Injury Report: 2023 - 2024 Injury Thread HF's New longest ever thread

[TruePowerSlave]

I think he meant more of an LTIRetirement.

Hate to say it, but that would have been the better outcome for the organization two years ago. This has gone on for far too long and who knows what Landy will even bring at this point. 2+ years off is a long damn time.

 

[henchman21]

I think he meant more of an LTIRetirement.

Can't really have all that pomp and everything around it without actually retiring. If there was a year left, sure... but 5 not a chance that could fly. Especially with the insurers of his contract.

 

[AvBuff]

I think he meant more of an LTIRetirement.

Kinda both.

Gabe Landeskog could hang up his skates tomorrow and not miss a financial beat. He's not Mike Ricci - GL's got looks and charisma and camera presence to burn. Ask the women in my family.

He's not done cashing in by a long shot . . .

 

[EdAVSfan]

Hate to say it, but that would have been the better outcome for the organization two years ago. This has gone on for far too long and who knows what Landy will even bring at this point. 2+ years off is a long damn time.

I both agree and disagree.
I agree in the sense that it would’ve been better for the last 2 years.
I disagree in the sense that until we see how good he is, if he can return, his impact, etc, he won’t know if it’s the best outcome.

His ability to play and the quality of his play will dictate whether or not an LTIR was the best outcome.

 

[dahrougem2]

I think people underestimate how valuable these 2 years off could have been for a physical player like Landeskog.

2 years of not having to battle every net-front dman, puck to the corner, fight after a big hit, do the heavy lifting physically for 29 and 96. He is rested.

How his knee holds up is the huge question, but IF it's looking ready the way Lonzo Ball is looking ready with his knee then I have 100% faith in Landy going right back next to 29.

 

[S E P H]

He'll never be a lazy player. At least we know we'll always get some hustle and drive out of Landy.

It's not really the effort, but it will be a lack of agility and ability to get around the ice. RyJo was always a lazy player, but you could tell his injury severely limited an already limited mind frame. Personally, I just don't see how Landeskog will be a top 6 player anymore.

 

[henchman21]

I fall somewhere in the middle on how good Landy will look. He's not going to be a $7m 4th liner, but he's not going to step in and hold up at a 1st line level again. I think early on, once the rust is knocked off, he'll play very well... maybe even top line level. The adrenaline and completely fresh body will get him going... But once he gets 40-50-80+ games under his belt, the wear is going to show back up. Combine that with natural age, he's bound to regress some. To the point where next season we are probably looking at him being a middle 6 guy. Probably plays in the top 6 because of depth, but ideally he'd be on the 3rd line or at minimum the third wheel on a 2nd line. I'd bet that his ES production, that was typically very good, drops off and that his production heavily comes from his PP time. Still he'll be a good defensive player, have high effort, and can take faceoffs.

 

[dahrougem2]

I think if the knee is healthy and he has had 2 years of rest, he plays and produces at a top six, borderline top line level for the next 3 seasons.

 

[missionAvs]

I think if the knee is healthy and he has had 2 years of rest, he plays and produces at a top six, borderline top line level for the next 3 seasons.

Make that 5 seasons and you've got my vote to replace @Frenchy as moderator.

 

[Frenchy]

Make that 5 seasons and you've got my vote to replace @Frenchy as moderator.

unlike

 

[Gumballhead]

I have zero idea what Landy will look like if he makes it to games again, but at the least I now believe it will happen.

 

[Cypher]

As much as I love Landy, I would rather him LTIRetirement if he's just going to be a 3rd/4th liner who can't skate for 7m the next 5 years. That would cripple the team capwise.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

Can't really have all that pomp and everything around it without actually retiring. If there was a year left, sure... but 5 not a chance that could fly. Especially with the insurers of his contract.

Didn't Pronger do exactly this though? Or am I think of someone else? I could have sworn a player did this and everyone just basically shrugged and said, "LTIR, nobody cares about it or the GMs would have changed it."

 

[henchman21]

Didn't Pronger do exactly this though? Or am I think of someone else? I could have sworn a player did this and everyone just basically shrugged and said, "LTIR, nobody cares about it or the GMs would have changed it."

Pronger worked for DoPS in ~2014 which caused a stir. He didn't join a front office until after his contract was completed.

 

[Balthazar]

I think if the knee is healthy and he has had 2 years of rest, he plays and produces at a top six, borderline top line level for the next 3 seasons.

No chance in Hell.

Most of his production will come from playing the bumper position on PP 1. That's one thing that he'll be able to do for a long time.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

Pronger worked for DoPS in ~2014 which caused a stir. He didn't join a front office until after his contract was completed.

Thanks for the clarification!

 

[AvsMakar08]

As much as I love Landy, I would rather him LTIRetirement if he's just going to be a 3rd/4th liner who can't skate for 7m the next 5 years. That would cripple the team capwise.

I want Drouin - MacK - Nuke on the 1st line. I want Landy - Mitts - Rantanen on the 2nd line. I also want to finally find out if Rants can carry his own line or if he needs someone like Nukie or Mack on his line.

 

[dahrougem2]

No chance in Hell.

Most of his production will come from playing the bumper position on PP 1. That's one thing that he'll be able to do for a long time.

You say this with such certainty. He was producing at that level pre-injury, hasn't had to deal with wear and tear, and likely has an insane amount of motivation.

If the knee holds up, he'll be more than fine. I'd bet chances are better he produces closer to what I think than the third liner you think he'll automatically start as.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

My money is on Landy coming back at a pretty high end level as well honestly.

If he plays all 82 games(Unlikely) I bet he gets 70 points.

However many games he does play, I bet he's playing at a ~0.8 PPG pace for the year.

 

[the_fan]

I also believe if Landy’s knee is all good and well with no set backs, he will bounce back rather quickly and start producing at the level he was before the surgery. His game was never about skating or too much skill. He plays that power forward game, net front present etc… That shouldn’t take too long to get it back

 

[expatriatedtexan]

I want Drouin - MacK - Nuke on the 1st line. I want Landy - Mitts - Rantanen on the 2nd line. I also want to finally find out if Rants can carry his own line or if he needs someone like Nukie or Mack on his line.

The thing is Rants did carry the team for the better part of a season. It was the baffling decision to then go forever without a second line when he had proven he could carry one is beyond me. This really comes down to either Rants or Bednar are just dead set against it. Which is cool, Rants was drafter to play wing for us pretty much...they barely even gave him AHL time at center if I remember correctly.

 

[dahrougem2]

I also believe if Landy’s knee is all good and well with no set backs, he will bounce back rather quickly and start producing at the level he was before the surgery. His game was never about skating or too much skill. He plays that power forward game, net front present etc… That shouldn’t take too long to get it back

I think it takes a lot of skill to play with 29 and produce consistently. Landy has underrated skill, especially in close quarters. I don't see that leaving his game.

If the guy is healthy and the Avs can find a way to rid themselves of Val, IMO they need a 3rd line forward and a 3rd pairing defensemen at the TDL. Potentially another bottom six forward if you want to push both Wood and O'Connor down.

Here's to hoping the captain is good to go like Lonzo Ball is.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

I think it takes a lot of skill to play with 29 and produce consistently. Landy has underrated skill, especially in close quarters. I don't see that leaving his game.

If the guy is healthy and the Avs can find a way to rid themselves of Val, IMO they need a 3rd line forward and a 3rd pairing defensemen at the TDL. Potentially another bottom six forward if you want to push both Wood and O'Connor down.

Here's to hoping the captain is good to go like Lonzo Ball is.

One thing to remember is determination. If his speed is somewhat limited, he'll should still be effective as hell net front on PP1. He should be able to PK still unless his speed absolutely tanks. His PK ability would really be something special around now...even more than his PP presence, we need the help on PK.

The more I think about it, the more I'm convincing myself that he'll still be an effective player when he comes back. I personally think (HOPE) he's a second line winger when paired with Mitts and Lehky that makes that line an absolute nightmare to play against. I seriously doubt Bednar is going to put Rants on the 2nd no matter how much I've been screaming for it forever. So we'll still have Drouin-Mack-Rants as a top line and Nuke joining Rosco and LOC later in the season.

 

[AllAboutAvs]

One thing to remember is determination. If his speed is somewhat limited, he'll should still be effective as hell net front on PP1. He should be able to PK still unless his speed absolutely tanks. His PK ability would really be something special around now...even more than his PP presence, we need the help on PK.

The more I think about it, the more I'm convincing myself that he'll still be an effective player when he comes back. I personally think (HOPE) he's a second line winger when paired with Mitts and Lehky that makes that line an absolute nightmare to play against. I seriously doubt Bednar is going to put Rants on the 2nd no matter how much I've been screaming for it forever. So we'll still have Drouin-Mack-Rants as a top line and Nuke joining Rosco and LOC later in the season.

I agree with you that Landy could help in other ways if he has loss speed but I would argue that if he skating got worst due to his knee PK is probably the place he would have the most trouble. To be effective on the PK as a forward you need to pivot a lot and be able to handle a lot of stop and go. That is a lot harder to do with a bad knee.

But further to your point even with a limited on-ice role and helping on the PP he could also help a lot off-ice.

 

[niwotsblessing]

I want Drouin - MacK - Nuke on the 1st line. I want Landy - Mitts - Rantanen on the 2nd line. I also want to finally find out if Rants can carry his own line or if he needs someone like Nukie or Mack on his line.

We sould have figured that out in the past, because now he's gonna get bank and our team depth will be gone.