C/W Elmer Söderblom - Grand Rapids Griffins, AHL (2019, 159th, DET)

[nbwingsfan]

It's also his role on the team.

His role on the team is to put his head down and hog the puck? One hell of a weird role… It’s not a major flaw but we’ve seen a lot of players play this way and struggle until they learned to use their teammates better. As a Wings fan I’d like to see him be the best player he can become and if anything is going to keep him from being a top 6 forward then that might be it. It’s fine to admit our 7th round pick has flaws to his game, and it’s been noticed by many people.

 

[Pavels Dog]

His role on the team is to put his head down and hog the puck?

Keep in mind he's got almost double the goals of anyone else on the team, so you can't talk as if the things he's doing aren't working.

He plays with Lasch (usually) who is about as pure a playmaker as there is. Söderblom's job is to shoot, to take the puck to the net, to use his size to protect the puck. Tunnel vision happens but I think a lot less this season than last.

And he CAN pass the puck.. it's just not the main draw of his game.

 

[Hazy Little Thing]

This is not some kind of bold comment. Plenty of people agree he has bad tunnel vision. It has nothing to do with stat watching, it has to do with watching him play. Hell, look at the OT highlight on this page. Yea he made some nice moves on the ice, but his head never lifted once to see where his teammates were and see if there’s a passing option. As I said if you think he’s some perfect prospect with no flaws then that’s up to you, it’s just not reality.

As most people who have played hockey know, you don't need to physically have your head up to be aware of where your teammates (and opponents) are. Peripheral vision is a thing, add in hockey sense and you know almost everything about the context of a situation.

 

[nbwingsfan]

Keep in mind he's got almost double the goals of anyone else on the team, so you can't talk as if the things he's doing aren't working.

He plays with Lasch (usually) who is about as pure a playmaker as there is. Söderblom's job is to shoot, to take the puck to the net, to use his size to protect the puck. Tunnel vision happens but I think a lot less this season than last.

And he CAN pass the puck.. it's just not the main draw of his game.

As we’ve seen in many players before, just taking the puck to the net/corners with your head down doesn’t always work once you reach the NHL level. You stick handle yourself into trouble. This again is not a concern just brought up from me, but many other posters. It’s very easy to see when you watch him play. It’s also something easy to work on.

If apparently his shot is elite, and his tunnel vision apparently isn’t an issue and he’s an elite passer, then what exactly are his flaws? You guys do know players have can flaws, right?

 

[nbwingsfan]

Keep in mind he's got almost double the goals of anyone else on the team, so you can't talk as if the things he's doing aren't working.

He plays with Lasch (usually) who is about as pure a playmaker as there is. Söderblom's job is to shoot, to take the puck to the net, to use his size to protect the puck. Tunnel vision happens but I think a lot less this season than last.

And he CAN pass the puck.. it's just not the main draw of his game.

As we’ve seen in many players before, just taking the puck to the net/corners with your head down doesn’t always work once you reach the NHL level. You stick handle yourself into trouble. This again is not a concern just brought up from me, but many other posters. It’s very easy to see when you watch him play. It’s also something easy to work on.

If apparently his shot is elite, and his tunnel vision apparently isn’t an issue and he’s an elite passer, then what exactly are his flaws? You guys do know players have can flaws, right?

 

[Silkytentacles]

Has some great potential with the way he can move with the puck at his size I see top 6 potential

 

[Silkytentacles]

Has some great potential with the way he can move with the puck at his size I can see top 6 potential

 

[Eye of Ra]

still not played a game for the swedish senior NT. He is probaly already good enough for WC

 

[nbwingsfan]

Keep in mind he's got almost double the goals of anyone else on the team, so you can't talk as if the things he's doing aren't working.

He plays with Lasch (usually) who is about as pure a playmaker as there is. Söderblom's job is to shoot, to take the puck to the net, to use his size to protect the puck. Tunnel vision happens but I think a lot less this season than last.

And he CAN pass the puck.. it's just not the main draw of his game.

Double post

 

[Pavels Dog]

If apparently his shot is elite, and his tunnel vision apparently isn’t an issue and he’s an elite passer, then what exactly are his flaws? You guys do know players have can flaws, right?

He's got flaws but you're framing it as a bad thing that he is playing to his strengths and being successful at it. No one's saying he's an elite passer, but part of why he's got so few assists is because no one on Frölunda can score goals (except him).

 

[Razor Face]

I remember him being really noticeable at the world juniors. Definitely a nice pickup in the 6th round. He’s got some serious upside.

 

[nbwingsfan]

He's got flaws but you're framing it as a bad thing that he is playing to his strengths and being successful at it. No one's saying he's an elite passer, but part of why he's got so few assists is because no one on Frölunda can score goals (except him).

Again, plenty of players “played to their strengths” in lower leagues and were very successful and failed at the NHL level playing that way. I don’t see him being a successful top 6 player if he doesn’t learn to use his teammates better. We saw this first hand with Athanasiou, who constantly played to his strengths but never learned how to fix the flaws in his game

 

[lidstromiscool]

Again, plenty of players “played to their strengths” in lower leagues and were very successful and failed at the NHL level playing that way. I don’t see him being a successful top 6 player if he doesn’t learn to use his teammates better. We saw this first hand with Athanasiou

Athanasiou scored 30 goals in the NHL and has turned out to be a pretty solid NHLer. The NHL/SHL isn't peewees, there are no puck hogs, every player can use their teammates well and move the puck. You think the Frolunda coaches would play him on the first line if he didn't move the puck well? Skating and consistency would be his two biggest flaws that I can see.

 

[nbwingsfan]

Athanasiou scored 30 goals in the NHL and has turned out to be a pretty solid NHLer. The NHL/SHL isn't peewees, there are no puck hogs, every player can use their teammates well and move the puck. You think the Frolunda coaches would play him on the first line if he didn't move the puck well? Skating and consistency would be his two biggest flaws that I can see.

Athanasiou scored 30 goals once where we gave him free reign to do anything he wants and no team wants him in the top 6, which is the whole point of this conversation so read back first if you’re going to try and jump in.

No doubt Soderblom will be an NHL player in some capacity, but to be a successful top 6 player using his teammates better will absolutely have to be worked on.

Also his skating for his size is considered one of his biggest strengths so I’m really not sure how much you’ve seen of him lately.

 

[nbwingsfan]

As most people who have played hockey know, you don't need to physically have your head up to be aware of where your teammates (and opponents) are. Peripheral vision is a thing, add in hockey sense and you know almost everything about the context of a situation.

Of course you don’t, but he’s also not doing that either so kind of irrelevant

 

[nbwingsfan]

Athanasiou scored 30 goals in the NHL and has turned out to be a pretty solid NHLer. The NHL/SHL isn't peewees, there are no puck hogs, every player can use their teammates well and move the puck. You think the Frolunda coaches would play him on the first line if he didn't move the puck well? Skating and consistency would be his two biggest flaws that I can see.

There are 100% NHL players who use their teammates poorly. That’s not really up for debate

 

[Realgud]

A guy gives a valid criticism but oh no, all of the wings prospects gotta be perfect without any flaws, because that's realistic. Athanasiou scored 30 goals but his flaws meant he was still a negative impact player despite scoring all these goals. But for him, it was more than just tunnel vision.

Tunnel visioning is a valid concern and has held many players back in the past. Doesn't mean Soderblom can't improve on that OR be an effective NHLer in spite of that, because if that was his only weakness, that's actually not a big deal but might hold him back from being a true top-6 impact player. That's all.

His potential is enormous, but still has few things to work on. Absolutely nothing wrong with pointing that out.

 

[RedHawkDown]

If Soderblom didn’t have any flaws he’d be a blue chip elite 1W prospect. He’s heavily flawed and has a lot to work on but the potential is there and he’s going in the right direction.

 

[Hazy Little Thing]

A guy gives a valid criticism but oh no, all of the wings prospects gotta be perfect without any flaws, because that's realistic. Athanasiou scored 30 goals but his flaws meant he was still a negative impact player despite scoring all these goals. But for him, it was more than just tunnel vision.

Tunnel visioning is a valid concern and has held many players back in the past. Doesn't mean Soderblom can't improve on that OR be an effective NHLer in spite of that, because if that was his only weakness, that's actually not a big deal but might hold him back from being a true top-6 impact player. That's all.

His potential is enormous, but still has few things to work on. Absolutely nothing wrong with pointing that out.

Show us one post where wings fans said he was flawless. The hyperbole by some on here is unbelievable.

 

[Realgud]

Show us one post where wings fans said he was flawless. The hyperbole by some on here is unbelievable.

Sure, you didn't exactly said that, but reading between the lines and the way people act as soon as point out a single flaw or mistake in a player... it's always the same reaction.

So if he isn't flawless, what do you think are his flaws then?

 

[nbwingsfan]

A guy gives a valid criticism but oh no, all of the wings prospects gotta be perfect without any flaws, because that's realistic. Athanasiou scored 30 goals but his flaws meant he was still a negative impact player despite scoring all these goals. But for him, it was more than just tunnel vision.

Tunnel visioning is a valid concern and has held many players back in the past. Doesn't mean Soderblom can't improve on that OR be an effective NHLer in spite of that, because if that was his only weakness, that's actually not a big deal but might hold him back from being a true top-6 impact player. That's all.

His potential is enormous, but still has few things to work on. Absolutely nothing wrong with pointing that out.

Glad someone is on my side.

It seems to be like this in so many prospect threads. You post something that’s an obvious bit of a concern on a project prospect and you’re somehow a hater or calling him a bust.

According to the prospect threads, every single prospect is the perfect future star.

 

[Big Empty]

This guy is nasty

 

[simonedvinsson]

Some of you see one clip of a player not passing the puck and go straight to puck hog who can't use his teammates effectively. In the most recent clip posted here, we get a great example of Soderblom using his teammates effectively:

1. He used Niederbach to get the puck to him.
2. He used Niederbach to shield him from the forechecker.
3. He used Sundstrom as a screen in front of the net.
4. He used Sundstrom to deflect his shot into the net.

That one clip right there shows better chemistry than we see out of Detroit most nights.

 

[RedHawkDown]

Some of you see one clip of a player not passing the puck and go straight to puck hog who can't use his teammates effectively. In the most recent clip posted here, we get a great example of Soderblom using his teammates effectively:

1. He used Niederbach to get the puck to him.
2. He used Niederbach to shield him from the forechecker.
3. He used Sundstrom as a screen in front of the net.
4. He used Sundstrom to deflect his shot into the net.

That one clip right there shows better chemistry than we see out of Detroit most nights.

There is a big gap between “uses teammates very effectively” and “literally cannot pass the puck”. Somewhere in there lies “bit of a puck hog and has some tunnel vision on occasion” and that is where Soderblom lies. I am not sure how this is so controversial.


For the record, I absolutely love him and think his tunnel vision will be corrected by coaching, and I believe he will be a 30-35 goal, 65-70 point power winger on our first line. I love this player.

But to act like he’s not got some clear flaws with being a bit too one-man -show is confusing.

 

[Realgud]

Some of you see one clip of a player not passing the puck and go straight to puck hog who can't use his teammates effectively. In the most recent clip posted here, we get a great example of Soderblom using his teammates effectively:

1. He used Niederbach to get the puck to him.
2. He used Niederbach to shield him from the forechecker.
3. He used Sundstrom as a screen in front of the net.
4. He used Sundstrom to deflect his shot into the net.

Not really. It's when I watched multiple games last year, and it came up here by one poster, but it's always been a "concern" of his so it's valid to point out to check if his awareness improved or not. I haven't watched Frolunda games recently so I could not tell if he improved on it but it has always been his biggest flaw for me. Cool if you're telling me it improved recently, glad to hear that, but counter opinions are now coming from both positions. Either he improved on it, or he hasn't but it's not a problem because you don't need to look around to know where your teammates are. So it's a flaw, or it isn't.

I'll say something nice because in the end that's always what people want: His hands and insane reach are his two tools that could bring him so far because it feels like an absolute cheat code at this point. I'm curious to see how NHL defenders deal with that when he's at his physical peak and paired with his already really good skating. Really intriguing and unique prospect.