Speculation: Yakupov - rest of this season

wings5

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Jan 6, 2008
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Acquiring the guy just to have him scratched all the time, so stupid....
 

Alklha

Registered User
Sep 7, 2011
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We obviously thought he was coachable. He hasn't shown it yet.

Reality is that he isn't a very good player.
 

Oberyn

Prince of Dorne
Mar 27, 2011
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If anyone got his ice time and line-mates they wouldn't make that big of an impression.

Schwartz in his rookie year played with the likes of Ryan Reaves, Adam Cracknell, and Scott Nichol for the majority of the season and showed signs of promise. Yakupov got to play with Schwartz/Stastny for a stretch of games and looked awful. More ice time and better linemates aren't going to fix the fact that Yakupov is clueless without the puck. He's a liability to the team and hasn't shown any progress in his play.
 

2 Minute Minor

Hi Keeba!
Jun 3, 2008
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I wish he could have been here for the whole training camp, though I'm not convinced that would have made a huge impact.

I have the same feeling I had for Paajarvi...hoping that more coaching would bring out the talent, and then slowly realizing that's not the problem.
 

Klank Loves You

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Feb 21, 2015
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I wish i had it capped. The last time Yak played with Schwartz, you could hear Schwartz yelling at him on the ice. That's all that needs to be said.
 

Stealth JD

Don't condescend me, man.
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Jan 16, 2006
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Forget about "which will be greater, points or healthy scratches". How about games played versus games scratched?

Team games: 38
Games played: 21
Games scratched: 17

If we need another roster spot, I'm guessing Nail is the next one exposed to waivers.
I do wonder though...was the condition of the draft pick specific to the Blues? How funny would it be to see the Blues waive Yakupov, and have Arizona claim him, where he goes on to hit the 15-goal mark. Would the Blues then have to cough-up a 2nd based on the condition being met on another team? lol
 

BlueDream

Registered User
Aug 30, 2011
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Forget about "which will be greater, points or healthy scratches". How about games played versus games scratched?

Team games: 38
Games played: 21
Games scratched: 17

If we need another roster spot, I'm guessing Nail is the next one exposed to waivers.
I do wonder though...was the condition of the draft pick specific to the Blues? How funny would it be to see the Blues waive Yakupov, and have Arizona claim him, where he goes on to hit the 15-goal mark. Would the Blues then have to cough-up a 2nd based on the condition being met on another team? lol
I'm actually shocked to see that he's still played in over half the games. Definitely doesn't feel like he's been on the ice more than the press box.
 

KingBran

Three Eyed Raven
Apr 24, 2014
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Schwartz in his rookie year played with the likes of Ryan Reaves, Adam Cracknell, and Scott Nichol for the majority of the season and showed signs of promise. Yakupov got to play with Schwartz/Stastny for a stretch of games and looked awful. More ice time and better linemates aren't going to fix the fact that Yakupov is clueless without the puck. He's a liability to the team and hasn't shown any progress in his play.

I believe it was two games and it was still limited minutes and it wasn't the whole game.

Its like test driving an ATV 90% of the time on pavement and saying it doesn't do so great offroad.
 

bleedblue1223

Registered User
Jan 21, 2011
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I believe it was two games and it was still limited minutes and it wasn't the whole game.

Its like test driving an ATV 90% of the time on pavement and saying it doesn't do so great offroad.

The vast majority of his minutes has been with top 6/9 quality linemates.
 

KingBran

Three Eyed Raven
Apr 24, 2014
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The vast majority of his minutes has been with top 6/9 quality linemates.

Been through this and looked up the stats before. 28% of his time he has had TWO top 6 guys on his line. Something like 45% with at least one.

Vast majority not so much.
 

bleedblue1223

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Jan 21, 2011
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Well, if you actually go through the list, he's been on the ice with at least 1 top 6 caliber linemate a good amount of the time.

He's been on lines with at least 1 player of the group: Stastny, Schwartz, Perron, Tarasenko, Steen, and Fabbri 49.35% of the time. He's been paired with 2 of these players 28.41% of the time.

If we expand the list to include Berglund and Lehtera, then it's 94.29% of the time with at least 1 of those players.

This notion that he plays with scrubs the majority of the time here is a lie. I'm going to call you out on it because it's a lie. Use some sort of on-ice evidence to backup your position.

Been through this and looked up the stats before. 28% of his time he has had TWO top 6 guys on his line. Something like 45% with at least one.

Vast majority not so much.

Depends on how you evaluate Berglund and Lehtera. While they have their faults, they are top 9 guys.

He's not out there with scrubs. If Yakupov was good, he'd be able to produce in the situations that he's been in.
 

KingBran

Three Eyed Raven
Apr 24, 2014
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Depends on how you evaluate Berglund and Lehtera. While they have their faults, they are top 9 guys.

He's not out there with scrubs. If Yakupov was good, he'd be able to produce in the situations that he's been in.

Basically what I said then... "vast majority" is diffent because I do not consider Berglund or Lehtera top 6. Lehtera especially, that guy is just wasted space. Berglund can be, on the right team. On the Blues I don't consider him top 6. as our top two lines consist of: Fabbri, Stastny, Schwarts, Steen, Tarasenko, Perron. Well, Hitch may actually have Lehtera in the 'top two' lines but we all know hes not a 'top two' line guy.

I can agree to disagree. I am not saying he has never had A chance. Just saying he hasn't had a good, solid, consistent chance with top 6 guys with a lot of minutes for a few games in a row. Pretty sure most people would agree with that. Is what we have seen of him enough? For some it is. For me it's not. Yak may be terrible. I just won't call it either way until I see that. I also won't say "vast majority" of his time has been with top 6 guys. That's my only point.
 

bleedblue1223

Registered User
Jan 21, 2011
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Basically what I said then... "vast majority" is diffent because I do not consider Berglund or Lehtera top 6. Lehtera especially, that guy is just wasted space. Berglund can be, on the right team. On the Blues I don't consider him top 6. as our top two lines consist of: Fabbri, Stastny, Schwarts, Steen, Tarasenko, Perron. Well, Hitch may actually have Lehtera in the 'top two' lines but we all know hes not a 'top two' line guy.

I can agree to disagree. I am not saying he has never had A chance. Just saying he hasn't had a good, solid, consistent chance with top 6 guys with a lot of minutes for a few games in a row. Pretty sure most people would agree with that. Is what we have seen of him enough? For some it is. For me it's not. Yak may be terrible. I just won't call it either way until I see that. I also won't say "vast majority" of his time has been with top 6 guys. That's my only point.

You still have to earn your chance. Yakupov hasn't really done much in a game to earn a bigger chance.

We can call it semantics, doesn't matter. I said vast majority of the time with top 6/9 linemates. Berglund and Lehtera are top 9 guys, and he's spent ~95% of his time with at least 1 top 9 guy. If Yakupov was truly a solid top 9 guy, then that line should've operate pretty decently.

Spending about ~50% of the time with legit top 6 talent, with the 3rd typically being Berglund, Lehtera, or Jaskin, then he definitely should've been able to show signs of productivity.

Schwartz showed he belonged and he was truly playing with 4th line scrubs in the beginning part of his first full season in limited minutes. It's not even about the production, Yakupov is just a complete passenger on the ice and doesn't execute the system.
 

KingBran

Three Eyed Raven
Apr 24, 2014
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You still have to earn your chance. Yakupov hasn't really done much in a game to earn a bigger chance.

We can call it semantics, doesn't matter. I said vast majority of the time with top 6/9 linemates. Berglund and Lehtera are top 9 guys, and he's spent ~95% of his time with at least 1 top 9 guy. If Yakupov was truly a solid top 9 guy, then that line should've operate pretty decently.

Spending about ~50% of the time with legit top 6 talent, with the 3rd typically being Berglund, Lehtera, or Jaskin, then he definitely should've been able to show signs of productivity.

Schwartz showed he belonged and he was truly playing with 4th line scrubs in the beginning part of his first full season in limited minutes. It's not even about the production, Yakupov is just a complete passenger on the ice and doesn't execute the system.

Then I misunderstood. I was thinking top 6 the whole time. That said, the only reason he has 95% top 9 line-mates is because we possibly have the best 4th line in the entire NHL. No reason to put someone who is supposed to be an offensive threat on that line.

The rest I don't disagree with. We just have different standards of measurement. You have seen enough. I haven't. I have seen flashes of brilliance, a couple goals and no reward. You see him as a passenger that doesn't execute the system.

Personally I think with the team we have and who we have lost over the past two seasons this entire team needs a new system - one more offensively minded and Yak may thrive in a new system like that. But were stuck with Hitch and his 1999 ways and maybe that's why Yak is getting choked out. That could be a whole 'nother discussion though.
 

bleedblue1223

Registered User
Jan 21, 2011
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Then I misunderstood. I was thinking top 6 the whole time. That said, the only reason he has 95% top 9 line-mates is because we possibly have the best 4th line in the entire NHL. No reason to put someone who is supposed to be an offensive threat on that line.

The rest I don't disagree with. We just have different standards of measurement. You have seen enough. I haven't. I have seen flashes of brilliance, a couple goals and no reward. You see him as a passenger that doesn't execute the system.

Personally I think with the team we have and who we have lost over the past two seasons this entire team needs a new system - one more offensively minded and Yak may thrive in a new system like that. But were stuck with Hitch and his 1999 ways and maybe that's why Yak is getting choked out. That could be a whole 'nother discussion though.

I also count his time in Edmonton. Yakupov's entire resume has been propped up by a couple hot stretches in his rookie season and then with McDavid. It's very similar to Stewart's hot stretches that were never sustainable while he was here.
 

tsujimoto74

Moderator
May 28, 2012
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I wish i had it capped. The last time Yak played with Schwartz, you could hear Schwartz yelling at him on the ice. That's all that needs to be said.

Kid just has no hockey IQ. It's a shame. I think he could've been good if Edmonton hadn't rushed him to the NHL and coached him heavily while slowly breaking him into the league. I don't think Yak's problem has ever been that he doesn't work hard enough or anything like that; he just has absolutely no idea what to do when he doesn't have the puck...and sometimes no clue what to do with the puck.
 

MissouriMook

Still just a Mook among men
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Jul 4, 2014
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This is how I look at it:

With the puck on his stick, he has the talent to be a legitimate Top 6 NHL player.

Without the puck on his stick, he isn't even an NHL player. Average AHL player at best.

The best players in the NHL have the puck on their stick for, what, maybe 20% of their TOI? This is ultimately a math problem for him as no NHL team can really afford to have a player in the lineup that is essentially an average AHL player 80%-90% of the time they are on the ice.
 

Stealth JD

Don't condescend me, man.
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Personally I think with the team we have and who we have lost over the past two seasons this entire team needs a new system - one more offensively minded and Yak may thrive in a new system like that. But were stuck with Hitch and his 1999 ways and maybe that's why Yak is getting choked out. That could be a whole 'nother discussion though.

You mean...like the one he had in Edmonton? :laugh:
 

Klank Loves You

Registered User
Feb 21, 2015
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Kid just has no hockey IQ. It's a shame. I think he could've been good if Edmonton hadn't rushed him to the NHL and coached him heavily while slowly breaking him into the league. I don't think Yak's problem has ever been that he doesn't work hard enough or anything like that; he just has absolutely no idea what to do when he doesn't have the puck...and sometimes no clue what to do with the puck.

100% speculation time, but i think the combination of his insanely quick hands and pretty fast wheels was all he ever needed to win as a junior. He never needed to develop his IQ to win. He could easily beat 99% of the player he played against with his tools alone. It's just not good enough at this level.
 

Blues88

Registered User
Apr 27, 2009
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St. Louis
Hate to harp on this but....I know the 2012 draft was acknowledged as being weak, and the guy had a great pedigree in juniors, but man. He's just an ineffective player.

Forsberg
Galchenyuk
Parayko
Gostisbehere
Andersen
Murray
Pearson (I guess?)...

...are the premier players out of this draft it seems. Weird year to be sure.

If he can't drawn into THIS top 9, it's on him. I think I'd prefer MPS at this point, and that's a bit depressing. Better on the forecheck at least.
 

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