Prospect Info: David Reinbacher

[The Great Weal]

Yes and in the meantime, it's just safer to arbitrarily pick a player drafted later and select him as the “one who got away” before we even know that to be true.

Or we can defend the pick at all costs by fabricating stuff like saying "Michkov is not coming here for a while so we can't control his development" which has been proven to be complete bologna less than a year later.

 

[HabbyGuy]

There was a lot of rumors around Michkov attitude during his draft year, how he couldn't get along with his teammates, and how that's why they sent him to Sochi. I haven't followed him this year so I don't know if there's been any other talk about this.

The were a ton of rumours about Michkov prior to the draft, all of them pretty much unsubstantiated.

 

[Runner77]

I keep hearing the habs didn't like Michkov, but have yet to find out why. I recall Hughes saying the interview went well with him and that he was impressed by how he handled himself.

If it was strictly the contract and or Russian factor, it turns out that isn't a problem, as it looks like he's coming earlier than anticipated.

I never understood the 3 year wait concern either, it's doubtful Reinbacher will be a full time NHL'er next season, so the 3 years things is kind of a wash.

You're well aware of how I felt Michkov was the right choice for us last year, I shouted it from the roof tops for anyone to hear, but I got over it because I do see some logic in the whole RD pick with David, and decided to give HUGO the benefit of the doubt. That said, I always felt we'll ultimately regret this decision eventually. Not because Reinbacher won't be a solid contributor, but because of the talent we passed on in Michkov.

Flyers fans must be extatic about this news.

We are where Flyer fans were at when they passed on Caufield, except that Michkov is expected to produce at a higher level than Caufield. I can’t believe this happened under HuGo, who seemed more progressive and sophisticated than several past Habs management contingents and not likely to repeat the mistakes of the past, new slate and all.

Hughes has to fix the top 6 issue given what happened last year, but above all, because the pipeline is dry on scoring forwards. I just hope he doesn’t overreach in doing it as you’d still want to see a clear BPA with that early pick.

 

[Habssince89]

Or we can defend the pick at all costs by fabricating stuff like saying "Michkov is not coming here for a while so we can't control his development" which has been proven to be complete bologna less than a year later.

That was a reasonable opinion that looks foolish in hindsight. The most important thing is that we add a key player that is 5OA worthy. So far so good for Reinbacher in my opinion. Michkov is not a hab, and it's too late to dwell on that.

 

[417]

Why do we need a defence first D on a team that is replete with D and has had a severe lack of scoring forwards in the last 30 years, as @The Great Weal posted earlier?

Maybe he will be the perfect foil for Hutson?

Marc-Edouard Vlasic had an excellent career being the steady presence next to a more offensive Dman.

You guys have serious PTSD when it comes
to the Habs and the past 30 years.

I get it…but its still a choice to live this way lol

Our issue has never been the selection of D — we have a lot of D redundancy in the system for a reason. Where are the potential top line scoring C/ forwards in our pipeline?

Nothing to date confirms Michkov will reach his potential with more certainty than Reinbacher will.

Just our collective Habs PTSD makes us believe so.

 

[Schooner Guy]

I love it when the masses in here close the book on the upside of a top 5 pick at age 19. It has become an annual tradition in here.

 

[HabbyGuy]

We are where Flyer fans were at when they passed on Caufield, except that Michkov is expected to produce at a higher level than Caufield. I can’t believe this happened under HuGo, who seemed more progressive and not likely to repeat the mistakes of the past, new slate and all.

Hughes has to fix the top 6 issue given what happened last year. I just hope he doesn’t overreach in doing it as you’d still want to see a clear BPA with that early pick.

Yeah I was absolutely convinced Hughes was going to draft Michkov if we were lucky enough to have him drop to us. He was too smart to pass in my eyes. I was obviously wrong.

I still believe Hughes is a smart man, just I was wrong about his decision. I really hope he was right and Michkov busts hard.

 

[417]

Your post came across condescending.

I promise you it wasn't.

Feelings don't drive results at the draft table, nothing condescending about that.

 

[HabbyGuy]

Michkov is not a hab, and it's too late to dwell on that.

Understood, nothing we can do about it now, we all have to hope Reinbacher becomes the best version of himself. We're all rooting for him, but the decision to pass will still very much be up for debate for years to come.

 

[417]

Or we can defend the pick at all costs by fabricating stuff like saying "Michkov is not coming here for a while so we can't control his development" which has been proven to be complete bologna less than a year later.

I mean that was always a silly coping mechanism again lol

I'm perfectly fine with believing that they selected Reinhacher simply because they liked him more as a prospect.

I don't need to convince myself of unlikely scenarios like he will stay in Russia to feel better about who they ultimately picked.

How the next 4-5 years unravel will ultimately decide, not him declaring he's coming to North America.

 

[Goldthorpe]

The were a ton of rumours about Michkov prior to the draft, all of them pretty much unsubstantiated.

It doesn't matter if they are unsubstantiated or not, what matters is if the habs believed in them or not, and there were well placed to know the truth.

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

Brutal

 

[Schooner Guy]

That was a reasonable opinion that looks foolish in hindsight. The most important thing is that we add a key player that is 5OA worthy. So far so good for Reinbacher in my opinion. Michkov is not a hab, and it's too late to dwell on that.

But posters in here know more about Michkov as a player and a person than our chief scout whose dad is a key hockey operations guy on the KHL team that owns Michkov's rights.

 

[Runner77]

Maybe he will be the perfect foil for Hutson?

Marc-Edouard Vlasic had an excellent career being the steady presence next to a more offensive Dman.

You guys have serious PTSD when it comes
to the Habs and the past 30 years.

I get it…but its still a choice to live this way lol

Nothing to date confirms Michkov will reach his potential with more certainty than Reinbacher will.

Just our collective Habs PTSD makes us believe so.

Nothing? Michkov has a track record of elite offensive ability while Reinbacher does not, he has no two-way game. Each individual player’s past performance is a strong indicator of where their attributes are likely to flourish.

The certainty if any is to be had, is how Michkov will be an offensive threat whereas Reinbacher will not. And Michkov was a way more valuable asset to the Habs.

Now here we are, hoping that a highly skilled forward who is the BPA drops to the 5th pick. Those teams picking ahead better be liking a lot of Ds.

 

[dcyhabs]

Yeah I was absolutely convinced Hughes was going to draft Michkov if we were lucky enough to have him drop to us. He was too smart to pass in my eyes. I was obviously wrong.

I still believe Hughes is a smart man, just I was wrong about his decision. I really hope he was right and Michkov busts hard.

It’s pretty tough to judge the value of players in different leagues. The habs got hammered when they took AK in a year when the NA leagues were better.

We’ll see how Michkov and Demidov do when they come over.

 

[417]

But posters in here know more about Michkov as a player and a person than our chief scout whose dad is a key hockey operations guy on the KHL team that owns Michkov's rights.

 

[417]

Nothing? Michkov has a track record of elite offensive ability while Reinbacher does not, he has no two-way game. Each individual player’s past performance is a strong indicator of where their attributes are likely to flourish.

Yes and Slafkovsky had 10pts on 31 games in Europe.

Personally I couldn't careless about what a player does outside the NHL.

Until it translates to the NHL, its just a cool story.

The certainty if any is to be had, is how Michkov will be an offensive threat whereas Reinbacher will not. And Michkov was a way more valuable asset to the Habs.

They didn't draft Reinbacher with the intention of him being an elite offensive threat.

Now here we are, hoping that a highly skilled forward who is the BPA drops to the 5th pick. Those teams picking ahead better be liking a lot of Ds.

I don't follow prospects (why would I with all of the experts here lol) but from what I gather, the Habs should be able to nab a very good offensive forward at #5.

Hopefully good enough to make is forget about Bure errrrr I meant Michkov.

 

[Runner77]

But posters in here know more about Michkov as a player and a person than our chief scout whose dad is a key hockey operations guy on the KHL team that owns Michkov's rights.

I guess Bobrov also knew more than posters in here with all those wasted picks he championed with the Rangers on dud Euro draftees.

Appeal to authority is fine and dandy but it’s not a panacea.

The same reasoning that has been made extensively in here applies to your contention — we’ll need to see how it plays out so Bobrov and co. could still be wrong in the end, that should not be dismissed as a possibility.

 

[Runner77]

Yes and Slafkovsky had 10pts on 31 games in Europe.

Personally I couldn't careless about what a player does outside the NHL.

Until it translates to the NHL, its just a cool story.

They didn't draft Reinbacher with the intention of him being an elite offensive threat.

I don't follow prospects (why would I with all of the experts here lol) but from what I gather, the Habs should be able to nab a very good offensive forward at #5.

Hopefully good enough to make is forget about Bure errrrr I meant Michkov.

Oh, so by that reasoning, Reinbacher can become the Slafkovsky of defence? Can’t wait to see it then.

Assuming Reinbacher and Michkov were within the same tier, why opt for the player with the low offensive projection when the team has a crying need for offence? Plus, the team already has a lot of D as it is but no potential elite scoring forward in the pipeline. Just puzzling at this time but here’s hoping you’re right about Reinbacher.

 

[Jaynki]

Michkov coming early (if true) in my opinion, is as red flaggish as it can be.

Why in the f*** would CSKA Moscow already free him after two season where they loaned him?

Why in the f*** would they do this?

I am totally speculating but i doubt they are doing this because he is a convivial teammate.

 

[417]

I guess Bobrov also knew more than posters in here with all those wasted picks he championed with the Rangers on dud Euro draftees.

Don't think Bobrov’s dad worked for the teams that Kakko and Andersson played for.

Appeal to authority is fine and dandy but it’s not a panacea.

Allowing the process to play out doesn't equate to appealing to authority.

The same reasoning that has been made extensively in here applies to your contention — we’ll need to see how it plays out so Bobrov and co. could still be wrong in the end, that should not be dismissed as a possibility.

Of course but the announcement that Michkov is coming to North America is not additional proof to an already premature opinion that the Montreal Canadiens made a mistake picking Reinbacher ahead of him.

 

[Miller Time]

Understood, nothing we can do about it now, we all have to hope Reinbacher becomes the best version of himself.

We're all rooting for him, but the decision to pass will still very much be up for debate for years to come.

Aren't these two statements true if every 1st Rd pick in any year?

Outside of the unanimous/concencus 1OA selections (& even then you get the occasional Laf or Yak or Stefan) the debate of the right order of picks goes on until players firmly establish themselves in the NHL (or bust completely).

Heck, even the Price selection remains debated for some... With the idea that Kopitar would've left us better off.

I don't get why this RB pick seems to stir up such strong convictions from some. There remains far more to be seen than is known by anyone right now as far as what players not named Connor will become NHL stars from that draft.

 

[417]

Oh, so by that reasoning, Reinbacher can become the Slafkovsky of defence? Can’t wait to see it then.

In the sense that he can become better than what draft prognosticators believe?

Yes absolutely. Why not?

Assuming Reinbacher and Michkov were within the same tier, why opt for the player with the low offensive projection when the team has a crying need for offence? Plus, the team already has a lot of D as it is but no potential elite scoring forward in the pipeline. Just puzzling at this time but here’s hoping you’re right about Reinbacher.

Maybe that's the problem, maybe that assumption is totally wrong lol. Maybe to the Habs scouts they're not in the same tier.

As for Reinbacher, I haven’t definitively said what I think he will become, I've been record with the little I know about prospects, I would have picked Michkov.

I just don't quite understand how its become gospel that they made a mistake simply because its now confirmed he's coming to North America.

 

[Schooner Guy]

I guess Bobrov also knew more than posters in here with all those wasted picks he championed with the Rangers on dud Euro draftees.

Appeal to authority is fine and dandy but it’s not a panacea.

The same reasoning that has been made extensively in here applies to your contention — we’ll need to see how it plays out so Bobrov and co. could still be wrong in the end, that should not be dismissed as a possibility.

Sure he could be wrong in the end. However I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt to the man whose father has had hundreds of viewings of the kid and knows everything about him personally.

Also Bobrov didn't make the decision unilaterally and this current Habs hockey ops group has a pretty darn good batting average right now with their draft selections. Other teams tried to trade with the Habs to get the 5th pick so they could take Reinbacher.

I follow the prospects closely and I wanted Ryan Leonard but I'm not obtuse enough to declare the Habs made a big mistake when they picked a player who has been extremely impressive as a teenager playing a demanding position and strong all-around game in high end men's pro leagues.

 

[417]

Aren't these two statements true if every 1st Rd pick in any year?

Outside of the unanimous/concencus 1OA selections (& even then you get the occasional Laf or Yak or Stefan) the debate of the right order of picks goes on until players firmly establish themselves in the NHL (or bust completely).

Heck, even the Price selection remains debated for some... With the idea that Kopitar would've left us better off.

I don't get why this RB pick seems to stir up such strong convictions from some. There remains far more to be seen than is known by anyone right now as far as what players not named Connor will become NHL stars from that draft.

100% this.

Why does it have to be black and white when it might just be way more nuanced than that?

Maybe they’ll both be viewed as excellent picks?