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Expectations for Podkolzin

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The hardest part of Podkolzin's transition to the NHL is behind him. Arriving cold-turkey from another country; not knowing anyone and with a language barrier to boot, is a lot for a 20-year old to overcome.

But now that he's comfortable in VanCity and surrounded by at least a couple more Russian players, any 'sophomore slump' seems highly unlikely.

And if he ever ends up on a first line with say Petey and Kuzmenko, look out. Also, if he gets any PP time at all, I could easily see him close in on 30 goals for the season.
 
Mr. Canucklehead said:
I’d just be wary of a sophomore slump from him. Hoglander is a pretty good recent example, although I feel Podkolzin did a lot more to endear himself to Boudreau.

I would say anything above 15/15/30 would be a strong season of output for him, showing know steps backward. If he can hit 20/20/40 that would be fantastic.
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Something about Podz has me thinking his development will be more linear. His maturity, work ethic, dedication to his team, physical strength will imo allow him to progress in his sophomore season.
 
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I don't care about points.

Put him in the bottom six until he learns how to shut down the other team's best players.

It's been ten years since we have developed players like that and it shows.
 
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Siludin said:
Pearson isnt going to get almost any offensive opportunity this year. It's pretty clear he lost his job. PK and fourth line is what I would guess.
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i really really want this to be true

i was just daydreaming about trading him at the deadline to someone for a third or hopefully second round pick. then i remembered that he has another year and trade protection. ugh
 
I really liked him with Miller last year they seemed to have some good chemistry and you could really start to get a sense that we had a pretty solid player here when they started playing together.

Would like to see him again with Miller. Have that consistently and 50 + points I think is a very realistic expectation.
 
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Are there many examples of players who get into sophomore slumps who are as well-rounded of a player as Podkolzin is? Unlike someone like Hoglander or Horvat, He seems to excel in most areas of the game.
 
Consistent top 9 winger minimum.

He's capable of 20+ goals & 40+ points, but the exact stats don't matter so much at this point - as long as theirs improvement.

I'd just like to see him pick up where he left off; when he's on being able to make a big impact in games (in the top 6), and otherwise just be a dependable top 9/secondary player the entire season.
 
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He makes brilliant plays once in a while that show he has vision and high-level game processing. That's not normally a guarantee of anything and plenty of players with those abilities fail, but when you couple it with his strength and effort level you have to think he'll be a very good top-6 forward. I think he pushes to the 2nd line and stays there this year, probably with 2nd unit PP time.
 
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My guess is the lineup starts as

Kuzmenko-Miller-Boeser
Garland-EP-Mikheyev
Pearson-Horvat-Podkolzin

I could see 20/20/40 for hoim this year. He will get a fair amount more ice time this season.
 
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Does anyone remember that game vs Arizona when he received a pass, did a 360 and no look touch passed it to another player for a goal? That has always stood out to me as a clear example of his vision
 
I really hope that we see

Kuz EP Podz

as a line ... see how it goes. It really depends on how Kuz fits in. I could see this be a line that generates 240 points.

Edit - I suspect I am going to get slammed for the above prediction. I expect Pods to get 50 - 60 its this year. The above was based on Kuzmenko stepping in and getting 65 - 75 points (which is way higher than expected) EP having a great year and the 3 of them clicking as one of the top lines in the NHL.
 
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Wouldn't be surprised nor worried about a sophomore slump, but also not expecting it, given that a driving issue with Hoglander seems to be the loss of trust with the coaches. Podkolzin doesn't take a shift off and is strong on defensive focus so I could see that not being an issue with him.

Not calling for it but I keep wondering what a Podkolzin - Miller - Mikheyev line would be like...that's a lot of big, heavy and fast players screaming down on your defense.
 
Mature guys like him usually have a pretty linear production projection given no injuries.
He has the coach's trust already, what he needs now is a defined scoring role.
Or maybe Boudreau may want to develop him on the defensive shut down side of the puck first.
Either way, I'll enjoy watching him be a good teammate and do whatever the coach asks of him.
I just want him to stay injury free. I've always seen a Landeskog type player in him, all rounded and excel in any role he's given to contribute to a W, its just a matter of how long it'll take him to get there.
 
Hit the post said:
Sophomore slump? He had a 14/12/26 season. A good chunk under Green. Imho, he's got nowhere to go but up with a full season of coach Bruce
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Burrows had a sophomore slump with similar-ish rookie numbers (on pace for 13/10/23), and a similar level of professionalism/work ethic.

Granted, Podkolzin is a lot more skilled and I don't see it happening, but still.
 
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