GDT: 2018-19 Training Camp and Preseason Thread

[Tralfamadore]

I definitely think Josts problem was his strength more so than his speed. He’d get knocked off the puck by a gentle gust of wind last year. Speed is nice but hopefully he did get stronger on the puck as well.

 

[henchman21]

This is true. MacKinnon getting Jost hooked up with Andy O'Brien is very good news though and it has me even more excited about Jost's sophomore season. That tells me he took things very seriously and it's good to hear that Bednar and some of the vets have already noticed a difference.

AOB is the best in the business... and he very good at tailoring to what player's need. That is very positive.

It is kinda funny when I'm the down one on the board for Jost though... projecting a 2nd line winger that pops 20+g and 50+ p while being a good 2 way player is just being so damn down on a player. Might as well scrap him for Bordy!!!

 

[Avs_19]

AOB is the best in the business... and he very good at tailoring to what player's need. That is very positive.

It is kinda funny when I'm the down one on the board for Jost though... projecting a 2nd line winger that pops 20+g and 50+ p while being a good 2 way player is just being so damn down on a player. Might as well scrap him for Bordy!!!

Anything short of those pre-draft Toews comparisons is unacceptable. 20 goals and 50 points would be right in line with Toews though and it wouldn't cost $10M/yr either.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

I definitely think Josts problem was his strength more so than his speed. He’d get knocked off the puck by a gentle gust of wind last year. Speed is nice but hopefully he did get stronger on the puck as well.

He seems to be a really strong kid though. I noticed the exact same issues you just pointed out but I’m wondering if it has more to do with mobility/flexibility/quickness. Sometimes when you lack those traits you find your balance off and you end up on the weak side of battles. The AOB workouts focus directly on movements that relate to hockey. I’m interested to see if Jost is capable of simply putting his body in better positions this year and what kind of difference it makes to his battles.

 

[Papa Francouz]

AOB is the best in the business... and he very good at tailoring to what player's need. That is very positive.

It is kinda funny when I'm the down one on the board for Jost though... projecting a 2nd line winger that pops 20+g and 50+ p while being a good 2 way player is just being so damn down on a player. Might as well scrap him for Bordy!!!

I think your projection is fair and I would be ecstatic with Jost consistently reaching that level of play. I’m not sure what people are expecting out of him if true second line production and solid two-way play is too low for his floor.

 

[Joe Sakic]

What? Why?

Upset stomachs. All the crow eating.

 

[Foppberg]

He seems to be a really strong kid though. I noticed the exact same issues you just pointed out but I’m wondering if it has more to do with mobility/flexibility/quickness. Sometimes when you lack those traits you find your balance off and you end up on the weak side of battles. The AOB workouts focus directly on movements that relate to hockey. I’m interested to see if Jost is capable of simply putting his body in better positions this year and what kind of difference it makes to his battles.

Yup. Anecdotal but I have a friend who's built like a tank, give him a little nudge and he'll go tumbling over. Horrible balance. Big muscles aren't everything.

 

[SaltySkywalker]

I skipped 5 pages to the most recent and we're still talking about Jost's strength??

 

[henchman21]

Yup. Anecdotal but I have a friend who's built like a tank, give him a little nudge and he'll go tumbling over. Horrible balance. Big muscles aren't everything.

Quit talking about me!

 

[Echo Roku]

I definitely think Josts problem was his strength more so than his speed. He’d get knocked off the puck by a gentle gust of wind last year. Speed is nice but hopefully he did get stronger on the puck as well.

That has more to do with core strength than actual overall strength, I think

 

[Foppberg]

I think your projection is fair and I would be ecstatic with Jost consistently reaching that level of play. I’m not sure what people are expecting out of him if true second line production and solid two-way play is too low for his floor.

For me I always thought of him as a Bryan Little esque player. Not huge but consistently hovers around 50 points with solid 2-way play.

 

[Avs_19]

I skipped 5 pages to the most recent and we're still talking about Jost's strength??

It's training camp and Jost was once again a topic for Bednar today so yes.

 

[Papa Francouz]

For me I always thought of him as a Bryan Little esque player. Not huge but consistently hovers around 50 points with solid 2-way play.

I'd be ecstatic if Jost managed to have the same impact on team success that Little has had for Winnipeg. Let Nate take the easier match-ups and run rampant on the other team.

This next part isn't directed at you specifically, but I feel like just because the Avs picked him at #10, people think we're going to get another Rantanen out of him. Not every #10 pick becomes a Rantanen, folks.

 

[S E P H]

Here are my thoughts...

First off cheap-ass Kroenke can't even put the numbers on jerseys so everyone had to use guesses based upon how they look and what type of numbers resemble what. It was awful. Second off, training camp has turned into a glorified practice which is so hard to get a grasp on players positive and negative. Because of that, it is quite absurd for AJ to determine who's going to be what. However from what I've seen..

MVP of G1: MacKinnon (he's a step ahead of everyone).
MVP of G2: EJ Johnson (he was also on another level from everyone on the defencive side).

- Cody Bass is like McLeod, no sure what the point of him being here is...

- Beaudin has the talent, but if he's not going to take the next step physically (not dishing out hits, but absorbing them) he will not make the NHL. He might be our Bigras of forwards.

- Boucher looking really solid since the prospect tournament, has a nice step on everyone when it comes to skating and a very underrated shot.

- Greer looked good.

- I am hearing a lot about Jost, but didn't really notice too much of a difference compared to last year (where I thought he was solid to begin with). Actual preseason games should be the indicator on if he got faster or not.

- Didn't mind Kaut today in the drills, but surprised by how raw he is.

- Similar to Boucher, Lewis was a step ahead from majority of everyone in his group today. He also brought it in a competitive sense.

- Rantanen looked to REALLY struggled today for me, it seemed that the altitude was clearly affecting him.

- Colin Wilson was easily the third best player today after EJ and MacKinnon. He had the desire, work ethic, skating, and skills to dominate everyone else (seemed a lot more fitter compared to last season). He absolutely smoked Varlamov on a couple of shots. Looking forward to see if he's able to contain it consistently or if this was a one-time showing.

- Don't see the point of Mark Alt except on the keyboard.

- Cole is built like an effin tank. There are some limitations to his IQ and defencive awareness, but I really enjoyed what I saw from him today.

- Geertsen with a wonderful flow of hair, but he sadly looked lost and a step behind the play. Got coached by Bednar and Pratt on more than one occasion.

- Girard was throwing his body around A LOT more this season compared to what we've seen.

- Lindholm was brutal with a capital B - got absolutely walked five times today.

- Ottenbreit is my darkhorse candidate from both groups, in terms of pure shutdown defence he was definitely the best player for me. He has the vision, awareness, and skill stick for the defencive side of the game. Really solid showing from him.

- It was only one day, but Zadorov was very meh. The IQ questions are definitely still there.

- In terms of goaltending, Francouz was BY FAR the best goaler there. Varlamov looked solid, but Pavel was levels above everyone. Grubauer was extremely meh to me. Martin looked solid, but we know his weaknesses are not technique/talent. Cannata is cannon fodder.

- Everyone else was meh to the point that they're not worth mentioning.

Did any of these players show up because I didn't see them out there; Downing, Meloche, Shvyrev, Barrie, Warsofsky, and Boikov? Again they might've been and just couldn't spot them due to the jersey situation. I will happily answer any other questions you lads have to the best of my ability.

 

[Tralfamadore]

Yup. Anecdotal but I have a friend who's built like a tank, give him a little nudge and he'll go tumbling over. Horrible balance. Big muscles aren't everything.

This is a good point. Look at Mikko last year.

 

[Foppberg]

Here are my thoughts...

First off cheap-ass Kroenke can't even put the numbers on jerseys so everyone had to use guesses based upon how they look and what type of numbers resemble what. It was awful. Second off, training camp has turned into a glorified practice which is so hard to get a grasp on players positive and negative. Because of that, it is quite absurd for AJ to determine who's going to be what. However from what I've seen..

MVP of G1: MacKinnon (he's a step ahead of everyone).
MVP of G2: EJ Johnson (he was also on another level from everyone on the defencive side).

- Cody Bass is like McLeod, no sure what the point of him being here is...

- Beaudin has the talent, but if he's not going to take the next step physically (not dishing out hits, but absorbing them) he will not make the NHL. He might be our Bigras of forwards.

- Boucher looking really solid since the prospect tournament, has a nice step on everyone when it comes to skating and a very underrated shot.

- Greer looked good.

- I am hearing a lot about Jost, but didn't really notice too much of a difference compared to last year (where I thought he was solid to begin with). Actual preseason games should be the indicator on if he got faster or not.

- Didn't mind Kaut today in the drills, but surprised by how raw he is.

- Similar to Boucher, Lewis was a step ahead from majority of everyone in his group today. He also brought it in a competitive sense.

- Rantanen looked to REALLY struggled today for me, it seemed that the altitude was clearly affecting him.

- Colin Wilson was easily the third best player today after EJ and MacKinnon. He had the desire, work ethic, skating, and skills to dominate everyone else (seemed a lot more fitter compared to last season). He absolutely smoked Varlamov on a couple of shots. Looking forward to see if he's able to contain it consistently or if this was a one-time showing.

- Don't see the point of Mark Alt except on the keyboard.

- Cole is built like an effin tank. There are some limitations to his IQ and defencive awareness, but I really enjoyed what I saw from him today.

- Geertsen with a wonderful flow of hair, but he sadly looked lost and a step behind the play. Got coached by Bednar and Pratt on more than one occasion.

- Girard was throwing his body around A LOT more this season compared to what we've seen.

- Lindholm was brutal with a capital B - got absolutely walked five times today.

- Ottenbreit is my darkhorse candidate from both groups, in terms of pure shutdown defence he was definitely the best player for me. He has the vision, awareness, and skill stick for the defencive side of the game. Really solid showing from him.

- It was only one day, but Zadorov was very meh. The IQ questions are definitely still there.

- In terms of goaltending, Francouz was BY FAR the best goaler there. Varlamov looked solid, but Pavel was levels above everyone. Grubauer was extremely meh to me. Martin looked solid, but we know his weaknesses are not technique/talent. Cannata is cannon fodder.

- Everyone else was meh to the point that they're not worth mentioning.

Did any of these players show up because I didn't see them out there; Downing, Meloche, Shvyrev, Barrie, Warsofsky, and Boikov? Again they might've been and just couldn't spot them due to the jersey situation. I will happily answer any other questions you lads have to the best of my ability.

I was fine with everything up until that point and now I hate everything

 

[agentblack]

If Wilson can last more than 15 games before blowing himself up , i could see him on a line with Jost and Kerfoot but alas

 

[S E P H]

I was fine with everything up until that point and now I hate everything

He didn't look bad and even threw his body around in a orange jersey which was hilarious to see. But he needs to understand that just because he's going 1v1 with a 5'9" player doesn't mean his tower of power will crush him. Especially when that 5'9" player can flip a switch in seconds with superior skating agility. He didn't get beat too much today, but I kept seeing plays where someone like Gaudreau with his IQ and shiftiness would abuse Zadorov's defencive positioning.

With that said Zadorov looks noticeably faster in the north to south skating drills - that was quite positive to see for me.

If Wilson can last more than 15 games before blowing himself up , i could see him on a line with Jost and Kerfoot but alas

I thought Wilson was good today to the point that if he continues this he will definitely bump someone off of the second line. However, to reiterate again, it was just one day.

 

[Foppberg]

He didn't look bad and even threw his body around in a orange jersey which was hilarious to see. But he needs to understand that just because he's going 1v1 with a 5'9" player doesn't mean his tower of power will crush him. Especially when that 5'9" player can flip a switch in seconds with superior skating agility. He didn't get beat too much today, but someone I kept seeing plays where someone like Gaudreau with his IQ and shiftiness would abuse Zadorov's defencive positioning.

With that said Zadorov looks noticeably faster in the north to south skating drills - that was quite positive to see for me.

Yeah I can see that, he has gotten burned before from shifty players. I hope that's something he can adapt to. I'm just incredibly protective of Z.

 

[S E P H]

Yeah I can see that, he has gotten burned before from shifty players. I hope that's something he can adapt to. I'm just incredibly protective of Z.

Oh he's still my favourite on the team bar none, but I can't be biased with my love affair either . He also tended to have the same puck watching concerns we had of him in the past. Nonetheless, I am one of those who believes that if Zadorov does improve it will be during the season and not at training camp.

 

[agentblack]

Yeah I can see that, he has gotten burned before from shifty players. I hope that's something he can adapt to. I'm just incredibly protective of Z.

We all are, he's like our russian Andre the Giant. so lovable...and will crush your enemies head like a grapefruit if you ask

 

[Foppberg]

I'd be ecstatic if Jost managed to have the same impact on team success that Little has had for Winnipeg. Let Nate take the easier match-ups and run rampant on the other team.

This next part isn't directed at you specifically, but I feel like just because the Avs picked him at #10, people think we're going to get another Rantanen out of him. Not every #10 pick becomes a Rantanen, folks.

I don't think that's the case, or at least how I've seen it. You can't compare the 2015 draft to 2017. The McDavid draft was unbelievably deep, arguably the best since the famous 2003 draft.

 

[avsfan09]

What? Why?

“God dammit Kerfoot is good!! This is horse****...”

Normally I actively root against the success of our team.

 

[UncleRisto]

Normally I actively root against the success of our team.

We have done that here on multiple occasions.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

Never ready any reports on how Girard looked out there. I’m curious how his skating looked considering he’s fat now.