Leo Carlsson approach - Good or bad idea (Kapanen)

[Le Barron de HF]

Hello all,

Ducks got a lot of flack for their unorthodox approach with Leo Carlsson last year and having him sit out occasionally so he doesn't hit a wall by the end of the season like KK did in his rookie season here. It allowed him to get some extra gym time which hard to squeeze in but also more rest in a grueling season.

If management took a similar approach with Kapanen, would you consider it a wasted year for him? Bad for his development? Or a good approach?

Kapanen's strength doesn't seem to be quite NHL level yet. Being more selective over his usage like back to back games or the kind of opponents he'll face could make sense.

What's your opinion?

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[Deebs]

Load management of sorts?

It's going to change from player to player so see how Kapanen does from game to game and take it from there.

 

[HuGort]

Carlsson was 18 last year, Kapanen is 21 this season.

 

[salbutera]

Hello all,

Ducks got a lot of flack for their unorthodox approach with Leo Carlsson last year and having him sit out occasionally so he doesn't hit a wall by the end of the season like KK did in his rookie season here. It allowed him to get some extra gym time which hard to squeeze in but also more rest in a grueling season.

If management took a similar approach with Kapanen, would you consider it a wasted year for him? Bad for his development? Or a good approach?

Kapanen's strength doesn't seem to be quite NHL level yet. Being more selective over his usage like back to back games or the kind of opponents he'll face could make sense.

What's your opinion?

HuGo & MSL have already alluded to using load management with Hutson. I expect a slow break in phase for Kapanen

 

[Le Barron de HF]

Carlsson was 18 last year, Kapanen is 21 this season.

Both are coming from leagues that play 40 or so games. Both were physically immature too. Elite Prospects has him at 183 lbs

 

[Shutdown]

Both are coming from leagues that play 40 or so games. Both were physically immature too. Elite Prospects has him at 183 lbs

Habs have him listed at 6'2 - 194lbs

i don't think a full season of load management is necessary for a guy like Kapanen but like @salbutera said above, they'll likely ease him in - probably over the first quarter of the season and then decide if they keep him for the year

 

[Le Barron de HF]

Habs have him listed at 6'2 - 194lbs

i don't think a full season of load management is necessary for a guy like Kapanen but like @salbutera said above, they'll likely ease him in - probably over the first quarter of the season and then decide if they keep him for the year

FWIW plan was for it to be gradual and ramp up by end of season for Leo

 

[Ozmodiar]

Habs have him listed at 6'2 - 194lbs

i don't think a full season of load management is necessary for a guy like Kapanen but like @salbutera said above, they'll likely ease him in - probably over the first quarter of the season and then decide if they keep him for the year

They have 4 players in 2 spots. Heineman, Pez, Kapanen, ABB. They’ll rotate them in and out of the lineup. Also, it’s a competition to retain their roster spot when Laine returns.

 

[Egresch]

Both are coming from leagues that play 40 or so games. Both were physically immature too. Elite Prospects has him at 183 lbs

This is wrong perception you guys in North America have.
Kapanen played 51 games in Liiga regular season, 8GP for Finland in international tournaments, 13 GP Liiga playoffs, 8 GP for Finland at WC. That is total of 80 competitive games.

Same was with Slaf during his draft year. People said he only played 31 GP in Liiga, but in reality he had 86 GP on 3 different continents that year.

 

[Tyson]

With this argument then any NCAA grads should be played the same way?

 

[morhilane]

With this argument then any NCAA grads should be played the same way?

Yes, and it showed last year with Struble running out of gas after 50ish games (AHL/NHL combined).

The same will probably happen with Hutson, but that kid has insane stamina.

 

[Leto]

With this argument then any NCAA grads should be played the same way?

Maybe they should. You see a lot of NCAA grads hitting a wall as the season progresses. Cooley had a good start before cooling ( ) down. Fantilli had a decent season for a rookie before going down with an injury. Let's see how it goes for Celebrini and Smith in SJ.

 

[lamp9post]

Habs have him listed at 6'2 - 194lbs

i don't think a full season of load management is necessary for a guy like Kapanen but like @salbutera said above, they'll likely ease him in - probably over the first quarter of the season and then decide if they keep him for the year

I think any 'easing in' would be to develop chemistry with teammates and familiarity with the system and North American ice rather than physical conditioning. He's played the last two seasons against men, including playoffs and international tournaments he played 77 games in 22-23 and 88 games in 23-24. As you mention, he's got NHL size and is 21 years old. I'm not worried about whether he's physically capable of the rigours of an NHL season.

 

[McGuires Corndog]

I’d be surprised if Kapanen doesn’t miss games at some point just with Laine coming back and the coach possibly looking for a different look for his lines. He’s a young player and he’s not a superstar so his ice time will constantly have to be earned. Won’t be given the same type of leash that a Slafkovsky or a Demidov would have in

 

[yianik]

Hello all,

Ducks got a lot of flack for their unorthodox approach with Leo Carlsson last year and having him sit out occasionally so he doesn't hit a wall by the end of the season like KK did in his rookie season here. It allowed him to get some extra gym time which hard to squeeze in but also more rest in a grueling season.

If management took a similar approach with Kapanen, would you consider it a wasted year for him? Bad for his development? Or a good approach?

Kapanen's strength doesn't seem to be quite NHL level yet. Being more selective over his usage like back to back games or the kind of opponents he'll face could make sense.

What's your opinion?

I wouldnt justify that on the basis that he can work out more because training is really off season stuff. However you discussing his essentially running out of gas with a much longer season and much much heavier physical game are legitimate concerns and why the AHL helps guys get used to the game played in the NHL.

I think it makes sense essentially for all rookies bypassing a season in the AHL to be paced ( "load managed ") over the course of the year. If a young guy is exhausted by game 60, he wont learn anything after that as he will likely be out of position, taking more penalties and not productive. To an extent you see how it goes but the point is that up to a time he is playing well and then it catches up to him and he crashes, so you cant wait until then , you must pace the guy from the beginning.

 

[Rapala]

For me it boils down to how he is used.
I didn't think he was great on the wing and it was very evident when he was reinserted at center.
If he's muted to a wing and likely to remain on a lower line perhaps sending him back is not a bad idea.
If however he starts displacing players similar to what Suzuki did.

 

[Le Barron de HF]

This is wrong perception you guys in North America have.
Kapanen played 51 games in Liiga regular season, 8GP for Finland in international tournaments, 13 GP Liiga playoffs, 8 GP for Finland at WC. That is total of 80 competitive games.

Same was with Slaf during his draft year. People said he only played 31 GP in Liiga, but in reality he had 86 GP on 3 different continents that year.

That's a fair point but correct if I'm wrong that'd over a longer stretch of time e.g. 9 months instead of 7 months like for the NHL?

 

[Egresch]

That's a fair point but correct if I'm wrong that'd over a longer stretch of time e.g. 9 months instead of 7 months like for the NHL?

Correct, usually it is Sept - May.

 

[McGuires Corndog]

For me it boils down to how he is used.
I didn't think he was great on the wing and it was very evident when he was reinserted at center.
If he's muted to a wing and likely to remain on a lower line perhaps sending him back is not a bad idea.
If however he starts displacing players similar to what Suzuki did.

If I was MSL I’d be heavily considering running Dvorak with Newhook and Dach on the 2nd line and letting Kapanen start out centering the 3rd line for the reason you mentioned. Dvorak is also a good face off guy, so he can take harder draws for Dach when necessary. Also to consider is it’s a contract year for him, and he’s looked decent to good in the preseason. How he plays this season may very well be the difference between getting a multi-year contract vs getting a 1 year show me deal that he may never come back from and be out of the league. So putting him in an optimal spot at the beginning might not hurt as it could increase his value as a trade chip for us.

 

[Rapala]

If I was MSL I’d be heavily considering running Dvorak with Newhook and Dach on the 2nd line and letting Kapanen start out centering the 3rd line for the reason you mentioned. Dvorak is also a good face off guy, so he can take harder draws for Dach when necessary. Also to consider is it’s a contract year for him, and he’s looked decent to good in the preseason. How he plays this season may very well be the difference between getting a multi-year contract vs getting a 1 year show me deal that he may never come back from and be out of the league. So putting him in an optimal spot at the beginning might not hurt as it could increase his value as a trade chip for us.

Bottom 5 club not many players are untouchable and no ideas should be dismissed out of hand.

 

[McGuires Corndog]

Bottom 5 club not many players are untouchable and no ideas should be dismissed out of hand.

Exactly, especially with Laine out.

I hope they aren’t expecting much. lol