Wings Select D William Wallinder at 32nd OVR

[NickH8]

Skated in the 6th most games by a Detroit Red Wings d-man in the history of the franchise. He could skate for a while there.

Broken/injured Ericsson that everyone talks about a ton isn't really the guy we are talking about here. I don't think Ericsson is a good comparison. Wallinder's skating is pretty high end, to me a better comparison recently would be K'Andre Miller.

Oh I know Ercisson could "skate", technically my obese mother can skate lol. But could Ericsson SKATE?

 

[KasperTheGrittyGhost]

Check out around 12:30 in this video:

Love Will’s work.

 

[14ari13]

I believe it has been said he has played 6th most games among the wings defencemen all time.

 

[BinCookin]

That totally contradicts what Yzerman just said yesterday during the live stream. He said everyone went where they projected other than a few players they really wanted got snagged up just before their selection. He said they lost out on some players they really wanted.

But he said, in no uncertain terms, nobody fell. Maybe he and Hakan have different lists/opinions?

I wouldn't say that exactly Dotter.

Hakan basically said they ranked Wallinder maybe even as high as 20thOA-30thOA. Meaning he was probably going to be selected late in the 1st round. We selected him with the very first pick in the 2nd round. So I wouldn't say Wallinder "Fell" to us really. I think that term is used more for moving down 10-15 spots, not 5. So just terminology difference.

The way Hakan talks about Wallinder... I kinda feel like they were very happy to get Wallinder with that pick.
Is it possibly we wanted someone else taken just before him? Maybe.

 

[Killerjas]

I am over the moon on Wallinder. Ever since Scouching promoted him I am a firm believer that he has 1st line D potential. He projects to be a puck rusher offensive defenseman.

Some of my notes on him:

• Outstanding skater
• Big
• Defensive positioning not very good, something he has to work on
• Has some issues with tracking play in the defense zone
• Great puckhandling

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

You can dog on Smith but you can’t call him a bust. He is closing in on 500 career games.

Not a traditional bust, no. I always thought Brendan Smith would have a career that paralleled with Jake Gardiner; 30ish point defenseman. The tools were all there, but he didn't get anywhere near reaching his potential.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

I feel like I should be more excited about this guy than I am. The combination of size and skating is excellent but defenceman with those tools don’t slide to where he did without major question marks imo. Hope he develops well.

Think of it like this; We got a Broberg equivalent (Ultra talented defenseman with question marks in the hockey sense department.) in the 2nd round instead of at 8th overall like Edmonton in 2019. Picking guys like that in the 2nd round is much better than picking them in the early first.

We did OK.

 

[izlez]

Legitimately asking here:

On a surface level,
Wallinder is a 6'4 smooth skating defenseman with questions about his hockey IQ that played in the Swedish Junior league. He is mostly regarded as a good pick at #32
Tuomisto is a 6'4 smooth skating defenseman with questions about his hockey IQ that played in the Finnish Junior league. He is mostly regarded as a big reach at #35

What separates these 2?

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Legitimately asking here:

On a surface level,
Wallinder is a 6'4 smooth skating defenseman with questions about his hockey IQ that played in the Swedish Junior league. He is mostly regarded as a good pick at #32
Tuomisto is a 6'4 smooth skating defenseman with questions about his hockey IQ that played in the Finnish Junior league. He is mostly regarded as a big reach at #35

What separates these 2?

Tuomisto's problems aren't hockey IQ at all. Tuomisto needs to improve his footwork. The guy has a heavy shot, solid passing skills, and he plays with a bit of grit. Skating is a legitimate concern though. His defensive issues stem from skating issues.

 

[Hen Kolland]

Legitimately asking here:

On a surface level,
Wallinder is a 6'4 smooth skating defenseman with questions about his hockey IQ that played in the Swedish Junior league. He is mostly regarded as a good pick at #32
Tuomisto is a 6'4 smooth skating defenseman with questions about his hockey IQ that played in the Finnish Junior league. He is mostly regarded as a big reach at #35

What separates these 2?

The fact that Tuomisto was never considered anything remotely close to a "smooth skating defenseman" and certainly nothing close to Wallinder. Wallinder is a highly, highly mobile defenseman.

 

[Henkka]

Tuomisto is more of PP quarterback. I think we have very nice mix now of big guys.

Seider - BIG physical shut-down RhD, with great passing/skating.
Tuomisto - BIG RhD quarterback with a BOMB shot.
Wallinder - BIG LhD skating/passing transition defenceman.

Everything is BIG.

HUGE.

Do I sound like Donald Trump?

 

[izlez]

Tuomisto's problems aren't hockey IQ at all. Tuomisto needs to improve his footwork. The guy has a heavy shot, solid passing skills, and he plays with a bit of grit. Skating is a legitimate concern though. His defensive issues stem from skating issues.

The fact that Tuomisto was never considered anything remotely close to a "smooth skating defenseman" and certainly nothing close to Wallinder. Wallinder is a highly, highly mobile defenseman.

Just skimmed through Tuomisto's draft thread and sounds like there are some widely varying opinions on his skating. That is definitely different from what I thought I knew about him. I thought skating was a definite strength. And video of him is still pretty scarce

 

[Hen Kolland]

Just skimmed through Tuomisto's draft thread and sounds like there are some widely varying opinions on his skating. That is definitely different from what I thought I knew about him. I thought skating was a definite strength. And video of him is still pretty scarce

I've never seen a positive spin on his skating. He is big and covers space with his physical presence, but his skating is still lackluster. I know that's one of the big areas that he's expected to be emphasizing.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Just skimmed through Tuomisto's draft thread and sounds like there are some widely varying opinions on his skating. That is definitely different from what I thought I knew about him. I thought skating was a definite strength. And video of him is still pretty scarce

Most of what I found about Tuomisto was "Skates well for a big man." which is code for "average skater."

Everything else was a real positive, though.

I think of it like this; Wallinder could be a prime Alex Edler offensive defenseman who looks very smooth but is only OK in his end which is what holds him back from being a top pair guy.
Tuomisto could be a Colton Parayko who is good in both ends but whose skating holds him back from being a true top pair defenseman.

 

[izlez]

I've never seen a positive spin on his skating. He is big and covers space with his physical presence, but his skating is still lackluster. I know that's one of the big areas that he's expected to be emphasizing.

Again, I was legitimately asking and am not saying I know about Tuomisto. I appreciate the feedback. But some select quotes/posts from Tuomisto's thread to where I got this idea:

"Why are we talking like he's not a good skater? That was literally the first strength they mentioned on the Sportsnet feed."
"Most scouts are highlighting his skating as a strength, for what it's worth."
"Just reading a bit about him - he's big, has great skating given his size, and is a good puck mover."
"Stop worrying about bad skating, when a guy is not a bad skater."
"His skating is good for someone his size, and it’s been getting better all season long"
"Tyler Wright had a “little bit of a crush on” the big defenseman, whom Andersson described as a “very good skater and plays with a natural bite. "

 

[Henkka]

Most of what I found about Tuomisto was "Skates well for a big man." which is code for "average skater."

Kind of the opposite.

Runs well for a big man. -Usain Bolt.

Took least steps on 100m dash for the fastest time.

Small guy with fast moving feet LOOKING FAST, BUT = could lose in speed for a big man with long strides.

Big guys' slow skating is mostly an illusion.

 

[Hen Kolland]

Again, I was legitimately asking and am not saying I know about Tuomisto. I appreciate the feedback. But some select quotes/posts from Tuomisto's thread to where I got this idea:

"Why are we talking like he's not a good skater? That was literally the first strength they mentioned on the Sportsnet feed."
"Most scouts are highlighting his skating as a strength, for what it's worth."
"Just reading a bit about him - he's big, has great skating given his size, and is a good puck mover."
"Stop worrying about bad skating, when a guy is not a bad skater."
"His skating is good for someone his size, and it’s been getting better all season long"
"Tyler Wright had a “little bit of a crush on” the big defenseman, whom Andersson described as a “very good skater and plays with a natural bite. "

Speaking purely by things I've read, mobility is a focal point in his development.

And bringing this back to your original point, yesterday, Craig Custance's draft recap podcast episode was posted with Scott Wheeler as one of his guests. When touching on Detroit a little bit, Wheeler's exact comments were "Wallinder is a fabulous, interesting prospect. A lot like Antti Tuomisto was in the same range last year. They both have NHL qualities, they are both huge, they can both skate." In my opinion, there is a significant difference in their skating ability, but in the same breath, I think Tuomisto has more intriguing offensive abilities.

So when you are looking at the two players, I think beauty is in the eye of the beholder; obviously Wheeler thinks they are similar caliber of prospects. Wallinder was a name people were aware of and a few had a first round grade on him. Tuomisto was a little lesser known, and I think that creates the narrative of a reach. I think it is more than fair to have them neck and neck with each other in terms of caliber of prospects. I don't think we should get hung up on the draft value narratives though.

 

[Tetsuo]

Speaking purely by things I've read, mobility is a focal point in his development.

And bringing this back to your original point, yesterday, Craig Custance's draft recap podcast episode was posted with Scott Wheeler as one of his guests. When touching on Detroit a little bit, Wheeler's exact comments were "Wallinder is a fabulous, interesting prospect. A lot like Antti Tuomisto was in the same range last year. They both have NHL qualities, they are both huge, they can both skate." In my opinion, there is a significant difference in their skating ability, but in the same breath, I think Tuomisto has more intriguing offensive abilities.

So when you are looking at the two players, I think beauty is in the eye of the beholder; obviously Wheeler thinks they are similar caliber of prospects. Wallinder was a name people were aware of and a few had a first round grade on him. Tuomisto was a little lesser known, and I think that creates the narrative of a reach. I think it is more than fair to have them neck and neck with each other in terms of caliber of prospects. I don't think we should get hung up on the draft value narratives though.

I feel this to a large extent. Taking a crack a big defensemen who is raw but has tons of upside is a fair choice in the early 2nd. I was higher a few of the forwards who were left this year and last year, but both Tuomisto and Wallinder have a lot of characteristics you can't teach. Hard to not like Tuomisto's shot or Wallinder's skating,

 

[Henkka]

So when you are looking at the two players, I think beauty is in the eye of the beholder; obviously Wheeler thinks they are similar caliber of prospects. Wallinder was a name people were aware of and a few had a first round grade on him. Tuomisto was a little lesser known, and I think that creates the narrative of a reach. I think it is more than fair to have them neck and neck with each other in terms of caliber of prospects. I don't think we should get hung up on the draft value narratives though.

Agree with this.

And also, on general draft lists, before drafts, Wallinder was higher than Tuomisto was.

And everyone here was very desperate after elite forward, so the whining and depression against Seider also influenced for the Tuomisto pick, when we were getting 2 defenceman in-a-row, when consensus was hoping for a forward.

Not, at 2020, we did got Raymond, so those Elite forward wishers did their guys, so Defenceman after didn't "hurt" their feelings.

All of this is just non-sense feeling, things, how we should get players.


***

But what comes to those pre-draft rankings, Wallinder was #38 ranked (#21 at highest) on my Average ranking list of +10 ranks. Tuomisto was #68 (#45 at highest)at 2019, so kind of a "3rd rounder".

BTW, Seider was #18 (#15 at highest).

So, in 2019 they did reach more for those defencemen, than they did now for Wallinder.

But it was all fine tactic, 2019 was a stronger D draft.

 

[lhsgolf19]

Wallinder played his 1st game of the year with U20 Team today... Had an assist and was a +3 in a 4-2 Win

 

[Frk It]

Looking at some different things now, seems like Wallinder is/wass a pretty divisive prospect. Seems there is somewhat of an argument over if he is “all tools no toolbox” or a guy who is just starting to piece it together and has room for growth and good upside.

 

[lhsgolf19]

Looking at some different things now, seems like Wallinder is/wass a pretty divisive prospect. Seems there is somewhat of an argument over if he is “all tools no toolbox” or a guy who is just starting to piece it together and has room for growth and good upside.

Kid's upside is tremendous... MODO stinks (so far) so I hope people don't look at that to judge him

6'4" and skate like crazy, plus he was pretty young for his draft class... Yes Please

 

[newfy]

I wanted him at the pick but his scouting report reads to me like Ryan Sproul sometimes lol.

 

[Frk It]

I wanted him at the pick but his scouting report reads to me like Ryan Sproul sometimes lol.

Yeah, seems like a gamble pick. I see there are some questions on his consistency and hockey IQ. The scouting report I am reading says he is far more effective with added structure, so I wonder if some of his issues are correctable or coachable.

Definitely seems like a raw prospect, and one that should maybe take a longer developmental path.

 

[lilidk]

I didn't like him at the draft, but he is already our prospect. At this point I like him to become solid defender first and then offence, give him time, don't rush him