Player Discussion Jesperi Kotkaniemi - (On Loan to Liiga)

[Whitesnake]

Lol now it's Hughes or Zadina, not Zadina or Hughes.

It'd be amazing to watch an NHL draft with Whitesnake as a GM. ''With the 16th overall selection, the Montreal Canadiens are proud to select, from the Wisconsin Badgers, Dylan Holloway. But for the record we note that we also would have liked Dawson Mercer or Lukas Reichel.''

It's going to fast for some.....at the draft, before the draft, I said JK HAD to be our pick. Not Zadina. Not Hughes. JK. Because we had to address and hope it works out that time this depth at C and that JK who was surely a top 10 pick, was a C. Because of our inability to pick C in the past.

In the meantime, I just said that going by BPA, Hughes or Zadina were it. Would have picked one or the other, I would have no problem with it. But because of our C issues, we had to go with JK this time aroudnn. Had to be our pick.

By the way, you don't have to hope Whitesnake would be our GM or head scout to see something happened. You alraedy have Timmins who plays revisionist history with his ''I would have picked that guy if....''

 

[Whitesnake]

Did we lose all of our past posts? What am I missing here?

 

[Whitesnake]

Not sure if anybody follows, but the Montreal CAnadiens needs talent depth EVERYWHERE. Why in the world would be go with only 1 player playing 1 position when our needs is so much bigger than that? Do people really think we don't need scoring wingers? Or puckmoving D's? Or big C's? And soon...goalies? Why is it that having a couple of names in mind not mean that in the end, we are not the problem....but it's the team's depth the problem?

 

[CauZuki]

Not sure if anybody follows, but the Montreal CAnadiens needs talent depth EVERYWHERE. Why in the world would be go with only 1 player playing 1 position when our needs is so much bigger than that? Do people really think we don't need scoring wingers? Or puckmoving D's? Or big C's? And soon...goalies? Why is it that having a couple of names in mind not mean that in the end, we are not the problem....but it's the team's depth the problem?

Well we do have 2 young Cs for our future , our D position isn't strong but we do have some notable talents in Romanov/Norlinder/Brook/Struble (outside chance also for Juulsen after a career derailing event). Goaltending , while I am not saying Primeau is in the same category as Price , I do see him as very strong prospect (one of the best at his positions) , but goalies are very hard to predict.

I see three issues with our prospect pool:

- We don't have high end talent (perhaps KK/Suzuki/Caufield one day reach that status)
- We are weak on the wing (Caufield/Ylonen are a good start but we need more to improve our chances at finding some real players)
- We don't seem to have any bonafide puck moving D that can produce points. (This is where Sergachev would have been key)

Your concerns hold weight no doubt but as a realist (with my subjective/objective biases) I do see a lot of positives that I didn't see a few years ago.
I am also happy to see KK prove his worth so early in his career (I mean he just turned 20) , I've been a fan since the WJC and he really stood out for me with his sneaky passing skill and his willingness to use his frame. I still thought we would draft Zadina with our pick but I'm glad it seems to be working out for us (for once).

 

[Redux91]

Beauty shot to actually go for the outside shot through the defender legs, truly a sneaky shot.

Is there another angle for this shot ?

Yeah its a devastating shot, Was debating about it with someone on these boards who claimed Suzukis was better but, not so fast.

Both of these kids can laser it AND have the best passing ability on the team.. they really make drouin and domi look bad to be quite honest lol, like its shocking

 

[Whitesnake]

Yeah its a devastating shot, Was debating about it with someone on these boards who claimed Suzukis was better but, not so fast.

Both of these kids can laser it AND have the best passing ability on the team.. they really make drouin and domi look bad to be quite honest lol, like its shocking

So what we need to make them shine is actually wingers that can convert. Caufield with JK will. But nobody else in that team and prospect pool can complete Suzuki adequately.

 

[Redux91]

Hughes, who went 7th overall, wasn't widely discussed as a Habs' choice for 3rd overall.

The discussions that we're now seeing regarding Hughes are retroactive clairvoyance.

My god well said, I cant believe all the "I wouldve taken hughes" posts it is absolutely mindblowing.

And why'd you guys have to ruffle up WS's feathers lol, he's a nice guy pourtant!

 

[philipsson]

Hughes, who went 7th overall, wasn't widely discussed as a Habs' choice for 3rd overall.

The discussions that we're now seeing regarding Hughes are retroactive clairvoyance.

Funny how Hugues was everyone's pick at the moment of the draft, now, 2 years later when he's nominated for the Calder trophy and all.

Honestly, it wasn't a name I saw a whole lot before the draft.

I chuckled at the "retroactive clairvoyance" term, brilliant.

 

[ahmedou]

#Kotkaniemi-PressConference(20/08/16)

“It was a tight game. They came in hard. We were ready for that. We had the chances we needed tonight; we just need to bury those.”

“Now it's not the right time to talk about myself... The most important thing is how we're going to win the games.”

“It’s real fun to play with those guys (Domi/Drouin). They’re just flying out there. They’re really skilled and just real fun to play with them.”

 

[Mrb1p]

'Cause Timmins doesn't deserve any hate. Not being able to pick one good C in 17 years, what people here are talking about how centermen have more value and all, is certainly not important....lol

My judgment wasn't clouded. I said JK, before the draft, HAD to be our pick. What did you say?

I had KK @ 4 since around WJC.

Lmao.

 

[26Mats]

'Cause Timmins doesn't deserve any hate. Not being able to pick one good C in 17 years, what people here are talking about how centermen have more value and all, is certainly not important....lol

My judgment wasn't clouded. I said JK, before the draft, HAD to be our pick. What did you say?

KK's not a good C?

You're sure Evans, Poehling, and Hillis aren't good C's?

 

[Mrb1p]

My god well said, I cant believe all the "I wouldve taken hughes" posts it is absolutely mindblowing.

And why'd you guys have to ruffle up WS's feathers lol, he's a nice guy pourtant!

Whitesnake rubbed me the wrong way the moment he chose KK as his target.

Not on my watch, nuh-uh.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Did you get the part when I said, BEFORE THE DRAFT, that JK had to be our pick? How's that for an opinion? I said BPA were Hughes or Zadina. But JK Had to be our pick.

You were much higher on Zadina. And you were higher on Dobson than Hughes. I remember arguing with you over this, around February/March of that year.

 

[JeffreyLFC]

Honestly, I think this might be the year Bergevin trades a 1st. Habs showing potential and he has 2 years left in term. Might be a good time to move all in.... depending on what moves he can make and what players he can bring in.

If the trade market is weak... I think Bergevin will look to trade up and try to get a Quinn or Lundell.

If there is a draft we should trade up, it is this year. We already have depth everywhere, we need quality. Let's make sure we get the kid from Ottawa who has it all: Quinn

 

[26Mats]

He needs to learn how to run a PP. He's actually never done this, not in Pori or with the national team. We can't just throw him in the bumper spot and think that he'll learn from osmosis from our shit ass other PP players. We need to put him in the position he'll eventually be best at, and let him figure it out. This is the bed we made by not bringing him along slowly.

definitely agree that Mete should have been in the AHL when MB constructed a left D of Alzner, Schlemko, and Benn - and 19 year old Mete was better than all of them. So they kept him in the NHL, when he would have been developing in the AHL.

 

[Supersonic]

Once the playoffs end I hope KK goes right back to the gym and keeps spamming leg day so he gets even stronger for 2020/21

 

[Habs Halifax]

If there is a draft we should trade up, it is this year. We already have depth everywhere, we need quality. Let's make sure we get the kid from Ottawa who has it all: Quinn

Just depends on what those teams are looking for in the 9-12 range and how they feel the 16 spot looks.

 

[Whitesnake]

I had KK @ 4 since around WJC.

Lmao.

Show me. And I'll say you are right.

 

[Whitesnake]

KK's not a good C?

You're sure Evans, Poehling, and Hillis aren't good C's?

I'm sure that they haven't proven anything. I'm sure that neithe Evans nor Poehling will be top 6 material.

 

[Whitesnake]

Whitesnake rubbed me the wrong way the moment he chose KK as his target.

Not on my watch, nuh-uh.

And the ONLY thing I said ''bad'' about JK was that he was not your typical 3rd overall pick. Something that in the REAL reality, cannot be disputed based on FACTS and all the drafts that happened in the last 20 years. Still, I said that the Habs HAD to pick JK. I said that he would be a great player. And I NEVER said he was a bust even when he was struggling.

I can't imagine how targetted other posters would have been on your watch when quite a few said that he was not a good pick, something I never said.

 

[DAChampion]

I'm sure that they haven't proven anything. I'm sure that neithe Evans nor Poehling will be top 6 material.

Evans helping the 4th line is a net positive right now. He'd be much less likely to be doing that if he had experienced Lefebvre as a coach for twelve games.

 

[26Mats]

I'm sure that they haven't proven anything. I'm sure that neithe Evans nor Poehling will be top 6 material.

So you're not sure Timmins hasn't drafted a good center in 17 years, because it's too early to tell whether that statement is true or not.

 

[Whitesnake]

You were much higher on Zadina. And you were higher on Dobson than Hughes. I remember arguing with you over this, around February/March of that year.

Easy to say when we cannot look back at our posts......would love for that to happen.

Thing is...let's even pretend it's true...I'm still laughing at the perspective that people ask for patience for JK....but don't ask for patience for Dobson or Zadina or whoever. That people used some great games to elevate THEIR players, but ask others that does the same for THEIR players to stop gloating at a few bad performances....

Is JK having the same type of performances if he plays for Detroit??? Yeah, of course not. He doesn't play right now. I wasn't high on Tkachuk. I had him after top 10. You will NEVER hear me saying how I would have picked him despite the success he's having. I misread him. He's still finally in retrospect a great prospect....even if he's not playing right now. 'Cause reality suggest that if this season is a normal season, we don't see JK shining right now.

By the way....everybody can play that game you know. Where are the posters who were gloating at Poehling's 3-goal saying that we misread his offensive touch???

 

[Whitesnake]

So you're not sure Timmins hasn't drafted a good center in 17 years, because it's too early to tell whether that statement is true or not.

A top 6 C? The only guy possible with a huge big IF is Hillis. So as far as proven commodities, yep, Timmins hasn't drafted 1 good C beside JK. Still wondering how you would find that good based on the fact that I keep hearing how the value of the drafts are mostly centermen.

 

[DAChampion]

So you're not sure Timmins hasn't drafted a good center in 17 years, because it's too early to tell whether that statement is true or not.

He was using hyperbole. That is a legitimate literary device in some context, and dishonesty in others. Here it was the first.

What we know is that the Habs have not drafted and developed a top-6 center during the period 2003-2017, which is 15 years. Evans, from the 2014 draft, has an outside chance to turn into a third line center.