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Around the NHL: Part XVII - Season’s Greetings

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ijuka said:
Heinola looking so good is a bit of a surprise but not nearly as big of one as it's made to be. And he was drafted way too late, for reasons unknown. If you think about Heinola as a defenseman outperforming #3OA Kotkaniemi offensively towards the end of the season there never was any justification for having him so late on any list.

And yeah, Jets have a good track record outside of the awful Stanley pick they even traded up for.
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Kotkaniemi was a huge reach in 2018 though. Everyone knew it. Montreal was desperate for a center and that's the only reason he went that high. At the same time, Heinola partly gets an opportunity due to Winnipeg's situation on the blueline with Byfuglien out for instsance.

Not to take anything away from Heinola's performance, but there is a lot of context to this comparison that explains the discrepancy between the 2 when it comes to their draft position
 
Devils made the most of the Jets being gassed after their previous night's loss to the Rangers. The Jets-Rangers game was very high tempo for a season opener and the Jets looked mentally and physically drained in the first half of the game in Jersey. And then the simple disparity in talent, toughness and will to win took over and they brushed the Devils aside.

Hughes looked awful with poor decision making for the NHL, especially anywhere on the ice other than in the O zone and took some big hits. Hilarious butt hurt among some of the Devils fans shouting that Kakko has zero points too - yeah we know genius, but a 140 lb 18 year old center is a whole different matter than an 18 year old wing when you're trying to win games. Hughes should have had his butt glued to the bench in the 3d to protect him from being put into that position that resulted in the game tying goal. That was a brutally bad shift, though good on Pionk for coming through with the goal. I'd be happy for a win-win trade on that one.
 
Ola said:
I think you always must be careful when drawing conclusion on how a 18 y/o looks in the NHL early on.
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It's not Hughes' fault at all. Hynes should have protected him both in the 3d when the Jets were buzzing, and again in the shootout when he's under a lot of pressure and you have other more experienced skill players on the bench.

BTW, I just tried to watch the Isles game and had to give up - Trotz has made that team unwatchable. I know his goal is to squeeze out points but it is not entertaining hockey.
 
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Black Tank said:
It's not Hughes' fault at all. Hynes should have protected him both in the 3d when the Jets were buzzing, and again in the shootout when he's under a lot of pressure and you have other more experienced skill players on the bench.

BTW, I just tried to watch the Isles game and had to give up - Trotz has made that team unwatchable. I know his goal is to squeeze out points but it is not entertaining hockey.
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I was mainly referring to Heinola.

If a kid isn’t ready he isn’t ready, I think it’s possible to see that early. ;)

Just meant that sometimes when a kid comes up you are impressed that they can get by and blown away if they do something good. But the challenges over the long run will be very different.
 
Every year there are a few draft picks who make their NHL team out of training camp but go back to their previous teams before they hit the threshold for burning a year off of their ELC. Pretty much all the time it's because they really weren't ready. The issue the Jets have is they've lost a ton of experience off their defense since the summer. Whether Heinola hangs around or not--it's a tough road he's on and if he sticks around he's likely to go through some hellacious growing pains before it's over. He's a great prospect but even so--I don't see him as better than Nils Lundkvist and IMO the Rangers are doing it the right way with Lundkvist.
 
Inferno said:
Rangers fans...play lias he's so good...

Also rangers fans...bench Hughes have to protect him.

?
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I don't understand the comparison. One player is in his third season showing the responsibility to handle more minutes, the other player is an 18 year old in his first NHL game.
 
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Hynes did protect Hughes in the 3rd I think. Didn't see him out there much.

He flashed some dangerous skill but also made some ill advised plays, especially in his own end. He'll have to learn to do better protecting the puck in front of his own net. High risk plays have to be carefully considered

but, no point in treating like he's terrible. Kakko wasn't great in his first game either
 
Claxton said:
I don't understand the comparison. One player is in his third season showing the responsibility to handle more minutes, the other player is an 18 year old in his first NHL game.
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Ppl have been saying play the kids since forever. Listen to some of the podcasts out there, guys railing on coaches for not playing every 20 year old we have. It's ridiculous
 
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zegras is already the 1C at BU in his first game as a freshmen

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Love seeing the Devils get crushed but then I remember the guys at the top of the 2020 draft and I sweat a little.
 
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