Player Discussion: Patrik Laine Part VII: Eliitti! - Mod Warning Post #79

[Aavco Cup]

It should matter if the team wants to go somewhere this year. If they don't, then all of this makes a lot more sense. The organization seems to be a big circle-jerk with the extensions and comments from the top. Having Laine "mentored" has the added benefit of influencing his contract. How convenient.

Btw, are you affiliated with the team in some way? Like do you get a salary from them or something? Sincere question as you seem to be on top of things regarding the team.

I have been associated with the Winnipeg Jets since Bobby Hull signed this contract at Portage and Main. I have been in the arena for many of the biggest nights in Jets history including Avco Cup celebrations. Teemu's amazing celly And nearly every playoff game in the NHL era.

I am just a fan though and retired so I'm able to follow my passion quite closely now

 

[Asiantuntija]

He should focus on becoming a better all around player. In all facets of the game. Bryan Little is a mentor to him right now. How many goals he scores this year won't matter in the long run.

Little can't be his mentor, because he is already much better player than Little. Scheifele would be much better mentor for Laine. Everything works with Scheifele so what is the problem? If this continues too long, it could really hurt his ceiling as a goalscorer.

 

[antiqueslivers]

Is that what was said about brett hull or ovi... they have to be a better 2 way player... if you have a generational sniper you dont turn that in to a two way player...you have guys like schief for that. You use a generational sniper as just that.... a sniper.

Maurice's misuse of players is basically his schtik .... dont take my word for it. Read peoples thoughts on Pomo while he coached the canes... go ahead i'll wait.

 

[Aavco Cup]

So Scheif is so incredible that anyone playing with him doesn't have to worry about anything else than standing around and scoring? Wow, what an absolute stud.

You seem to be focusing on the poster instead of the actual argument. That is usually counter-productive to one's credibility.

It's just an observation in general terms that I see in this thread. Probably just a vocal few though

 

[grieves]

It's just an observation in general terms that I see in this thread. Probably just a vocal few though

Different people can see different things I guess. I thought this thread has been quiet after Laine having success, but the team not. We see what we want to see.

You are doing yourself no favors by checking posters' nationalities first. I would focus on what they are saying and go from there. Usually a fresh perspective is a very good thing.

 

[Aavco Cup]

Different people can see different things I guess. I thought this thread has been quiet after Laine having success, but the team not. We see what we want to see.

You are doing yourself no favors by checking posters' nationalities first. I would focus on what they are saying and go from there. Usually a fresh perspective is a very good thing.

I'm not focusing on nationalities first BTW. I enjoy all input here and would never discourage anyone from voicing their views.

 

[nobody important]

I posted this in the Laine thread.

I saw this tweet yesterday from Artic ice. Through 5 games Laine ranked 5th in the NHL in 5 on 5 shot attempts with 31 but just 14 have been on net.

Patrik was getting his looks with MP and Little chemistry was not a problem. If it proves to be an issue with Ehlers Little and Laine this season then the blender will come especially if Connor Wheeler and Scheifele don’t get On a roll.

Psssst... you're still in the Laine thread. Still, not as bad as those "Honey, I've gotta go. Got my wife on the other line" moments.

Edit: Just saw elsewhere that a whole bunch of Laine posts got moved here so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.

 

[Aavco Cup]

OT but is this now the largest thread in HFJets history?

And if thread length is theoretically unlimited, does this mean the end of the endless Roman numeral megathreads on the business board?

 

[nobody important]

OT but is this now the largest thread in HFJets history?

And if thread length is theoretically unlimited, does this mean the end of the endless Roman numeral megathreads on the business board?

Let it not be so. The Coyotes saga wouldn't have been the same without the thread titles that so often humorously captured the zeitgeist of the moment.

 

[Board Bard]

I agree that it is bad if Laine can only produce with Scheifele. I just don't agree with the timing of worrying about something like this. You are talking about a scenario close to 10 years from now. I would make Laine do what he does best at this point, and let him learn other stuff gradually. They have repeatedly said that the biggest thing last year for Laine was that he was learning defence. So in fact he is learning this other stuff already. I don't understand what harm can Scheifele do to this progression.

Actually Maurice said explicitly last year that he wasn't concentrating on defense, but letting the kids have a pretty free hand with offense. It was one of his tactics for hoodwinking Chevy into excusing the poor team results his coaching normally produces and giving him another contract.

 

[sashalaine]

Laine's corsi may be high but his production is not. The team needs Laine's goals and production. One only has to look at how many goals they've been scoring and compare that to the last year. With Little it's not working out and you don't see much of the high scoring chances when compared to Scheifele - Laine. If Maurice stubbornly wants to force this that's fine, but's it's far from being as effective as it needs to be. Scheifele and Laine think alike which is why they mesh well together. With Little I just don't see that.

Hope I can still comment on Laine although I'm Finnish. But anyway, that's how I feel too. To win the Jets need goals. Who's the best offensive player? Scheifele. What do you need to get the most out of him? Well he's a fantastic playmaker, so someone who can score. Who's the best goalscorer? Laine. But Scheifele also knows how to score, can Laine make plays for Scheifele? Yes. But have they ever played together? Yes. Did it go well? Yes.

Sure, you can make arguments about Laine's defensive game, trying to spread the talent etc. But at the end of the day I feel that if Jets want to be a playoff team, they need to get the absolute maximum out of Scheifele and Laine, and the way to do that is to play them together. If Maurice keeps them separated, I truly hope I'm wrong about this.

 

[Aavco Cup]

Hope I can still comment on Laine although I'm Finnish. But anyway, that's how I feel too. To win the Jets need goals. Who's the best offensive player? Scheifele. What do you need to get the most out of him? Well he's a fantastic playmaker, so someone who can score. Who's the best goalscorer? Laine. But Scheifele also knows how to score, can Laine make plays for Scheifele? Yes. But have they ever played together? Yes. Did it go well? Yes.

Sure, you can make arguments about Laine's defensive game, trying to spread the talent etc. But at the end of the day I feel that if Jets want to be a playoff team, they need to get the absolute maximum out of Scheifele and Laine, and the way to do that is to play them together. If Maurice keeps them separated, I truly hope I'm wrong about this.

Ehlers has been scoring goals playing with The Scheifele line. It seems they are scoring goals without Laine on it.

 

[grieves]

Actually Maurice said explicitly last year that he wasn't concentrating on defense, but letting the kids have a pretty free hand with offense. It was one of his tactics for hoodwinking Chevy into excusing the poor team results his coaching normally produces and giving him another contract.

Well Maurice also said explicitly (going for a direct quote from memory): "If you ask Patty what his biggest lesson from last season was, he is going to say defending". So it seems Maurice is contradicting himself if what you say is true.

 

[grieves]

Ehlers has been scoring goals playing with The Scheifele line. It seems they are scoring goals without Laine on it.

But they won't have any articles written about them about being the possibly the best duo in the NHL. Let's be honest here.

I think Ehlers right now is much more suited to "carry his own line" than Laine. Ehlers has the speed to mobilize any line I think.

 

[Board Bard]

Well Maurice also said explicitly (going for a direct quote from memory): "If you ask Patty what his biggest lesson from last season was, he is going to say defending". So it seems Maurice is contradicting himself if what you say is true.

Mine was from last year. Yours is from this year. They aren't mutually exclusive. Laine could have been concentrating more on offense last year but still learned a lot about defense. Of course, if Maurice really had asked Laine that question, Laine would have likely given that answer to please his coach. I mean, it wouldn't have been very smart to say something honest like, "The biggest lesson from last year is that other teams are coached better." Having said all that, it's still possible that you're right and Maurice is contradicting himself. The left side of his mouth sometimes forgets what the right side has said.

 

[Aavco Cup]

But they won't have any articles written about them about being the possibly the best duo in the NHL. Let's be honest here.

I think Ehlers right now is much more suited to "carry his own line" than Laine.

I am being honest. Are you suggesting I'm lying? I honestly see nothing wrong with Laine playing on the Little lines and now Ehlers is there too. I look forward to watching

 

[grieves]

I am being honest. Are you suggesting I'm lying? I honestly see nothing wrong with Laine playing on the Little lines and now Ehlers is there too. I look forward to watching

Oh, you are going this route. Please forgive me for accidentally accusing you of lying. I did not mean to misrepresent your opinion.

It is just a bit baffling to me since we saw ELL last year and it was probably the worst line combination of the whole year. But maybe this year it is different.

 

[grieves]

Mine was from last year. Yours is from this year. They aren't mutually exclusive. Laine could have been concentrating more on offense last year but still learned a lot about defense. Of course, if Maurice really had asked Laine that question, Laine would have likely given that answer to please his coach. I mean, it wouldn't have been very smart to say something honest like, "The biggest lesson from last year is that other teams are coached better." Having said all that, it's still possible that you're right and Maurice is contradicting himself. The left side of his mouth sometimes forgets what the right side has said.

Ah, ok, that makes more sense. I'm not trying to blame Maurice if there there is nothing to blame him for. I just would not be surprised if he did contradict himself. Actions speak louder than words and at this point it matters very little what comes out of the mouth of Paul Maurice.

 

[Board Bard]

Ah, ok, that makes more sense. I'm not trying to blame Maurice if there there is nothing to blame him for. I just would not be surprised if he did contradict himself. Actions speak louder than words and at this point it matters very little what comes out of the mouth of Paul Maurice.

What comes out of the mouth of Paul Maurice can help concrete dry on a rainy day, provided it's covered by a plastic sheet.

 

[sashalaine]

Ehlers has been scoring goals playing with The Scheifele line. It seems they are scoring goals without Laine on it.

So did you only read the first three sentences on my post or do you feel that the Jets are looking like a playoff team so far? My point was that I think you need the maximum out of your top guys to make the Jets a playoff team. From what I have seen I think the way to do that is Laine and Scheif together. I'm not saying Scheifele can't produce without Laine - of course he can, because he's the best player on the team and he can make a lot happen in whatever line he plays in. Laine isn't there yet, but he's still a guy who can help the team a lot if used properly. I don't see Little being the guy for him, but again I hope I'm wrong.

 

[Aavco Cup]

So did you only read the first three sentences on my post or do you feel that the Jets are looking like a playoff team so far? My point was that I think you need the maximum out of your top guys to make the Jets a playoff team. From what I have seen I think the way to do that is Laine and Scheif together. I'm not saying Scheifele can't produce without Laine - of course he can, because he's the best player on the team and he can make a lot happen in whatever line he plays in. Laine isn't there yet, but he's still a guy who can help the team a lot if used properly. I don't see Little being the guy for him, but again I hope I'm wrong.

The playoff spots are not awards in mid October. Bryan Little is an amazing hockey player. Have patience.

 

[Narow]

I agree that it is bad if Laine can only produce with Scheifele. I just don't agree with the timing of worrying about something like this. You are talking about a scenario close to 10 years from now. I would make Laine do what he does best at this point, and let him learn other stuff gradually. They have repeatedly said that the biggest thing last year for Laine was that he was learning defence. So in fact he is learning this other stuff already. I don't understand what harm can Scheifele do to this progression.

In my view Scheifele makes Laine a lot more effective, and Laine makes Scheifele a lot more effective. So why not have them be effective together. It's not like Laine is so in love with Scheif that he just forgets every other aspect of the game and just drools over Scheif's play while waiting for a pass. And like someone said, they have been pretty bad defensively, so is it not a perfect scenario for Laine to not only score a tonne, but work on other aspects of the game. Scheif is not a magical unicorn that will make Laine a good player in every facet of the game, and that he can just float around waiting for passes.

If Scheif can truly elevate any player to that kind of domination then I'm sure we will be soon seeing articles on how Scheif + Wheels or Connor could be the best duo in the NHL. So far only Scheif + Laine have reached that kind of hype.

Ah no scheifele is no unicorn eichel is tho !
(Search eichel unicorn on google)

Logically laine could just as well work on creating chances with scheifele now that you say it (and defence).

 

[Narow]

I'd rather have a coach adapt to a players strengths than have a player such as laine try to force playing with little just because sometime in the future schief will not be the team....I don't see a problem having wheeler with little(little and wheeler were linemates) and laine up with schief where he seems to be more consistently a threat scoring goals thru 3 periods which he is known and drafted for.

Yeah i agree but it would definatly be beneficial if laine could produce with anyone. Eventually that could help the team spread out scoring so we could roll 3 lines.

It would be interesting to know tho, have there ever been a player who has scored 60-70+ points next to little and if so who?

 

[elmaco]

Scheif can dish pucks very good and needs a finisher, Wheeler can't finish so i don't get why Laine isn't on the 1st line.

 

[DashingDane]

But they won't have any articles written about them about being the possibly the best duo in the NHL. Let's be honest here.

I think Ehlers right now is much more suited to "carry his own line" than Laine. Ehlers has the speed to mobilize any line I think.

You mean like this

Not trying to be a dick... but you can't really base your arguments around what a bunch of not very smart so called "experts" say.