LW Patrik Laine - Tappara, Liiga (2016 Draft) VI

[CashMash]

Your expectations are too high. No Finnish 18 year old, not even Barkov has done something like this. A .5 PPG season from him would be amazing and exceeding what Barkov did. A 15 + 25 kinda season from him would be very good imo

Barkov focused on his defensive play first, though.

 

[Kratti]

We'll see how he looks against Canada, but he really struggled last night. Looked out of place defensively, many very bad turnovers and was generally showing his age & inexperience against this level of competition. Some flashes of brilliance too, but all in all the intensity seemed overwhelming for him.

 

[TheKrebsCycle]

Matthews is clear cut for 1st overall he's been that (clear cut for 1st overall) since last summer ( 2015) when he missed NHL draft for 2 days.
I don't buy that Matthews vs Laine for 1st overall battle because there isn't any battle.
That what Finns and Canadians calls battle for 1st overall pick is only the illusion created by the international media nothing else.

Laine could score more points than Matthews in men's worlds.
But it won't change nothing. Matthews goes 1st and there's nothing what Laine can do.
Toronto must grab their franchise center ( Matthews) this June because there's no guarantees for that Toronto Maple Leafs will sign Steven Stamkos.

solid post. Laine is an amazing prospect but Leafs need Matthews far more. Leafs have been waiting for a guy like this since Sundin left/game started to regress. Its an absolute perfect fit. Nothing I saw today changed my opinion for better or worse with either guy.

 

[TheKrebsCycle]

We'll see how he looks against Canada, but he really struggled last night. Looked out of place defensively, many very bad turnovers and was generally showing his age & inexperience against this level of competition. Some flashes of brilliance too, but all in all the intensity seemed overwhelming for him.

I only saw 2 turnovers, the first one is the only one I'd classify as bad/costly tho. It was careless but it was a weak goal so the gaff is somewhat qualified. His penalty would unlikely have been called in the NHL imo. Laine looked scary during spurts. He's so dangerous in space.

 

[Plural]

We'll see how he looks against Canada, but he really struggled last night. Looked out of place defensively, many very bad turnovers and was generally showing his age & inexperience against this level of competition. Some flashes of brilliance too, but all in all the intensity seemed overwhelming for him.

Yup. Was it just off game? We'll see soon enough. But it's no surprise that 18 year old prospect is having difficulties against team like USA. Laine still showed that he has the potential, but his lack of experience was showing.

I think Jalonen made the right call to not play him in the end. Laine will only get better, but he still has a lot of things to learn.

But man, what a PP weapon this guy already is.

 

[CanadienShark]

Matthews is clear cut for 1st overall he's been that (clear cut for 1st overall) since last summer ( 2015) when he missed NHL draft for 2 days.
I don't buy that Matthews vs Laine for 1st overall battle because there isn't any battle.
That what Finns and Canadians calls battle for 1st overall pick is only the illusion created by the international media nothing else.

Laine could score more points than Matthews in men's worlds.
But it won't change nothing. Matthews goes 1st and there's nothing what Laine can do.
Toronto must grab their franchise center ( Matthews) this June because there's no guarantees for that Toronto Maple Leafs will sign Steven Stamkos.

Well said for the most part, but honestly I like Laine's potential better. I do think Matthews is probably the #1 pick, but I personally would rather have Laine on either my teams. Both are fantastic players and both deserve the title of #1 overall. In the end though, it'll be interesting to see which guy does better in the NHL - both have NHL suited games.

 

[kelsier]

We'll see how he looks against Canada, but he really struggled last night. Looked out of place defensively, many very bad turnovers and was generally showing his age & inexperience against this level of competition. Some flashes of brilliance too, but all in all the intensity seemed overwhelming for him.

Care to elaborate how many bad turnovers did you see exactly other than the one leading to the goal? It seemed like it was an offensive side offiside, which never got whistled. Also the shot was on the goalkeeper. Should have been covered easily.

It's not really about the level of competition. He never got into the game due to not been given time on the ice. It started on the first period already and it's difficult for any player to come in to the game when your not given a proper chance. Laine has averaged around 12-13mins per game, even while he has been the been the best player on the team of the first two games. This isn't on Laine as much as it is for KJ (the head coach). If you're tuning into watch Finnish games, be aware for limited viewings on him. Laine is playing somewhere around 3rd line minutes unless something unexpected happens.

I'm hoping Jalonen will give him some credit towards the end because it will be painful to come in and expect any kind of domination with limited ice time.

 

[Lonny Bohonos]

We'll see how he looks against Canada, but he really struggled last night. Looked out of place defensively, many very bad turnovers and was generally showing his age & inexperience against this level of competition. Some flashes of brilliance too, but all in all the intensity seemed overwhelming for him.

To be fair its not like the US iced a much more experienced roster.

I think he struggled because he was getting less space and he was facing an NHL abeit marginal goaltender.

 

[Plural]

To be fair its not like the US iced a much more experienced roster.

I think he struggled because he was getting less space and he was facing an NHL abeit marginal goaltender.

I dont think it's about goaltenders. Finnish Liiga has a lot of great goalies (one of our strengths) and Laine was able to do well against them. Condon is not significantly better than a lot of Liiga goalies. I think the hardest part was the fast phased game USA played.

 

[Hokinaittii]

To be fair its not like the US iced a much more experienced roster.

It's still way different to play in the Worlds as someone who just turned 18 compared to people in mid-20s (USA team's average age is 23).

Laine also admitted he had an off-game. He said there's room for only one ****** game in tournament like this, he can/will only get better from now on. And from my experience, Laine having an off game only means ****'s about to go down soon.

 

[Lonny Bohonos]

I dont think it's about goaltenders. Finnish Liiga has a lot of great goalies (one of our strengths) and Laine was able to do well against them. Condon is not significantly better than a lot of Liiga goalies. I think the hardest part was the fast phased game USA played.

Sure the goalies are good but they are still a cut below the NHL otherwise barring personal matters they'd be in the NHL.

Its matter of split seconds but it makes a big difference.

Less time for Laine to set up coupled with tenders who set faster have faster reflexes etc.

I dont think Condon is a good NHL goalie by any stretch but how many Liiga tenders out of all that Laine has faced are NHL calibre?

 

[Plural]

It's still way different to play in the Worlds as someone who just turned 18 compared to people in mid-20s (USA team's average age is 23).

Absolutely. Just look at Barkov and Laine. Not a huge difference in age, but massive difference in experience. Barkov is on a completely different level when watching his game. It's not that Barkov is so much more talented. He's just so much more polished as a player.

 

[Lonny Bohonos]

It's still way different to play in the Worlds as someone who just turned 18 compared to people in mid-20s (USA team's average age is 23).

Right and Finlands average age is what 55?


Laine was still facing quite young competition in guys like Matthews.

 

[Plural]

Sure the goalies are good but they are still a cut below the NHL otherwise barring personal matters they'd be in the NHL.

Its matter of split seconds but it makes a big difference.

Less time for Laine to set up coupled with tenders who set faster have faster reflexes etc.

I dont think Condon is a good NHL goalie by any stretch but how many Liiga tenders out of all that Laine has faced are NHL calibre?

Well, I don't really know how much better Condon is comparing to Husso, Rajaniemi or Zapolski or some others. I do think that average NHL goalie is better, but Condon is a fringe NHL goalie and there probably is a good amount of goalies in Europe who are comparable or better. It's the same with all positions. Bottom-9 players or 3rd pairing D's are not necessarily better than a lot of the best players in Europe.

Nevertheless, it's a one game so it's hard to say what are the reasons behind Laine's struggles last night. Maybe he was tired, wasn't used to the fast game, struggled against NHL goalie, etc etc.

I just don't think that the lower end players in NHL are significantly better than the best players in Europe. From what I saw about Condon this season doesn't make me believe he's a good NHL goalie. I might be wrong. I just think that Laine struggled more with the speed of the game and the up-down style USA played. Not so much with the goalie.

 

[Hokinaittii]

Right and Finlands average age is what 55?


Laine was still facing quite young competition in guys like Matthews.

Nope but Laine is 18 and he was playing against talented people with a few more seasons in them, it showed on the ice yesterday.

Matthews did just fine because he is already a mature player for his age. A guy like Barkov would also have been fine in WHC at 18 years old because he had the same kind of maturity in his game as Matthews does now. Laine is different kind of talent than these two and takes more time get polished into perfection.

 

[JA]

We already know that he is going to work on his skating.

His strenght coach works with NHL players and has said adding speed will be their priority and getting more power to those 1st few steps.
He said Laine is physically still very raw, sow he has ton of room to develop his game, and will make it even more interesting to see how good he can honestly develop into.
He also has a fantastic skating coach in Tampere.

He made major strides last year, so it will be very exciting to observe his development over the summer.

 

[JA]

To those criticizing the defensive play of an 18-year-old, consider that most 18-year-old players require "seasoning" to develop into reliable players on the defensive side of the game.

In some cases, a player who was once a defensive liability can become one of the best defensive players in the game.

Case in point: Pavel Datsyuk.

Most of the old threads on HF have unfortunately been wiped, but in 2013 I did a bit of digging into comments made about Pavel Datsyuk towards the beginning of his career:

Pavel Datsyuk was not a very good defensive player when he began his NHL career; in fact, he was considered to be a defensive liability. A strong work ethic from Datsyuk and proper coaching allowed him to develop his defensive skills and become the player he is today:

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=61875361&postcount=492

As we all are aware of, Pavel Datsyuk is one of the most prolific two-way players of this generation and, arguably, of all time. He has three consecutive Selke trophies to prove it, he has had outstanding takaeaway numbers over the past several seasons, and his play with and without the puck has been absolutely phenomenal. There is no doubt most of us should consider him one of the smartest and most effective two-way players in the game today.

What I'd like to ask those who have followed him throughout his career is whether his defensive prowess was learned and developed over the course of his early NHL seasons. If so, I think it supports the idea that players with offensive gifts can learn to become terrific defensive players despite starting off poorly when they first join the NHL. As the old adage suggests, defense can be taught while offense can not. For players like Nail Yakupov and other defensively-challenged players, there is a real opportunity for them to improve if they work at it.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showthread.php?t=33690

Here is a thread about Pavel Datsyuk uncovered from December 2003, 2.5 seasons after he debuted in the NHL. At that point, he had already played 150+ games in the NHL. Some of the comments may be surprising:

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=543980&postcount=4

Yeah, Datsyuk is great and all, but you guys would be majorly ripped off in a Datsyuk/Nash swap. Nash is a huge powerforward in the mold. He is constantly getting better, and already has 17 goals, which I think is either second or tied with Ilja Kovalchuk for the league lead. Sure, Datsyuk has 27 points in 27 games, but CBJ already has Nik Zherdev, who is a similar player to Dats (in a way) but Zherdev is bigger, and a better goal scorer. Datsyuk just started shooting more this season, and is very good passing the puck.

Reality, though, I love Dats on the Red Wings, and I don't want to trade him, ESP to the CBJ's. A line with Nash - Datsyuk - Zherdev would be DEADLY *although a defensive liability, lol* I will gladly take Zherdev or Nash off your hands though

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=544509&postcount=7

Yeah lol, the defense would be a problem but with all the scoring that line would put up, their +/- would still probably be pretty high.

Anyways, I understand your desire to not wanna trade Pavel. I may value him higher than others because I simply like him so much, but no one can deny that he's flat-out a stud. I'm a big fan of Marty Turco too, and we all know what Pavel did to him .

As for Zetterberg being better than Datsyuk, I can't really comment on that because I haven't seen nearly as much of Z as I have Datsyuk. Plus, my liking of Pavel would still probably cause me to take him over Henrik. That's just my opinion though.

As for the "proposed trades", keep em coming, I wanna see what all you Wings fans think.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=544687&postcount=8

Although many disagree with me, I think Datsyuk will definitely be more of an offensive threat than Zetterberg. I can see Zetterberg developing into a Jere Lehtinen-ish player (but more ofense and a bit less defense), whereas Datsyuk is a scoring machine.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=547277&postcount=14

I, myself put a lot of value on him. His defensive game is so so, but nothing great, but his playmaking ability is top notch and only getting better it seams.... He just doesnt stop. He's on pace for 82 pts or so according to espn, although it says he'll get over 30 goals too..lol... Datsyuk should go2 the allstar game sometime soon within the next few years because he's just so skilled.. His hands are golden, and his vision is just as good, its sick.... He's definitly a awesome player and can take the work load... Just wish zets was healthy to see how good he would be doing

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=547700&postcount=15

I dont know if Zetterberg will ever out produce Datsyuk. Zetterberg strikes me as the guy with 20 goals and 30-35 assists while playing 2 way hockey. He does have the flash every now and then of a highlight play, but i think as his career goes on, he will be more of a 50-55 point producer consistantly. *Not a bad thing*

Datsyuk strikes me as a wild card. He could blow up. Each year he has played in the NHL he has gotten better. He also follows instructions well, remember how Detroit wanted him to shoot more? He has, and it has worked out well. He controls the play with his stickhandling, and defenseman are leary to try and move in to close to him away from the boards because they know in all likelyhood he will beat them. He creates more room for the other players on the ice....like Hull. His defense has alos improved dramatically since his rookie year...he now backchecks harder, throws a hit now and then(reminds me of Kozlov's mean streak, the kind where he's quiet all night and then he nails a guy, hey adam foote?). He uses his stick to break up more and more plays every time i watch him....and he's a big game player, doesn't disappear.

Zetterberg will be the better all around player, but will not out produce Datsyuk in their respective careers.

again, just my opinion.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=562377&postcount=23

Pig Pen, think you have me confused for someone else.

Datsyuk, to me, is fools gold. He'll give you good offensive numbers (60 - 70 points) but he's garbage in his own zone, and makes many mental mistakes. In fact, he's quite similar to Mike Comrie.

Zetterberg is the real burdgeoning superstar. He's the guy who reminds me of a young Naslund, and I think Zetts could be a 40 goal scorer someday.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=567853&postcount=30

By your definition, what is a true 1st line center?
Also keep in mind that Datsyuk is the hottest player in the league over the past 15 games, one of the top 10 scorers, has a faceoff percentage of around 55%.
It's not like he's a cherry picker waiting around his own blueline. He DOES come back. He's not great defensively but he's nowhere near as bad as you think he is

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=569882&postcount=40

Pavel is getting better in the defensive zone. But still has some work to do. The best thing IMO is he has been getting better in all area's of his game. He's better on faceoffs, better in his own end, and shotting more. To his credit he isn't just satisfied with being a dynamic offensive player, he knows there is more than just making pretty passes. Thats whats gonna make him a top NHL talent if he continues his progress.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=571683&postcount=43

As you guys have already mentioned, yes, the defensive game is still not up to snuff, but I've seen players who have been around a lot longer than he has make a lot stupider mistakes. He's getting better at it...and he's not afraid to keep trying.

I like the stats that I'm seeing from him...he leads the team in scoring (with Hull)...among the league leaders in goals (14), assists (17), power play goals (5), game winning goals (3), has one of the best shot percentages in the league...he's going out night after night, playing his heart out and maybe it will make some people sit up and take notice. I hope so. It doesn't matter who you put on a line with him - last night it was Draper...it's been Thomas (and that line kicked ass), Devereaux, Zetterberg, Whitney - it doesn't matter...the chemistry is there. He must be doing something right!

Now, as some of the posters in that thread suggested, Pavel was working hard to improve his game, and had already made several strides by the end of that year. He was not a satisfactory in the defensive zone yet, but as we know now he has become an elite player in his own zone.

Pavel Datsyuk's development since he joined he league will indicate that players who seem to struggle in their defensive zone can learn. He began as a subpar player defensively and developed into one of the greatest. This leads into my thought that even the least defensively-sound players in the league can become solid defensively if they work hard enough at it. Sometimes players are written off as defensive liabilities, but as we see here, the degree to which a player can improve is quite substantial. Perhaps it's not absurd to think a player like Nail Yakupov can, in fact, learn to be a good player in his own zone and continue to be strong offensively.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=61876015&postcount=509

When Datsyuk first stepped on the ice as a Red Wing, it was a different time. For one, the Internet and scouting wasn't what it was today. I hadn't a clue about hockey message boards and thus knew next to nothing about him. In addition, Detroit was coming off of one of the loudest offseasons you could imagine: trading for Hasek, signing Hull, singing Robitaille, and to a lesser degree signing Olausson. It was literally the perfect storm for a relatively unknown player to enter with as little hype as you can imagine.

Despite the team and circumstances that surrounded him, it didn't take long for him to leave an impression. Almost immediately his puck skills were evident and you knew that they weren't normal skills. I remember thinking "this is a team full of rock stars and yet this kid is doing things with the puck that I've never seen before."
He'd frequently turn players around with his moves, but he didn't yet know how to fully engage and take advantage of his skill. Scotty Bowman had to tell him that he only had to beat an opposing player once, as he'd often make a great move but then end up in the same spot and seemingly try to play keep away with the same player. In addition, he was about as big as a "pass first" guy that you would see. One of the biggest complaints early on (and still sometimes today) about him was how he always looked to pass instead of shooting when in a scoring position. Eventually he got placed on a line with Hull (and Deveraux) and he got really hot during a stretch of the season. His pass first mentality was essentially made for a player like Hull. Bowman gave him PP time and you quickly realized that his offensive ceiling could be quite high.

Despite the flashes of skill and brilliance, Datsyuk was weak, soft, and shy. When I say shy, I mean that on the ice as well. At times it seemed like he was shy to engage.

The following two seasons he continued to blossom offensively. During his 3rd season (the first without Fedorov) he was given a bigger role and took it by the horns. In December of that year, he was actually leading the NHL in points at a point in time. Physically he would wear out easy though. He was still small and weak.

With all of the offensive potential crystal clear, the defensive side of the puck was a completely different story. He was learning the defensive side of the puck from day 1, but he wasn't good. Even during his 3rd season (03-04) I viewed him as a defensive liability. He got a little time on the PK and we seen flashes of his defensive stickwork, but he wasn't fully engaged IMO. His strength also made it tough for him to push players off the puck. His line with an aging Hull was fun to watch in the offensive zone, but they had trouble getting out of their own end when teams would cycle against them. With that being said, he was learning and improving. He went from 47% to 54% in faceoffs from year 1 to 3.

At this time (around the lockout), I thought his offensive ceiling was through the roof. If, however, you told me he was going to turn into a 2 way, complete forward I would have laughed. I can't imagine even his biggest fans would have predicted the soon to develop all around game that we would see...

After the lockout expectation were high. Offensively he delivered. He was clearly becoming stronger on his skates and with the team quickly becoming his and Zetterberg's upfront, you seen him become less "shy" and willing to engage more without the puck. With that being said, i still wouldn't have thought he'd continue to develop defensively like he did. And this is 2005-2006. He was no longer a liability, but Selke and Datsyuk didn't belong together.

2006-2007 is where things really took a turn. In addition to continued lower body strength that let him win more battles, he started becoming ridiculously disruptive with his stick. The player that is well known for stealing pucks really arrived here. He led the league in takeaways with over 100, edging out the brilliant backchecking Hossa. Babcock put him on the PK much more than he ever experienced in his career and he was for the first time in his career really engaged. His hockey sense that could always create offense was now being used to anticipate and disruptive the opposition more frequently. You now realized that we were dealing with a 2 way player that was slowly catching up to the already defensive gifted Zetterberg. He started receiving a few Selke votes this season, but he wasn't done growing.

The next season, his first Selke win, he was the most disruptive player you could imagine. His defensive reputation still wasn't as well known around the league yet apparently, so players didn't yet realize that you had to be aware of him when he was on the ice. His 144 steals were nearly 60 more than the next player (Modano.) And it's not like it was because the arena he played half his games in.. Even Zetterberg was almost 100 takeaways behind him. In addition, his strength was great now. He'd win almost all of his puck and board battles, could physically push players off the puck, and his understanding of the defensive game had grown. He was also more engaged than ever (doubled his previous high on hits.)
During this season, I remember a thread on the mainboard claiming "Datsyuk is the most complete forward in the game."
The player and the recognition had begun to arrive.

The rest is history, as he has only continued his mastery without the puck. He has actually improved defensively since then IMO. He's responsible to a fault at times. Ask Detroit fans and they'll tell you that he goes through stretches where he basically decides to play more like a 3rd defenceman than a forward.

I remember a HNIC segment a couple of years ago where Babcock told a story of how he had to tell Datsyuk and Zetterberg to get out of the training room. Babcock walked in prior to a game and the two of them were working out and pushing themselves and Babcock said something like "what are you guys doing, you know we have a game here shortly?" To which they replied, "we have to get ready for the playoffs."

That's the type of commitment it took for Datsyuk to become the player he will forever be known for. He could have just gotten by with his skill and been an offensive player. He choose to get stronger, work on his game without the puck, and take it to a new level. A level that not even I, his biggest fan since his first couple of seasons, could have imagined. It's been an absolute treat to watch the transformation.

IMO a defensive game takes 3 main aspects: will, skill, and IQ.

Datsyuk was blessed with two of them: skill and an IQ to see the game at a higher level than most players. Once he took it upon himself to get the will (to get stronger and battle more and want to compete without the puck), he blossomed.

I would not be concerned about Patrik Laine's defensive play at this point. He can learn that side of the game. He has the will to become the best, and his work ethic is top-notch. He already demonstrates a desire to contribute defensively, but the skating isn't there for him to keep up right now. As long as he is coached properly and he improves his skating, he should be more than fine.

 

[Liminality]

Also, to those criticizing the defensive play of an 18-year-old, consider that most 18-year-old players require "seasoning" to develop into reliable players on the defensive side of the game.

In some cases, a player who was once defensive liabilities can become one of the best defensive players in the game.

Case in point: Pavel Datsyuk.

Most of the old threads on HF have unfortunately been wiped, but in 2013 I did a bit of digging into comments made about Pavel Datsyuk towards the beginning of his career:

I would not be concerned about Patrik Laine's defensive play at this point. He can learn that side of the game. He has the will to become the best, and his work ethic is top-notch. He already demonstrates a desire to contribute defensively, but the skating isn't there for him to keep up right now. As long as he is coached properly and he improves his skating, he should be more than fine.

Love old posts like these and thanks for bringing it up. I agree that with the right coach he can become more well rounded in the future.

Zherdev brings back memories.

 

[FinProspects]

Yes, Laine has still many holes in his game, what else is new? We are not talking about a future selke winner here, and he probably wont win the fastest skating-competition either.

The guy is 18 and 194cm, it will take time... All the stuff he is doing now in WC is extra plus to an already amazing season.

 

[JetsFan815]

Finn posters, does the Liiga publish play by play data similar to http://www.nhl.com/scores/htmlreports/20152016/PL020007.HTM that has shot data? I am looking to dig a little bit deeper into Laine's (and I suppose Puljujarvi's) advanced stats and having that would be really helpful.

 

[AndyA]

Finn posters, does the Liiga publish play by play data similar to http://www.nhl.com/scores/htmlreports/20152016/PL020007.HTM that has shot data? I am looking to dig a little bit deeper into Laine's (and I suppose Puljujarvi's) advanced stats and having that would be really helpful.

I don't think there is exactly like that (not sure), but for example here you can find all the regular season games by Tappara:

http://liiga.fi/ottelut/2015-2016/runkosarja/?team=tappara&sort=

Then if you click "Seuranta" from each game it will take you to detailed game stats. There is a shot chart on the bottom where you can select the player to see their shot locations in the game, and if you hover your mouse on top of the "dot" you can also see the time when it happened.

Here you can find advanced stats from Liiga (Filters: "Joukkue" to choose the team, "Turnaus" to choose playoffs or regular season):

http://liiga.fi/tilastot/2015-2016/runkosarja/pelaajat/?team=&position=all&player_stats=enhanced&sort=PDO#stats-wrapper

 

[QnebO]

You can filter the shot map (Laukaisukartta) by Player from the drop menu to see only say Laine shots in the game.

Needed Finnish skills to read the shot chart:

Laukaus = Shot

Ohi (=miss) maalin (=net)

Maalivahti (=goalie) torjui (=saved)

 

[Mahonkinen]

Has Laine played RW this season? What on earth is Jalonen doing forcing him to play there?

Im glad that not only our players are getting younger and drifting away from early 2000, but coaches also. Meaning Marjamäki, Ahokas, Kivi etc.

 

[kunekune]

Here a little insight to Laine Playoffs shooting tendencies.

edit: pic doesn't seem to work so the link is here http://imgur.com/a/nwWQx

 

[Joe MacMillan]

I dont think it's about goaltenders. Finnish Liiga has a lot of great goalies (one of our strengths) and Laine was able to do well against them. Condon is not significantly better than a lot of Liiga goalies. I think the hardest part was the fast phased game USA played.

Agree with this. Yesterday's game was perhaps the fastest paced game Laine has ever played, he didn't have nearly as much time as he is used to in Liiga. Which naturally raises the issue of how well will he cope with the limited time and space of NHL hockey.