LD Nikita Zadorov (2013, 16th, BUF; traded to COL)

[Beerz]

Did any of you watch him or just assuming? He was at times the best player for the team for the first few weeks. The team is a disaster right now, it has nothing to do with Zadorov himself.

Pretty sure he was just asking a question... which means No..he hasn't watched him this season.

 

[Beerz]

Of course. It's a demotion. This page feels like post after post of denial.

Denial of what? He's a 20 yr old Dman. He's going to be inconsistent. Demotion or not it's not a huge indicator of what his future holds.

 

[Rebuilt]

I see a huge positive in this. He wasn't ready last year, and he's not yet there this year either.

He needs more development and 20 minutes a night.

This. He is 20 year old defenseman whom is basically a boy in a monsters body.

 

[Fantomas]

Denial of what? He's a 20 yr old Dman. He's going to be inconsistent.

Denial of the fact that Zadorov has been much worse than expected.

None of this means that Zadorov will not turn his game around and not become a good player. Just think it is strange that several posters do not see this as a step back.

It's a step back. I am disappointed.

 

[Beerz]

Denial of the fact that Zadorov has been much worse than expected.

None of this means that Zadorov will not turn his game around and not become a good player. Just think it is strange that several posters do not see this as a step back.

It's a step back. I am disappointed.

A step back and I'm disappointed is a far cry from ... "I don't see any positives in this" ...

 

[Fantomas]

A step back and I'm disappointed is a far cry from ... "I don't see any positives in this" ...

It's the same thing. There are no positives in a demotion. Here is how this very strange exchange has gone so far.

News: Zadorov demoted to the NHL
Some Posters: "Great News!"
Me: "?"

 

[Fantomas]

Correction: I of course meant "demoted to the AHL".

 

[Beerz]

It's the same thing. There are no positives in a demotion. Here is how this very strange exchange has gone so far.

News: Zadorov demoted to the NHL
Some Posters: "Great News!"
Me: "?"

There are positives in a demotion.

20 year old kid gets to have top pairing minutes. Gets to have PP and PK time ... to work on his game.

It's called development. That's a positive.

Or he could stay up in the NHL and continue to be healthy scratched and playing min minutes without being able to work on his game.

There are positives.

 

[Fantomas]

There are positives in a demotion.

20 year old kid gets to have top pairing minutes. Gets to have PP and PK time ... to work on his game.

It's called development. That's a positive.

Or he could stay up in the NHL and continue to be healthy scratched and playing min minutes without being able to work on his game.

There are positives.

That's one way of looking at it. The other way of looking at it is that Zadorov has not played as well as most of us have expected. Which is why he has been demoted.

 

[Rebuilt]

That's one way of looking at it. The other way of looking at it is that Zadorov has not played as well as most of us have expected. Which is why he has been demoted.

At age 20 how 'well' did you expect him to perform? Wouldnt it be better for him to get 20 min a night in the AHL instead of the 3rd pairing in Colorado?

You failed to mention exactly what these 'expectations' supposedly were.

You just say he never met them, is a huge disappointment and therefore........

/end thread.

That resolves nothing nor adds to the conversation.

 

[sabresfan129103]

Zadorov was always expected to be a big project who would take a while to develop his game. I think it surprised a lot of people when he stepped into the NHL and didn't look out of place. He's probably disappointed he couldn't stick with the big club, but this is definitely the best move for his development. He'll be a better player for it.

 

[Fantomas]

At age 20 how 'well' did you expect him to perform? Wouldnt it be better for him to get 20 min a night in the AHL instead of the 3rd pairing in Colorado?

You failed to mention exactly what these 'expectations' supposedly were.

Expectations of pretty much everyone were that Zadorov would be an NHL defenseman this year. He was one last year. Why would anyone expect less?

I think you are looking hard for excuses.

 

[Moskau]

Expectations of pretty much everyone were that Zadorov would be an NHL defenseman this year. He was one last year.

No he wasn't. He was a train wreck defensively most nights. The AHL will be good for him but I'm not sad for him considering he and his agent forced Buffalo to play him in the NHL when he wasn't ready.

 

[AvsCOL]

With the season the Avs are having, I have no issue with a guy going to the AHL to play 20+ minutes guaranteed a night. I might sound silly saying this, but at the point I'd argue that Roy is hurting the development of some guys.


Let him go down and play 10-15 games as a top-2 defenseman, and then we'll see if that helps his confidence.

 

[Rebuilt]

Expectations of pretty much everyone were that Zadorov would be an NHL defenseman this year. He was one last year. Why would anyone expect less?

I think you are looking hard for excuses.

By whom? Who are all these people you 'claim' he would be a solid NHL defender playing all 82 games this year? And secondly, he plays in Colorado with a totally different roster.

The point still stands. You made up your own 'expectation' , then simply 'claim' he didnt reach it to your satisfaction, and say you are disappointed. So what?

Your subjective spin is duly noted.

 

[couture23]

Expectations of pretty much everyone were that Zadorov would be an NHL defenseman this year. He was one last year. Why would anyone expect less?

I think you are looking hard for excuses.

He was not an NHL defenseman last year for 60 games. Sure he looked capable, but he could have used the AHL last year but it wasn't possible.

 

[Fantomas]

By whom? Who are all these people you 'claim' he would be a solid NHL defender playing all 82 games this year? And secondly, he plays in Colorado with a totally different roster.

The point still stands. You made up your own 'expectation' , then simply 'claim' he didnt reach it to your satisfaction, and say you are disappointed. So what?

I did not make up my own expectation. Look up any fantasy guide projection.

 

[BlueDream]

I agree with Fantomas and a lot of you guys I think are taking his comment too literally. I don't believe he's saying this guy is already a bust or anything like that, but sure, it is definitely disappointing. The Avs traded one of their best players to Buffalo and this was the main piece coming back. Now he won't be on their roster and their defense isn't anything special to begin with. Their season is already lost it looks like (so in that case maybe it is a good idea to get him away from that locker room, who knows).

We all know it's not the end of the world and he can work on his development, but if you told Avs fans at the beginning of the season that he would be sent down 11 games in, nobody would look at that as a positive thing. That's the point. Nothing is going their way this season aside from maybe the play of Nathan MacKinnon.

 

[Dubi Doo]

Denial of the fact that Zadorov has been much worse than expected.

None of this means that Zadorov will not turn his game around and not become a good player. Just think it is strange that several posters do not see this as a step back.

It's a step back. I am disappointed.

It all depends on your personal perspective. I thought it was blatantly obvious last year that Zadorov would need some time in the AHL. If he stayed in Buffalo there was little doubt in my mind that he would start the year in the 'A'. His defensive game needs a lot of work. What's best for him right now is playing as many minutes as possible. He should get major minutes in the AHL. There's no doubt that Zadarov has booming potential, but he's very raw at this point. You don't want to rush players like that, imo.

 

[The Mars Volchenkov]

First game in the AHL.

 

[Powdered Toast Man]

How reckless of him, should of dumped it in.

 

[S E P H]

Roy isn't a very good coach at this level and is more suited for junior players, the Avs D core is a mess. He stepped into a good situation for coaching but now its just bad and he gives his bad players playing time.

No, its not just Avs defensive core, not even close. The whole team is a mess from Duchene's slow start, to MacKinnon missing his man against San Jose's GWG, to Erik Johnson's blind pass in the game against the Kings, to Iginla's lack of puck skills, to Tanguay's lack of everything, to Comeau's uselessness, to Landeskog's bum shoulder, to Varlamov's horrible tracking, To Barrie's subpar play, to Holden playing substantial minutes, to a breakout constantly looking for slapshot dump ins from the defensive goal line, to the most passive defensive collapsing system you'll find.

Its not just "Avs defensive core", literally everyone from 1st line to scratched players to Patrick Roy to assistant coach Farrish have to be blamed.

Truly the only players who have been consistently good for the Avs have been, Grigorenko, Skillie, McLeod, and MacKinnon.

Yeah, Zads will be fine. He has all the tools, just needs to get the timing down and some better off ice habits. He's gonna be a beast for years.

I would say Zadorov's worst habit is his puck watching, he's prone on occasion to just get mesmerize by the puck. Yeah, he was one of the better Avs players for the first 5-6 games or so then started to regress inconsistently. Was dreadful against the Coyotes and then was sent down after that. Its the opposite of bad since San Antonio have a superb team so he gets top 3 minutes down there and understands the feeling of winning.

I don't see any positives in this. Very disappointed in Zadorov.

Yikes, but its coming from you so not surprised.

 

[Revelate]

My biggest gripe with Zadorov when he was up in Buffalo was his ability to read plays in his own zone. That will definitely improve with experience, there is no doubt. It's just a question of how much. He's tremendously gifted, with great size. His offensive instincts are excellent. I just questions his d-zone hockey IQ i suppose.

 

[Frenzy31]

At age 20 how 'well' did you expect him to perform? Wouldnt it be better for him to get 20 min a night in the AHL instead of the 3rd pairing in Colorado?

You failed to mention exactly what these 'expectations' supposedly were.

You just say he never met them, is a huge disappointment and therefore........

/end thread.

That resolves nothing nor adds to the conversation.

That begins and ends with expectations. As a fan of the Blues - we traded Perron for MSP. I thought it was a decent trade at the time, and we as a fan base were expecting MSP to play a solid 3rd line role.

He was waived last year and this year. For him to go to the AHL and develop and grow in confidence is a good thing. From the fan perspective it sucks because he isn't the player we thought he was - thought we were getting a 3rd liner with upside wound up with an AHL player.

Zadorov was the main piece coming back in the trade for a really solid top line player. I would a disappointed also. I think most people would be. And most fans were expecting him to make a good impact on their blue line and be part of the playoff run.

I don't quite understand why people are taking someone to task for saying that it is disappointing for a player that was expected to contribute to be sent to the AHL.

 

[Fantomas]

Yikes, but its coming from you so not surprised.

Far out, man.