F Cayden Lindstrom - Medicine Hat Tigers, WHL (2024, 4th, CBJ)

[ello]

The difference is that Lindstrom already plays like what you are hoping Sennecke turns into if he puts it all together, and he still has as much room for growth as anyone in the draft.

Stats aside, they are quite different. Lindstrom plays a fast, powerful, hard-nosed game. He’s much more polished defensively, and utilizes his physical frame much more effectively. He’s also much better at things like zone-entries, puck protection, weaving through traffic and dirty areas, and board battles. And he has a fantastic set of mitts himself, to the point where I really don’t think Sennecke has an advantage in that department, despite it being one of his standout attributes. Lindstrom’s shot is significantly better as well.

Sennecke on the other hand is extremely raw, both in terms of physicality, and decision-making and style of game. He plays a very junior style, i.e., loves to dipsy-doodle around the offensive zone on the perimeter, or will try to stick handle through 3 or 4 guys. A lot of the plays in his highlights just aren’t going to fly at the NHL level. And he doesn’t currently excel in all the other areas that Lindstrom does to make up for these deficiencies.

Lindstrom also needs to work on his decision-making, but more in the way of utilizing his teammates more and being more varied in his approach in the offensive zone. He already plays a very pro-style game and does a lot of the little things well already.

Thats the big difference between the two, imo. The Ducks are obviously betting heavily on the creativity aspect of Sennecke’s game, along with his possible physical attributes in the future, and think that will be the difference. Lindstrom’s injury undoubtedly factored into their decision as well, like it would for any team.

It remains to be seen who made the right call, obviously.

You didn’t give a single reason that Sennecke could be better lmao

 

[Static]

My premise that they are very different players aside from their size, and that Lindstrom plays a much more pro-style game and does a lot of little things well that Sennecke hasn’t shown thus far? That “doesn’t hold much water”, really? Anyone who’s watched both players beyond just YouTube highlights would know that’s an accurate position.

You can argue that you think Sennecke has higher upside, you can argue that you think he’ll end up the better player, but trying to deny something that’s blatantly obvious to anyone who’s actually watched both players is ridiculous, and shows that you really don’t know what you’re talking about.

On talent and potential, he was. People talk about the unicorn thing with Sennecke, but that’s all “if he does this, if he does that” type of talk. Lindstrom was actually showing it on the ice already. The injury is concern though, big time. This is what people feared.

This is what I was responding to. The "if he does this and does that" is a weird comment when lindstrom has had a hard time staying on the ice himself. Both of these kids are dreams on projection.

Anyway, this isn't a sennecke thread, I hope lindstrom is healthy and hits his potential, he is fun to watch.

 

[Trojans86]

My fear with Lidstrom has always been that he generates a lot of his points by being so physically dominant that he can fly by kids in Juniors or muscle through them, and it won’t be anywhere as easy at the next level. Sennecke has much better vision and playmaking giving him a very high upside. I’d say Lindstrom has massive upside too because of their physical traits but I seriously doubt he will ever be a high iq or playmaker in the nhl. Could be an amazing PF though.

 

[Garbageyuk]

You didn’t give a single reason that Sennecke could be better lmao

I wonder why that could be

 

[FlyguyOX]

My fear with Lidstrom has always been that he generates a lot of his points by being so physically dominant that he can fly by kids in Juniors or muscle through them, and it won’t be anywhere as easy at the next level. Sennecke has much better vision and playmaking giving him a very high upside. I’d say Lindstrom has massive upside too because of their physical traits but I seriously doubt he will ever be a high iq or playmaker in the nhl. Could be an amazing PF though.

Yeah, same thing as with Byfield. Just overpowers with athletic profile more than anything.

 

[majormajor]

My fear with Lidstrom has always been that he generates a lot of his points by being so physically dominant that he can fly by kids in Juniors or muscle through them, and it won’t be anywhere as easy at the next level.

I don't know if you've ever noticed but there are players in the NHL who are high-end because they are bigger, stronger, and faster than other NHLers.

That's how Cayden Lindstrom profiles. The margins will decrease, but he'll still be bigger, faster, and stronger in the NHL.

The physically dominant junior who struggles to carry that to the NHL is usually about 6'0 200 and not that fast.

 

[Trojans86]

I don't know if you've ever noticed but there are players in the NHL who are high-end because they are bigger, stronger, and faster than other NHLers.

That's how Cayden Lindstrom profiles. The margins will decrease, but he'll still be bigger, faster, and stronger in the NHL.

The physically dominant junior who struggles to carry that to the NHL is usually about 6'0 200 and not that fast.

There absolutely are and there absolutely are tons of guys that fizzle out because they're Junior style of just mindlessly skating by guys doesn't work in the NHL. The ones that do well are typically the ones that can think the game well enough to round out their game and be effective in a multitude of ways. Not saying which one he will be but that's my concern.

The bar just gets so much higher in the NHL that guys need to adapt and evolve their game to have success. Same thing for Sennecke.

 

[gifted88]

Last I had heard he was going to be "restricted non-contact" during training camp and it sounded like he was going to be headed back to the WHL.

Any idea on a timeline for him playing again for Medicine Hat?

 

[macbowes]

Any progress updates? Based on things he said during various interviews he gave over the summer, before and after the draft, I thought he would be back by now. Have there been any updates? I'm still hoping he'll be back in time to get fully up to speed for the WJC.

 

[majormajor]

Any progress updates? Based on things he said during various interviews he gave over the summer, before and after the draft, I thought he would be back by now. Have there been any updates? I'm still hoping he'll be back in time to get fully up to speed for the WJC.

He's with the team taking part in some activities. He's skating. They are going to keep him in Columbus until he's ready to go.

It wouldn't be the first time a guy had a back injury that took 6-12 months to heal.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Still hasn't played all year. Any recent updates?

 

[Bjornar Moxnes]

Still hasn't played all year. Any recent updates?

he died on the inside.

 

[Michoulicious]

Herniated disc that made him miss half a season at 18 y old???

Dnd in the top 10 for me.

Hate to have been right and wish the kid the best, but that is why you don't spend top 10 picks on prospects that have herniated discs and have not played for months.

It is not like he was a standout talent among the other players available as well... The risk was just not worth it at this point of the draft.

 

[Sam de Mtl]

Hate to have been right and wish the kid the best, but that is why you don't spend top 10 picks on prospects that have herniated discs and have not played for months.

It is not like he was a standout talent among the other players available as well... The risk was just not worth it at this point of the draft.

Have you been right though?

One could say it's too early to tell, maybe?

 

[Palmu]

Herniated disc sounds more scary than it is. He will be fine.

 

[Aaaarrgghh]

Still hasn't played all year. Any recent updates?

Last update was below:

• There’s good news on Lindstrom, too. The No. 4 pick in June has been handled with kid gloves to make sure the back injury that cost him much of last season is completely healed before he returns, and it appears that is getting close … provided there are no setbacks. “He’s skating every day in full equipment,” Waddell said. “We keep pushing him harder and harder. He’s going to stay in Columbus and skate while the team is on the road trip. We’ll see where he is when we get back. If there are no setbacks, we’ll probably look to send him back to his junior team.” That news will be well-received in southeast Alberta, home to Lindstrom’s junior club, Medicine Hat of the Western Hockey League. • Lindstrom will continue skating with Blue Jackets coaches, but he’s not permitted to skate with the team until he’s signed to a contract. And what about that contract? Waddell indicated earlier this summer he’d be signed before or during training camp, but that was put on hold because he wasn’t able to take part. Here’s Waddell on the latest plan for Lindstrom’s entry-level deal: “The agent (Daren Hermiston) and I have continued to talk,” Waddell said. “We’ve agreed: Let’s get him back, let’s get him playing. They’re not pushing (for a deal), we’re not pushing. At some point, when he starts getting ready to play or maybe he’s played a few games, we’ll get him signed. The contract is a relatively easy contract to do.”

So the plan is to send him to Medicine Hat shortly. We should know pretty soon whether there have been any setbacks.

 

[Michoulicious]

Have you been right though?

One could say it's too early to tell, maybe?

Has played like 4 games in 11 months. We are mid-November and there is still no real timeline.

Even the article quoted dates back to Nov. 3rd. Team came back from said road trip a while ago, still no timeline, still not playing.

You really think I was not right saying picking him in the top 10 was a bad idea? Interesting.

We'll have to wait a few years, but I stand by my opinion. It was just an unnecessary risk to take given all the talent that was there at that point in the draft (Demidov, Iginla, Dickinson, Buium, Parekh, Catton, Silayev, etc.).

 

[wetcoast]

Who plays first Lindstrom or Dumas?

 

[Bounces R Way]

Herniated disc sounds more scary than it is. He will be fine.

Mmmm I dunno it's pretty scary for a professional athlete. Especially a very young one like Lindstrom. Never really fully heals and can be reaggravated a lot easier than you'd think.

Like the player a lot, my kind of big skating physical center but an injured back when his game relies on imposing his will with his body is going to be a tough recovery. It's why I thought he might slip out of the top 5. Still not a death sentence or anything, hope to see him have a healthy and productive return.

 

[Palmu]

He probably have access to world class trainers and physios who can make adjustments in his skating and gym techniques.

Most of the people who do heavy training have some sort of herniated disc at some point of their life/career. Of course some of the case are worse than others but nowadays knowledge is pretty good. I havent played ice hockey but done heavy lifting at gym. I got herniated disc about 10 years ago while deadlifting which caused sciatica nerve issues as well. It took about one year to completely heal and nowadays I can still lift the same weights as back then, deadlift 240kg (530 pounds).

Of course its not 100% sure that Lindstrom will fully heal but im not too worried.

 

[Just Linda]

He probably have access to world class trainers and physios who can make adjustments in his skating and gym techniques.

Most of the people who do heavy training have some sort of herniated disc at some point of their life/career. Of course some of the case are worse than others but nowadays knowledge is pretty good. I havent played ice hockey but done heavy lifting at gym. I got herniated disc about 10 years ago while deadlifting which caused sciatica nerve issues as well. It took about one year to completely heal and nowadays I can still lift the same weights as back then, deadlift 240kg (530 pounds).

Of course its not 100% sure that Lindstrom will fully heal but im not too worried.

I too have had significant back issues which contributed heavily to my retirement from sports. I can lift nearly want I could in my prime but I can't take a hit or use the full range of motion without having to take a week off everything.

I think the concern comes from a few places

1) it's a repeat injury
2) He's missed a lot of development time

 

[FlyguyOX]

I too have had significant back issues which contributed heavily to my retirement from sports. I can lift nearly want I could in my prime but I can't take a hit or use the full range of motion without having to take a week off everything.

I think the concern comes from a few places

1) it's a repeat injury
2) He's missed a lot of development time

Agree with both of you. Have been in same boat. I just have way more intention and need of warm-ups and mobility/stability exercises and experience some form of discomfort most days, but know how to resolve it.

I also know how much your hips are used in skating and how they can aggravate your back. Which is why I've always had so much concern about Lindstrom. It's not the back injury alone, it's the other muscles it will impact that are heavily used in skating (and a power forward game).

 

[BagHead]

Has played like 4 games in 11 months. We are mid-November and there is still no real timeline.

Even the article quoted dates back to Nov. 3rd. Team came back from said road trip a while ago, still no timeline, still not playing.

You really think I was not right saying picking him in the top 10 was a bad idea? Interesting.

We'll have to wait a few years, but I stand by my opinion. It was just an unnecessary risk to take given all the talent that was there at that point in the draft (Demidov, Iginla, Dickinson, Buium, Parekh, Catton, Silayev, etc.).

He may pan out and be one of the top-3 players in this draft, and I'd still agree with you on the risk-reward thing. Say he works out fine and is a super productive NHL center - just because something works later out doesn't mean it wasn't too big of a risk to take at the time. I liked him a lot around 8-10 (that was my risk tolerance), but all the lost development time and an early back injury are a bit scary.

 

[Monk]

He may pan out and be one of the top-3 players in this draft, and I'd still agree with you on the risk-reward thing. Say he works out fine and is a super productive NHL center - just because something works later out doesn't mean it wasn't too big of a risk to take at the time. I liked him a lot around 8-10 (that was my risk tolerance), but all the lost development time and an early back injury are a bit scary.

But the CBJ management had the significant advantage of actually talking to real doctors and see real medical reports to inform how big the risk was, whereas we here are informing our risk tolerance with... ?

 

[BagHead]

But the CBJ management had the significant advantage of actually talking to real doctors and see real medical reports to inform how big the risk was, whereas we here are informing our risk tolerance with... ?

That's a fair point. They know more about the injury than the general public, and have a better idea of future risks and healing timeline. That said, it is still possible they took on more risk than most would stomach.

Since you asked, I informed my risk with the knowledge of what early injuries have done to players before, the delay that large amounts of missed development time cause, and the specific skill levels of the other options available. I am not an expert on the human body, nor am I an NHL decision maker, so I did not need to go farther than this very basic analysis to make my personal rankings which were shared only for my benefit and the enjoyment of HF Wild. Had I known more I may have raised Lindstrom up in my rankings or, conversely, moved him down even further.

I really like Lindstrom, and I thought he was one of the most intriguing prospects with his size, speed, strength, puck skill, and shot. I would have had him somewhere around 3-6th overall on my list if not for the injury. I don't think dropping him ~5 spots is unreasonably low.