Player Discussion Mika Zibanejad

[TheWrongWay]

This dude needs a mafia-style pow-wow.

You don’t hear of many folks in the mob with motivation issues or calling out sick.

 

[will1066]

Hopefully, Mika is okay:

Stripper at vegan club allegedly stabs DJ during show in caught-on-camera attack: ‘Possessed by a demon’

“I was standing in the DJ booth, next thing I know I felt like a 500-pound man punched me in the back like four times,” the DJ said.

nypost.com

He kept thinking about his dog, Strome.

 

[JohnC]

If teams knew how to measure the aging process scientifically, they could save a ton of money. But they don't. How do we differentiate between a Crosby, still effective well into his thirties, and a Zibanejad, a ghost of himself at 31? You can't. It's not effort or dedication. It's science. In my 60+ years as a hockey fan, I must admit this has been about the most abrupt falloff I have seen. Not unprecedented but as bad as I've seen. But there were signs, even last year. I'm sure the Rangers have put him through all sorts of medical tests and unless they are keeping something serious hidden from us, what we have is simply a player aging prematurely. Studying the aging process and what is called "life extension" is an emerging field in scientific research. You can bet the Ranger medical staff is well-versed in the research. At some point, this is going to have to be addressed. He is hurting the team. This will get worse. But I do feel for the guy, who, at age 31, can't do what he once did. It's not like he is in a "normal" profession where 31 is young. It's a sorry state and a major albatross around this team's proverbial neck.

I know it’s not the point you’re making, but one’s a t10 player of all time and one was maybe a t15 center in the league for a year or two. Pretty easy to differentiate

 

[alkurtz]

I know it’s not the point you’re making, but one’s a t10 player of all time and one was maybe a t15 center in the league for a year or two. Pretty easy to differentiate

I know, these are extreme cases. Most athletes fall off gradually after age 30. But, I'm sure we can find players of average+ ability who were effective into their mid-30s and players who were stars who fell off at age, say, 32. What is concerning about MZ is the abruptness of his decline. It wasn't gradual, although there were indications of it last year, it's as if he fell off a cliff. A comparable in baseball is Tim Anderson, who went from a star to being even worse than MZ in a few short years. He too is 31. Now, I don't know all the details about Anderson, whether there were extenuating circumstances or not, but his decline has been precipitous. The question with MZ is, if this is permanent, not the result of injuries, etc., what will the Rangers do?