Player Discussion Alexis Lafrenière

[Dijock94]

That offer sheet only happened because Montreal provoked it with the one they sent out to Aho the year before.

I don't see anyone wanting to get into that game with the Rangers. It always ends up coming back around.

That’s what you hope but I would think other GMs saw what the rangers just paid for Kane and may hold a grudge because we got him cheaper than any other team could’ve.

 

[ThirdEye]

Anyone notice in recent pictures/videos that it looks like he slimmed down quite a bit? I remember he was really bulky when they posted hype videos of the players early in his career. Could explain him not looking like he's skating in mud anymore

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

That’s what you hope but I would think other GMs saw what the rangers just paid for Kane and may hold a grudge because we got him cheaper than any other team could’ve.

Teams should hold a grudge against a bunch of other teams because there have been a ton of light returns for some pretty good players. The return for Cychrun was wayyyyyyy more egregious than the one for Kane.

Aside from Jeannot, the market has been buyer friendly.

 

[Dijock94]

Anyone notice in recent pictures/videos that it looks like he slimmed down quite a bit? I remember he was really bulky when they posted hype videos of the players early in his career. Could explain him not looking like he's skating in mud anymore

Yea he was surprisingly heavy for an 18 year old. He may be starting to learn about proper training and nutrition.

Teams should hold a grudge against a bunch of other teams because there have been a ton of light returns for some pretty good players. The return for Cychrun was wayyyyyyy more egregious than the one for Kane.

Aside from Jeannot, the market has been buyer friendly.

I’m just saying it wouldn’t shock me. If someone offered Lafreniere 4.5 I think they would only owe us a 1st round pick. If a playoff team like the devils does that then we’re out Laf for at best a mid 1st

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Yea he was surprisingly heavy for an 18 year old. He may be starting to learn about proper training and nutrition.


I’m just saying it wouldn’t shock me. If someone offered Lafreniere 4.5 I think they would only owe us a 1st round pick. If a playoff team like the devils does that then we’re out Laf for at best a mid 1st

So many teams are up against the cap as it is. A small market team does not want to play that game with the Rangers, it will back fire on them.

Plus I feel like this conversation happens every year. Offer sheets are rarely thrown out and its even more rare that they're accepted. Beyond that, its even more rare that a team with the player who accepts the offer sheet doesn't match. I think Kotkaniemi's was the first one in 14 years or something, maybe longer.

 

[bhamill]

I hope not but we could be screwed with an offer sheet this summer like what Carolina did with Korkaniemi.

Always possible, but I think with their deep pockets the NYR are the last franchise anyone want to get involved in a contest with. Cap is tight this year and next, but after that... LOOK OUT. And Carolina did that in RETALIATION to MTL offer sheeting Aho, who they matched. If anything its a cautionary tale.

 

[bhamill]

Yea he was surprisingly heavy for an 18 year old. He may be starting to learn about proper training and nutrition.


I’m just saying it wouldn’t shock me. If someone offered Lafreniere 4.5 I think they would only owe us a 1st round pick. If a playoff team like the devils does that then we’re out Laf for at best a mid 1st

A first and a third. But still a steal. Until we start f***ing with them back. I also think we'd match and then do what we had to.

 

[boxbox]

it seems hes starting to come around, good for the Rangers worry some for the rest of the league..

please tell me he got rid of the ridiculous goatee /facial hair arrangement no one at his age rocks... legit looks like a guy in his late 30s/ earlly 40s that visits Home Depot quite often

is there a reason as to why Kakko and Lafreniere seem to be behind in their development, dont mean it in a sense they won't reach their potential just not often you see a 1st overall and 2nd overall picks produce below a 0.5 ppg average each having player 2 plus seasons already. Again simply curious.

do the Rangers have enough pucks for that stacked forward group...? I feel it will be a case of too much of a good thing but if they click and make it work that will be scary very scary

 

[boxbox]

I think in two years the people lamenting the fact that we got Lafreniere and Kakko are going to be a breed on the verge of extinction. If you don’t see it you don’t see it, that’s fair. But I honestly think Laf is eventually Messier lite (80-90pt, 200 foot pain in the ass captain material) and Kakko will be a beast.

beast in what way ?

 

[Captain Monglobster]

beast in what way ?

Poor mans Marian Hossa. Or best case scenario regular dudes Marian Hossa. He is already a beast along the boards and can puckhandle in a phone booth.

 

[Ruggs225]

beast in what way ?

he has been playing very well lately. He had one or two good scoring chances last night especially the one where he fired off the rebound.

That whole line had a bunch of good chances. None of them can cash in though. Its maddingly frustrating

 

[bhamill]

beast in what way ?

The above ways and also possession. He’s practically there already.

 

[JCMac23]

it seems hes starting to come around, good for the Rangers worry some for the rest of the league..

please tell me he got rid of the ridiculous goatee /facial hair arrangement no one at his age rocks... legit looks like a guy in his late 30s/ earlly 40s that visits Home Depot quite often

is there a reason as to why Kakko and Lafreniere seem to be behind in their development, dont mean it in a sense they won't reach their potential just not often you see a 1st overall and 2nd overall picks produce below a 0.5 ppg average each having player 2 plus seasons already. Again simply curious.

do the Rangers have enough pucks for that stacked forward group...? I feel it will be a case of too much of a good thing but if they click and make it work that will be scary very scary

I feel like our prospects take a longer route to where they're supposed to be development wise especially lately because of how the team is structured. Too many players ahead of them on the depth chart and no power play time. Filip Chytil for example is in his 5th year of development and he's now only starting to produce. I feel like Laf and Kakko will follow the same developmental path and it will take them a couple more years to really produce. Unfortunately, our fanbase isn't the most patient...

 

[OthmannOut]

Laf was our best player today and it isn't even close.
He is building confidence and once he gains man strength he will be a menace.
Happy to see that he is scoring. He often scores when goals are needed. That clutch factor is so important.

 

[PuckLuck3043]

Some of the takes I read on this kid are such clear bullshit. He's figuring it out. He's 21. He's on pace for 17goals and 45 points. I see the kid as a 60-70 point guy in a year or 2. Maybe not superstar status but definitely a top 6 NHLer.

 

[2014nyr]

starting to have faith in humanity again seeing these rational evaluations of where laf is, how far hes come, and an understanding that theres a lot more there still to come. not enough people get how significant the mental side of it is - and thats where laf has always had what it takes in spades. he doesnt whine or feel sorry for himself. since day 1 its been obvious based on how his teammates respond to him hes loved in the locker room, the kid is always positive and has good body language on the ice - yet at the same time hes also got some bite to him. hell defend teammates and throw the body and mix it up after whistles. thats a guy whos gonna wear a letter and likely a c. hes a hockey nerd, he just loves the game and because of that hes going to keep getting better. its also why he thrives in the biggest moments like the playoffs or shows out in a game against the best team in the league with the team playing shorthanded.

yea it woulda been nice if he was a 60 pt guy from the jump. tough tits for us, he wasnt. doesnt by any stretch mean hes a bust. giving up on him would haunt this franchise and people who want to dont deserve to enjoy what will come.

 

[KirkAlbuquerque]

trade him while his value is high!

 

[Row I Goon]

starting to have faith in humanity again seeing these rational evaluations of where laf is, how far hes come, and an understanding that theres a lot more there still to come. not enough people get how significant the mental side of it is - and thats where laf has always had what it takes in spades. he doesnt whine or feel sorry for himself. since day 1 its been obvious based on how his teammates respond to him hes loved in the locker room, the kid is always positive and has good body language on the ice - yet at the same time hes also got some bite to him. hell defend teammates and throw the body and mix it up after whistles. thats a guy whos gonna wear a letter and likely a c. hes a hockey nerd, he just loves the game and because of that hes going to keep getting better. its also why he thrives in the biggest moments like the playoffs or shows out in a game against the best team in the league with the team playing shorthanded.

yea it woulda been nice if he was a 60 pt guy from the jump. tough tits for us, he wasnt. doesnt by any stretch mean hes a bust. giving up on him would haunt this franchise and people who want to dont deserve to enjoy what will come.

Kid banged it two today whilst the ”Broadway/Showtime” line were still trying to figure out who’s name would appear first on the playbill…..he’s ok.

 

[TopShelfSnipes]

Some of the takes I read on this kid are such clear bullshit. He's figuring it out. He's 21. He's on pace for 17goals and 45 points. I see the kid as a 60-70 point guy in a year or 2. Maybe not superstar status but definitely a top 6 NHLer.

His play the last few weeks has been really good, he's just not getting points because he lost about 5 primary helpers on shots Chytil flubbed since he went cold, and KK is back to being a perimeter player and handling the puck like his stick is a wet noodle.

Could easily be 5-5-10 in his last 10 if just Chytil buried his Grade A's, and that's following a 3-5-8 in the 10 before that. And Laf is finally starting to produce on the PP as that 2nd unit has looked a lot better of late, while still not seeing all that much PP time.

If he gets a lot stronger and improves his skating in the offseason, which are his 2 biggest weaknesses, I could easily see a 60 point season next year depending on his role and PP usage. He's doing everything he's doing in spite of those huge weaknesses, which means his hockey instincts, playmaking ability, and the gritty stuff have been there.

 

[PuckLuck3043]

His play the last few weeks has been really good, he's just not getting points because he lost about 5 primary helpers on shots Chytil flubbed since he went cold, and KK is back to being a perimeter player and handling the puck like his stick is a wet noodle.

Could easily be 5-5-10 in his last 10 if just Chytil buried his Grade A's, and that's following a 3-5-8 in the 10 before that. And Laf is finally starting to produce on the PP as that 2nd unit has looked a lot better of late, while still not seeing all that much PP time.

If he gets a lot stronger and improves his skating in the offseason, which are his 2 biggest weaknesses, I could easily see a 60 point season next year depending on his role and PP usage. He's doing everything he's doing in spite of those huge weaknesses, which means his hockey instincts, playmaking ability, and the gritty stuff have been there.

And he's only 21 so he will get stronger although I still think he is one of their more physical forwards and is not afraid to mix it up. I have zero doubt he will continue to improve and be a very important piece for this team. Trading him now would be the dumbest thing this team could do.

 

[boxbox]

he has been playing very well lately. He had one or two good scoring chances last night especially the one where he fired off the rebound.

That whole line had a bunch of good chances. None of them can cash in though. Its maddingly frustrating

if the chances are there they will eventually go inn, I am a Sens fan and everyone assumed we were awful 5 on5 and stastically we were, but not for the lack of trying or generating chances...hard to explain how a team can have a top 5 pp in the league and bottom 5 team shooting % at even strength ...and further digging into the states even suggested the team was in the top 10 for generating "high danger" scoring chances....since the all start break they have been averaging almost 5 goals for a game and a lot of them being at ES...all this without any noticable changes in how they play but a noticeable improvement in the team shooting % ....

I feel like our prospects take a longer route to where they're supposed to be development wise especially lately because of how the team is structured. Too many players ahead of them on the depth chart and no power play time. Filip Chytil for example is in his 5th year of development and he's now only starting to produce. I feel like Laf and Kakko will follow the same developmental path and it will take them a couple more years to really produce. Unfortunately, our fanbase isn't the most patient...

I figured that was case, not often you see these days a 1st overall pick play a reduced role sort of say....I think part of that is how contracts are structured and rebuilding team trying to maximise the return from the player before they first deals are up. But that also begs the question why get both Kane & Tarasenko ? does that not reduce Laferniers role just when it appears he was playing his best hockey as an Ranger ?

 

[Deleted member 23124]

I figured that was case, not often you see these days a 1st overall pick play a reduced role sort of say....I think part of that is how contracts are structured and rebuilding team trying to maximise the return from the player before they first deals are up. But that also begs the question why get both Kane & Tarasenko ? does that not reduce Laferniers role just when it appears he was playing his best hockey as an Ranger ?

Once the rebuild was scraped (with the acquisition of Panarin), the kids were no longer a priority.

 

[bhamill]

Some of the takes I read on this kid are such clear bullshit. He's figuring it out. He's 21. He's on pace for 17goals and 45 points. I see the kid as a 60-70 point guy in a year or 2. Maybe not superstar status but definitely a top 6 NHLer.

Yup. 60-70 points at 23 and I don’t think that’s his ceiling. I still see a 80-90 point guy who plays a 200 ft game and is a hit leader on the team in his prime.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

8G / 5A / 13P in the last 18 games, that's a 36G / 60 point season. He's definitely improving.

 

[GENESISPuck94]

Some of the takes I read on this kid are such clear bullshit. He's figuring it out. He's 21. He's on pace for 17goals and 45 points. I see the kid as a 60-70 point guy in a year or 2. Maybe not superstar status but definitely a top 6 NHLer.

I think he's a 60 point player right now. He's already got over 30 points with shit ice time and usage. He's passed last year's points total already. If he were stapled to the top line and PP1 he'd rack up points. Look at PP points on this team and whose at the top in points scoring in the team. It's a direct correlation.