Cole Caufield: Is this the year?

[Lafleurs Guy]

What was his shooting % before the surgery..................therin lies your answer for next year.
The surgery caused him issues, no doubt about it....................the kid played very well picking up a ton of assists, and his coach was happy with his 200 ft game.

He is the very least of our worries..............

Stats on the surgery are that it can take up to three years to return to normal. That sucks.

Hopefully he's a fast healer.

 

[Habssince89]

Stats on the surgery are that it can take up to three years to return to normal. That sucks.

Hopefully he's a fast healer.

I felt like his shot was improving as the season went on

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

I felt like his shot was improving as the season went on

He caught fire and then went on a 20 game skid then caught fire… really inconsistent.

 

[Beer and Chips]

Just add the year to the thread title so we can keep track each year.

 

[Habs Halifax]

I just hope Caufield stays away from injuries and Dach has the year we think he can have. Caufield will be fine if we have a strong top 9 and the other team's coach has a difficult time in the match-up game. This is where you will se the best from Caufield.

Building a strong top 9 with two good PP units is key. Complemented with a very good D core and consistent goaltending that doesn't allow soft goals. Caufield is an important piece to this strategy because he can burn you in tight games. You just don't find a shot and goal scoring like this very easily.

 

[GoodKiwi]

The only numbers that matter with Caufield are 48 in 82.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Just add the year to the thread title so we can keep track each year.

Yeah, I think the new title will be 'Hey, wha happen?'

 

[Scriptor]

Not next year, but the year afters Caufield's carrer upswing.

Next year, if Dach is healthy and we add another legitimate NHL top-6 forward, expect 30-40 (70) for Caufield, but, the next year, with a stronger D and more experienced forwards making it a better top-9 (not just top-6),he will be a 40 G, PPG player and Suzukiwill be a 30 G, PPG player.

Two more years before "Is this the year?" gets answered with a resounding yes!

 

[themilosh]

I felt like his shot was improving as the season went on

Let's call a spade a spade: CC is not that quick, certainly not powerful, does not drive the lanes up the middle and cannot win board battles.. but, he has a hell of a release off the half wall and is a fairly high IQ player.
Personally i think he is overrated as a sniper but his value as a second line W is deserved. His contract is slightly high, but otherwise in line with our strategy.
I believe he brings a wonderfully positive attitude to the team as an intangible, and should remain a staple as our core for the duration of his contract.
I dont expect him to produce much more than a 35-35-70 type player with ample PP time, but if they opportunity arises to package him up to get a true #2C (Dach can never be counted on) I would not hesitate to pull the trigger.

 

[Habssince89]

Let's call a spade a spade: CC is not that quick, certainly not powerful, does not drive the lanes up the middle and cannot win board battles.. but, he has a hell of a release off the half wall and is a fairly high IQ player.
Personally i think he is overrated as a sniper but his value as a second line W is deserved. His contract is slightly high, but otherwise in line with our strategy.
I believe he brings a wonderfully positive attitude to the team as an intangible, and should remain a staple as our core for the duration of his contract.
I dont expect him to produce much more than a 35-35-70 type player with ample PP time, but if they opportunity arises to package him up to get a true #2C (Dach can never be counted on) I would not hesitate to pull the trigger.

alot of the bolded isn't true at all. Caufield engages and wins board battles all the time. He also drives the middle all the time, what are you talking about?

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

alot of the bolded isn't true at all. Caufield engages and wins board battles all the time. He also drives the middle all the time, what are you talking about?

He's also excellent at stealing pucks.

 

[Habs Halifax]

Time for another poll on how many goals he scores this season.

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

IShowSpeed x Caufield collab, wasn't expecting that lol

 

[Captain Mountain]

alot of the bolded isn't true at all. Caufield engages and wins board battles all the time. He also drives the middle all the time, what are you talking about?

Calling a spade a spade is a lovely figurative expression, even when the spade is in fact a rake.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Time for another poll on how many goals he scores this season.

I’m still upset over this past year. And based on what I’ve read on the surgery he may not go back to normal until three years after the surgery. Absolutely brutal.

 

[Habs Halifax]

I’m still upset over this past year. And based on what I’ve read on the surgery he may not go back to normal until three years after the surgery. Absolutely brutal.

First I hear of the 3 year time heal. What matters the most is what he does when we are in the playoffs. Might be another 2 seasons or more. Hard to say.

I feel like he will score 30-35 next year. That will be my guess.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Ill vote 30-35 if you do it again , just like I did last year

 

[Habs Halifax]

The only numbers that matter with Caufield are 48 in 82.

Well it was an impressive run and he still has that potential. I did feel he would go back a bit but not to the level we seen last season. I voted 30+ last year. Felt 40+ was too gullible.

This season, I would vote 30+ again.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Ill vote 30-35 if you do it again , just like I did last year

That turned out to be a good estimate. I completely disregarded the surgery which turned out to be a foolish thing to do. When you’re shooting around five percent at mid range from the net, it’s going to be really challenging to score consistently.

 

[JianYang]

I do think the shoulder was a factor. As an example, does anyone remember his goal against the flyers a few years ago with no time on the clock where he took a cross ice pass from Suzuki and wasted no time to get that that puck off his stick? The caufield last year would would hang on to that puck just a bit longer.

That being said, as I was saying last year when caufield's stock was at its highest, it would take alot of stars align to score 50 goals in this league, and having some physical issues is part of the grind of being a hockey player in this league. I always figured that to be a best case scenario type of proclamation than a likely one.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

That turned out to be a good estimate. I completely disregarded the surgery which turned out to be a foolish thing to do. When you’re shooting around five percent at mid range from the net, it’s going to be really challenging to score consistently.

Caufield is good and has a good shot but he's not gonna put up 50 in a year where we are awful , gonna need the PP to click and maybe find some chemistry with Dach or something. I think he has the shot to put up unreal goal totals like you've thought he could but he's not gonna put them up alone the team needs to get better especially when last year every team knew you basically have 3 players (one line) to shut down and you win the game.

Also I think the injury did affect him but its not really a great excuse as he was good enough to get on the ice and play most of the season , it is what it is

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

I do think the shoulder was a factor. As an example, does anyone remember his goal against the flyers a few years ago with no time on the clock where he took a cross ice pass from Suzuki and wasted no time to get that that puck off his stick? The caufield last year would would hang on to that puck just a bit longer.

That being said, as I was saying last year when caufield's stock was at its highest, it would take alot of stars align to score 50 goals in this league, and having some physical issues is part of the grind of being a hockey player in this league. I always figured that to be a best case scenario type of proclamation than a likely one.

He went form 20 percent in the slot… to five. It has to be the surgery. I just don’t see another explanation. His underlying numbers should’ve gotten him to over 50 or at least very close.

His shot is what makes him elite. If he loses that… he’s a second liner.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

I do think the shoulder was a factor. As an example, does anyone remember his goal against the flyers a few years ago with no time on the clock where he took a cross ice pass from Suzuki and wasted no time to get that that puck off his stick? The caufield last year would would hang on to that puck just a bit longer.

That being said, as I was saying last year when caufield's stock was at its highest, it would take alot of stars align to score 50 goals in this league, and having some physical issues is part of the grind of being a hockey player in this league. I always figured that to be a best case scenario type of proclamation than a likely one.

I've had no problems with Caufields compete and physicality he actually plays pretty hard for a guy with his skillset and size , its nice to see him play hard but even he knows its all about his bread and butter , his shot , hope he can regain form

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Caufield is good and has a good shot but he's not gonna put up 50 in a year where we are awful , gonna need the PP to click and maybe find some chemistry with Dach or something. I think he has the shot to put up unreal goal totals like you've thought he could but he's not gonna put them up alone the team needs to get better especially when last year every team knew you basically have 3 players (one line) to shut down and you win the game.

Also I think the injury did affect him but its not really a great excuse as he was good enough to get on the ice and play most of the season , it is what it is

Already proved he could do it. He put up 48 in 82 on awful clubs so he’s already shown he can do it when healthy. And last year he should’ve done it again.

How else can you explain going from 20 percent to five when shooting from the slot area? That’s almost impossible to explain without injury. It comes right after surgery and suddenly for the first time in his life he can’t score? What else could it be?

It’d be one thing if he wasn’t getting shots or if they weren’t in close. Then I’d agree with you but that wasn’t the case.

 

[Habs Halifax]

Already proved he could do it. He put up 48 in 82 on awful clubs so he’s already shown he can do it when healthy. And last year he should’ve done it again.

How else can you explain going from 20 percent to five when shooting from the slot area? That’s almost impossible to explain without injury. It comes right after surgery and suddenly for the first time in his life he can’t score? What else could it be?

It’d be one thing if he wasn’t getting shots or if they weren’t in close. Then I’d agree with you but that wasn’t the case.

Goal scorers like Caufield are streaky. We seen the 48 in 82 spread over 2 seasons and we seen last year with a good start and a good finish but a meh middle span.

I think it's multilayered. A combo of puck luck, injury, shot accuracy, and teams focusing on him more. At the end of the day he is a 30+ goal threat. How much more than that? I think that will vary season/season. His career average when we look back, will probably be around 35. Several seasons in the high 20's or early 30's with some high 30's and early 40 seasons.

We need Dach to create that 2nd line and a more potent PP. Caufield's time/space will improve and that's when he becomes dangerous. Teams have to focus on several guys vs just a few.