Player Discussion Drake Batherson (RW)

[Sen sational]

As a fan, it is always hard to watch your team lose to the Leafs and not look very good doing it. However, the consensus last place team is going to lose a lot of games this year and the payoff will come at the draft in June.

If some of our prospects can transition and develop at the NHL level then that is a bonus. Brannstrom has looked better than expected defensively and is playing with the guy they brought in, not to win games, to mentor the young D.

If the rest of our prospects can develop in the AHL and come up when they are dominating then we will have had a successful year on the ice. If we can draft a top 5 and 20 pick in June we will have put 2 top line pieces into the organization.

 

[Do Make Say Think]

What?... He had one bad game and he is 21. People really need to relax.

I'm just saying that he has been dreadful since the start of training camp.

As time goes by, I am starting to wonder if Batherson is only good when playing with elite players.

Nothing about his game is remarkable right now and that is concerning.

That can change but usually, even when a highly touted prospect struggles, you see potential. Not the case with Batherson at all so far and the only times he's been noteworthy is when playing with star players (L. Brown is an elite player at the AHL)

 

[bert]

I'm just saying that he has been dreadful since the start of training camp.

As time goes by, I am starting to wonder if Batherson is only good when playing with elite players.

Nothing about his game is remarkable right now and that is concerning.

That can change but usually, even when a highly touted prospect struggles, you see potential. Not the case with Batherson at all so far and the only times he's been noteworthy is when playing with star players (L. Brown is an elite player at the AHL)

We saw his potential last year, he isnt going to hit his prime for another 3 seasons he is still growing. He has elite hockey sense, thats his best trait. He is never going to be a line driver but will be an incredible complimentary piece to a star. This rebuild is going to take a while, I think everyone is going to have to come to grips with that. Its not automatic its going to take time. Its pretty hard to show off his skill set with those line mates.

 

[Nac Mac Feegle]

Yeah, let's at least give the kid a few games. He probably put on a bit too much bulk this summer, and has to burn a bit of it off to get back to where he should be.

 

[Do Make Say Think]

We saw his potential last year, he isnt going to hit his prime for another 3 seasons he is still growing. He has elite hockey sense, thats his best trait. He is never going to be a line driver but will be an incredible complimentary piece to a star. This rebuild is going to take a while, I think everyone is going to have to come to grips with that. Its not automatic its going to take time. Its pretty hard to show off his skill set with those line mates.

Absolutely, I'm not overly disappointed in that I was never very high on Batherson.

I just have a hard time getting excited about a prospect who could be described as a a "potentially very good complimentary player". You need good complimentary players but I don't get pumped about them. All the fanfare made me consider that I may have been too harsh on Batherson but I still don't see anything exciting about him.

I have been wrong many, many times though!

 

[bert]

Absolutely, I'm not overly disappointed in that I was never very high on Batherson.

I just have a hard time getting excited about a prospect who could be described as a a "potentially very good complimentary player". You need good complimentary players but I don't get pumped about them.

For a 4th round pick im pretty happy about it. Jake Guentzel is a complimentary player and a star, I think Batherson could be the Guentzel to a Byfield, Lafrennier, Raymond etc. His hockey sense is off the charts like I said before he isnt going to shine with debatably the two worst forwards on the team. Id like to see him with Tkachuk and White as he ads an element they dont have, elite vision. Brown plays alot like those two players id switch him to another line personally.

Id probably do something like this.

Tkachuk White Batherson
Duclair Tierney Ryan
Chlapik Pageau C. Brown
Ennis/Boedker/Anisimov and Sabourin.

Ennis can play center, Anisimov simply cant keep up with the fast teams. I think him and Ennis should be rotated along with Boedker depending on who the opponent is.

 

[Micklebot]

For a 4th round pick im pretty happy about it. Jake Guentzel is a complimentary player and a star, I think Batherson could be the Guentzel to a Byfield, Lafrennier, Raymond etc. His hockey sense is off the charts like I said before he isnt going to shine with debatably the two worst forwards on the team. Id like to see him with Tkachuk and White as he ads an element they dont have, elite vision. Brown plays alot like those two players id switch him to another line personally.

Id probably do something like this.

Tkachuk White Batherson
Duclair Tierney Ryan
Chlapik Pageau C. Brown
Ennis/Boedker/Anisimov and Sabourin.

Ennis can play center, Anisimov simply cant keep up with the fast teams. I think him and Ennis should be rotated along with Boedker depending on who the opponent is.

I really don't understand why we kept him up if we're going to play him with Anisimov and Ennis. Just boggles the mind...

Idk if he's earned a spot on the top line with White and Tkachuk, but he is a guy that needs to be with skilled players. Even playing him with Duclair and Tierney would make more sense.

 

[Chabottawa72]

Batherson should be paired with Tierney and Duclair....give him a few more games if he still struggles send him back down to re gain some confidence.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

For a 4th round pick im pretty happy about it. Jake Guentzel is a complimentary player and a star, I think Batherson could be the Guentzel to a Byfield, Lafrennier, Raymond etc. His hockey sense is off the charts like I said before he isnt going to shine with debatably the two worst forwards on the team. Id like to see him with Tkachuk and White as he ads an element they dont have, elite vision. Brown plays alot like those two players id switch him to another line personally.

Id probably do something like this.

Tkachuk White Batherson
Duclair Tierney Ryan
Chlapik Pageau C. Brown
Ennis/Boedker/Anisimov and Sabourin.

Ennis can play center, Anisimov simply cant keep up with the fast teams. I think him and Ennis should be rotated along with Boedker depending on who the opponent is.

The biggest problem to me with the forward group is the lack of players that can drive play, hang on to it and make plays. Anisimov may have the skills but not the speed , similar to Ryan. Duclair can drive but he's not a play maker. White and Tkachuk are good working down low but they are not good enough yet to hang on to it and make plays with any regularity. C. Brown is much the same he is not a play driver. Chlapik should probably be moved up the lineup he has some of those capabilities but still raw. Batherson also needs a play maker at the NHL level, at this stage. Logan Brown is the guy we need here although I think he can use the time in Belleville to work on his overall game and continue to hone his skills. We can have 4 NHL 3rd lines that work hard and play in your face but its not going to be pretty. The kids are alright. I believe that but they are not ready to take the reigns and we don't really have the veterans to take the reigns as far as driving play either. This league is too good for this team to have much success. I believe in hard work but it only takes you so far against another player that is stronger, a fair bit better and works equally hard.

 

[NyQuil]

The biggest problem to me with the forward group is the lack of players that can drive play, hang on to it and make plays. Anisimov may have the skills but not the speed , similar to Ryan. Duclair can drive but he's not a play maker. White and Tkachuk are good working down low but they are not good enough yet to hang on to it and make plays with any regularity. C. Brown is much the same he is not a play driver. Chlapik should probably be moved up the lineup he has some of those capabilities but still raw. Batherson also needs a play maker at the NHL level, at this stage. Logan Brown is the guy we need here although I think he can use the time in Belleville to work on his overall game and continue to hone his skills. We can have 4 NHL 3rd lines that work hard and play in your face but its not going to be pretty.

For me, the quality of a roster shows on the PP units.

It's all well and good to have guys who can skate and work hard, but you need hands and the ability to make plays.

From what I can see on the current roster, we've got Ryan, Chabot and maybe Duclair. Tkachuk can stand in front of the net.

That's it.

 

[jbeck5]

I really don't understand why we kept him up if we're going to play him with Anisimov and Ennis. Just boggles the mind...

Idk if he's earned a spot on the top line with White and Tkachuk, but he is a guy that needs to be with skilled players. Even playing him with Duclair and Tierney would make more sense.

Not that I think they're game breakers but they aren't black holes either. We're not putting them with guys like Smith, Neil, Kelly, pajarvi, etc.

Anisimov has 20+ goals in 4 of his last 6 seasons. Ennis has 3 20 goal seasons under his belt.

They're not in their prime but they should be able to make a pass or bury some chances in the slot here and there. They shouldn't be missing on 40 open net chances like Condra, Kelly, pajarvi, etc.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

This tweet singles Batherson out but .. we probably could replace Batherson on that line with just about anyone and have similar result.

 

[coladin]

Batherson needs to clam down, and the vets have to help him with that. Dude is overwhelmed as being pinned as the future "can't miss" prospect. Just go play, and think less.

Every other organization puts their young guys in lower talented lines, and Drake has to do Drake things when he has the puck, no matter who feeds him. Same thing with the L. Brown apologists. It doesn't matter who he is centering, he has to play his best and if they finish, they finish. If they don't, well, he made the plays. And Drake has to make his own plays. White pushed his way up the lineup. Dzingel pushed his way up the lineup. He will too, but he has to play his game. He had one golden chance last night and almost buried it.

Personally, he gets a complete free pass for last night. Those PKs early on ruined his preparation and played very little, and it affects your game.

 

[Sensung]

Not that I think they're game breakers but they aren't black holes either. We're not putting them with guys like Smith, Neil, Kelly, pajarvi, etc.

Anisimov has 20+ goals in 4 of his last 6 seasons. Ennis has 3 20 goal seasons under his belt.

They're not in their prime but they should be able to make a pass or bury some chances in the slot here and there. They shouldn't be missing on 40 open net chances like Condra, Kelly, pajarvi, etc.

In his last 4 season, Ennis had 11, 13, 22, 18 points.

In the last two seasons Anisimov had 31 and 37 points.

They are very much on the same level as those former Sens.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

I don't mind the move putting Ryan with Tkachuk and White

Sabourin on the 3rd line now. Not going to say anything .. but the "this is fine" gif comes to mind.

Batherson, Struggles continue.

They kept Batherson up even though from what I was able to see, he struggled in preseason. His feet looked heavy throughout imo. (recognizing a couple nice subtle plays) Now given the expectations and doing all your due diligence evaluations as a management/coaching group .. you make the tough decision with Logan Brown, would it be better to have sent Batherson with him for a couple/few weeks to get going or do you think its better to keep him up, try to work through it, and send him down if he continues to struggle.

Is this an effort to balance the lines? Or... Does Smith still have a 4th line and Sabourin playing ahead of Boedker and Chlapik?

 

[Cosmix]

As a fan, it is always hard to watch your team lose to the Leafs and not look very good doing it. However, the consensus last place team is going to lose a lot of games this year and the payoff will come at the draft in June.

If some of our prospects can transition and develop at the NHL level then that is a bonus. Brannstrom has looked better than expected defensively and is playing with the guy they brought in, not to win games, to mentor the young D.

If the rest of our prospects can develop in the AHL and come up when they are dominating then we will have had a successful year on the ice. If we can draft a top 5 and 20 pick in June we will have put 2 top line pieces into the organization.

One top 6 player is likely with two first round picks, but two is probably not based on past experience.

 

[jbeck5]

In his last 4 season, Ennis had 11, 13, 22, 18 points.

In the last two seasons Anisimov had 31 and 37 points.

They are very much on the same level as those former Sens.

Anisimov has produced 37.2 points per 82 the last 2 years... He's not a first liner, but he's not a black hole. That's your typical middle 6 production, like ~0.45 pts per game.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

Anisimov has produced 37.2 points per 82 the last 2 years... He's not a first liner, but he's not a black hole. That's your typical middle 6 production, like ~0.45 pts per game.

Do not doubt it. Not a great debut. Hopefully he's better going forward

 

[Micklebot]

Anisimov has produced 37.2 points per 82 the last 2 years... He's not a first liner, but he's not a black hole. That's your typical middle 6 production, like ~0.45 pts per game.

problem is most of that production came playing with Kane. His production rate away from Kane was roughly half of what it was with him. It's like Greening playing with Spezza back in the day.

 

[Cosmix]

In his last 4 season, Ennis had 11, 13, 22, 18 points.

In the last two seasons Anisimov had 31 and 37 points.

They are very much on the same level as those former Sens.

Yes, and our GM just had to get them on his team as he makes the hockey decisions as he stated.

 

[Do Make Say Think]

Do not doubt it. Not a great debut. Hopefully he's better going forward

Worth considering that Toronto is an especially bad match up for him since he's so very slow.

 

[GrantLemons]

I don't mind the move putting Ryan with Tkachuk and White

Sabourin on the 3rd line now. Not going to say anything .. but the "this is fine" gif comes to mind.

Batherson, Struggles continue.

They kept Batherson up even though from what I was able to see, he struggled in preseason. His feet looked heavy throughout imo. (recognizing a couple nice subtle plays) Now given the expectations and doing all your due diligence evaluations as a management/coaching group .. you make the tough decision with Logan Brown, would it be better to have sent Batherson with him for a couple/few weeks to get going or do you think its better to keep him up, try to work through it, and send him down if he continues to struggle.

Is this an effort to balance the lines? Or... Does Smith still have a 4th line and Sabourin playing ahead of Boedker and Chlapik?

Have to really be careful what you say about the golden boy around these parts. He's equivalent to the second coming of jesus to some posters on here.

 

[jbeck5]

problem is most of that production came playing with Kane. His production rate away from Kane was roughly half of what it was with him. It's like Greening playing with Spezza back in the day.

I see a lot more puck skills with Anisimov than I did with greening. He's gotten 20+ goals away from Kane too. I'm not saying hes amazing. I'm saying he has more puck skills than most of our 3rd or 4th line players over the years. He is pretty slow though. But at least he can receive a pass, make a pass, etc. We've had guys that fumble the puck all the time on our bottom lines recently.

What I'm trying to say is he's pretty close to an average NHLer. If batherson can't produce with average NHLers, I think blaming his linemates is a lazy argument.

We've had most of our top 9 players start off with average to below average 3rd liners...

 

[Sensung]

Anisimov has produced 37.2 points per 82 the last 2 years... He's not a first liner, but he's not a black hole. That's your typical middle 6 production, like ~0.45 pts per game.

Playing a good portion of that time with Pat Kane...

Edit. Beaten to the punch

 

[SpezDispenser]

I have issues putting Ryan up with Tkachuk and White, I'd much prefer to see Batherson there playing 15 minutes a night so we see if he can handle it or not. Ryan should be where Sabourin is and Sabourin should be on the 4th line.

I hope Smith doesn't intend to play Batherson 5 minutes a night for 10 games then start benching him. He's a young, electric talent. Play him or send him down to the AHL. There is no in between.