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Player Discussion Kaapo Kakko: Part IV

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haohmaru said:
Meh, he's 20 years old. Way too early for this conversation, IMHO. He's got some pretty stiff competition on wing, too. I was happy with his development last year.
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The good thing is, Kakko sure isn't happy about his performance so far. He wants to be the guy that makes the difference, he was the #1 guy in every team before the Rangers. Surely, he wants to be that guy again.

From what I've heard, he's a training freak, so hopefully he knows what he needs to address this off season. Skating, and his shot. Some advices from Rantanen maybe?
 
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NYRFANMANI said:
imo, his speed is the only issue with his skating. And yes, some acceleration maybe. Conditioning, he was a pup, it comes with age. But agility? ... nah, we good. Kaapo good.

Shot is number one priority. AINEC
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Shot is pretty terrible. No question.
 
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Sockosensei said:
It's not a strength of his game, but terrible is a bit much.

I think the issue has been about confidence and not acting on instinct.

A split second of shooter's indecision gives an NHL goaltender an advantage in positioning.

Let's see if comfort and a new coach get him that confidence back.
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I agree, it's not the shot itself as much as hesitation and shot selection. He is not up against Liiga goalies anymore. He'll figure it out. Once he gets comfortable and starts to play on instinct again it should be ok. Not that he can't improve of course.
 
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I think a less wishy washy coach that believes in him will do him wonders. Seems like the only thing Gallant isn't a fan of his laziness and I don't think Kakko has anything to worry about in that regard

I also wouldn't underestimate how tough it can be to move to another country at such a young age and play on one of the largest stages in the world. I think his confidence level will keep growing as he settles in and becomes more and more comfortable with the environment and his teammates.

He does need to work on more tangible things like his shot and skating, but gaining confidence is far and away the biggest thing for him
 
Kodiak said:
Kakko should also spend a lot of time reviewing tape on how other players are able to get the puck from the wall to high danger areas. That’s the next mental part of the game he needs to figure out. He’s so good along the wall, but he can’t quite transition that into offense yet.
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Kodiak said:
Kakko should also spend a lot of time reviewing tape on how other players are able to get the puck from the wall to high danger areas. That’s the next mental part of the game he needs to figure out. He’s so good along the wall, but he can’t quite transition that into offense yet.
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True, offensively, the kid we drafted at 18 looked more confident then the rangers version of kakko. I don’t know if he was scared of playing less under Quinn if he messed up offensively or what, but he needs to be more decisive with the puck on his stick. Hopefully Gallant will give him the kick start he needs to get his confidence going again. I’m a big proponent of giving them minutes. That the best way they develop as far as I’m concerned. More minutes in all situations.
 
jay from jersey said:
True, offensively, the kid we drafted at 18 looked more confident then the rangers version of kakko. I don’t know if he was scared of playing less under Quinn if he messed up offensively or what, but he needs to be more decisive with the puck on his stick. Hopefully Gallant will give him the kick start he needs to get his confidence going again. I’m a big proponent of giving them minutes. That the best way they develop as far as I’m concerned. More minutes in all situations.
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There have been some comments that players were afraid to make mistakes under Quinn. And he didn’t seem to get much direction in the offensive zone other than go to the net, so he just parked there at times. That should all change now.

Better system + clean slate + drive to improve + newfound confidence (hopefully)

The ingredients are there for a big year.
 
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Kodiak said:
Kakko should also spend a lot of time reviewing tape on how other players are able to get the puck from the wall to high danger areas. That’s the next mental part of the game he needs to figure out. He’s so good along the wall, but he can’t quite transition that into offense yet.
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Players already do that on a daily basis
 
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I am not worried about Kakko. The only thing he needs to work on is his acceleration. First steps. Everything else is really a function of thinking too much and not just going on feel and playing his game. Hopefully Gallant will be able to set him free offensively.
 
Fitzy said:
Reminds me a bit of Rick Nash in that regard.

Gonna be the kind of player that uses a lot of dekes in close.
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This isn't quite accurate. Many of his shots, yes, fall into the Mike York category of shot type. That he has to fix. But there have been quite a few times this past season where out of nowhere he takes a one timer or a snapshot and suddenly there's tremendous whip on it. He hit a few posts and missed the net a few times with those shots this year.

The thing I wonder about with Kakko, other than that first step, which he needs to keep working on, is his game processing. Sometimes it's elite. Other times, it's a bit delayed or off. It could just be that he's figuring things out still, because he's not able to just use his size and stickhandling the same way as before, or it could become one of those frustrating things where he's inconsistent with his decision making. He sorta reminds me of a young Buchnevich or JT Miller in that way. That's why I think Kakko is more like a Mark Stone at his peak. But based on his improved D alone, he's far beyond a lot of the comparables. The knock on all of these other kids was their inconsistency in every zone. Kakko managed to solve his inconsistency in two zones already.
 
Kakko just needs to work on his shot. The rest of his game is anywhere from acceptable to elite.

His shot is very poor. Slow release with surprisingly slow speed to it.

It'll come. I've got faith.
 
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Kaako's mission this offseason is to improve his speed even by a little. He talked about this on breakup day.

He finally has a real coach as well. He'll need to show more effort and not take shifts off and he'll be fine and have a much better opportunity under Gallant.
 
KreiderBomb said:
Kakko to me plays like Hossa, if thats how he ends up sign me up.
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Fully agree. Hossa always had a good shot and quick first strides, though. That’s why he was so good on the PK — back checking god and perpetual breakaway generator.
 
The way we've seen him (at 20 yrs old) go into a play on the boards vs three vets and come away with the puck 8/10 times reminds me of Jagr so much.
 
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