Player Discussion Leo Carlsson

[HanSolo]

Why is anyone offended by IF he comes in as a mopey beanpole? Put down your pitchforks.

I mean. I don't think it's a question of offense as much as it's just reductive and an oversimplification of the problem.

I've seen it argued multiple times that other kids come into the league and don't throw their head back in frustration like him. And maybe it's not common but he was still a teenager not too long ago.

Yeah Leo has to find coping mechanisms and the strength to persevere on his own, but his team and the mentors he's surrounded with could help him through his current funk. His visible frustration clearly comes from expecting more from himself and still struggling. Maybe it'll take a sports psychologist to help him through that. But his reactions should at least be understandable.

It seems he really wants to be the star that matches his second overall billing, but things aren't going well. Part of that might be the way he's being instructed to play, part of that might be what he's taught or not being taught in practice, part of that might be gripping the stick too hard and second guessing every play. No one on this board can really know for sure what combination of those factors are at play here.

But like @AngelDuck said, he's still learning how to play at the highest level of the sport. For some kids it comes naturally. For others, there's a longer adaptation period. What I am left questioning is if the coaches are doing enough to foster his strengths and work on his weaknesses. From what I've read from Cronin's comments on what they're teaching him, I'm not so sure that they are.

 

[JAHV]

I think the visible frustration will ebb as he matures. He clearly cares, which I think is better than the alternative. He wants to be great and is irritated every time he's not. Hopefully he learns to channel that irritation into something productive. Some guys get more focused, some guys get more physical, some guys find another level of motivation.

I think Carlsson can get there, but he needs to put in the offseason work on his strength and conditioning.

 

[Reveille1984]

Maybe mopey beanpole was harsh, okay lol. I don't really care if he's visibly frustrated or not, I'll just say next year will be big for him in terms of of development and expectations.

Hopefully the coaching and training/development staff can get the best out of him, we'll see. He is a big part of our future obviously and everyone wants things to pan out for him. I guess fingers crossed that he has a third year level up similar to Barkov.

 

[Dr Johnny Fever]

And that’s a good thing. The international hockey braintrust of team Sweden, says….. that’s our future 1C in international play. (At least the plan is for that). Get him much needed experience playing team hockey on an elite level. It’s a sign of faith (whether be desperation or true belief) that he is the future of that team.

Most of Leo’s problems can be attributed to either confidence or strength. Always tougher to gain confidence first, but he has the frame that (if)when it clicks it all should click.

He missed the team goal this year for adding muscle (from what I’ve heard here), I assume there will be a talk about that during the exit interview.

It doesn't bother me that he was there but he played exactly one game and was hardly noticeable. It was a short tournament. Every game was a must win. That was the focus of every meeting and every practice. It wasn't a let's develop Leo for the Olympics training camp. He could have stayed home (I'm not saying he should have) and it would have had the exact same impact on his career.

 

[JAHV]

It doesn't bother me that he was there but he played exactly one game and was hardly noticeable. It was a short tournament. Every game was a must win. That was the focus of every meeting and every practice. It wasn't a let's develop Leo for the Olympics training camp. He could have stayed home (I'm not saying he should have) and it would have had the exact same impact on his career.

With the caveat that this is complete speculation, I think this could be really good for him. Even getting selected for the team has to be a boost for his confidence, and getting to play a game (even under adverse circumstances) should boost it even further. And it can't hurt to be around great players for a week, soaking in the intangible stuff that makes them elite. Just by being there helps him develop for high level international hockey, and hopefully that bleeds into his training with the Ducks.

He was the only one from the Ducks selected to this tournament. By definition, he's not getting exposed to peers who are at or above his level. That exposure could help him significantly.

 

[robbieboy3686]

Hey, so, carlsson maybe gets to see how he’s a long way off from being strong enough physically and mentally and maybe puts in some real work this off season.

 

[KelVarnsen]

Maybe mopey beanpole was harsh, okay lol. I don't really care if he's visibly frustrated or not, I'll just say next year will be big for him in terms of of development and expectations.

Hopefully the coaching and training/development staff can get the best out of him, we'll see. He is a big part of our future obviously and everyone wants things to pan out for him. I guess fingers crossed that he has a third year level up similar to Barkov.

And right there is the rub. I don't have the faith in the development and coaching staff to help develop and push him to the highest level. Anxiously waiting to eat crow on the ability of the organization's development program under PV and Cro.

 

[ZegrassyKnoll]

Really don't like to see us going down the Gibson body language road with Leo. He gets annoyed when he doesn't score, but it's not like he's f***ing Kovalev out there. No shortage of effort. And his attitude has been reported as fantastic in every outlet.

"Mopey beanpole"? Get out of here with that crap.

A REAL franchise C would cheer ecstatically after missing a shot

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Not strictly true. San Jose was doing it it with Will Smith for a while but I don't think for as long as Anaheim did it with Leo.

Differences between Smith and Carlsson.

D+1 league
Will Smith spent his D+1 season in the NCAA, where they mostly play on the weekends and spend the other days working out, resting, and going to school.
Leo spent his D+1 in the NHL, with an irregular schedule for working out and resting. And Leo was forced to play through injuries.

Team quality
Smith went to an esteemed NCAA program in Boston College. That 2023-24 season, BC had a massive influx of top end talent in the trio of Leonard-Smith-Perreault. BC won the Hockey East tourney and lost in the Frozen Four championship game.

Leo went to a rebuild team that lacked support at the highest level of play as an actual center for the season.

First Pro Year Position
Smith is currently slotted at 2RW, according to Daily Faceoff, but has played 2C this season.
Leo was thrusted into the 1C position, but he has not played as a full time centerman in his SHL pro career (2 years).

If Leo stayed at the SHL level, then he stays with the team, Orebro, that developed him into the #2 pick in 2024. Orebro was a playoff team in Leo's draft year, meaning it has talented personnel to be around Leo the following season. In the playoffs, Leo was their 2nd best scorer with 9 pts (1g, 8a) in only 13 games. They were already planning on making Leo the 1C and high-end winger prospect Lekkerimaki was heading to Orebro. At the very least, Carlsson gets to develop his offense as a 1C with Orebro in the SHL.

I believe Leo would have been best served sticking with Orebro in his D+1 season and then coming over to NA. But Verbeek wanted to rush his prospects to the NHL just so he can body-build them to death as first year pros to circumvent the natural progression of muscle growth, i.e., get prime man strength before the age of 21. Which is what happened to both Carlsson and Luneau. We finished in the bottom-3 with Leo last year. Did we really need Leo to come over to Anaheim in his D+1 season?

Under Cronin, the org is only developing how to defend as team and hope it gets lucky on its quick counter. We did see Carlsson show off his defensive side at the 4 Nations, but that's it.

Here's a quote from Silverberg about playing mostly as a defensive forward and could not mentally reset into an offensive mode for the World Championships:

But how could it turn out like it did in the World Cup?​

​

– I know damn well, actually. I think I was a little mentally broken. We had missed the playoffs several years in a row. I had had a defensive role in Anaheim, where I just played simply: one touch, edge out – not offensive. I couldn’t switch to the WC. I wanted to contribute more offensively, but had a hard time getting into situations and the puck wasn’t bouncing my way.​

Leo has been playing two years in a losing program as a defensive forward first. Where and when is this offense going to be developed?