Prospect Info: Jonathan Lekkerimaki, #15 Overall, 2022 NHL Draft

[VanJack]

Lekkerimaki is looking great playing against kids his own age in this tournament. Imagine that?

Maybe playing against guys in the Allsvenskan who are eight years old and fully mature physically has something to do with his rather ordinary year so far.

 

[Grantham]

Lekkerimaki is looking great playing against kids his own age in this tournament. Imagine that?

Maybe playing against guys in the Allsvenskan who are eight years old and fully mature physically has something to do with his rather ordinary year so far.

It's really weird. I don't really know what it is, but it could be like you say.

I was also thinking that weird phase EP went through last year when he was one of our worst players. Many were saying we should trade him. And now? The guy is our best player hands down.

Lekk looked terrible in the WJC this summer, then is struggling in Allsvenskan.

Could it be confidence like EP? How does a player just forget how to play high level hockey? Weird stuff, but I'm somewhat more optimistic with this WJC.

 

[Jay26]

It's really weird. I don't really know what it is, but it could be like you say.

I was also thinking that weird phase EP went through last year when he was one of our worst players. Many were saying we should trade him. And now? The guy is our best player hands down.

Lekk looked terrible in the WJC this summer, then is struggling in Allsvenskan.

Could it be confidence like EP? How does a player just forget how to play high level hockey? Weird stuff, but I'm somewhat more optimistic with this WJC.

This is exactly why I don't watch prospects that closely anymore and just wait. I don't really know shit about a player and if he's going to make it or not. Time ultimately tells all.

 

[mathonwy]

This is exactly why I don't watch prospects that closely anymore and just wait. I don't really know shit about a player and if he's going to make it or not. Time ultimately tells all.

Unless that prospect is Jake Virtanen and bust is petty much written in neon ink on his forehead but drafting guru.

 

[Blue and Green]

Lekkerimaki is looking great playing against kids his own age in this tournament. Imagine that?

Maybe playing against guys in the Allsvenskan who are eight years old and fully mature physically has something to do with his rather ordinary year so far.

Allsvenskan isn't a strong league, it's approximately ECHL-level. A good prospect should do well in that league in his D+1 season.

 

[Dessloch]

Allsvenskan isn't a strong league, it's approximately ECHL-level. A good prospect should do well in that league in his D+1 season.

Djurgården has 3 1st 2022 draft picks, and Jonathan has not done much worse than any other of them. I would say the level of the Allsvenskan is underrated for sure.

 

[Blue and Green]

Djurgården has 3 1st 2022 draft picks, and Jonathan has not done much worse than any other of them. I would say the level of the Allsvenskan is underrated for sure.

He has done substantially worse, less than half of the PPG as either of the other two. And anyone can review the CV's of the top scorers this season in Allsvenskan. A bunch of guys who can't do much in SHL or AHL.

 

[Just A Bit Outside]

Still not convinced.

Sweden barely beat Germany.

Kid might get picked late in the 1st if there was a re draft.

Maybe.

 

[mriswith]

No one gave Gillis shit for not getting good players with the picks he had, but for basically not getting any NHL players at all. Even accounting for draft position and quantity of picks the Canucks drafted significantly better in the Benning era.

I disagree. Neither regime produced any impact skaters for their team from the draft outside of the top 10, with the exception of Boeser and that's pretty much just draft quality since almost every first round pick in the legendary 2015 draft became an impact player.

I think the reputational difference is entirely due to who had more top 10 picks.

I agree that the drafting was better under Benning and I think that the difference in NHL outcomes was because our AHL program was catastrophically bad, the list of players who looked promising until they hit the AHL and immediately became potatoes is larger than you would expect even if it is the norm for that stage of development. I'd also argue that Green ruined at least a couple players that should have hit.

But these are things that don't weigh in on fan opinion of drafting.

 

[Nucker101]

It's really weird. I don't really know what it is, but it could be like you say.

I was also thinking that weird phase EP went through last year when he was one of our worst players. Many were saying we should trade him. And now? The guy is our best player hands down.

Lekk looked terrible in the WJC this summer, then is struggling in Allsvenskan.

Could it be confidence like EP? How does a player just forget how to play high level hockey? Weird stuff, but I'm somewhat more optimistic with this WJC.

EP was playing through a wrist injury

 

[PuckMunchkin]

Allsvenskan isn't a strong league, it's approximately ECHL-level. A good prospect should do well in that league in his D+1 season.

Its above ECHL for sure.

Problem is the variation between good and bad teams is massive. There are teams working towards the SHL and there are teams that are almost semi-pro.

They pay good enough salaries that they are poaching top talent from other main leagues like the finnish liiga.

 

[RobertKron]

Lekkerimaki is looking great playing against kids his own age in this tournament. Imagine that?

Maybe playing against guys in the Allsvenskan who are eight years old and fully mature physically has something to do with his rather ordinary year so far.

Dude is putting up that stat line playing against eight year olds?

 

[Gstank]

He has done substantially worse, less than half of the PPG as either of the other two. And anyone can review the CV's of the top scorers this season in Allsvenskan. A bunch of guys who can't do much in SHL or AHL.

They are also is most cases 5+ years older. IDK if you have seen a 18 year old with a fully grown adult but you can definitely see why skilled players struggle when they play again vets and career pros

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

I disagree. Neither regime produced any impact skaters for their team from the draft outside of the top 10, with the exception of Boeser and that's pretty much just draft quality since almost every first round pick in the legendary 2015 draft became an impact player.

I think the reputational difference is entirely due to who had more top 10 picks.

I agree that the drafting was better under Benning and I think that the difference in NHL outcomes was because our AHL program was catastrophically bad, the list of players who looked promising until they hit the AHL and immediately became potatoes is larger than you would expect even if it is the norm for that stage of development. I'd also argue that Green ruined at least a couple players that should have hit.

But these are things that don't weigh in on fan opinion of drafting.

One was 1/1 on top 10 picks, the other was 2/4. All emotion aside, I don't know how one can even make the comparison to either. It's like comparing apples to what's inside a black hole. It's not fair to either of them.

 

[Canucks LB]

Honestly, I was very hard on him before this tournament, but he’s played well, in two games, he already is playing way better than he did last, seems more engaged, and has picked up a few points, that’s encouraging honestly

 

[Blue and Green]

Its above ECHL for sure.

Problem is the variation between good and bad teams is massive. There are teams working towards the SHL and there are teams that are almost semi-pro.

They pay good enough salaries that they are poaching top talent from other main leagues like the finnish liiga.

Allsvenskan isn't much better than ECHL.

They are also is most cases 5+ years older. IDK if you have seen a 18 year old with a fully grown adult but you can definitely see why skilled players struggle when they play again vets and career pros

IDK if you have seen talented 18 year olds play against less talented fully grown adults but the talented 18YO's generally do just fine. Whatever is going on with Lekkerimaki, it's got nothing to do with quality of the league being too high for a typical 15th overall pick in his D+1.

 

[PuckMunchkin]

Allsvenskan isn't much better than ECHL.

I disagree.

 

[F A N]

Same way basically this entire fanbase thought Gillis was terrible for not getting players at #28 overall but that Benning was some sort of savant for going 50% on top-10 picks.

Drafting ‘success’ is mostly just draft position and high picks and if you don’t have those casuals will basically always think your drafting sucks.

Do you think Gillis' drafting was good?

I mean there has to be some way to evaluate it. I'm not suggesting that we evaluate Gillis' drafting based on not making what would have been considered a surprise pick at the time such as Karlsson over Hodgson or not picking Kucherov, but there were certainly picks drafted shortly after the Canucks picked that were right in the Canucks wheelhouse that was passed over.

For example, I remember some posters wanted Palmieri over Schroeder. A lot of people also wanted Tatar over Rodin. Rakall was drafted right after Jensen and they both played in the OHL. Jenner was popular as well. For reference, McKenzie's BPA was Saad. Forget drafting Labate over Gaudreau that year. I think most of us liked the Gaunce pick and I could see not taking a chance on Pearson, but certainly Skjei wouldn't have been a surprise pick.

The same analysis applies to Benning's drafts. Heck, in 2014, what if we drafted Ehlers/Nylander, Pastrnak, Demko, and Point? That's potentially franchise defining.

 

[arttk]

can we stick to Lekkerimaki here?

 

[bandwagonesque]

can we stick to Lekkerimaki here?

Since you brought it up, I believe the Gudbranson trade was poor value.

Oh, you disagree? Well then, I question your judgment in this matter.

 

[Bgav]

Allsvenskan isn't a strong league, it's approximately ECHL-level. A good prospect should do well in that league in his D+1 season.

Do you actually believe Allsvenskan is echl level? lol

 

[Pip]

Do you actually believe Allsvenskan is echl level? lol

Yeah that seems extreme to me but at the same time it’s certainly well below the AHL so I’d be interested to see where it fell on that scale.

 

[Phrasing]

I watched the games and he looks pretty pedestrian to me. I don’t see game breaking or even top 10 talent like the Canucks clearly thought he was. There several players picked afterwards that are developing and showing much better. Canucks scouting draft need a post-mortem to reevaluate their misguided ego thinking they got a steal and hold the scouting department accountable.

 

[PuckMunchkin]

I watched the games and he looks pretty pedestrian to me. I don’t see game breaking or even top 10 talent like the Canucks clearly thought he was. There several players picked afterwards that are developing and showing much better. Canucks scouting draft need a post-mortem to reevaluate their misguided ego thinking they got a steal and hold the scouting department accountable.

The thing is he is not much of an athlete right now.

Add some speed and strenght and he could become something.

I was not super high on the pick and he has not done anything to change that, but I see the logic.

 

[Phrasing]

The thing is he is not much of an athlete right now.

Add some speed and strenght and he could become something.

I was not super high on the pick and he has not done anything to change that, but I see the logic.

Exactly true, and it’s only been early into the season and maybe he shows why the Canucks were so high on him, but so far he hasn’t justified it yet. I don’t mind patience, but it’s certainly made more difficult when players taken shortly after him are demonstrating good development.