Around the League - 2023 Offseason Edition

[dahrougem2]

Michkov is going to be the 2nd best player from this draft. That I am certain of.

 

[S E P H]

I'm old enough to remember that Quebec city already had some issues to attract players in the 90's (hello Lindros).

It's a nice city (I live there) but the weather, language, taxes and the fact that it's a small city are a very tough sell to young millionaires that historically love LA, NYC and Florida's beaches.


From what I understand he can become a Pietrangelo type of defenseman.

Remember, Quebec failed because of their owner and not really anything else. Being a small market doesn't help of course and why the NHL will go after Houston and Atlanta 3.0 before going back to them. Just stating that they would attract the same level of players as Vancouver and Toronto currently do. I do think Montreal would be the best destination for players in Canada, but I like the smaller population though. There is a lot of positives like better community and traffic with less crime.

My theory is I think the biggest problem is that allot of these players spend their entire life in cold temperature playing hockey from 4 years old to 18 years old that they eventually get sick of it. That's why I believe Arizona State is going to be a dominant hockey program as it goes along in American college. It just joined NCHC which is the best college hockey conference and have very nice weather during the school year from late August to early May. You miss all those 35+ C summer days because go back to your parents for summer vacation.

 

[AvsGuy]

I don't even know if Michkov will be all that or he won't, I just can't believe Montreal had two top 5 picks in the last 2 drafts and came away with Juraj Slafkovsky and David Reinbacher

Like... after everyone can already tell you maybe kinda sorta whiffed on the first one, you can't then whiff on the second one too

 

[The Moops]

I don't even know if Michkov will be all that or he won't, I just can't believe Montreal had two top 5 picks in the last 2 drafts and came away with Juraj Slafkovsky and David Reinbacher

Like... after everyone can already tell you maybe kinda sorta whiffed on the first one, you can't then whiff on the second one too

Did they hire the Avs scouts?

 

[UnkleKraker]

I don't even know if Michkov will be all that or he won't, I just can't believe Montreal had two top 5 picks in the last 2 drafts and came away with Juraj Slafkovsky and David Reinbacher

Like... after everyone can already tell you maybe kinda sorta whiffed on the first one, you can't then whiff on the second one too

Too soon to say they whiffed IMO. Look at all the commentary on Dahlin a few years back vs. today. Looked like a possible bust and now he is getting Norris mentions.

 

[Balthazar]

Too soon to say they whiffed IMO.

One got drafted a year ago and played like 35 games in the NHL at age 18 and the other just got drafted two months ago.

You think it's too soon?

 

[McMetal]

I don't even know if Michkov will be all that or he won't, I just can't believe Montreal had two top 5 picks in the last 2 drafts and came away with Juraj Slafkovsky and David Reinbacher

Like... after everyone can already tell you maybe kinda sorta whiffed on the first one, you can't then whiff on the second one too

I don't think they whiffed on Slaf, it was just a really weak draft year at the top, can't help that. Nemec looks real good, and so does Cooley, but then again neither of them were in the NHL at 18 so it's hard to really judge that yet.

 

[Bill Peckerskull]

Krejci retires

 

[LOFIN]

Too soon to say they whiffed IMO. Look at all the commentary on Dahlin a few years back vs. today. Looked like a possible bust and now he is getting Norris mentions.

Before the draft Dahlin was talked about as the next Erik Karlsson, or frankly even better version of him. He had the most hype of any D-prospect in the last 10 years. He's finally starting to live up to that hype, but it's not the same situation as with Montreal. Slafkovsky and Reinbacher are very underwhelming names in the face of it, regardless of what either of them will become. Now with Slafkovsky, it's not like Wright was a slam dunk better pick than him, it was not a very top heavy draft. But with Michkov you really have super star potential. We are talking about one of the best Russian prospects EVER.

 

[JLo217]

It is rather insane how little professional sports pay to staff until they work near the top of a front office... then it is absurd how much they pay.

I interviewed with the Sharks while I lived in the Bay to work and up their content game. The pay was less than I made in action sports (45-55K). I would've needed a 2nd job.

 

[Bill Peckerskull]

 

[henchman21]

Really sad news... cancer is the F worst.

 

[LOFIN]

Damn, the last I heard about him he was doing much better... But I guess brain tumours are so unpredictable...

EDIT. Apparently his Russian team GM said things were going positive just under two months ago...

https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/news/report-maple-leafs-prospect-rodion-amirovs-health-in-positive-trend-as-he-continues-treatment

 

[S E P H]

Damn, the last I heard about him he was doing much better... But I guess brain tumours are so unpredictable...

So many people think the brain is just filled with neurons, but that is so untrue. There are at least six major classes of cells that reside in our brains and throughout our nervous system.

Here is a list of them

I bring this list up because there could be potential cancer in any one of them, but the worst and by far the deadliest is what happens to astrocytes. Glioblastoma is the disease that affects this type of cell and has as much of a 7% survival rate with many dying from it. Now I don't know which cancer he had, but he had to have a rare one to get it at such a young age (except if he lived half of his life on the Mississippi River in Russia) and one that was deadly for his body succumb to it at an age when his immune system was as good as ever.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

One day we will make these fatal forms of cancer, more manageable, hopefully curable, and with a lot of luck...maybe even preventable.

But until then, f*** it and the horse it rode into town on.

 

[Bill Peckerskull]

 

[henchman21]

Now for Dundon's next trick, OTA broadcasting of games on WRAL!

 

[henchman21]

Detroit adding more depth... they might have 5 #4D now.

 

[Balthazar]

Detroit adding more depth... they might have 5 #4D now.

Wings got Petry with double retention for nothing. 2.45M RHD for two years...that's a great deal.

He basically only wanted to play in the north east on the US side, that ruined his value.

 

[henchman21]

Wings got Petry with double retention for nothing. 2.45M RHD for two years...that's a steal.

He's certainly an upgrade on Lindstrom and improves the Wings. Wahlman and Seider are two fantastic defensemen, then the Wings have a grouping of 5 guys who can all play middle pairing minutes to rotate through. I imagine one will be traded, but they are certainly going to test the depth theory throughout the roster. Lots of mid players with a sprinkling of higher end talent.

 

[The Abusement Park]

Detroits really about to be the most mid team ever. No one on the team is bad, but Larkin isn’t good enough to carry a team like that and obviously Seider is a future 1D(how high a level yet to be seen). Interesting approach, I just don’t know if Raymond, Seider, Larkin is enough to contend. Will need some big books from the prospects.

 

[dahrougem2]

Detroit isn't going to make the playoffs. They're going for a 38-38-6 record if I've ever seen one. Such an incredibly average looking team.

 

[henchman21]

Detroits really about to be the most mid team ever. No one on the team is bad, but Larkin isn’t good enough to carry a team like that and obviously Seider is a future 1D(how high a level yet to be seen). Interesting approach, I just don’t know if Raymond, Seider, Larkin is enough to contend. Will need some big books from the prospects.

IMO they'll be testing if an established team can pull off a Seattle/Vegas depth build. Curious to see it play out... and if it can be done in the East that'll be a bloodbath again.

I think Detroit's long-term contention ability will be more about Danielson and Kasper than Larkin. Seider (and their guys coming up) will be easily good enough on defense. They are absolutely stacked on defense going forward. Up front relies on Larkin taking another step (which I find very unlikely), or one of Danielson or Kasper being a top 20 center. I'm a big believer in both of them as prospects... but that is a pretty high level.

 

[Balthazar]

Detroits really about to be the most mid team ever. No one on the team is bad, but Larkin isn’t good enough to carry a team like that and obviously Seider is a future 1D(how high a level yet to be seen). Interesting approach, I just don’t know if Raymond, Seider, Larkin is enough to contend. Will need some big books from the prospects.

They want to try to win with a low ceiling but by having the highest floor in the league. It's an interesting approach, I want to see it.

 

[henchman21]

Detroit isn't going to make the playoffs. They're going for a 38-38-6 record if I've ever seen one. Such an incredibly average looking team.

It really is shades of Seattle and Vegas as they entered the league. Detroit has a couple higher upside guys than those teams, but the idea is the same. Loads of middle of the lineup depth.