Player Discussion Owen Power, LD (1st overall, 2021) Gentle Giant

[Fjordy]

He needs to go through the school of Ralph Krueger.

 

[Chainshot]

He needs to go through the school of Ralph Krueger.

No thanks. Power's instinctive manner of pinching, of present himself in a position akin to a forward, lingering in soft (read unchecked) areas like a forward are things you just can't teach and it would be criminal to beat out of him. (And I know you are kidding.)

 

[Butt Ox]

Imagine when we finally get the version of Power that spent entire shifts at the dot or below in preseason at the NHL level. It is going to happen.

edit: I see Chains posted the same but more better. What he said x a billion.

 

[Jim Bob]

Owen just needs to get some rum and cigars to change his puck luck.

 

[GrierIsGod123]

Imagine when we finally get the version of Power that spent entire shifts at the dot or below in preseason at the NHL level. It is going to happen.

When he figures it out, his xGF is going to be off the charts. He also needs to learn better gap control at this level, and obviously, some better puck luck would help. I'm not at all worried about him. The fact that he's been able to play top 4 minutes right away is very impressive. In a year or two, we're going to have an extremely dynamic and strong defense. Feels like we could use one more piece to partner with Power, ideally of the Samuelsson ilk.

 

[Faceboner]

Just needs to get used to the pace of the nhl and he'll be fine at times he looks a .5 to 1.5 seconds behind that will improve during this season by the time his elc is up will look like a bonafide 1d

 

[MOGlLNY]

He's logging a shit ton of minutes and still adjusting his game to NHL level speed. He's having his struggles and bad bounces but he's a 19 year old kid playing massive minutes against tough assignments. I tend to agree at about the halfway point of the season he will settle in and look great.

 

[old kummelweck]

If I were to summarize what I see with Power's game is that he is still adjusting to the speed of the NHL.

I think the dirty little truth of his development at the NHL level is that the Sabres and Granato are willing to let him make mistakes, even if it costs them games, as the ROI of him getting the minutes he is getting outweighs any short term losses.

 

[Zman5778]

I'd like to see him tighten up his playing of 2-on-1s.......as he's gotten abused on them several times so far (last night's fluke SHGA notwithstanding).

That said, I like what I've seen so far...........and I think I and we will all like it even more when he's not being force-fed minutes due to lack of talent.

 

[WiHockeyGuy]

You see the potential on nearly every shift. He will be a very special player. Considering he is 19 at the moment, I can't complain about hiccups.

 

[Andrei79]

So someone mentioned in a podcast the other night that Power was last in shots against at 5-on-5 among defensemen. And a couple games later, he's now 2nd last at 113 to Winnipeg's Neal Pionk's 119. But he's also 18th in the league in shots for (99). That's more than Dahlin (95) or guys like Brent Burns or Roman Josi thus far. NTS has him at 15th in the league for HDCF at 43 and while not great, only 11th worst at HDCA at 41 behind guys like Cam Fowler, Josh Morrisey, Pionk and Ghost.

So with him struggling a bit with puck luck and still looking like a rookie at times, he's out there when they are getting a metric shit ton of shots, they are getting a lot of quality chances for, and it's a bit of a saw-off going the opposite way. I was expecting to see him getting stove-in but that's a guy looking to figure it out and it's still damn near even. He's going to be a beast.

In a few years he'll be neutralizing most of the opposition's offense. He'll be a nightmare matchup for most forwards.

 

[Fjordy]

He will be fine, but I still think we need a solid top 4 RD to play with Owen.

 

[Zman5778]

He will be fine, but I still think we need a solid top 4 RD to play with Owen.

I know many here will bristle, but Joker is still just 23. It's still entirely possible that he is OP's long-term partner. OP, like Dahlin, should have that ability to raise his partner's playing level (just look at how much better Bryson looks with Dahlin as opposed to Fitz).....and Joker isn't all that far off from a legit 2nd-pair RHD as it is.

 

[Fjordy]

I know many here will bristle, but Joker is still just 23. It's still entirely possible that he is OP's long-term partner. OP, like Dahlin, should have that ability to raise his partner's playing level (just look at how much better Bryson looks with Dahlin as opposed to Fitz).....and Joker isn't all that far off from a legit 2nd-pair RHD as it is.

I'm not done with Joker yet, but he's always injured. It's not his fault, but the guy is clearly unlucky and he can't develop and play while injured. Moreover, competition is also needed.

 

[RhinoFan]

You see the potential on nearly every shift. He will be a very special player. Considering he is 19 at the moment, I can't complain about hiccups.

After the first couple games it's felt like Power has been more sure of himself than Dahlin was in his rookie season. Or am I just sipping the kool aid?

 

[WiHockeyGuy]

I'm not done with Joker yet, but he's always injured. It's not his fault, but the guy is clearly unlucky and he can't develop and play while injured. Moreover, competition is also needed.

I like joker, but I would definitely like another NHL caliber defender added, if we are serious about playoffs this year.

 

[Fjordy]

I like joker, but I would definitely like another NHL caliber defender added, if we are serious about playoffs this year.

It's not just about the playoffs, but it's also important, but the development of Owen Power should also be of concern to Adams, as he could be one of the most important players in Buffalo's future.

 

[Sabre the Win]

I still would like to see him playing sheltered minutes. I get the whole let him learn from his mistakes but sometimes when you're just constantly taking L's with goals against (even from unlucky bounces) you start to lose focus and get frustrated. Getting frustrated can take away from your ability to learn since you're constantly looking for other reasons to blame or lacking confidence.

 

[Zman5778]

I still would like to see him playing sheltered minutes.

I'm sure Donnie and crew would like that too. It's just not possible right now. Hopefully once everyone gets healthy they'll be able to shelter him more.

 

[Dingo44]

I'm not done with Joker yet, but he's always injured. It's not his fault, but the guy is clearly unlucky and he can't develop and play while injured. Moreover, competition is also needed.

Hard to get after a guy who took a hard shot into his jaw full-force. Unless you believe he's cursed.

 

[Fjordy]

Hard to get after a guy who took a hard shot into his jaw full-force. Unless you believe he's cursed.

I understand that this is an accident, but the fact is that he cannot play now and we need a top 4 RD for a long time. I told you that Jocky is unlucky for injuries, the whole last season was lost for him due to injuries, now he is injured again, me is very sorry his, but we cannot wait forever. Also doesn't have to be traded him.

 

[Faceboner]

Hard to get after a guy who took a hard shot into his jaw full-force. Unless you believe he's cursed.

Personally starting to believe that but other than that he is a good player but is he a good partner for power or would he be better suited on the third pair i think his strengths won't shine with power

 

[Butt Ox]

When he figures it out, his xGF is going to be off the charts. He also needs to learn better gap control at this level, and obviously, some better puck luck would help. I'm not at all worried about him. The fact that he's been able to play top 4 minutes right away is very impressive. In a year or two, we're going to have an extremely dynamic and strong defense. Feels like we could use one more piece to partner with Power, ideally of the Samuelsson ilk.

Concur with gap control. As a team, leagues ahead of where they were when letting the opposition cross paint at will but work to do. Cobra and Boosh are so very valuable. At this point I want to mention how much better Fitzy has been but don't know how to do it properly without making comparisons to bad Fitzy himself.

As for OP, not worried either. No one that big should skate like that.

 

[Panthaz89]

He just backs off way too much and gives opposition so much room and always waits for them to make the first move. It's really not all that concerning but people say it's bad luck but when the opportunity of luck could have been prevented by shutting things down earlier its kind of silly imo.

 

[DapperCam]

I still would like to see him playing sheltered minutes. I get the whole let him learn from his mistakes but sometimes when you're just constantly taking L's with goals against (even from unlucky bounces) you start to lose focus and get frustrated. Getting frustrated can take away from your ability to learn since you're constantly looking for other reasons to blame or lacking confidence.

I guess that just depends on how things are framed by the coaching staff and his teammates. If everybody is telling him to play his game and figure it out, then maybe it won’t get in his head when he gets burned.

This team seems to be all about the good vibes.