in his hands and that’s fine. He uses his dekes to open a lane and often shoots immediately afterward, which is much better than hitting shin pads. Right now none of his linemates have been able to feed him with any consistency though and I don’t think it’s because he’s not open. That is where the pairing with Eichel will likely do best. And his long reach causes turnovers that skilled guys turn into goals. It’s a good toolset to have.

He took a step back after pre season, but it’s been a steady improvement since then. Gotta feel good about this kid.

 

[tsujimoto74]

He is confident in his own stick skills. I'd be interested to see what he can do using his reach to retrieve pucks for Jack and Skinner.

Skinner is his own puck retriever. Not your conventional win-50-50-puck-battles guy, but he gets it done with nifty stick work on the forecheck. I think he's leading the team in takeaways.

I agree that I'd like to see Tage get a shot on that line once Jack is back, though. He's improved so much since the beginning of the season and has earned the opportunity. Plus, it lets Reinhart carry his own line away from Eichel to (hopefully) spread out the scoring a bit more.

 

[Jim Bob]

I love the TnT roller coaster ride.

Like a lot of young players, he needs to figure out how to be a factor on a more consistent basis.

He has talent. I am not sold yet that he will get to the point where he is a factor on more nights than he is just filling a jersey.

 

[TheMistyStranger]

When he's "on" he reminds me of Mario.

I was thinking that last night.

 

[1972]

He's got way more upside then any of the other blues prospects, 6'6 forward with a bomb and silky smooth puck skills? He could end up being a Corey Perry prime caliber player in a few seasons. I think the gamble is worth it because the upside is big.

 

[1point21Gigawatts]

His improvement this year has been astounding. You can now really see the potential there. His ceiling is higher than I realized. Wouldn't it be funny if Botteril had his eye on the right Blues prospect after all.

Also, wouldn't it be funny if Housley utilized and has been developing him correctly all along?

 

[Doohickie]

I hope if he plays on Jacks wing he stops playing around with the puck. I am not sure he is a good fit with Jack they both like to handle the puck.

It seems like he's improving in that regard. If he can carry it he's confident in his ability to do so but he's also getting better at moving it to someone else. His pass to Skinner on the first goal against NJ was a good example.

 

[1point21Gigawatts]

It seems like he's improving in that regard. If he can move it he's confident in his ability to do so but he's also getting better at moving it to someone else. His pass to Skinner on the first goal against NJ was a good example.

he seems to pick and choose his spots to dangle and deke better. I haven't seen him do that stupid spin o rama from a dead standstill in a while. That said, i anticipate we'll still see plenty more of those big mistakes as he continues to improve his overall game.

 

[Doohickie]

Yes, agree on picking his spots.

You still see him toe drag once in a while and lose it, but usually when he does it appears to be his best option, unlike a lot of players that will simply crank it into a Dman's shin pads. I like that he tries to get open before getting his shot off.

Early in the season he seemed to take up too much space and defenders easily stripped him of the puck. It seems like now instead of a liability, he's learning to use his size as an asset at the NHL level.

 

[Thorton02]

I don't recall seeing the spin-o-rama last night. That's progress. Hope he keeps it up.

 

[TheMistyStranger]

I like the chemistry he had with Skinner last night. Having Jack between those two could be legitimately a top 5 line in the league. So much offensive skill, and think about how much space TNT would have out there.

 

[sabremike]

What should all of us Tage fans be called?

#TeamMagicGiraffe

Or

#ToeDragArmy ?