Around the League Thread | Holiday Season!

[credulous]

Hutson is going to be a star and I've never understood the criticism of him that has been in the air since the season began. He's 20 and probably about 150 pounds, he'll need some time to adjust. He's not quite the skater Quinn Hughes is but he's even more aggressive with the puck on his stick and looks like he can recover his positioning well against NHL forwards. A defence with 3 or 4 Quinn Hugheses and 3 or 4 Lane Hutsons would probably win the cup every year.

anyone who watched more than 5 minutes of him in bu knew he was going to be a special player offensively. he might end up a 4th forward style defender who needs to be sheltered and may not be a great player because of it but he'll always produce points

 

[thecupismine]

How often have you watched Hutson? I see a player with vision and imagination that will make him special much like Hughes is. I would pretty much bet everything I have that he'll be a lot better and a fundamentally different than Tyson Barrie.

I’m not questioning his offensive upside at all - it’s why I said souped up Tyson Barrie. That’s a number 1 PP QB who can score at a PPG level, which would be a top 5 scoring dman in the league and a phenomenal outcome for 99% of draft picks.

What I’m saying is expecting him to be an elite #1 dman who’s also defensively sound is suspect given his size, given it’s only happened to one guy in NHL history. You need to be world class with your awareness, stick work and angles to compensate for that lack of size, as you will get boxed out and out muscled in front of the net and in the corners.

It’s just unreasonable for fans to see the success Hughes has had, and to start comparing every high scoring, small dman to him given how much of an outlier he is on the defensive side of the puck.

 

[VanillaCoke]

Hutson is going to be a star and I've never understood the criticism of him that has been in the air since the season began. He's 20 and probably about 150 pounds, he'll need some time to adjust. He's not quite the skater Quinn Hughes is but he's even more aggressive with the puck on his stick and looks like he can recover his positioning well against NHL forwards. A defence with 3 or 4 Quinn Hugheses and 3 or 4 Lane Hutsons would probably win the cup every year.

Big agree, I don't see the criticisms others do and I question if they're actually watching the games or just the stats.
His Defense isn't a problem at all, he's just getting out muscled like every small Defenseman, he'll only get stronger and adjust better moving forward.
His iq, positioning, awareness and recovery effort/ability is strong.
And really both his offense and defense should be better, he takes minuses from other players mistakes and just generally being on a bad team with no system, and his offensive abilities are often thwarted by his teammates inability to finish.

He's going to be Quinn Hughes Lite just a matter of time.

 

[credulous]

Big agree, I don't see the criticisms others do and I question if they're actually watching the games or just the stats.
His Defense isn't a problem at all, he's just getting out muscled like every small Defenseman, he'll only get stronger and adjust better moving forward.
And really both his offense and defense should be better, he takes minuses from other players mistakes and just generally being on a bad team with no system, and his offensive abilities are often thwarted by his teammates inability to finish.

He's going to be Quinn Hughes Lite just a matter of time.

he's nothing like hughes beyond the size imo

hughes has elite skating and gets around the ice great. hutson isn't nearly as good a skater but his puck protection is elite. he's so slippery and he generates scoring chances from passes no other player would attempt

the only player i can think of that's even somewhat similar is brandt clarke but i think hutson is better

 

[StreetHawk]

anyone who watched more than 5 minutes of him in bu knew he was going to be a special player offensively. he might end up a 4th forward style defender who needs to be sheltered and may not be a great player because of it but he'll always produce points

They would need Reinbacher to hit as expected to be that big minute muncher on the Right Side to be his partner. If not him, Mailloux doesn't project to be that type of guy. Neither is Barron and he hasn't taken a step this season (lost games due to the concussion he got on the hit from Trouba).

Or they have to ask Guhle to slide to the right side and do that. Think he's been asked to slide to the right side this season as they don't have enough RHD. Just Savard and Barron.

 

[credulous]

They would need Reinbacher to hit as expected to be that big minute muncher on the Right Side to be his partner. If not him, Mailloux doesn't project to be that type of guy. Neither is Barron and he hasn't taken a step this season (lost games due to the concussion he got on the hit from Trouba).

Or they have to ask Guhle to slide to the right side and do that. Think he's been asked to slide to the right side this season as they don't have enough RHD. Just Savard and Barron.

the huge advantage to having hutson is that he's so puck dominant (and so hard to win back the puck from) that you can pair him with anyone who is decent at retrievals and who can put themselves in position to receive passes. he's a lot like hughes in the sense that he can elevate nearly any partner

just keep him out of his own end and profit

 

[MS]

he's nothing like hughes beyond the size imo

hughes has elite skating and gets around the ice great. hutson isn't nearly as good a skater but his puck protection is elite. he's so slippery and he generates scoring chances from passes no other player would attempt

the only player i can think of that's even somewhat similar is brandt clarke but i think hutson is better

Hughes, even as a young player who was bad defensively because he was small and weak, was still a player with structure to his game. He generally did the right things, was in the right places.

Hutson is a total freelancer. Some of the things he does with the puck on his stick are Hughes-esque and he'll probably put up some 70 or 80 point seasons in the NHL but defensively he isn't on the same planet, and I doubt he ever will be. And yeah, his skating isn't as good as Hughes.

 

[Billy Kvcmu]

That’s cheap for Kakko

 

[credulous]

what a steal for seattle. even if kakko washes out they gave up next to nothing for a former #2 overall

 

[StreetHawk]

That’s cheap for Kakko

Kakko hasn’t had the production. Post elc, his numbers are 73 points in 173 games. Again, best for him to move on. Never going to live up to 2OA draft position so won’t have that hanging over him in Seattle. He’s a year out from ufa. Rfa in the summer.

 

[krutovsdonut]

i guess nyr were down a rhd but that is still an underwhelming return for a 2oa.

 

[StreetHawk]

i guess nyr were down a rhd but that is still an underwhelming return for a 2oa.

Van only got a 4th for a 10OA pick. We need to stop looking at guys based on draft position. No different than Jiricek at 6OA.

Insane how 2019 top picks have fared. Kakko, Dach, Byram, Broberg, Podkolzin all gone. Turcotte isn’t worth a 5OA value. Is Zegras worth his draft position value?

 

[bossram]

Kakko trade is a fair deal for both sides. I like Kakko as a nice possession-based complementary player, but if you're looking for upside, he is still a project player. And he basically already demanded his way out.

NYR get a guy in Borgen who credibly played top-four minutes the previous two seasons (and many here were interested in). They need another top-four defender. And they get a couple picks to use as currency.

It's a worthwhile gamble for a team like SEA. And they weren't going to re-sign Borgen anyway.

 

[StreetHawk]

Kakko trade is a fair deal for both sides. I like Kakko as a nice possession-based complementary player, but if you're looking for upside, he is still a project player. And he basically already demanded his way out.

NYR get a guy in Borgen who credibly played top-four minutes the previous two seasons (and many here were interested in). They need another top-four defender. And they get a couple picks to use as currency.

It's a worthwhile gamble for a team like SEA. And they weren't going to re-sign Borgen anyway.

Kakko is on a 1 year deal at $2.4 mill. And he hasn't really done anything to warrant much more than that. Eligible to file for salary arb, but not seeing how he'd get $3 mill for his final rfa year.

At some point, if you are not producing or getting better, your draft position means nothing.
2018 draft, KK isn't worth 3OA status. Boqvist got bought out. Zadina isn't in the NHL anymore. Hayton isn't worth his draft position. Kravstov has been back in the KHL.

 

[Bojack Horvatman]

Kakko will never live up to his draft position, but is a good defensive bottom 6er that is good for 20-30 es points. I like this for Seattle

 

[VanillaCoke]

I like it for nyr tbh.

Probably Unpopular idk but hog has atleast as much value as kakko.

 

[sting101]

Gazdic is such a tool

"I dont mind all 3 of those hits" by Pacioretty

1 - Stick to the face which knocks helmet off and ends in head contact against boards. - High stick boarding take your pick. Should be both
2 - Late run blind side hit on Guhle smashing his head into the boards. - If Guhle was injured which he was lucky not to be would have been a 5 game and suspension likely yet the tool thinks it's good stuff.
3 - Runs at J.Hughes who tries to duck him. Not a bad hit actually. looked bad because Hughes tries to duck him then is on ice after taking the hit high. Not a good look running a star. Hopefully NJ reminds him who he's running

No wonder nobody knows what the lines are in the NHL when the guys who are hired to provide insight promote head shots and running players. What a joke

 

[andora]

It sucks butthole when two players you want are traded for each other

 

[sting101]

Dallas can stop being so good at drafting anytime.

Bischel looks like a beast

 

[IComeInPeace]

It seems like the value for Carrier was less than I would have expected.

I know he’s undersized but you’re still getting a guy in his prime, signed for 2 seasons after this, who can play in your top 4 (and on a deeper team as a #5).

With his lack of size probably not a great fit with what Tochett is looking for…but hopefully, if nothing else, it’s helping drive down the asking price from rival GM’s seeing how relatively little Kakko and Carrier went for…

…although I guess on the other side of it you could look at it as renting Will Borgen for the rest of the year was worth Kakko.

 

[F A N]

It seems like the value for Carrier was less than I would have expected.

I know he’s undersized but you’re still getting a guy in his prime, signed for 2 seasons after this, who can play in your top 4 (and on a deeper team as a #5).

With his lack of size probably not a great fit with what Tochett is looking for…but hopefully, if nothing else, it’s helping drive down the asking price from rival GM’s seeing how relatively little Kakko and Carrier went for…

…although I guess on the other side of it you could look at it as renting Will Borgen for the rest of the year was worth Kakko.

Zadorov went for a 3rd + 5th last year. I don't think Carrier was worth much more that. I think he's a good defenseman that borders between being a #4/#5. I rather target Marcus Pettersson.

 

[ManVanFan]

I like it for nyr tbh.

Probably Unpopular idk but hog has atleast as much value as kakko.

 

[Jerry the great]

It seems like the value for Carrier was less than I would have expected.

I know he’s undersized but you’re still getting a guy in his prime, signed for 2 seasons after this, who can play in your top 4 (and on a deeper team as a #5).

With his lack of size probably not a great fit with what Tochett is looking for…but hopefully, if nothing else, it’s helping drive down the asking price from rival GM’s seeing how relatively little Kakko and Carrier went for…

…although I guess on the other side of it you could look at it as renting Will Borgen for the rest of the year was worth Kakko.

Carrier is basically a slightly more well rounded right shooting Brannstrom making $3.75MM thorough the end of 2027. he may be cheap to acquire, but he consumes a lot of cap space for what he brings, so his opportunity cost is massive. if we were at the deadline, comfortably in a PO spot, with no other options to improve the defense AND they were willing to take Hoglander + Desharnais for him, it might be a deal worth making. Still plenty of time to find something better.

 

[timw33]

Van only got a 4th for a 10OA pick. We need to stop looking at guys based on draft position. No different than Jiricek at 6OA.

Insane how 2019 top picks have fared. Kakko, Dach, Byram, Broberg, Podkolzin all gone. Turcotte isn’t worth a 5OA value. Is Zegras worth his draft position value?

Exactly. Once you start hitting D+4/D+5 your draft position is completely irrelevant and it's all about how you have developed and adapted to the next levels.

Lots of Rangers fans were griping about how they had an offer to acquire both Henrique and Vatrano at the deadline, for what might have be one of their last playoff runs of this core, in exchange for Kakko and the 1st.

When your high pedigree prospects aren't working out, you have a very limited window to get back a dollar for dollar return on what you paid in draft capital.

 

[ManVanFan]

Ranger's Gm's been stupid for years