Player Discussion Zack Kassian

[guymez]

I have been very skeptical of Zack the past year or so. He looked to me like a player that just didnt think the game at a high enough level to help a team win....so many dumb plays in his limited 12+ minutes of ice time.
I never for thought for a moment that he would be capable of increasing that TOI by playing almost 20 minutes a game and somehow manage to be an effective player. That would have been inconceivable to me.
Now here he is playing on the top line. playing smart hockey and providing an element that is really making a difference.

I dont know how long he can maintain this level of play but I think he deserves a lot of credit for doing what he has done so far. Even though I dont expect this to last more than 20 games I think Zack has shown that he is much more than a 4th line energy player.
I also want to comment on the personality he brings to the team. There was a sequence on the 2nd goal (in the 4-0 win over Columbus) where the team cycled the puck for over 1:30 secs and Zack took a shot off the ankle. He had to get off the ice at the right time so the team could maintain possession and Zack made that happen by his will. It was a thing of beauty especially seeing how animated he was on the bench after they scored.
Then to watch him grinning at RNH when he took a similar shot off the ankle.

The team wouldnt be the same without Zack...I am a former Zack skeptic that has come to appreciate the player. I didnt want to see him get traded at the deadline because I didnt think the team would get enough value for the player.
I am here to say that I am glad he didnt get traded and its for an additional reason...I am enjoying seeing him play for this team. The last time I felt that way was in the 2017 playoffs.

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[5 14 6 1]

Zack's been a good soldier and deserves some credit. Been a good Oiler for a couple years now

 

[LTIR]

Not bad for someone who many here consider potential cap dump.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

He needs to play like he is far more often than he has been. Too many nights you wouldn’t even remember he’s an Oiler.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

He needs to play like he is far more often than he has been. Too many nights you wouldn’t even remember he’s an Oiler.

You know he’s a 1.9 million player right?

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

You know he’s a 1.9 million player right?

So? Does he need another raise to be more consistent?

I’m not saying he has to be Leon. I’m saying he needs to stop disappearing for half the season.

 

[Soli]

So? Does he need another raise to be more consistent?

I’m not saying he has to be Leon. I’m saying he needs to stop disappearing for half the season.

I agree. At the same time though, you staple him to Brodziak or 2018 Letestu and we're wondering where the offense is.

He's a useful player when he's on and I have time for Playoff Kassian or the Kassian of the last 3 weeks. After watching a whole year where he was off and not skating with purpose, it gives me some reservations about a consistent Top-6 Kassian option. He's a great compliment in that he can skate while playing heavy, he's got hockey savy and smarts at times, and still have a look of crazy in the eyes. But yeah... consistency.

If they're thinking about trying Kassian as a Top-6 solution into next year, they should consider an extension this summer before we ballon his stock in a contract year. He's useful at this price point if we can get a Top-9 role from him.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

So? Does he need another raise to be more consistent?

I’m not saying he has to be Leon. I’m saying he needs to stop disappearing for half the season.

I’m just saying if he played like this all year he probably wouldn’t be making 1.9 million.

 

[BudBundy]

I’m a big fan of Kassian. To me he’s a good 3rd line winger who can play up a bit if youve got injuries to cover for. I wish he was a better penalty killer but he’s useful. He brings a dimension, as opposed to so many of the vanilla perimeter guys our “brain trust” have the habit of acquiring. I’ll trade the odd dumb penalty when the trade off is a big, really fast, and occasionally crazy/mean guy to have around. The fact that he’s a big goofy meme machine is icing.

 

[Spawn]

Zack's been a good soldier and deserves some credit. Been a good Oiler for a couple years now

He's been a good Oiler for about 20 games after having taken ~18 months off or so.

Nice to see he's having a good stretch, but Kassian mailed it in for well over a year after cashing in on his contract as a 4th liner.

 

[LTIR]

So? Does he need another raise to be more consistent?

I’m not saying he has to be Leon. I’m saying he needs to stop disappearing for half the season.

As opposed to what other Oiler other than Mc,Drai,Nuge and Russell?

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

As opposed to what other Oiler other than Mc,Drai,Nuge and Russell?

See what Spawn said for my sentiment. It’s great that he’s finally playing but he’s essentially been a ghost since the playoffs ended.

 

[DaGap]

I think the people who hate on Zack basically want a 7 million dollar player for the price of a 1.9 million dollar player

 

[RegDunlop]

Zack Kassian is a very good asset on any team.

He is, as said, a 3rd line winger who can be used anywhere in the lineup. A smart coach will throw him on the first line when they feel he's 'on', or that line needs a little protection.
I want Kassian here if / when we ever contend.

 

[guymez]

I think the people who hate on Zack basically want a 7 million dollar player for the price of a 1.9 million dollar player

I dont think so.

I can only speak for myself but all I ask for is a player who makes $1.9M and plays smart. 2017 playoffs aside Zack hasnt been that player until recently.

 

[LTIR]

See what Spawn said for my sentiment. It’s great that he’s finally playing but he’s essentially been a ghost since the playoffs ended.

What spawn said goes for 20 other Oilers.. why single out Kassian when this team is full of part time passengers.. how about we appreciate when these guys actually start showing up..

 

[LTIR]

I dont think so.

I can only speak for myself but all I ask for is a player who makes $1.9M and plays smart. 2017 playoffs aside Zack hasnt been that player until recently.

Reider, Spooner, Rattie, Khaira, Brodziak, Caggiula, Puljujarvi, Chiasson, Lucic all have also taken half a year off.

 

[guymez]

Reider, Spooner, Rattie, Khaira, Brodziak, Caggiula, Puljujarvi, Chiasson, Lucic all have also taken half a year off.

Not sure what point you are trying to make here. This thread is about Zack Kassian.
Did you bother to read the opening post?

 

[Spawn]

What spawn said goes for 20 other Oilers.. why single out Kassian when this team is full of part time passengers.. how about we appreciate when these guys actually start showing up..

Kassian is being "singled out" because this is a thread about Kassian. So obviously this will be a place for me to voice my opinion about the player.

It's nice he's having a good 20 game stretch. I'll disagree with guymez though. If he had value at the deadline he should have been traded when we had the chance. This is a player who almost assuredly would have cleared waivers before Christmas.

 

[LTIR]

Not sure what point you are trying to make here. This thread is about Zack Kassian.
Did you bother to read the opening post?

Pretty sure the OP is about giving Kassian credit for an improvement in his play. Not to bash him.

 

[guymez]

Pretty sure the OP is about giving Kassian credit for an improvement in his play. Not to bash him.

You would be correct...so what is your point?
I have no idea what you are objecting to here.

 

[Bangers]

Zack is never going to be a guy with any sort of consistency; that's not who he is. I'm not sure whether it's fitness issues (for some guys, it's just always going to be a struggle) or a mental one.

He is, on the other hand, a guy that can slot in on the 3rd and 4th when he's not on form, yet has enough skill to play in the top 6 (with the right linemates) when he is. He also only makes $1.9, showed up the last time the Oil made the playoffs, and can bring the crazy. My guess is that he also doesn't have a lot of value around the league due to his stint in Montreal.

Unless he reverts to the old habits that made him an Oiler in the first place or wants a massive salary upgrade, I keep him.

 

[guymez]

He's been a good Oiler for about 20 games after having taken ~18 months off or so.

Nice to see he's having a good stretch, but Kassian mailed it in for well over a year after cashing in on his contract as a 4th liner.

Your phrasing is interesting if not disingenuous.

You use a time frame to highlight Kassians negatives and then use number of games to highlight the positives.
Why is that disingenuous...because the time frame to highlight the negatives includes months of time when there was no hockey. Approx 8 months of off season time.
Now obviously I am not suggesting that Kassian has been good more than bad since the 2017 playoffs but if you want to paint a picture at least phrase this in a honest way.

So if you are going to count games I would suggest to you that there were games since 2017 when Kassian did play good hockey but the issue was that (until the last 20-25 games) they were few and far between.

 

[guymez]

Zack is never going to be a guy with any sort of consistency; that's not who he is. I'm not sure whether it's fitness issues (for some guys, it's just always going to be a struggle) or a mental one.

He is, on the other hand, a guy that can slot in on the 3rd and 4th when he's not on form, yet has enough skill to play in the top 6 (with the right linemates) when he is. He also only makes $1.9, showed up the last time the Oil made the playoffs, and can bring the crazy. My guess is that he also doesn't have a lot of value around the league due to his stint in Montreal.

Unless he reverts to the old habits that made him an Oiler in the first place or wants a massive salary upgrade, I keep him.

IMO there just has to be more good than bad. That would be a reverse of what we have seen so far from Zach.
I dont know if he can accomplish that BUT I have really liked what i have seen from him the past 20 games or so.
I'm pulling for him.

 

[Drivesaitl]

You know he’s a 1.9 million player right?

It doesn't matter. Does this mean he shouldn't be bringing it, playng responsibly? This is twice the amount of money that Wayne Gretzky made here.

He's a vet player not leaving it on the ice the vast majority of the time and he cheats offense in EV play and who knows why. Unless he's placed on topline he gets nothing done and is as bad as Brodziak has been. Zach started the season playing so poorly there were rumors he wanted out. That he only resembled a very disgruntled player is unsettling.

In the money time of this season Zach was nowhere to be found. AGAIN.

Through October, November, December of 2018 this player had 3pts in 36GP, nearly half a season, and was -8 during that tenure playing against weakest possible opposition you can see in the NHL.

So more than half the season he was complete junk, and one reason why the team struggled out of the gate. Not just was Zach not contributing ANY production for the first half of the season he was allowing over 3GA/EV60mins. A shockingly bad number for a player playing bottomsix opposition and who is a vet, on the pk, and expected to make a defensive contribution. Yet there was Zach countless times losing contain on the boards in own zone as he jumped forward instead of being between own goal and the puck.

These are the players that cause teams to lose games. Zach is a considerable part of why our bottomsix has been buried this season.