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Player Discussion Alexis Lafrenière: Part III

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It's hard to not be disappointed in Laf because some were calling him a generational talent. That's out.

However, he has great instincts, is a great shooter, great passer and is strong enough on the puck to be a very good player.

The central problem is the same as last season. He definitely lacks the speed to depend on that as his strong point. He needs to become a little bit better at a lot of things, which I presume he will do, and I expect him to be a legit 1st line forward in a year or two.

I'm far more concerned about Kakko. He has an extra year on Laf, is playing with Zib and Kreider and scores goals every 20 games.
 
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TheBPA said:
Raymond also has 1 goal in his last 16 games while playing 19 minutes a night and 3:20 a night on the PP during that stretch.

He's not any better than Lafreniere.
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Hes got 21 A to Lafs 3.

Going into the draft he was billed as undersized and creative with the puck. He wasnt really touted as a sniper.

I get it.

I've been on the patience train all along and will continue to ride it, though I am slowly moving back cars to the caboose where I will jump off. Thats a couple of seasons away for me.

But its still annoying
 
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HockeyBasedNYC said:
Lucas Raymond - 40GP, 11G, 21A.

Pretty much the prediction for Laf after the draft.

f***ing annoying
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True. It's frustrating.
If you look at that 2020 draft, though, there are only 8 players who have even been able to crack an NHL lineup for 20 games or more. Only 6 with 20 or more NHL points. I think interruptions in play and other mitigating circumstances have impacted rate of development across the board. Some players probably more than others. Raymond has been great I think, Stutzle, Lundell, Drysdale, Mercer and Laf have all been very good in their own ways. I know people are going to jump down my throat, but this is just my opinion, I'm not really worried about Laf, I think he will be fine but it may take another year or even two for people to be able to breathe that sigh of relief. Until then, I get venting about it.
 
TheBPA said:
Raymond also has 1 goal in his last 16 games while playing 19 minutes a night and 3:20 a night on the PP during that stretch.

He's not any better than Lafreniere.
Click to expand...

When it all shakes out I still expect Laf to be the best player from that draft, but I think Raymond has been great for a first year player.
 
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chosen said:
It's hard to not be disappointed in Laf because some were calling him a generational talent. That's out.

However, he has great instincts, is a great shooter, great passer and is strong enough on the puck to be a very good player.

The central problem is the same as last season. He definitely lacks the speed to depend on that as his strong point. He needs to become a little bit better at a lot of things, which I presume he will do, and I expect him to be a legit 1st line forward in a year or two.

I'm far more concerned about Kakko. He has an extra year on Laf, is playing with Zib and Kreider and scores goals every 20 games.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Kakko has his own set of skating issues as well, but he's extremely talented in tight space. He could learn a thing or two from Kreider if he pays attention. Is Barb Underhill still around?
 
bhamill said:
True. It's frustrating.
If you look at that 2020 draft, though, there are only 8 players who have even been able to crack an NHL lineup for 20 games or more. Only 6 with 20 or more NHL points. I think interruptions in play and other mitigating circumstances have impacted rate of development across the board. Some players probably more than others. Raymond has been great I think, Stutzle, Lundell, Drysdale, Mercer and Laf have all been very good in their own ways. I know people are going to jump down my throat, but this is just my opinion, I'm not really worried about Laf, I think he will be fine but it may take another year or even two for people to be able to breathe that sigh of relief. Until then, I get venting about it.
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I've been preaching the same thing the whole time and I agree.

Everything has fallen right for Raymond and hes a really good player.

But I dont fault anyone for getting frustrated
 
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Bleed Ranger Blue said:
Agreed. Kakko has his own set of skating issues as well, but he's extremely talented in tight space. He could learn a thing or two from Kreider if he pays attention. Is Barb Underhill still around?
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I think she works with either Toronto or tbl now.

but Laf just needs to add explosiveness, whereas Kakko needs both more top end and some explosiveness.

Laf isnt slow, he just takes longer to get up to speed
 
SA16 said:
He's also scoring 2.25 pts/60 at 5v5 with a reasonable sh%. He has 5 points at 5v4 all year. That hasn't been a major factor.
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I’d argue that he’s had better line mates than Laf all season too.
There’s also something to be said for being able to get into a rhythm with volume of ice time. Ice time is almost a self fulfilling prophecy.
Players who get more ice time score more frequently, and players who want more ice time don’t because they try to force plays that may not be there because they know their opportunities are limited.
 
Thirty One said:


I wonder if he's going to sit for a game. Looks like either him or Gauthier, probably.
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hate it.

Why move Chytil when he's finally going? What has Hunt done in the past 2 months? Turk says he makes the 'obvious' moves but he really doesn't.
 
He's gonna be great, he's got all the tools but he needs the man strength now and a little boost in confidence. Honestly if I was him I'd see Gary Roberts in the summer.
 
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