Player Discussion: Mikhail Sergachev - Part 2

[Rschmitz]

If you zoom out a little bit, I don't think the frustrations towards Sergachev are warranted. Last year was a major step for him and he exceled, he's getting more and more dzone starts and his icetime has climbed to over 20 minutes a game. He was a beast in the playoffs and that carried over into parts of this year.

One thing to remember is that as much as we all love Cernak and he warrants that love, he's had a very reliable defensive partner in McDonagh. That is something we can't say Sergachev has had, as he's typically being shoehorned around while also being the one to brunt the responsibility of the Ruttas and the Schenns. Last year, we had Shattenkirk as a fixture in the lineup and Bogo who was a tremendous surprise on the right side, helping to stabilize our defense and allow Sergachev to play the more aggressive style that he's so good at. The acquisition of Savard was supposed to help with that, but I don't think it's done what the team was hoping for.

 

[bov]

Sergachev is going nowhere. He has also never been a particularly physical player, I think a couple fights and hits have created an illusion amongst some fans that he is some kind of physical presence. I love it when the nastiness comes out, but he is generally not a punishing defender.

He's definitely a guy who can get rattled and teams target him whenever they can. He takes a lot of hits, but that's how you have to pkay him. I'm more than happy with his development, he's playing heavier minutes every year and he's gotta go through it. Florida series was rough for him, but I think he's taking a bit too much heat.

 

[Volodya Krutov]

He's by far the 3rd most used player at 5v5 behind McD, & only 6 less minutes than Hedman. Sergachev might be on the 3rd pair but he's not playing 3rd pairing minutes. That's asking a lot for a dman who's still largely developing. He's not playing well, but the Sergy bashing is snowballing into a HF parody for sure.

 

[Lightning1995]

He’s gotta be better tonight. Take the hit, make the play

 

[RussianGuyovich]

He's by far the 3rd most used player at 5v5 behind McD, & only 6 less minutes than Hedman. Sergachev might be on the 3rd pair but he's not playing 3rd pairing minutes. That's asking a lot for a dman who's still largely developing. He's not playing well, but the Sergy bashing is snowballing into a HF parody for sure.

nobody hiveminds like the tampa bay lightning HF with a shiny new target to scapegoat.

 

[JoVel]

You can't have watched Swrgachev's playoff run and come to the conclusion that he's been good. Or even decent.

You could make a lengthy compilation of his unforced d-zone turnovers. He's been very brutal at times. Just because people are calling him out doesn't mean they're scapegoating him.

 

[These Are The Days]

I've had some time to think it over on Sergachev. We're pretty much set on the left side with McDonagh and Hedman. Cernak is great. Rutta is a yo-yo. Foote is probably a #6. Sergachev can play the right side too and everyone knows it. But if we find ourselves shopping for another RD again then either our coaching staff needs to get off the "muh handedness playing its strong side" philosophy or this means they don't think Sergachev can fill the role.

Next year is gonna tell us a whole lot about this kid

 

[The Gongshow]

I've had some time to think it over on Sergachev. We're pretty much set on the left side with McDonagh and Hedman. Cernak is great. Rutta is a yo-yo. Foote is probably a #6. Sergachev can play the right side too and everyone knows it. But if we find ourselves shopping for another RD again then either our coaching staff needs to get off the "muh handedness playing its strong side" philosophy or this means they don't think Sergachev can fill the role.

Next year is gonna tell us a whole lot about this kid

Depending on how much time Jedman may miss... serg might be our #2 next year, he still gets his minutes regardless of Hedman and McD and plays the right side with both at times. I think they balance our LD quite well and it'll be the same next year. When Serg comes off his bridge deal is when the big decision will need to be made. By then maybe they shop McDonagh

 

[The Gongshow]

I hope Serg had a big series against the team that traded him. Might make him hungry to show them what a mistake it was. Here's hoping!

He was terrible against Florida
He was great against Carolina
He was terrible against New York
He was ________ against Montreal??

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[These Are The Days]

I hope Serg had a big series against the team that traded him. Might make him hungry to show them what a mistake it was. Here's hoping!

He was terrible against Florida
He was great against Carolina
He was terrible against New York
He was ________ against Montreal??

Not bad so far yo

 

[Stammertime91]

Serious lack of composure and poise under little to no pressure. Fails to clear the puck the correct direction more than the other defensemen, constantly hems himself in the zone because of it. Can't score anymore. Can't run a powerplay. Gets 20 feet 1v1 with a goalie and sails it by Haleys Comet.

This guy would be getting railed or learning the hard way on damn near any other team. He's very fortunate he's sheltered behind Hedman and McDonagh, the best one two left sided punch in the league. Imagine this guy on Boston or Colorado getting leaned on differently than here? He Has to learn to make the simple plays and do them a second quicker. He had it going for one season but he's just a mess out there. He's too cute with the puck and tries to be sly about his passes, that ain't working... at all, players read that stuff. That's why his move at the blue line took him a few too many times getting burned to do something else.

He blocks shots, wonderful, damn near every defensemen does. Gotta be more consistent in development or you'll have these flaws for so much longer.

Cernak > Sergachev and it's not even close.

 

[These Are The Days]

Serious lack of composure and poise under little to no pressure. Fails to clear the puck the correct direction more than the other defensemen, constantly hems himself in the zone because of it. Can't score anymore. Can't run a powerplay. Gets 20 feet 1v1 with a goalie and sails it by Haleys Comet.

This guy would be getting railed or learning the hard way on damn near any other team. He's very fortunate he's sheltered behind Hedman and McDonagh, the best one two left sided punch in the league. Imagine this guy on Boston or Colorado getting leaned on differently than here? He Has to learn to make the simple plays and do them a second quicker. He had it going for one season but he's just a mess out there. He's too cute with the puck and tries to be sly about his passes, that ain't working... at all, players read that stuff. That's why his move at the blue line took him a few too many times getting burned to do something else.

He blocks shots, wonderful, damn near every defensemen does. Gotta be more consistent in development or you'll have these flaws for so much longer.

Cernak > Sergachev and it's not even close.

All of this.

I haven't given up but I'm at the point where he's got til next year's TDL to shit or get off the pot. On an average night he's trying to put together good consecutive shifts with none of the hope that he'll one day play alongside Hedman as a top pairing guy. All said, I've worked 14 hour days at hospitals that made me less tired than this cat does.

 

[Lightning1995]

As I stated in another thread Serge may be the easiest path to cap compliance while keeping the team together in the short term.

Could definitely regret it long term though

 

[JoVel]

As I stated in another thread Serge may be the easiest path to cap compliance while keeping the team together in the short term.

Could definitely regret it long term though

Yeah, Sergachev has all the potential to be the 1D of this season for a long time. Key word being potential. A trade could definitely look really ugly in a few years.

Right now though, he's the 4th most important D on this team. Short term it wouldn't be a bad idea at all to trade him in my opinion. I really don't think the team will go that direction though.

 

[LTIR Trickery]

Fourth most important, lmao... hes the only puck mover besides Hedman that you can trust fully to drive play. He's 23. He is cheap compared to the value he provides and is (so far) relatively healthy. Outside of Hedman, he is the next in line. He plays big minutes. He plays tough matchups. His play tends to have higher highs and lower lows compared to a Cernak. McDonagh is great and its not taking away from him at all, but there is a good chance Seattle is eyeing him after this playoff run. Still signed a few years at a reasonable price, but 32 years old. I wouldn't be shocked to see us expose him.

 

[Hoek]

I would only trade him for another rock like Cernak. Otherwise, live with the growing pains. He's shown too much in his bright flashes to let him go just for the sake of it.

 

[Volodya Krutov]

Sergachev is clearly "sheltered" by Cooper smh. HF is the worst place when it comes to blowing shit out of proportion with struggling players. Guys are either loved or hated here, no middle ground.

 

[Stammertime91]

Sergachev is clearly "sheltered" by Cooper smh. HF is the worst place when it comes to blowing shit out of proportion with struggling players. Guys are either loved or hated here, no middle ground.

time on ice isn't an indicator of that or not. Just cause you're logging minutes doesn't mean you're playing top opposition or not. And he's not the shutdown guy, thankfully. I don't think we should be moving on from him or giving up, but he's certainly not doing himself any favors this postseason. He's inconsistent. He constantly hemmed himself in the zone against the islanders and he's not doing much against a "weaker" opponent in Montreal.

Lol... as if time on ice is the tell all for how a player is doing... good grief.

 

[Rschmitz]

I guess some of you forget about how in year 3 everyone was calling Hedman a bust, until he got some PP time. Let's not be shortsighted, Sergachev plays an aggressive style that is more difficult to master, while Hedman has always had a conservative game and mastered that first.

I think Sergachev's playstyle fits perfectly with Cooper's system, and it'll eventually pay huge dividends. It's been a relatively painless digestion period while we've waited for him to mature compared to most young defenders, he's a reliable top 4 d who Cooper throws out there in all situations and that's a pretty remarkable accomplishment for a 23 year old.

 

[LTIR Trickery]

time on ice isn't an indicator of that or not. Just cause you're logging minutes doesn't mean you're playing top opposition or not. And he's not the shutdown guy, thankfully. I don't think we should be moving on from him or giving up, but he's certainly not doing himself any favors this postseason. He's inconsistent. He constantly hemmed himself in the zone against the islanders and he's not doing much against a "weaker" opponent in Montreal.

Lol... as if time on ice is the tell all for how a player is doing... good grief.

But you do understand that, by extension of playing more minutes, that the likelihood of playing against all lines/talent levels goes up significantly, right?
Or that a coach obviously trusts him to be in a variety of scenarios to both defend and drive play?

Hivemind gonna hivemind.

 

[Stammertime91]

But you do understand that, by extension of playing more minutes, that the likelihood of playing against all lines/talent levels goes up significantly, right?
Or that a coach obviously trusts him to be in a variety of scenarios to both defend and drive play?

Hivemind gonna hivemind.

Of course. But it also doesn't mean he's stellar when he's out there. I don't think the guy is a pylon. He's just not consistent. His flaws are a lack of composure and this absurd idea he has more time or space than he actually does to make passes in his own end. He's incredibly inconsistent this year. You think there would be a progression to not continuously rim the puck the wrong direction and inflate a 45 second shift into a 2 minute shift by doing so. Or hitting the first man on damn near every shot attempt.

I guess your last line about hivemind is some kind of insult? Having a different opinion about a player calls for That? Ok. Good talk.

 

[BoltsOfAnarchy]

I guess some of you forget about how in year 3 everyone was calling Hedman a bust, until he got some PP time. Let's not be shortsighted, Sergachev plays an aggressive style that is more difficult to master, while Hedman has always had a conservative game and mastered that first.

I think Sergachev's playstyle fits perfectly with Cooper's system, and it'll eventually pay huge dividends. It's been a relatively painless digestion period while we've waited for him to mature compared to most young defenders, he's a reliable top 4 d who Cooper throws out there in all situations and that's a pretty remarkable accomplishment for a 23 year old.

true Hedman didn’t really blossom until his 4th season - Cooper’s 1st year. But serg has only played for Coop here. He needs to take some strides if we’re gonna commit to him long term. I like the kid & wanna see him grow into the 1D we all hope, but he’s got to grow up some. He’s only 22 I get that but he also has tons of games under his belt already

 

[RussianGuyovich]

But you do understand that, by extension of playing more minutes, that the likelihood of playing against all lines/talent levels goes up significantly, right?
Or that a coach obviously trusts him to be in a variety of scenarios to both defend and drive play?

Hivemind gonna hivemind.

yeah reminder that these same posters were calling for kucherov's head in the regular season last year.

 

[JoVel]

Of course. But it also doesn't mean he's stellar when he's out there.

As long as there's records of Jon Cooper continuing to ice a pairing of Matt Carle and Andrej Sustr in the Stanley Cup Finals we shouldn't use TOI as an argument for anything.