OT: Around the NHL - Good hocket is good

[Shady Machine]

Lol at Wilson's "it's terrible" being suspended. Try being in a dark room for 2 weeks because your brain was beaten in or drinking from a straw for 6 weeks because your jaw is jacked.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Lol at Wilson's "it's terrible" being suspended. Try being in a dark room for 2 weeks because your brain was beaten in or drinking from a straw for 6 weeks because your jaw is jacked.

I like that he's all confused, it's insanely evident that this guy is not going to learn when he is back and the only deterrent now will be to fine the team for not implementing change in his game and enforcing his behavior. This guy is going to ruin a career with his next stupid play and the league is going to throw what, another 20 games at him and repeat?

His next incident, it has to be the rest of the season + playoffs. No exceptions.

Send the right message .

 

[Kristopher Letang]

Chills.

 

[Clare2904]

Chills.

Wasn't sure where to put that so I put it in the Off Topic thread

 

[Dacks]

Yeah, Wilson keys in on Sundqvist while he's 5+ strides away and in the neutral zone. He knows he's gonna brain Sundqvist, puck or not, late or not, blindside or not. He just wants to get his chunk of flesh.

Matheson for sure wants to "teach the kid a lesson." It's all the same 80s, fragile masculinity, "look how tough I am" bull****.

One difference, imo, is whether a player makes a mistake in a spur-of-the-moment decision, or goes in with intent the whole time.

Wilson has been headhunting since last preseason and clearly hasn't learned a thing. Had shown zero remorse.

Up until the slam, nothing Matheson did was illegal. He didn't slew foot Petersson or intentionally knock him off balance. But once Petersson started falling, he agressively threw him to the ice - a spur of the moment decision.

It's worth suspending to send the right message, but not in the same league as the stuff Wilson or Marchand pull.

 

[Andy99]

Kapanen is really taking advantage of playing with Matthews...he’s been terrific...for the 1000th time I just so regret that we traded him....actually we could use DP right about now too...

 

[Ogrezilla]

Kapanen is really taking advantage of playing with Matthews...he’s been terrific...for the 1000th time I just so regret that we traded him....actually we could use DP right about now too...

it'd be nice to have him, but in no way do I regret trading him. Kessel has just been too damn good.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Its always odd to see how well Niemi has done away from us.

His numbers with the Pens were god awful, but he bounced back in a big way on his 3rd team that same year with the Habs and has stuck around there.

 

[ColePens]

Chills.

Tears.

 

[Andy99]

it'd be nice to have him, but in no way do I regret trading him. Kessel has just been too damn good.

Of course we might not have the Cups so I don’t regret that but I just wish there was another way we could have completed that trade...Kapanen looks better than Sprong and we could have traded DP who we got rid of for a fourth anyway, and TOR reportedly wanted him...

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Kapanen is really taking advantage of playing with Matthews...he’s been terrific...for the 1000th time I just so regret that we traded him....actually we could use DP right about now too...

Nah, DP is a defensive black hole that has his minutes severely managed by Green so he's actually "useful" to him in some sense. Pens don't seem to like babysitting that much and it requires a ton for Pouliot.

As for Kapanen, it takes talent to play with talent and hes done just that. I like that we have Kessel and I don't regret it.

I just think it's nice to see a young talented player, played with talent and to see it do well. Such a novel idea, I wonder why no one else has thought of it yet.

 

[Ogrezilla]

Of course we might not have the Cups so I don’t regret that but I just wish there was another way we could have completed that trade...Kapanen looks better than Sprong and we could have traded DP who we got rid of for a fourth anyway, and TOR reportedly wanted him...

I wonder if Kapanen getting some NHL time under his belt in a depth role has helped him develop as a player?

 

[Ogrezilla]

I just think it's nice to see a young talented player, played with talent and to see it do well. Such a novel idea, I wonder why no one else has thought of it yet.

Didn't he spend a huge chunk of his previous 68 NHL games as a 4th liner before getting this chance with Matthews?

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I wonder if Kapanen getting some NHL time under his belt in a depth role has helped him develop as a player?

Probably not.

That's like using an expensive blade to open a can of paint. That's just dumb. You put people in a position to succeed, not "learn through some hardships so you never have to be there again" which is essentially what you do when you put a kid like Kapanen on a 4th line grinder line or whatever the catchy phase people will use for that line.

You have a talent like that, you let it marinate in the AHL just long enough that you pop that person back up and use them when they're absolutely on fire from their stint and got enough of a taste the last time to make sure they work hard and stay up.

Kap could have fizzled, but there was no other option for him, top 9 or bust. Leafs top 9 is sort of set up like ours, deep in talent. 4th line is just a slap in the face.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Didn't he spend a huge chunk of his previous 68 NHL games as a 4th liner before getting this chance with Matthews?

Yup, before he was sent down to the Marlies and back up etc. He was wasted in that capacity.

What would it have done to put him on the 4th line again this year? They easily could have. But they decided you know what, there was an opportunity with no Nylander, lets see if this works.

It did.

 

[Ogrezilla]

Yup, before he was sent down to the Marlies and back up etc. He was wasted in that capacity.

What would it have done to put him on the 4th line again this year? They easily could have. But they decided you know what, there was an opportunity with no Nylander, lets see if this works.

It did.

He was with the Leaf's from December through the end of the season, mostly in a 4th line role. Including the playoffs. Didn't seem to hurt him one bit. He got some time to learn the NHL game a bit more, and now he's getting his chance on a scoring line. They didn't need to rush him. They knew they could wait to get him a chance in a bigger role when it came up naturally instead of forcing it.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I get what you are saying but the difference between Sprong and Kapanen is that for one, Kapanen is a very different player. Sprong will blow shots by you with some insane shot selections in his arsenal, has decent vision with what to do as a playmaker and he can skate.

Kapanen is faster, is a better forechecker and better puck handler, he was also a part of a big trade and has a chip on his shoulder that he has something to prove. He started in the bottom 6 and did well there with honing his game, but with his talent, he was always better suited for the top 6. All he needed was an opportunity.

He got one.

I wonder how much that helps a player like that, an opportunity in the top 6.

@Ogrezilla That's the last I will entertain you on this.

 

[Ogrezilla]

I get what you are saying but the difference between Sprong and Kapanen is that for one, Kapanen is a very different player. Sprong will blow shots by you with some insane shot selections in his arsenal, has decent vision with what to do as a playmaker and he can skate.

Kapanen is faster, is a better forechecker and better puck handler, he was also a part of a big trade and has a chip on his shoulder that he has something to prove. He started in the bottom 6 and did well there with honing his game, but with his talent, he was always better suited for the top 6. All he needed was an opportunity.

He got one.

I wonder how much that helps a player like that, an opportunity in the top 6.

@Ogrezilla That's the last I will entertain you on this.

Obviously it helps him. But my point is that they didn't need to rush him to that point. Maybe he would have failed with that chance if they threw him right in to that spot and told him sink or swim. Or maybe they wasted a year where he could have been doing this already. I don't know. I agree that Sprong eventually needs that chance too. But taking it slowly is not a bad option, and Kapapen is a perfect example of that.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I see the Wings are in on the Hughes sweepstakes already.

 

[BHD]

I know the Canadiens just beat the Pens twice in a week, but holy shit the Wings are losing to them 5-1.

EDIT: Make that 6-1, and Tatar has been in on 3 of them. haha

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I know the Canadiens just beat the Pens twice in a week, but holy **** the Wings are losing to them 5-1.

EDIT: Make that 6-1, and Tatar has been in on 3 of them. haha

Tatar is doing better than Patches too.

 

[hiptanaka]

Kapanen looks fantastic.

 

[Ginormousthumbs]

Looks like Fleury is going with some Vegas Gold pads.

 

[EightyOne]

One difference, imo, is whether a player makes a mistake in a spur-of-the-moment decision, or goes in with intent the whole time.

Wilson has been headhunting since last preseason and clearly hasn't learned a thing. Had shown zero remorse.

Up until the slam, nothing Matheson did was illegal. He didn't slew foot Petersson or intentionally knock him off balance. But once Petersson started falling, he agressively threw him to the ice - a spur of the moment decision.

It's worth suspending to send the right message, but not in the same league as the stuff Wilson or Marchand pull.

See, the thing is, players will try to sell the idea that that they didn't have time to alter their actions or whatever.

Having played sports, granted not at the "speed" of the "professional" level, I can honestly say I never committed a foul on accident. I had either decided before the game I was gonna play "real f***ing hard" or during the play I was determined to "tag" someone.

If you say you did a hit on accident, that's because subconsciously you were already committed to fouling someone and when the lizard brain took over, that's what you did.

There is no "didn't have time to react" excuse, because if you came into the game trying to play it the right way, you wouldn't even get close to blood-lust head-hunting. I know. Because I could play real clean, too.

Don't believe players when they say they couldn't react in a hit, when you just saw them react to hitting a puck out of the air....

 

[Shady Machine]

Can we trade go back in time and trade Pouliot to Toronto please?