Player Discussion Nils Lundkvist

[Bacon Artemi Bravo]

So Nils had his first NHL game last night. Man, this kid has some raw talent. Loved a lot of what I saw in the offensive zone. His head is always on a swivel and he's always looking to make plays. He also plays more of a physical game than I had expected, his size doesn't seem to hurt him out there and he's not timid.

That being said, he made a handful of boneheaded rookie mistakes as well. He has a long way to go, but the tools are definitely there. I have a feeling we are in for a treat seeing Nils progress over the coming months and years.

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[EdJovanovski]

I think Jones should be called up and he sent down

 

[Crease]

I think Jones should be called up and he sent down

You are just so fun.

 

[EdJovanovski]

You are just so fun.

What lol he doesn’t look good and didn’t in camp either aside from one game. Jones completely outplayed him and was probably our best player. I don’t think this decision was based on merit, although not many decisions in this organization are

 

[RangersFan1994]

I think Jones should be called up and he sent down

Jones should have made the team out of camp over Lundkvist, maybe they would fear he would request a trade too. wait until Jones and Barron request a trade.. great mindset these prospects have, Andersson, Lemieux and Kravtsov all wanted out. I hope this does not happen in the future. Kravtsov should have made the team over Gauthier who is an AHL player and bust at this point. For of this talk about his fitness and how strong he is, he is softer than Marshmallow and we thought Nash was soft.

 

[Bacon Artemi Bravo]

You are just so fun.

Ed "Buzz Killington" Jovanovski

 

[NYR Viper]

I think Jones should be called up and he sent down

 

[Fitzy]

I think he will have to work a little bit on his positioning on the ice, that's going to be the biggest hurdle to jumping right into NHL hockey. His skating, strength, and offensive instincts are clearly all already at an NHL level.

It's not getting caught flat footed and knowing the thinner ice surface that will be the areas he needs to work on.

I also really don't think he is a PPQB, even on the second unit. They'll continue to use him there while Jones is in hartford, but I see Zac as much more of a QB type in that spot.

 

[NYR Viper]

I thought physically, he was actually pretty solid last night. You can tell that as he gets more comfortable he will be dangerous offensively. I look forward to the day when Jones, Fox and Lundkvist are in the top-6, especially with the way Gallant wants to play with winning puck battles down low and getting to the net. Those skilled d-men are going to have a field day

 

[Gluten Free Breadman]

I liked his game a lot once he started to relax after the first period jitters.

 

[Miamipuck]

Saw the 2nd and 3rd and thought he looked fine for a player in his first real game.

 

[The Mouth]

The one game evals are in. He was shaky at first and settled down as the game progressed.

 

[nyr2k2]

I think he will have to work a little bit on his positioning on the ice, that's going to be the biggest hurdle to jumping right into NHL hockey. His skating, strength, and offensive instincts are clearly all already at an NHL level.

It's not getting caught flat footed and knowing the thinner ice surface that will be the areas he needs to work on.

I also really don't think he is a PPQB, even on the second unit. They'll continue to use him there while Jones is in hartford, but I see Zac as much more of a QB type in that spot.

I agree with all of this, other than maybe the strength. He's not weak and he's smart when he engages physically, but I remember him throwing his body at someone in the corner and he just kind of bounced off of them. I appreciate the willingness but I wouldn't mind him avoiding those engagements in the future, lest he end up hurting himself.

Also, on his shot, I know everyone fell in love with it watching him in the SHL. What he's going to find here is that it's both much harder to get through traffic, and that it's going to be much harder to cleanly beat goaltenders than in the SHL. I'm generally a fan of throwing the puck at the cage, but he had a couple moments last night where he did take a shot when I think he would have been better served looking for a pass or holding it longer. I'm sure he'll adjust, but it was noticeable to me.

He was my pick for most impactful rookie. I said in that thread that he'd take a while to get acclimated but he'd end up making a big impact.

 

[Slurpeelover27]

I think Jones should be called up and he sent down

With this kind of reactionary short sighted thinking almost no prospects would ever make it to the NHL. Well maybe they would last a game or 2.

 

[Rangers in 7]

I agree with all of this, other than maybe the strength. He's not weak and he's smart when he engages physically, but I remember him throwing his body at someone in the corner and he just kind of bounced off of them. I appreciate the willingness but I wouldn't mind him avoiding those engagements in the future, lest he end up hurting himself.

Also, on his shot, I know everyone fell in love with it watching him in the SHL. What he's going to find here is that it's both much harder to get through traffic, and that it's going to be much harder to cleanly beat goaltenders than in the SHL. I'm generally a fan of throwing the puck at the cage, but he had a couple moments last night where he did take a shot when I think he would have been better served looking for a pass or holding it longer. I'm sure he'll adjust, but it was noticeable to me.

He was my pick for most impactful rookie. I said in that thread that he'd take a while to get acclimated but he'd end up making a big impact.

Honestly I liked his willingness to shoot the puck. Often we have too many guys looking to make the perfect pass.

 

[will1066]

The one game evals are in. He was shaky at first and settled down as the game progressed.

Yours is too

 

[NYR Viper]

I agree with all of this, other than maybe the strength. He's not weak and he's smart when he engages physically, but I remember him throwing his body at someone in the corner and he just kind of bounced off of them. I appreciate the willingness but I wouldn't mind him avoiding those engagements in the future, lest he end up hurting himself.

Also, on his shot, I know everyone fell in love with it watching him in the SHL. What he's going to find here is that it's both much harder to get through traffic, and that it's going to be much harder to cleanly beat goaltenders than in the SHL. I'm generally a fan of throwing the puck at the cage, but he had a couple moments last night where he did take a shot when I think he would have been better served looking for a pass or holding it longer. I'm sure he'll adjust, but it was noticeable to me.

He was my pick for most impactful rookie. I said in that thread that he'd take a while to get acclimated but he'd end up making a big impact.

I believe that player you're referencing was Jamie Benn so in fairness, lots of defenders would have bounced off

 

[nyr2k2]

Honestly I liked his willingness to shoot the puck. Often we have too many guys looking to make the perfect pass.

I generally agree. You still need to know when to shoot though, contrary to the beliefs of the 20,000 idiots at MSG who scream SHOOOOT nonstop. Like you get Trouba, he has a very heavy shot, but he doesn't seem to know when to use it and frequently just fires it into th shinpads of the defender up top or shoots for a deflection with a guy that's tied up and it goes five feet wide and back out. DeAngelo was really good at picking his spots and getting his shot through. If Nils is going to be a shooter he should watch what DeAngelo did.

 

[nyr2k2]

I believe that player you're referencing was Jamie Benn so in fairness, lots of defenders would have bounced off

Yeah that's fair if it was Benn. Still, I'll stand by my statement that I don't think he needs to engage in those types of hits with those types of players unless it's absolutely necessary. Again, though, I think he'll adjust.

 

[NYR Viper]

Yeah that's fair if it was Benn. Still, I'll stand by my statement that I don't think he needs to engage in those types of hits with those types of players unless it's absolutely necessary. Again, though, I think he'll adjust.

This I agree with. He will have ot learn a bit about who the players are and who he should play contain on and who he can use his strength on.

He's actually been a bit more physical and stronger than I anticipated though honestly.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

So Nils had his first NHL game last night. Man, this kid has some raw talent. Loved a lot of what I saw in the offensive zone. His head is always on a swivel and he's always looking to make plays. He also plays more of a physical game than I had expected, his size doesn't seem to hurt him out there and he's not timid.

That being said, he made a handful of boneheaded rookie mistakes as well. He has a long way to go, but the tools are definitely there. I have a feeling we are in for a treat seeing Nils progress over the coming months and years.

Size isn't everything. Lundkvist plays a more physical game than Miller.

The last thing I am worried about is Lundkvist's physicality. He has shown at all levels that he doesn't shy away from the physical side of the game. SHL, World Juniors, men's national team games, every level he has shown that edge.

Lundkvist is more than just an offensive defenseman. He also plays a more physical style of hockey than his size might indicate. Lundkvist is not really similar to Jones.

Lundkvist might be 5'11" but he certainly doesn't play like he is. He doesn't shy away and he's probably more physically willing to fight for pucks than Fox. But their skillsets is what makes them interesting. Just pair them with a stronger guy on the left.

Overall it was a debut with a lot of good moments, but you can tell there are still some things he has to get used to. It's still a step up from SHL to NHL, but the rink size isn't a factor. It's just the higher pace of the game that he has to adjust to which will happen in the coming weeks.

There was a play in the 1st period where he hit (I think) Roope Hintz behind our net, causing a turnover and leading to a quick transition the other way. That is what I wanted to see from him.

 

[ElLeetch]

Jones should have made the team out of camp over Lundkvist, maybe they would fear he would request a trade too. wait until Jones and Barron request a trade.. great mindset these prospects have, Andersson, Lemieux and Kravtsov all wanted out. I hope this does not happen in the future. Kravtsov should have made the team over Gauthier who is an AHL player and bust at this point. For of this talk about his fitness and how strong he is, he is softer than Marshmallow and we thought Nash was soft.

its a gen-z issue.

 

[nyr2k2]

The thing with "all these guys wanting out" is that we went from a veteran team with maybe one or two spots up for grabs on the fourth line, with like five legitimate prospects, to a team that had like 20 legitimate prospects. And yet we still had veteran players occupying a lot of spots. We all knew we were going to have to move guys eventually because there wasn't going to be enough spots for everyone. So, it shouldn't be terribly surprising that some guys also saw this for themselves and wanted to be moved to places where they'd have greater opportunities. I know each player had their own unique circumstances but in general, when you've got a ton of young talent and only a handful of truly "open" spots, you should expect that guys will eventually ask to move on if they feel they're on the outside looking in.

 

[Crease]

The thing with "all these guys wanting out" is that we went from a veteran team with maybe one or two spots up for grabs on the fourth line, with like five legitimate prospects, to a team that had like 20 legitimate prospects. And yet we still had veteran players occupying a lot of spots. We all knew we were going to have to move guys eventually because there wasn't going to be enough spots for everyone. So, it shouldn't be terribly surprising that some guys also saw this for themselves and wanted to be moved to places where they'd have greater opportunities. I know each player had their own unique circumstances but in general, when you've got a ton of young talent and only a handful of truly "open" spots, you should expect that guys will eventually ask to move on if they feel they're on the outside looking in.

Just to add to this point, there is very little loyalty in modern sports. These guys want to play in the NHL and secure their bag—the name on the front of their jersey is usually of little consequence. They are close friends with players on other teams. They rent during the season and live elsewhere in the summer.

 

[FireGerardGallant]

Besides the miscommunication between him and Nemeth and some Jitters he looked alright his first game. I really enjoy that second power play unit with him on it