C Auston Matthews - ZSC Lions, NLA (2016 Draft) II

[Redwingsfan]

Same here. Don't know much about him. 30th in scoring in the Swiss league...what gives? Shouldn't he be dominating that league?

Being at a PPG from an U-19 player, even U-20 players in the NLA is unheard of. Literally. It has never happened before. The closest is 0.94 and that was in 1986.

Also looking at where he is in overall scoring when he's missed 1/3 of the season doesn't really give you the whole picture. I dont know if the stats on EP are up do date, but according to those, he's 10th in the league in PPG. Thats extremely good for a guy who just turned 18. The NLA is no joke. Its a very good league. Only 4 players were able to top a PPG last season, for example.

 

[puckfan13]

Having the chance to view some of Matthews games from this year, I would honestly say while he is not a McDavid or Eichel level player, he is basically the next best thing. I would honestly compare him to a guy like Toews and I don't say that lightly. This is a player that takes a lot on himself and wants to be "the guy."

His combination of skill and will allows him to get to the net and just get it done, there is guys with harder shots, faster skating, more accurate passing, but this guy just gets it done. He doesn't have McKinnon's skating or Stamkos' shot. Sounds stupid to say but he has the "x-factor". I absolutely do not make the Toews comparison lightly but AM is just a guy with a lot of skill and he's just going to find a way to get it done, he's not going to be denied. The play goes through him, his hockey sense and will are his two best traits. Think he absolutely made the right decision to go to Europe this year to develop, kudos to the group around him to stick to their decision.

 

[Juxtaposer]

Having the chance to view some of Matthews games from this year, I would honestly say while he is not a McDavid or Eichel level player, he is basically the next best thing. I would honestly compare him to a guy like Toews and I don't say that lightly. This is a player that takes a lot on himself and wants to be "the guy."

His combination of skill and will allows him to get to the net and just get it done, there is guys with harder shots, faster skating, more accurate passing, but this guy just gets it done. He doesn't have McKinnon's skating or Stamkos' shot. Sounds stupid to say but he has the "x-factor". I absolutely do not make the Toews comparison lightly but AM is just a guy with a lot of skill and he's just going to find a way to get it done, he's not going to be denied. The play goes through him, his hockey sense and will are his two best traits. Think he absolutely made the right decision to go to Europe this year to develop, kudos to the group around him to stick to their decision.

I agree 100% with this and the Toews comparison. I'd say if McDavid and Eichel are the Crosby and Malkin equivalents respectively, Matthews is the Toews.

 

[ulvvf]

It is impressing. The only problem I have is that you have really not much to compare to. I can not remember any other player that went high in the draft that played in NLA in his draft year. I do like that he try new things and not just go with the usuall. He could have risk his nr 1 overall position, but I think he is a lock at that at this point.

But I would want to have seen him in some other senior league that have more of a history of talent that went high in the draft, why did he choice NLA instead of some of the senior leagues in europe with a more of a history of having players going high in the draft? Was he scared that he would not get enough ice-time or what?

 

[Stats01]

It is impressing. The only problem I have is that you have really not much to compare to. I can not remember any other player that went high in the draft that played in NLA in his draft year. I do like that he try new things and not just go with the usuall. He could have risk his nr 1 overall position, but I think he is a lock at that at this point.

But I would want to have seen him in some other senior league that have more of a history of talent that went high in the draft, why did he choice NLA instead of some of the senior leagues in europe with a more of a history of having players going high in the draft? Was he scared that he would not get enough ice-time or what?

Probably had to do with (money) and (ice-time) this is a unique situation so you have to believe that besides the obvious attractiveness of getting a pay-cheque at his age, the guarantee of ice-time was another factor. If he signed in the KHL or in Sweden who knows if he would get the same opportunity/same minutes that he does in Switzerland.

 

[SwissGrog]

Probably had to do with (money) and (ice-time) this is a unique situation so you have to believe that besides the obvious attractiveness of getting a pay-cheque at his age, the guarantee of ice-time was another factor. If he signed in the KHL or in Sweden who knows if he would get the same opportunity/same minutes that he does in Switzerland.

don't forget Marc Crawford. It was a big factor. Not many league outside the NHL have a stanley-cup winner NHL coach ready, even eager to help you grow.

 

[Beukeboom]

I agree 100% with this and the Toews comparison. I'd say if McDavid and Eichel are the Crosby and Malkin equivalents respectively, Matthews is the Toews.

I have yet to see one reason why Eichel would be better then Matthews? Matthews has been better than Eichel in pretty much every comparable season/team and even by a wide margin in many cases such as his last USDP sesason where he not only set a new record beating Patrick Kane's old one by a good margin but also getting som e 30point + on Eichel.

 

[Juxtaposer]

I have yet to see one reason why Eichel would be better then Matthews? Matthews has been better than Eichel in pretty much every comparable season/team and even by a wide margin in many cases such as his last USDP sesason where he not only set a new record beating Patrick Kane's old one by a good margin but also getting som e 30point + on Eichel.

Any purely statistical argument for Matthews being better than Eichel is silly.

Trust me, I am Matthews' #1 fan and proponent. But as of right now, Eichel is the superior player and prospect. That could change, and if anyone can surpass Eichel it's Matthews, but using a statistical argument is just plain silly at this time.

 

[Rebuilt]

Any purely statistical argument for Matthews being better than Eichel is silly.

Trust me, I am Matthews' #1 fan and proponent. But as of right now, Eichel is the superior player and prospect. That could change, and if anyone can surpass Eichel it's Matthews, but using a statistical argument is just plain silly at this time.

I'm not trying to doubt you, but how do you prove or disprove that?

 

[canuck2010]

I'm not trying to doubt you, but how do you prove or disprove that?

Certainly not with stats or so called advanced metrics.

 

[champs*]

he playing the wjc?

 

[bolt thrower]

he playing the wjc?

Yes, he is.

 

[Beukeboom]

Any purely statistical argument for Matthews being better than Eichel is silly.

Trust me, I am Matthews' #1 fan and proponent. But as of right now, Eichel is the superior player and prospect. That could change, and if anyone can surpass Eichel it's Matthews, but using a statistical argument is just plain silly at this time.

But it seems hard to compare without using statistics since a year separates them and they chose a different path their draft year? Matthews has outperformed him by a wide margin. One thing if the difference was 5 points or so but roughly 30 their final UNDP year.

But to be honest I have seen very little Matthews other than WJC and highlights. One impression I have gotten however, do correct me if I am wrong, is that Matthews is a bit less of a floater. I have seen many Eichel games this season and I am impressed and feel that his numbers don't match his performance. But even so he is a bit of a floater sometimes. It looks like he skates around and waits for the puck to come to him so he can do something spectacular. Matthews seems to be more hardworking all the time and in today's NHL I think that might facilitate in more points. Afterall Eichel has been outperformed by Larkin and that was hardly expected, fair enough Larkin having better teammates.

 

[Tatar Shots]

I don't see Toews in Matthews at all. To me he looks like a hybrid of Thornton and Malkin. I love his ability to shield the puck and just hold onto it while finding the open man. His ability to control the game at a slow pace is what sets him apart from Eichel for me. Matthews is a guy I can see being the best PP producer in the league in 5 years.

 

[Apotheosis]

Can people please stop comparing McDavid and Eichel or Eichel and Matthews? McDavid is a standalone player himself. Eichel was never on his level. Matthew statistically is better, so I don't get how he is supposedly in a lower tier of prospects than Eichel.

 

[Juxtaposer]

I'm not trying to doubt you, but how do you prove or disprove that?

Of course, there is no way to prove this beyond a doubt, and obviously everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But I feel that most folks trying to claim Matthews is better are ones whose teams have a chance at drafting him. Shiny new toy and all that.

But it seems hard to compare without using statistics since a year separates them and they chose a different path their draft year? Matthews has outperformed him by a wide margin. One thing if the difference was 5 points or so but roughly 30 their final UNDP year.

But to be honest I have seen very little Matthews other than WJC and highlights. One impression I have gotten however, do correct me if I am wrong, is that Matthews is a bit less of a floater. I have seen many Eichel games this season and I am impressed and feel that his numbers don't match his performance. But even so he is a bit of a floater sometimes. It looks like he skates around and waits for the puck to come to him so he can do something spectacular. Matthews seems to be more hardworking all the time and in today's NHL I think that might facilitate in more points. Afterall Eichel has been outperformed by Larkin and that was hardly expected, fair enough Larkin having better teammates.

I wouldn't say that Eichel is more of a floater per sé, but you aren't totally wrong. The main thing I try to get across to people trying to compare the two is that Matthews doesn't try to force things. Eichel will take charge of the game and make it work for him (and is usually successful, because he's that good). Matthews, on the other hand, will integrate himself into the game and change himself to fit how it's going. I know that sounds stupid and I'm not really sure how the best way is to explain it, but it's like at last year's WJC where you could see Eichel getting frustrated because the game wouldn't do what he wanted it too. Matthews, if faced with that situation, might not necessarily produce better results, but he would look a lot more in tune with the flow of the game.

Sorry, that sounds super dumb but I think there is a very important distinction and it's very hard to explain.

But this is why I would compared Eichel to someone like Malkin and Matthews to someone like Toews. Malkin is the more rawly talented player, but if it came to crunch time? I would have a hard time picking which I'd prefer, which would be a compliment to Matthews seeing as he's less rawly talented. Matthews is more calm and cerebral.

 

[figure]

Why is there basically no video at all for his recent highlights? I saw those vines from a week ago but am curious where the new wave of stuff is?! It is mind boggling how little we see of his highlights.

>In before "he is out of the spot light in Europe" or some extension of that response. I just want to know where the video is.

 

[Plub]

People have been saying Matthews is better for two years. Not sure it fits under the new shiny toy label.

As far as who's better, I'd like to just wait and see. I certainly understand some people's view of Eichel as a floater, because at times, he does float. I also understand people thinking Eichel has more physical talent (speed/strength ).

We'll see in a few years who's better.

 

[SmellOfVictory]

It is impressing. The only problem I have is that you have really not much to compare to. I can not remember any other player that went high in the draft that played in NLA in his draft year. I do like that he try new things and not just go with the usuall. He could have risk his nr 1 overall position, but I think he is a lock at that at this point.

But I would want to have seen him in some other senior league that have more of a history of talent that went high in the draft, why did he choice NLA instead of some of the senior leagues in europe with a more of a history of having players going high in the draft? Was he scared that he would not get enough ice-time or what?

I think ice time is a legitimate concern. The SHL is notorious for giving young kids a short leash. That's one of the reasons they often put up such garbage numbers, even if they're excellent prospects. Liiga isn't quite so bad, but it's also not that big a step up from NLA. And Switzerland has better weather.

 

[Shesty31]

https://streamable.com/8775?t=0.2

Man was that beautiful

 

[monster_bertuzzi]

Dude looks like a taller Peter Forsberg, with a better shot. But minus the gritty physicality Foppa possesed.

None the less, thats special - would be a nice gift if we got #1 this year.

 

[Namejs]

This probably has been brought up before, but the NLA NHL equivalency is about 0.40 or just slightly lower than the AHL NHLe (0.44). Basically, that means that in the NHL Matthews would be expected to be a 0.45 PPG player, which, curiously, is exactly how productive Jack Eichel has been so far this season for the Sabres.

 

[I Like Foolish Posts]

This probably has been brought up before, but the NLA NHL equivalency is about 0.40 or just slightly lower than the AHL NHLe (0.44). Basically, that means that in the NHL Matthews would be expected to be a 0.45 PPG player, which, curiously, is exactly how productive Jack Eichel has been so far this season for the Sabres.

Makes sense, future star but won't step into the league as a first year player and be exceptional a la Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin and McDavid. Similar to Stamkos, Hall and Mackinnon.

 

[TheLeastOfTheBunch]

This probably has been brought up before, but the NLA NHL equivalency is about 0.40 or just slightly lower than the AHL NHLe (0.44). Basically, that means that in the NHL Matthews would be expected to be a 0.45 PPG player, which, curiously, is exactly how productive Jack Eichel has been so far this season for the Sabres.

I believe those equivalency numbers differ for teenagers in the AHL + Euro leagues. Behindthenet.ca has the AHL equivalency to the NHL set at 0.44, but for 17-20 year olds the AHL to NHL equivalency rises to 0.68:

Note that the AHL league difficulty (~0.68) is higher for 18- and 19-year-olds than it is for players of all ages. This is because young players tend to improve substantially from one year to the next, while older players have reached their peak level of ability.

http://www.behindthenet.ca/projecting_to_nhl.php

It's most likely the same case for the Swiss league as well, but they don't have enough data since there aren't too many 17/18 year olds who transitioned from playing in Switzerland one year, to the NHL the following year

 

[Namejs]

I believe those equivalency numbers differ for teenagers in the AHL + Euro leagues. Behindthenet.ca has the AHL equivalency to the NHL set at 0.44, but for 17-20 year olds the AHL to NHL equivalency rises to 0.68:



http://www.behindthenet.ca/projecting_to_nhl.php

It's most likely the same case for the Swiss league as well, but they don't have enough data since there aren't too many 17/18 year olds who transitioned from playing in Switzerland one year, to the NHL the following year

That's a good point. And, yup, there's definitely not enough data to break it down by age groups for NLA.

And, by the way, if that wasn't clear already, the variance here is pretty massive, so NHLe can only be used as a vague indication for individual success. As a statistic, it's very useful in comparing the quality between different leagues. Or, in other words, people should know that NLA is not some Euro beer league or ECHL-tier minor league, it's a very decent pro league that is roughly on par with the A.