Player Discussion Lane Hutson Part 2

[Lafleurs Guy]

Not really. If there’s some game left when his season ends, they’ll sign him and play him like they did Harris and Farrell in the last 2 seasons.

They signed Joshua Roy and he went to the AHL. I think if he’s not in college that’s where he goes next.

 

[SlafySZN]

They signed Joshua Foy and he went to the AHL. I think if he’s not in college that’s where he goes next.

Will he start in the NHL next year? not necessarily it depends but Lane will play some NHL games when they’ll sign him, there’s no doubt!

 

[admiralcadillac]

Bruv

He is not likely to grow anymore

 

[Ozmodiar]

Will he start in the NHL next year? not necessarily it depends but Lane will play some NHL games when they’ll sign him, there’s no doubt!

They could sign him and send him to the AHL.

 

[SlafySZN]

They could sign him and send him to the AHL.

Doubt it. If guys like Harris and Farrell signed and played some games, Hutson will too.

 

[Kobe Armstrong]

He is not likely to grow anymore

You were wrong bro. You said it was likely he was going to keep growing until 21 or 22. Even the Dr's note from the combine said that his plates still had a year+ left, and that was 1.5 years ago.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

I don't understand why there is so much hype on Hutson. It's like people forget what makes a good D in the NHL. Sorry, but the only D in the NHL with a frame similar to Hutson is Jared Spurgeon, especially being so light in the 160 ish pounds.

To me Hutson is the opposite of Jayden Struble, and Struble played his four years in the NCAA before turning pro, while being a very strong kid all along. Hutson is the opposite of that, and not very fast to compensate, so I don't see him turning pro next year. If he does, it will be a big mistake. Forget the offensive stats in the NCAA on a very good team. The pro game, even in the AHL, is something else. His moves that often work in the NCAA won't work so often in the pros, and he will be a target.

Look at Joshua Roy this year. He started really like a rocket, but then opposing teams took notice and it became much harder for him. His little fancy moves were countered. It will be the same for Hutson, and opposing teams will hit him as much as possible. I don't say he will not make it to the NHL, but he has an enormous challenge in front of him because of his small size and average skating.

If he cannot defend properly, he will be a specialist in the NHL at best. It is very important for him to get much stronger and concentrate on his defensive game before turning pro. We all know that he has a very high hockey IQ and very good hands, but you cannot make a career in the NHL only with that. Forget his stats and highlight plays in the NCAA and project him in the pro game with its 72-82 games schedule. Sorry, he will not be ready for that next year. Patience and hard work are required. I am not trying to say he has no chance to make it. I just try to be realistic.

i totally agree with you i see him as a pp specialist third pairing guy if he can't defend at 5 on 5

 

[WeThreeKings]

Doubt it. If guys like Harris and Farrell signed and played some games, Hutson will too.

It will certainly be part of the negotiations. Almost every big name NCAA prospect plays some games to burn a year of ELC.

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

Doubt it. If guys like Harris and Farrell signed and played some games, Hutson will too.

Exactly, and it will have nothing to do with him being ready for it or not. He will negotiate an agreement to play in NHL games at the end of the season to burn one season of ELC control. Hughes already acknowledged two weeks ago that they plan to sign him at the conclusion of BU's season on his SICK podcast appearance that was hosted by Pierre McGuire and Jimmy Murphy.

 

[DAChampion]

i totally agree with you i see him as a pp specialist third pairing guy if he can't defend at 5 on 5

If even that.

I don't know if a serious team can host a PP specialist. I think that every player needs a minimal competency at even strength.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

If even that.

I don't know if a serious team can host a PP specialist. I think that every player needs a minimal competency at even strength.

Watched the first seven minutes of USA and Norway and its clear that Norway’s game plan is to be physical on Hutson. Let’s see how he responds.

 

[admiralcadillac]

You were wrong bro. You said it was likely he was going to keep growing until 21 or 22. Even the Dr's note from the combine said that his plates still had a year+ left, and that was 1.5 years ago.

Read my post again - you quoted me.

I was saying that you said the opposite.

I think you’ve misunderstood my post

 

[bcv]

That is not true at all, fans for the most part aren't even watching the same game and I generally avoid talking sports with them in person as it is painful to listen to. It is all too common in today's world for the layman to attempt to discredit professionals and is contributing to the erosion of Western democracy.

There are obviously some dumb scouts who do get in through nepotism but that is true of all vocations, especially those that do not require a post secondary degree.

A lot of people on these boards would fare just as good as the « real » scouts. Hockey isn’t rocket science, most people who are gonna invest time in watching will be able to spot the good and the bad players. Some they like will bust, some they don’t will boom. Just like every « pro » scouts.

So, I’ll rephrase: Scouts are just invested fans who know people.

 

[jfm133]

Struble did not play any games in the NHL last spring and he was ready for the NHL and could have become UFA a few months after. Harris also was a few months from free agency. If Hughes makes the mistake to sign Hutson nest April, it should be a contract like Struble. Go in AHL first, prove yourself, especially given that Hutson is under Habs control for two more years. Hutson has no leverage in the short term. But the best idea would be to convince him that he needs at least one more year in college, not because he is not talented enough, because he is not at physical maturity and is very small for a D.

 

[Kobe Armstrong]

Read my post again - you quoted me.

I was saying that you said the opposite.

I think you’ve misunderstood my post

You said he was likely to continue growing until he was 21 or 22 and I said that it's nowhere near guaranteed, that's all I care about.

That was the only point you made that is worth discussing, the rest of it is some ridiculous smug rant asking for first hand evidence from doctors and other BS, asking for proof that he won't grow. Just use common sense, you can't prove that my dog won't live to be 30 years old, but history shows us that it is unlikely.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

A lot of people on these boards would fare just as good as the « real » scouts. Hockey isn’t rocket science, most people who are gonna invest time in watching will be able to spot the good and the bad players. Some they like will bust, some they don’t will boom. Just like every « pro » scouts.

So, I’ll rephrase: Scouts are just invested fans who know people.

Scouts watch a lot of minor league hockey. The majority of us don’t watch nearly the amount they do, if at all.

I’ve seen Hutson thanks to the highlights @montreal has posted. Same with Joshua Roy. That’s why I don’t have strong opinions on prospects… I simply haven’t seen enough of them.

So I’d say scouts are definitely better informed simply by watching the games. But being a scout doesn’t automatically mean that they’re opinion is’better’ than someone who actually is paying attention to these games as well. In other words, being a scout doesn’t in itself make one’s opinion better than another’s. But I’d bet dollars to donuts that they’ll have actually seen the players they’re talking about and that gives them at least some credibility vs the majority of fans here who haven’t seen these guys play - in some cases at all.

Michkov is a great example. I wanted us to draft him but that was based on his history and my own readings. I’d never really seen him play so I’m not going to argue vehemently one way or another. How many fans have screamed he was the right or wrong pick? How much have they seen him play? A lot of people have strong opinion players they haven’t seen.

That being said, I’ve seen scouts start to talk about NHL players I know very well and their takes are sometimes absolutely terrible. Nobody - as a theoretical example - is going to tell me that Subban wasnt among the absolute best players in the league. If I hear otherwise, I put a lot less stock in that person’s opinion. They simply don’t know what they’re talking about.

 

[bcv]

Scouts watch a lot of hockey. They watch these players and have an opinion. The majority of us don’t watch nearly the amount they do, if at all.

I’ve seen Hutson thanks to the highlights @montreal has posted. Same with Joshua Roy. That’s why I don’t have strong opinions on prospects… I simply haven’t seen enough of them.

So I’d say scouts are definitely better informed simply by watching the games. But being a scout doesn’t automatically mean that they’re opinion is’better’ than someone who actually is paying attention to these games. In other words, being a scout doesn’t in itself make one’s opinion better than another’s. But I’d bet dollars to donuts that they’ll have actuall seen the players they’re talking about and that gives them at least some credibility vs the majority of fans here who haven’t seen these guys play - in some cases at all.

Michkov is a great example. I wanted us to draft him but that was based on his history and my own readings. I’d never really seen him play so I’m not going to argue vehemently one way or another. How many fans have screamed he was the right or wrong pick? How much have they seen him play? A lot of people have strong opinion players they haven’t seen.

That being said, I’ve seen scouts start to talk about NHL players I know very well and their takes are sometimes absolutely terrible. Nobody - as a theoretical example - is going to tell me that Subban wasnt among the absolute best players in the league. If I hear otherwise, I put a lot less stock in that person’s opinion. They simply don’t know what they’re talking about.

I agree with all of this and I just want to clarify that I’m not saying most fans know what they’re talking about as much as scouts. Just that there’s plenty of people on here that do invest time to watch prospects play and their opinions are worth as much to me.

 

[FLHabs]

I'm really high on Hutson, but the more I watch actual games of him and not just highlights, the more I think he's the ultimate boom or bust prospect. Either his game will translate in the NHL or it won't, simple as that.

Good thing the D prospect pool is literally overflowing, especially on that left side.

 

[bcv]

I'm really high on Hutson, but the more I watch actual games of him and not just highlights, the more I think he's the ultimate boom or bust prospect. Either his game will translate in the NHL or it won't, simple as that.

Good thing the D prospect pool is literally overflowing, especially on that left side.

Great gamble at the end the 2nd round but yeah he’s far from a lock to be a mainstay in the NHL.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

I'm really high on Hutson, but the more I watch actual games of him and not just highlights, the more I think he's the ultimate boom or bust prospect. Either his game will translate in the NHL or it won't, simple as that.

Good thing the D prospect pool is literally overflowing, especially on that left side.

@montreal includes ‘lowlights’ in his play as well. Most of those clips show all or most of his shifts. It actually gives you a pretty good idea of what kind of player he is.

I’m far less worried about the skating that’s been brought up. I think he can work around that and he’s absolutely incredible with the puck. But his size will limit what he can do. There’s no getting around that. He has to pack on a fair bit of mud for sure which is why I don’t see him in the NHL next year.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Great gamble at the end the 2nd round but yeah he’s far from a lock to be a mainstay in the NHL.

Lock? No. But he’s broken records and has been insanely dominant. I’m really excited by the potential. I think people are so worried about getting something wrong and then think they’ll be mocked endlessly because they predicted stardom for a player.

The potential for stardom IS there. I don’t care who says otherwise. Will he be able to translate it over to the pros? To be seen. But the idea that this guy has no chance of becoming a dynamic first pairing blueliner is way wrong in my opinion. I’m really excited to see what he can do. It’s okay to be excited.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

A year in the AHL will help him transition to pro hockey and to deal with bigger stronger players while getting top-pairing minutes. He will need time to build strength and core. He is probably too good for AHL but it doesn't matter - he needs to develop physically first due to his size.

 

[badfish]

Im pretty devoted. I would estimate I personally scout a few hundred players every year*.
*On hockeydb.

 

[FLHabs]

@montreal includes ‘lowlights’ in his play as well. Most of those clips show all or most of his shifts. It actually gives you a pretty good idea of what kind of player he is.

I’m far less worried about the skating that’s been brought up. I think he can work around that and he’s absolutely incredible with the puck. But his size will limit what he can do. There’s no getting around that. He has to pack on a fair bit of mud for sure which is why I don’t see him in the NHL next year.

Yea I watch those as well when I can. He does look really good in the NCAA, maybe it's just the higher level of competition in WJC or gelling with a new team that kinda exposes his weaknesses a bit more.

The whole "can't skate backwards" has kinda become a meme at this point, but there's some truth to it imo. He really lacks explosiveness when skating backwards, that's why he's always looking to turn around and do this half chasing looking backwards stick checking type of defending he does. I don't think he'll get way with that in the NHL, guys are too skilled and too fast.

He'll definitely need some, if not a lot of, AHL seasoning imo.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Yea I watch those as well when I can. He does look really good in the NCAA, maybe it's just the higher level of competition in WJC or gelling with a new team that kinda exposes his weaknesses a bit more.

The whole "can't skate backwards" has kinda become a meme at this point, but there's some truth to it imo. He really lacks explosiveness when skating backwards, that's why he's always looking to turn around and do this half chasing looking backwards stick checking type of defending he does. I don't think he'll get way with that in the NHL, guys are too skilled and too fast.

He'll definitely need some, if not a lot of, AHL seasoning imo.

He needs to put on some muscle at a minimum so I don’t see him in the NHL until the 25-26 season.