Prospect Info: Caps Top Prospects General Discussion Thread Vol. 2 - 2021-22

[HTFN]

Him and Bedard spent most of the season on separate lines. I don’t mean that to say he shouldn’t have gone back to the W but his production last year was not just a result of playing with Bedard.

I know they weren’t riding shotgun but deployments matter, Suzdalev wasn’t seeing the other team’s best defense and still had things he could prove with another year in the WHL as far as taking steps to be “the guy” and having that mode.

Right now he’s “just a guy” in Allsvenskan, just didn’t seem like the right move to me. Maybe side piece conveyed the wrong image, I was thinking more like “secondary threat” in that nobody’s game planning for him with a 1st overall on the roster.

 

[Holtbyisms]

his choices were either go back to sweden, go to the whl, or stay on the bench in hershey/go to the echl. not many great choices!

He absolutely should have gone back to the WHL, dominated, built confidence and prepared himself for Hershey next season. I think he(or the Capitals organization) made a terrible choice. The W is a tremendous developmental leauge and a great choice for any young player his age.

 

[Langway]

I think the issue was that he wouldn't necessarily work on his weaknesses back playing against juniors. Whereas he'll be forced to a greater extent if he's to carve out a meaningful role where he is now. It may be too much, too soon even vs. the second tier in Sweden. Maybe slow-cooking and keeping his confidence high in his skill level first and foremost would have been better for the time being.

But if he's going to make it he's going to have to persevere regardless. Challenging him to a greater extent isn't the worst thing...and they could still perhaps loan him to Regina should that be deemed more beneficial.

 

[Holtbyisms]

I think the issue was that he wouldn't necessarily work on his weaknesses back playing against juniors. Whereas he'll be forced to a greater extent if he's to carve out a meaningful role where he is now. It may be too much, too soon even vs. the second tier in Sweden. Maybe slow-cooking and keeping his confidence high in his skill level first and foremost would have been better for the time being.

But if he's going to make it he's going to have to persevere regardless. Challenging him to a greater extent isn't the worst thing...and they could still perhaps loan him to Regina should that be deemed more beneficial.

That depends on what weaknesses you think he has. For me, watching him in Hershey camp, he's got to add strength and mass. I think that's a pretty common weakness for the vast majority of teenage prospects who move through the Canadian major juniors(unless you're a Tom Wilson). It's something he certainly could have worked on, while being successful on the ice in the WHL.

 

[bacchist]

Suzy is also off to a slow start, with only 3 points in 7 games and less than 10 minutes of ice time in the past couple games. Not sure what is going on there, but I sure hope he gets it together soon.

Make that 3 points in 8 games, and 8:36, 9:35, and 7:38 ice time these last 3 games.

 

[Langway]

That depends on what weaknesses you think he has. For me, watching him in Hershey camp, he's got to add strength and mass. I think that's a pretty common weakness for the vast majority of teenage prospects who move through the Canadian major juniors(unless you're a Tom Wilson). It's something he certainly could have worked on, while being successful on the ice in the WHL.

Strength, defense and competitiveness mostly. All areas he could work on in the WHL in a prominent role but wouldn't absolutely be forced to do so in order to still be productive. Maybe he winds up there still but I'm not sure it's a lock to be the best spot for him. The best for his confidence probably but that's more of a level of competition thing. It's more about the mentality he's bringing in trying to evolve more of a mature pro game beyond raw skill level.

 

[HTFN]

Strength, defense and competitiveness mostly. All areas he could work on in the WHL in a prominent role but wouldn't absolutely be forced to do so in order to still be productive. Maybe he winds up there still but I'm not sure it's a lock to be the best spot for him. The best for his confidence probably but that's more of a level of competition thing. It's more about the mentality he's bringing in trying to evolve more of a mature pro game beyond raw skill level.

plenty of productive guys go back for a year where they focus on the other stuff, that's not uncommon, it's the development staff saying "we like what we see here but you know, you'll need to at least provide this base level in other stuff to be successful"

Still rather he put that together in the WHL on NA ice than make the change they made.

 

[bacchist]

plenty of productive guys go back for a year where they focus on the other stuff, that's not uncommon, it's the development staff saying "we like what we see here but you know, you'll need to at least provide this base level in other stuff to be successful"

Still rather he put that together in the WHL on NA ice than make the change they made.

They screwed up having him sit for a month at the beginning of the season. He should have gone right from training camp to playing a significant role somewhere. Instead they let him cool down and then shipped him off. That's not setting him up to succeed imo

 

[bacchist]

Patrick Thomas has 1g-7a in his last 5 games. Now over a point per game

 

[DWGie26]

With Sudz it depends on how they want him to develop. I would have preferred WHL, but that league is about scoring a lot. We know he can do that. In Sweden it is a different game that is more likely to develop two way skills versus just scoring which he proved he can do. Kinda up to Sudz to earn more playing time and he needs that. But i put that on him.

 

[bacchist]

With Sudz it depends on how they want him to develop. I would have preferred WHL, but that league is about scoring a lot. We know he can do that. In Sweden it is a different game that is more likely to develop two way skills versus just scoring which he proved he can do. Kinda up to Sudz to earn more playing time and he needs that. But i put that on him.

I don't know much about the ECHL, but I kinda wish he went there in order to stay on NA rinks and leave open the possibility that he could make the jump to Hershey later in the season if he put the work in. That might not be realistic, though.

 

[DWGie26]

I don't know much about the ECHL, but I kinda wish he went there in order to stay on NA rinks and leave open the possibility that he could make the jump to Hershey later in the season if he put the work in. That might not be realistic, though.

I had season tickets for the Raleigh IceCaps in the 90’s. it was a long time ago so hard to compare, but i just don’t think it is a league to develop high end talent which I consider Sudz. Good for goaltenders and bottom 6 players and marginal Dee.

The talent mix in Hershey will be much different next year with a lot more prospects playing bigger roles like Hofer, Trineyev, Rybinski, Dube who are all 22 or younger. Hopefully some true NHLprospects in Miro, Leonard, Chesley, Iorio, Sudz, and Lapierre. I think Cristal is not AHL eligible next year since he is an 05. But that last group could be in NHL or AHL but roster spots and play will dictate. For Chesley and Leonard I hope they turn pro.

 

[SecretaryofDefense5]

I had season tickets for the Raleigh IceCaps in the 90’s. it was a long time ago so hard to compare, but i just don’t think it is a league to develop high end talent which I consider Sudz. Good for goaltenders and bottom 6 players and marginal Dee.

The talent mix in Hershey will be much different next year with a lot more prospects playing bigger roles like Hofer, Trineyev, Rybinski, Dube who are all 22 or younger. Hopefully some true NHLprospects in Miro, Leonard, Chesley, Iorio, Sudz, and Lapierre. I think Cristal is not AHL eligible next year since he is an 05. But that last group could be in NHL or AHL but roster spots and play will dictate. For Chesley and Leonard I hope they turn pro.

I don’t see Leonard ending up in Hershey.

 

[bacchist]

Is it just up to him if Leonard stays in college another year, or are there rules about it?

 

[HTFN]

With Sudz it depends on how they want him to develop. I would have preferred WHL, but that league is about scoring a lot. We know he can do that. In Sweden it is a different game that is more likely to develop two way skills versus just scoring which he proved he can do. Kinda up to Sudz to earn more playing time and he needs that. But i put that on him.

Caps need to stop pushing for the lowest skill ceiling on these guys until it's clear that they're world-beaters offensively and could be superstars with defensive presence.

I'm not saying he shouldn't be learning D, I mean, everybody probably should be... I just think it's more valuable for a prospect like him to learn if he has a "takeover mode". Like... go back to the WHL but as a focal point for your team and see if you can still do what you did. Focus on the whole game, keep improving... but also see if you can channel whatever mode Ovechkin found against the Thrashers, or Semin against the Senators and Hurricanes where you just become virtually unstoppable no matter what they throw at you...

That's kind of what I wanted to see from him, if there was a next step or if he's a Burakovsky who can play but will always require a facilitator when it gets to the NHL level. Guys kind of have to learn how to do that too, I just don't see a reason to want him to learn the gritty side of the game so soon instead of building off what he just did

 

[DWGie26]

Caps need to stop pushing for the lowest skill ceiling on these guys until it's clear that they're world-beaters offensively and could be superstars with defensive presence.

I'm not saying he shouldn't be learning D, I mean, everybody probably should be... I just think it's more valuable for a prospect like him to learn if he has a "takeover mode". Like... go back to the WHL but as a focal point for your team and see if you can still do what you did. Focus on the whole game, keep improving... but also see if you can channel whatever mode Ovechkin found against the Thrashers, or Semin against the Senators and Hurricanes where you just become virtually unstoppable no matter what they throw at you...

That's kind of what I wanted to see from him, if there was a next step or if he's a Burakovsky who can play but will always require a facilitator when it gets to the NHL level. Guys kind of have to learn how to do that too, I just don't see a reason to want him to learn the gritty side of the game so soon instead of building off what he just did

It’s not necessarily gritty. But two way play. They don’t teach any defense in WHL. That’s why even the “lesser” players average a point per game. The really good ones at 2 PPG. Sudz can do that. Does he really develop just by doing it again? The fact that Sudz is getting less minutes means that level is more challenging for him so that could be a good thing.

What really messed this up is Bears signing the likes of Huntington and Roe squeezing Sudz of a spot in Hershey which would have been my preferred path.

But this I am sure of… Sudz is 2-3 years away from NHL. He won’t be there next year even if he played for Bears. But he should get a good full year in AHL next year and I think Sweden prepares him better for next year.

 

[DWGie26]

I’m excited to see Lappy come back down to Hershey. I’d like to see this:

Veccicone-Sgarbosa-Frank
Snively-Huntington-Limoges
Miro-Lappy-Dube
Hofer-Sutter-Trineyev

The third line pairs some good young prospects together. I really like Trineyev on 4th line with Hofer. Those are some big boys that can chip in offensively.

Ultimately I’d rather see Hofer or Rybinski at 3C with Lappy moving to 2C but Huntington has been a good veteran presence so I suspect they will keep that in the spirit of winning versus developing which i am ok with.

 

[RedRocking]

I’m excited to see Lappy come back down to Hershey. I’d like to see this:

Veccicone-Sgarbosa-Frank
Snively-Huntington-Limoges
Miro-Lappy-Dube
Hofer-Sutter-Trineyev

The third line pairs some good young prospects together. I really like Trineyev on 4th line with Hofer. Those are some big boys that can chip in offensively.

Ultimately I’d rather see Hofer or Rybinski at 3C with Lappy moving to 2C but Huntington has been a good veteran presence so I suspect they will keep that in the spirit of winning versus developing which i am ok with.

Who do you think might be deserving of the next call up to DC? Maybe Frank or Snively?

 

[DWGie26]

Who do you think might be deserving of the next call up to DC? Maybe Frank or Snively?

probably depends on the situation and who has to come out (injury) and for how long. When patches comes back I think it means you have Phillips, Frank, Snively, Sgarbossa, and Sutter as immediate call-up options.

In terms of prospects who I’d like to see get a taste of the NHL, that list is short right now. It is Miro and Sutter. For Miro it is a chance to see how he does against NHL talent but I’d probably not bring him up any time soon. Sutter, I would like to see if he can be a NAK replacement as 4RW. The others like Dube, Trineyev, Hofer, Rybinski aren’t ready for NHL time so I’m not brining any of them up this year.

I don’t consider Snively a prospect and he probably isn’t much longer in this organization but I’d like to see him play in the NHL. That is probably the guy I would like to see called up if we lose a LW. Sutter if a RW or Center.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I don’t see Leonard ending up in Hershey.

Same….straight to the NHL (when it’s time).

 

[Holtbyisms]

Lappy scored tonight. Hershey wins 6-0. Clay Stevenson got another shutout. He's now leading the AHL in GAA, SV% and shutouts.

 

[HTFN]

It’s not necessarily gritty. But two way play. They don’t teach any defense in WHL. That’s why even the “lesser” players average a point per game. The really good ones at 2 PPG. Sudz can do that. Does he really develop just by doing it again? The fact that Sudz is getting less minutes means that level is more challenging for him so that could be a good thing.

What really messed this up is Bears signing the likes of Huntington and Roe squeezing Sudz of a spot in Hershey which would have been my preferred path.

But this I am sure of… Sudz is 2-3 years away from NHL. He won’t be there next year even if he played for Bears. But he should get a good full year in AHL next year and I think Sweden prepares him better for next year.

Damn, what changed? Feels like only 10 or so years ago the OHL was sort of a junior-style all around game skewing a little to offense, the WHL had more of a lunchpail grindy feel, and the QMJHL was where nobody played defense or cared about anything besides scoring.

 

[bacchist]

Dube now has 12 goals in 24 games. He was on nobody's radar at the start of the season. I don't know if he got a single vote through 11 or 12 rounds of voting when we ranked prospects a couple months ago. It's like finding a $20 in your pocket when you do laundry.

 

[bacchist]

Patrick Thomas had a 3 point night and cracked the top 25 in points in the OHL. Not bad for a 4th round pick.

 

[HTFN]

Patrick Thomas had a 3 point night and cracked the top 25 in points in the OHL. Not bad for a 4th round pick.

welp, count that as my first "wait, who?" moment because I always assume those 4th round picks are all grinder types based on our history and write them off really quickly.

I wonder where the push is coming from but I feel like the last two years or so they've really been pushing upside picks and bridging safety and boom potential in a way that suits them more. Seems like it's probably just an attuned shift between scouting and management but I'd be curious to see who pushed what based on the state of the game.

edit: I'll be honest, my gut says management. I'm well on the train but I think GMBM meant everything he said about the "prove it" year and now we're shifted towards the transition no matter what comes.