JoelWarlord
Registered User
Shame he won't be in the NHL so we could whine about him being rushed instead.
On a contender? A guy capable of playing 25+ minutes a night and being able to consistently tilt the ice in favour of the team he's on against the other team's best lines.Like i asked another poster : What is a top pairing D for you??
Not disputing any of that, just saying that I don't perceive him as having a very high ceiling.Sure and that just reinforces my point that no one cares that Ekblad was drafted 1st overall and there are MUCH better players behind him. As you mentioned, their best Dman was picked up off waivers and now forms an excellent first pair with Ekblad.
That's all that matters...people obsess over draft position, once they're drafted it doesn't matter anymore, all that matters is the value you bring to the team that drafted you.
Not who you are as a player vs other players drafted before or after you...that's just fan chatter and bragging rights.
Whether you want to qualify what he'll be as a Number #1 or top pairing Dman or top 4 Dman...these are just labels, they don't measure impact on the ice.
In 2014 the Florida Panthers picked Aaron Ekblad 1st overall...a few players picked after Ekblad include names like: Leon Draisaitl, Sam Reinhart, David Pastrnak, William Nylander, Dylan Larkin, Brayden Point.
In a vacuum, everyone would take any of those players before Aaron Ekblad.
But somehow, Aaron Ekblad patrols the Florida Panther's top pairing and is coming off a Stanley Cup. He's never recorded more than 41 points in any season.
In an alternate universe, perhaps the Panthers draft Draisaitl...but for now, I don't think they regret that decision whatsoever. There's a lot that goes into building a team.
David Reinbacher doesn't need to be a better player than Matvei Michkov or Ryan Leonard or anyone else from that pick, he just needs to be a valuable player for the Montreal Canadiens and to fit in somewhere as an important player.
All the rest is just fan chatter.
Most fans have no issues waiting.
But most fans would like for our 5th OA pick to show us something and not look completely ordinary.
Not saying that means he won't be good... he likely will be in time, but it's quite underwhelming right now.
I didn't like the Reinbacher pick, but D2 means a 2nd D, not a 2nd pairing D. Think Seabrook in the 2010s.
I'm personally yet to come away from watching a Reinbacher game thinking he can be a 1st pairing defenseman. I think he'll be great at defending on the rush, and pretty good at in-zone defense, but I don't see the breakout machine that people seem to be touting him as.
He panics with the puck a bit too often, misses short passes, and loses it while handling it a bit too much for my taste.
I think he'll still be a perfect partner for Hutson, since he'll have the majority of the puck-carrying responsibilities on the pairing.
I think anyone hoping for Pietrangelo-upside is going to be sorely disappointed. We reached for needs, because a big, rangy, raw shutdown RD is a pretty rare and valuable commodity, and we didn't have anyone like him in our pool. Maybe he adds another gear to his game, or has an exponential development curve over the next couple years, but I really don't see him having top pairing upside, let alone number 1 upside.
Pietrangelo wasn't flashy or spectacular but he was an excellent puck-mover. If Reinbacher ever tops Pietrangelo's rookie season point totals (43) in a season I'll be (very) pleasantly surprised.
I give him full credit defensively, and think the PP goal against was more on Struble than anything. I just found his puck carrying lackluster overall. Hopefully he gets a game with Hutson to show exactly where his value will be in the future.He is showing things - they just aren't the things you're picking up on. The team is very happy with his play but know he needs more seasoning. He's only played like 15 games in North American ice.
It's not underwhelming unless you were expecting this big flashy offensive toolkit. That's not what he was picked for and so if you are underwhelmed, you just didn't know the product we bought.
He was nervous in period 1, after that he settled down.. there's so much tape of his poise with the puck. He's still getting adjusted to North America and that was probably the fastest, most NHL caliber team he's ever faced on NA ice. The big news is how quickly he made the adjustments in that game and was pretty much controlling things defensively from period 2 on. Seriously, after period 1, what mistakes did he make? How many actual scoring chances were had when he was back in defensive posture?
you don't think they would rather have Draisaitle or Pastrnak? lol
They win a cup either way, but Tkachuk and Bennet were the real winning move anyways. They could fill Ekblad's role with a half dozen guys at the trade deadline
I give him full credit defensively, and think the PP goal against was more on Struble than anything. I just found his puck carrying lackluster overall. Hopefully he gets a game with Hutson to show exactly where his value will be in the future.
From the sounds of this thread we’re going to have to send more encouragement letters to Laval
He is showing things - they just aren't the things you're picking up on. The team is very happy with his play but know he needs more seasoning. He's only played like 15 games in North American ice.
It's not underwhelming unless you were expecting this big flashy offensive toolkit. That's not what he was picked for and so if you are underwhelmed, you just didn't know the product we bought.
LOL, he is better than Barron already, and better in his own zone than Mailloux and Hutson.I'm not expecting anything except to see... 'something', anything, from a guy drafted at 5OA. When I watch him, he to puts me to sleep.
We need to let him cook in the AHL for a good 2-3 yrs at minimum, I think.
LOL, he is better than Barron already, and better in his own zone than Mailloux and Hutson.
More like see if we can make a deal with Molson so he can pay for some therapy. The way some people are getting upset over things they create in their own head as problems and issues, it requires some psychotherapy
Lord Barron von Dipshit ? No …can’t be, how can that be, “Sid said he’s an unbelievable Dman”Barron is horrible.
Heard an analogy the other day that I thought was perfect.Not disputing any of that, just saying that I don't perceive him as having a very high ceiling.
I get what you're saying, and the sad reality is that defensemen like Reinbacher are such a rare commodity that you pretty much have to reach for them in order to get them on your team.
I'm sure the Florida Panthers are absolutely fine with how that draft unravelled and who they are toay.you don't think they would rather have Draisaitle or Pastrnak? lol
They win a cup either way, but Tkachuk and Bennet were the real winning move anyways. They could fill Ekblad's role with a half dozen guys at the trade deadline
The reason why, every year, teams consistently draft defensemen that appear less skilled or sexy than available forwards ISN'T because scouts are dumbasses and collectively make this mistake again and again. I know it's tempting to believe so, but it's just not the case.
I'm sure the Florida Panthers are absolutely fine with how that draft unravelled and who they are toay.
The real life team building exercise that teams go through, is totally different than the fantasy one fans imagine.
Exactly lol kind of the whole point...you're focused on one specific area of player procurement when specific players can be acquired through trades, or free agency, in addition to the draft.I think a sniper sells a lot more tickets and merch than Ekblad and gets you to the same spot for a cup run. What's a harder void to fill? A shutown 30pt dman, or a 100pt top player in the NHL? Sure they will tell you they are thrilled with Ekblad, but they don't win a cup without that Tkachuk trade regardless.
I could swear Seider spent more than 2/3 of a season in AHL…The scouts are mostly about as right as the fans, they blow a ton of picks. They miss the hidden gems all the time, and are the same ones that had Falloon, Daigle, Nolan Patrick, Zadina, Wahlstrom, Kakko, Turcotte. ( to name a few) ranked so highly.
Kudos to Kent and the crew for taking Hutson, finding other hidden gems.. but the kid needs a lot of AHL time, something you don't hope for with your top pick.
Exactly lol kind of the whole point...you're focused on one specific area of player procurement when specific players can be acquired through trades, or free agency, in addition to the draft.
Doesn't change the point I made...
I could swear Seider spent more than 2/3 of a season in AHL…