2021-2022 S Blues Multi Purpose Thread Part 2
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Linkens Mastery
Conductor of the TankTown Express
We sent him down to avoid burning a year of his entry level contract. I highly doubt we would bring him back up if it was anytime before the playoffs.
Moose and Squirrel
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ugh... I get where you're going with this but he's a defensive liability at best. he just shows no desire to be defensively responsible
He needs to learn. Is holding him back from being elite player.
Reality Czech
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Does Patrick Kane kill penalties? Or Ovechkin? I'm sure there are plenty of offensive stars that don't play on the PK, and that's fine. Other elite players who don't PK include MacKinnon, Landeskog, Kaprizov, Gaudreau, Tkachuk, Matthews, Tarasenko just to name a few.
Maybe someday he will be given a chance to see what he can do, but I don't see any reason to force it if we have enough other guys who are up to the task.
He needs to learn to be defensively responsible. Whether he kills penalties is besides the point. But he couid be great at it if he wanted to.
I have always thought Kyrou could be an excellent PKer. With his speed, he has the ability to carry the puck up ice, rag it, and kill precious seconds. What he needs to work on is his positioning, so he is in a position to intercept the puck. I am confident he can do it.
Moose and Squirrel
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the talent isn't the question... it's the desire imo
Personally, I think it is usage. Yes he would be good on the PK. But Sunny doesn't come close to his offensive play so why overuse JK and wear him down when Sunny D can kill PKs just as well.
Linkens Mastery
Conductor of the TankTown Express
PocketNines
Cutter's Way
If they are going to hand the core off to Kyrou & Thomas with big upcoming contracts then those guys need to be dependable in all situations. Thomas is adding more responsibilities and Kyrou will have to also if they are going to be a contending team and weather the decline of some vets. (Note: the word processor red underline is telling me that "weather" should be "whether" which of course is false.) I'm not quite as pessimistic that there won't be solutions to the end of some of the longer contracts when they turn albatross given the increasingly multidimensional nature of situations coming along where contracts can get moved, but for that process to go well, by that time Kyrou Thomas both have to be two way anchors. There will be situations where Kyrou will have to be a dangerous counterattacker used to defend a more potent opposing offensive line so he has to be able to win some board battles and have excellent defensive forward prowess. It's more than coming back with effort and stripping the odd puck. We will notice if he's doing this if we notice a more determined attempt not to turn the puck over with some of the razzle dazzle attempts, ill-advised passes through traffic that will be highlights if they work, the 1-on-2s etc. He'll treat the puck like O'Reilly treats it, a prized possession.
Kyrou's agent has to be telling him that his next deal negotiations start in the summer and with every point he gets more well paid so I can understand why, comfortably in a playoff position against some bad teams, he is cheating. I get it completely from a human nature perspective. But if the Blues have a hope of extending their window after the vets here now take their last forceful shots, Kyrou and Thomas have to bring more of that every-game nature that O'Reilly demands from himself whether or not he produces it.
bleedblue1223
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- Jan 21, 2011
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I'd love for Kyrou to be a 2-way stud along with being a near ppg producer, but if he is simply a near ppg producer that replaces Tarasenko as the primary offensive winger, then that's more than fine. Of players signed for at least 2 more seasons after this one, Schenn, Buchnevich, Saad can all carry the load defensively. For the RFA guys, Thomas can definitely carry a load and he'll have a long future here. For the UFAs, if O'Reilly extends we should be able to rely on his 2-way play, and we'll see what Barbie costs.
Majorityof1
Registered User
Why do people want to force PK time on Kyrou? I'd much rather have guys like Bozak and Sunny take those minutes. They are good at it. I'd rather have Kyrou out the first shift after the PK to try to score. That is what he's best at. The only time I'd have a top 6 player on the PK is if it is something they excel at like O'Reilly. Why try to turn a great offensive guy into a PK guy when you can just have your bottom 6 guys PK instead. You may miss out on a shorty or two, but you'll get a lot more 5v5 goals from having Kyrou not wasting 2-3 minutes of energy a game on the PK.
Think you’re kinda missing the point, people just want him to become better defensively overall, which is a very reasonable desire.
Also, Kyrou is tied for 8th among forwards on our team in ice time per game. It’s not like we need to rest him anymore for these valuable minutes. Him becoming better defensively, whether that’s on the PK or even strength, would greatly benefit himself into getting more ice time. It worked for Thomas, who used to be in his position and is now right on O’Reilly’s heels as our minutes leader up front.
Majorityof1
Registered User
You are the one that said only if it helps him be better defensively overall. Others wanted him there for his speed to potentially kill time or get shorties.
I don't think playing PK will make him better defensively. PK is different than defending 5v5. A lot of 5v5 defending is defending the trnasition. If you don't let them get set up in the zone, you don't have to defend them in zone. But if they do get set up, its still different, as coverage assignments are different. If we want him to get better at 5v5 D, he should focus his film time on 5v5 D, not trying to learn PK assignments as well.
I also think he is low on ice time because we are trying to conserve his energy. He is not used to playing 18 minutes a night over 82 games+playoffs. Young guys often hit a wall near playoffs because they don't play that much hockey in juniors. So adding PK time would not help with that. I doubt he is getting benched for being a defensive liability when he gets less ice time than several guys who he has a better Gf%. He gets less ice time than guys he has better GA/60 as well. He's not that heavily sheltered. If we were worried he was a defensive liability, he would be getting heavy offensive minutes but he is fairly close to even on deployment.
Renard
Registered User
I wish I knew what Armstong and his brain trust is thinking these days.
Has he given up on Binnington? If so, who would want to take him off our hands? At Binnington's price tag?
Does he think the Blues can contend with the top teams for the Cup? Are we missing by just one player? Would he dare to risk several years of our future to trade a bunch of assets to acquire that one player, and then have us lose in the first round?
I have faith in Armstrong. If he tries something daring, and it fails, I won't be dumping on him next season. But I sure wish I knew what he was thinking.
Has he given up on Binnington? If so, who would want to take him off our hands? At Binnington's price tag?
Does he think the Blues can contend with the top teams for the Cup? Are we missing by just one player? Would he dare to risk several years of our future to trade a bunch of assets to acquire that one player, and then have us lose in the first round?
I have faith in Armstrong. If he tries something daring, and it fails, I won't be dumping on him next season. But I sure wish I knew what he was thinking.
ChicagoBlues
Terraformers
- Oct 24, 2006
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So many cliffhangers. Not sure where to start, Batman.
I doubt he has given up in JB. How many chances did Allen get?
I personally feel we can compete with most teams in the West now. However, like everyone here, I would like to add Chychrun or a solid LHD with term to our team. It would put us in serious contender status.
PocketNines
Cutter's Way
Kyrou and Thomas need to be dependable in all situations if they are the team's leaders once they get into their big contracts in 2 years and we want to see a team that's more than middling. That doesn't mean they have to get the bulk of any PK work (Thomas needs PK work more than Kyrou because you need his faceoffs work). Traditionally the Blues have been built with depth rather than stars so there should be some mitigation on any individual player's load, and plenty of role players and guys who may be the most appropriate for PK minutes for example.
I am talking about, you can trust this player to place a very high value on puck possession so that if you need him to defend when the opponent has a good matchup out there, he can do it. We are certain O'Reilly has this total mentality and there's a direct relationship between that mentality and his success, and team success. It means you don't look horrible for stretches when you aren't scoring as much. It's a floor. Also you want to make opposing coaches second guess their matchups, which they won't have to do if they're sure Kyrou can be had on the defensive side of the puck.
I am talking about, you can trust this player to place a very high value on puck possession so that if you need him to defend when the opponent has a good matchup out there, he can do it. We are certain O'Reilly has this total mentality and there's a direct relationship between that mentality and his success, and team success. It means you don't look horrible for stretches when you aren't scoring as much. It's a floor. Also you want to make opposing coaches second guess their matchups, which they won't have to do if they're sure Kyrou can be had on the defensive side of the puck.
bleedblue1223
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- Jan 21, 2011
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Do you think Kyrou just has to match what Tarasenko brings in that regard or has to be better than him in all situations? I'd say we are at our best when Tarasenko is engaged in all zones, it's something he's inconsistent at, but at least when he's fully engaged in all zones, we are much more dangerous. Can't remember which goal off the top of my head, but one of the goals in Game 7 against Boston was created by his work in the defensive zone.
I'd say Kyrou right now brings what Tarasenko brings. Assuming Kyrou maintains his offensive production and doesn't get more than Tarasenko currently makes on his big deal, then his current level is likely good enough, just with more consistency. I think the issue you get into with wingers like that is when they get the really big contracts, and at that point you need them in the running for Art Ross or be a Mark Stone type.
PocketNines
Cutter's Way
I think Tarasenko-Kyrou comparison is appropriate; I trust Tarasenko more to play that kind of game when it matters than I do Kyrou and it's because the core of Tarasenko is competition, similar to Perron. Those two guys want to win and score and win and score. It's no accident they are the two standing on either side of the door as players skate off after a win. Kyrou right now is getting to live a dream of first-time acclaim. Once he gets through that emotionally, he'll be less seduced by its power and will be able to focus on competition for its own sake, which drives an entire approach.
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