Who is our worst defenseman?

[Gurglesons]

Yet you didn't respond in the other thread when people called you crazy for willing to do Lucic for Johnson.

Much easier to bury a 3 mil dollar winger than a 3 mil dollar defenseman.

 

[Pens1566]

I said Maatta not because I think he sucks, but because he's the worst for our team. Any positives he brings are just negated by his skating. Which it seems like will never improve. That's a death sentence for a d-man, especially on this team. He'd do far better on a different team.

 

[CrosbyMalkin]

Folks might be calling him out more because of the reveal at the beginning of the season that he'd worked on his skating over the summer. Now everyone is focused on it. My issue isn't just his lack of speed, but also his decision making. I don't know if he just had better partners covering for him, or his medication is causing some brain fog or he's over thinking things or all of the above, but what made him a good defenseman was his hockey IQ and that hasn't been on display much this year.

I actually think his skating has improved. The year of the last Cup he looked like he was skating in cement boots and was by far the slowest person in the NHL. Even then he still played a solid second pairing defense. Just had some plays that looked real bad every so often. If Maatta is the worst of our worries I will be fine with that. My biggest disappointment has been Brassard. I really thought he was going to be a much better point producer than he has been. I know our record with all 3 centers has been good so I shouldn’t complain.

 

[Peat]

This is BS. Both his rookie year being a fluke and the idea that you were the first person to not like Maatta. People here have ripped his skating for 3 years now. Like longer than you’ve been posting.

After the second cup, Cole actually called one one of the salary cap threads "Stop trying to give Sheary and Maatta away".

 

[Pens x]

This is BS. Both his rookie year being a fluke and the idea that you were the first person to not like Maatta. People here have ripped his skating for 3 years now. Like longer than you’ve been posting.

Very few people suggested trading Maatta until now.

 

[EightyOne]

Very few people suggested trading Maatta until now.

There was hope he would recover from the injury and illness of the first couple off-seasons.

Then last summer was like the first time he could focus on skating-a long shot at improvement this late in life, but still.

The hope has faded for many people and the acceptance that a trade may be inevitable has crept in.



What doesn't make sense is you moving the goalposts to ensure you were smarter than everyone.

First no one noticed him skating slow in plays. Now no one wanted to trade him until now.

What you gonna say next "well, I knew he never should have been drafted!"




The best part is, he isn't the worst NHL defensemen. He's just not a good fit on the Pens. But he's somehow managed to stay fairly successful.

 

[NMK11]

I'm honestly a little surprised at this poll. I wonder if people are considering salary cap and expectations in here. In that case, maata should be the vote. But just looking at the individual players, if you had all three at the same cap hit and had to pick two, I definitely wouldn't pick JJ and oleksiak.

 

[bambamcam4ever]

Folks might be calling him out more because of the reveal at the beginning of the season that he'd worked on his skating over the summer. Now everyone is focused on it. My issue isn't just his lack of speed, but also his decision making. I don't know if he just had better partners covering for him, or his medication is causing some brain fog or he's over thinking things or all of the above, but what made him a good defenseman was his hockey IQ and that hasn't been on display much this year.

Do people only consider hockey IQ with the puck? A player is playing without it 90% of the game, and there is a chasm between Maatta and the other two guys in this poll in regards to positioning.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Yet you didn't respond in the other thread when people called you crazy for willing to do Lucic for Johnson.

Get rid of both.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Really strange to see that Oleksiak isn’t the clear cut number 1 in this poll. Really strange. Maatta has had a lot of bad games this season but has been good for most of his career. Oleksiak has also had a lot of bad games this season but really doesn’t have much career success as a back up like Maatta.

Olli hasn't been good since last year. This year it just progressed to bad as the league keeps trending towards being faster and it's one of those things that won't change back and favor Olli. West isn't as fast to that change so he can fit better there for a couple of seasons.

 

[Tom Hanks]

Olli hasn't been good since last year. This year it just progressed to bad as the league keeps trending towards being faster and it's one of those things that won't change back and favor Olli. West isn't as fast to that change so he can fit better there for a couple of seasons.

I’ve missed a bit of hockey so haven’t seen as much of the bad as others but he’s still good or capable of being good. Because of his skating he needs to rely more on teammates being competent. He needs to pass to get out of danger he can’t skate it out.

I’m sure they’d trade him but JR will want good value in return or we’ll just keep him and hope he bounces back.

Might be early but having Riikola and Petterson does make it easier to trade him. I’d trade him for a centre, trade Brassard for a wing then bring in a steady bottom pair guy (and say goodbye to Big Rig).

 

[Peat]

I'm honestly a little surprised at this poll. I wonder if people are considering salary cap and expectations in here. In that case, maata should be the vote. But just looking at the individual players, if you had all three at the same cap hit and had to pick two, I definitely wouldn't pick JJ and oleksiak.

A few have said that they're voting based on salary, but I think you're right to point at expectations.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Folks might be calling him out more because of the reveal at the beginning of the season that he'd worked on his skating over the summer. Now everyone is focused on it. My issue isn't just his lack of speed, but also his decision making. I don't know if he just had better partners covering for him, or his medication is causing some brain fog or he's over thinking things or all of the above, but what made him a good defenseman was his hockey IQ and that hasn't been on display much this year.

100x the bolded.

I came to accept he was always going to be a slug out there. But he used to make up for it with smart hockey. Now it's as though his mind has become as slow as his skating.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I’ve missed a bit of hockey so haven’t seen as much of the bad as others but he’s still good or capable of being good. Because of his skating he needs to rely more on teammates being competent. He needs to pass to get out of danger he can’t skate it out.

I’m sure they’d trade him but JR will want good value in return or we’ll just keep him and hope he bounces back.

Might be early but having Riikola and Petterson does make it easier to trade him. I’d trade him for a centre, trade Brassard for a wing then bring in a steady bottom pair guy (and say goodbye to Big Rig).

Olli can be manageable but at his cap hit you can get someone that is just as manageable at half the cap.

That's my issue with him.

 

[Tom Hanks]

Olli can be manageable but at his cap hit you can get someone that is just as manageable at half the cap.

That's my issue with him.

He might get back to last seasons form but as most have said he’s a bad fit and with Riikola and Petterson coming through as smart defenders we don’t have to have a smart player with some big flaws (skating).

It’s a good time to see what his value is around the league. I imagine there are teams that like him. The Ducks have already said so but JR wanted a deal to get Montour which they declined.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

He might get back to last seasons form but as most have said he’s a bad fit and with Riikola and Petterson coming through as smart defenders we don’t have to have a smart player with some big flaws (skating).

It’s a good time to see what his value is around the league. I imagine there are teams that like him. The Ducks have already said so but JR wanted a deal to get Montour which they declined.

He has to get quicker or suddenly get smarter.

 

[pokey10]

Maatta is our new Kunitz/Duper/Fluery/Hags ?

 

[MrBurghundy]

We'll keep this between 3 Defensemen.

As it stands - Letang, Dumoulin and Pettersson have been solid.

Riikola is too raw to even be in this poll, so let's make it between the 3 in contention. Well, mostly Maatta and Johnson, but Oleksiak should be in this argument as well.

As Discussed in a previous thread...

@MrBurghundy

I feel honored, and the voting is going exactly how I thought it would.

 

[Tom Hanks]

He has to get quicker or suddenly get smarter.

He could (and probably will) do the later. He’s not getting quicker.

 

[3074326]

I would have said JMFJ before the Pettersson addition, but he's been ok since then. Maatta is definitely the worst fit for what the team is trying to do. I think Oleksiak is worse at playing D. It's a toss up.

 

[WayneSid9987]

After more thought on this, i'm changing from Olli to Rig.
Olli is still capable of NOT being our worst.
Rig is clear cut the worst with the puck on his stick in the DZ(even a well playing Ruh is better at this critical skill for this team) and i don't see him being capable of improving that after watching him for a nice chunk of time here.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

He could (and probably will) do the later. He’s not getting quicker.

The thing is the league is starting to get faster. This is gonna get worse not better.

 

[Allie Kitsune]

I went with Olli because even to casual eyes like mine, he seems to be the worst fit.

If it wasn't for all the misfortune he's had, it might be different.

 

[DearDiary]

Maatta is a top 4 Dman, Riikola is barely a #6 Dman. Embarrassing poll

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Oleksiak has the hockey IQ of a dead rodent.

Good wheels, good shot, good hitter, long reach. All the tools to succeed, yet he sucks. So many bad reads. Guy probably cannot spell his own name. He seems that dumb.

Maatta had historically been a very smart player. This year, he struggles badly though. Still not as much as a nuisance as Oleksiak. We just have higher expectations.