LD Shea Theodore (2013, 26th, ANA; VGK expan.)

[WhatTheDuck]

I thought he was by far our best defenceman for our gold medal winning team last year.

I'd have a tough time saying he was by far better than Nurse, the two of them together were studly.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

I'd have a tough time saying he was by far better than Nurse, the two of them together were studly.

They play different games. Nurse is more physical, he was drafted high. He may have been more noticeable.

I like D men like Theodore. He may not be flashy. But his intelligence, puck moving abilities, decision making was second to none. Canada was rarely in trouble when he was on the ice. And he was a big part of this.

Not many players can claim to have not have had one goal scored against them while they were on the ice an entire tournament.

 

[Vipers31]

Yeah, Theodore really had me sold in that tournament. We knew about his offensive talent from Juniors, but the reports about his defense were less projectable. He stepped into Team Canada there and adjusted to a somewhat different role, with less of a need for him to create offense. He basically showed exactly what he has been showing in the NHL lately - just him using his strong skating, while making good decisions, reading plays well, and putting himself into the right spots and keeping good gaps. Seeing that really made me hopeful about his overall upside. It's barely limited.

 

[Sojourn]

They play different games. Nurse is more physical, he was drafted high. He may have been more noticeable.

I like D men like Theodore. He may not be flashy. But his intelligence, puck moving abilities, decision making was second to none. Canada was rarely in trouble when he was on the ice. And he was a big part of this.

Not many players can claim to have not have had one goal scored against them while they were on the ice an entire tournament.

I'm with you on that. Theodore can be an easy player to miss, if your eye is going to be drawn to a more flashy and dynamic style of play. His play comes across as more intelligent, and even deceptively easy. He thinks the game at a very high level, and he seems to make decisions very quickly, and he possesses the skill to act quickly.

He still has things to learn, and adjustments to make, but it's actually pretty remarkable how easy he can make the game look.

 

[Gargyn]

What's with this kid? Why isn't he playing on Vegas? Is he really no better than Hunt, Merrill or McNabb? Seems to have monster numbers in the AHL.

 

[Masch78]

You have to play both sides of the puck to play in the NHL.

 

[Luddowich]

You have to play both sides of the puck to play in the NHL.

Have you ever watched Andrej Sustr, he plays none and he's in the NHL.

 

[Szechwan]

VGK is a gong show when it comes to player management

 

[bsu]

He sucks balls defensively and is soft as a feather. He's really good in transition and in the offensive zone but he's horrid on the other side.

 

[S E P H]

He sucks balls defensively and is soft as a feather. He's really good in transition and in the offensive zone but he's horrid on the other side.

That doesn't mean he's a bad player though, just needs to be with the right defencive partner that will allow him to play to his strengths.

 

[TopShelfWaterBottle]

Ducks made right choice with Montour over Theodore

Montour is a stud

 

[NHL Dude 120]

Is he a bust or is he just still developing

 

[derriko]

I personally think he should be an everyday player. He is lethal in transition and in the offensive zone. Something Vegas is lacking playing a couple of offensive black holes every night in Sbisa, McNabb, and Engelland.

He should be a staple on a pair as Miller and Schmidt are for their puck moving ability.

I have been embarrassed at times at how often two of the above mentioned black holes paired together get trapped in their zone.

That said, if he ever wants to reach top pairing level, the defensive positioning is going to have to improve big time.

Gallant loves offense, but not at the expense of defense. That is why Theo is getting scratched.

 

[Dominance]

His defensive game is being massively understated here. He’ll never be an optimal penalty killer, but he’s strong positionally and the concept that it will permanently hold him from the NHL is ludicrous.

 

[Gliff]

Glad we kept Montour over him.

I still think Theo has a ton of potential.

 

[Kalv]

Yeah I hope Vegas figures it out. It was obvious Theo had to work on defensive positioning at the NHL level, but he showed tons of ofensive potential. Could it be also related to VGK defensive coaches?

I mean, Ducks GM was a an all-star defenceman, Ducks coach was a Norris Trophy winner, we also have this guy Scott Niedermayer as our assistant coach/trainer (I`m not sure if he is involved this season though, but he was helping San Diego for sure). So there was a goot environment for Theo. I don`t want to discredit VGK but perhaps there is some role of that?

In the meantime Theo did lit up the AHL in their system though..

 

[Skinnyjimmy08]

Loved him in anaheim but i am not a fan of him playing in LV... Hasnt overly impressed me yet. I realize he was in AHL and just sorta recently got called up, so its been a strange season so far for him, but still.

Still love him and think he will become unreal, but i just prefer if it were somewhere else

 

[Gargyn]

Seems to be a regular now and is putting up some solid numbers. Nice to see him doing well.

 

[KaseMeOutside]

Wish we still had him