Player Discussion Patrik Laine

[Saundies]

Yes i just checked were 2.2 and some change over.

Is there any penalty for being over before LTIR stuff? Or is the goal to be cap compliant when the season starts

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

The way he comes across in interviews, I think he's a bit of a Dougie Hamilton type of guy. Just a bit "different" from your typical hockey player - a little more cerebral and soft spoken/introverted, and might not fit in with every group. With characters like St. Louis, Hughes and Suzuki leading the franchise, I think this place could be the fit.

Yeah he seems like a thoughtful guy in that presser.

For sure. We got smart people in leadership positions. This move could work out amazingly. I wasn’t super aware of his situation. Didn’t realize he was practically a ppg in Columbus either. Thought it was much more dire than that.

Doesn’t seem like much risk except for injuries really. I could easily see him hitting new highs with us.

 

[JoelWarlord]

Is there any penalty for being over before LTIR stuff? Or is the goal to be cap compliant when the season starts

There's no explicit penalty, but the downside of using LTIR to begin the year is you're basically locked in to LTIR and can't accrue cap space throughout the year. We'll be locked in to just having Price's remaining LTIR available for the rest of the season vs. going into the year 3M under the cap accrues to ~10M in space by the deadline. Not really a huge deal since we'll have more than enough room to do deadline stuff with all the expiring deals we have.

 

[PavelBrendl]

Yeah he seems like a thoughtful guy in that presser.

For sure. We got smart people in leadership positions. This move could work out amazingly. I wasn’t super aware of his situation. Didn’t realize he was practically a ppg in Columbus either. Thought it was much more dire than that.

Doesn’t seem like much risk except for injuries really. I could easily see him hitting new highs with us.

The skill is undeniable, but I think he's been misfit with the teams he was on. There aren't really any details about the issues in Columbus, but it's quite widely known that leadership in Winnipeg (Wheeler, Scheif) kinda buried the kid. Once he hit his stride in Columbus, he was still playing good albeit one-dimensional hockey. In his only two "full" seasons with the team, he scored at a higher PPG rate than anyone else. There's a lot of recency bias in the NHL and last season being a write-off pretty much turned him into a ghost in most people's minds.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Watching highlights of this guy, holy cow can he shoot the puck! What impresses me though is his skating. I didn't realize he was that good of a skater.

He's an absolute truck when he gets going , just gotta find a way to get him going more often!

 

[Sterling Archer]

I can’t overstate enough the benefits of having Laine in the lineup does.

It spreads the pressure and expectations out over several players, and not just one “messiahs” player. This will
Do wonders for players like Caufield, Slaf, Dach and Demidov, when he arrives.

Adds much needed scoring and depth. Helping to spread out the scoring and allowing for easier matchups down the roster.

Power play that may actually score and roll TWO PP units. I know, crazy!! This is a far greater deterrent to opposing teams then adding an enforcer because it means real game consequences for taking penalties.

Winning close games. Habs were among the league leaders in one goal games. Having Laine in the dying minutes of a game, OT, or PS, gives you a better chance to steal more points in the standings to creep into a spot.

Transferable skills. Hughes mentioned this in his press conference but having Laine in practise can only help younger players. Caufield, Slaf, etc. can work on their shots even more by watching and practicing with a top 3 NHL level sniper.

Confidence and swagger knowing you have a legit 40-50 goal scorer and go into games expecting to win. Look at any team you played on and the mental difference it made when you had one of the best scorers in the league on your team, versus not having one. There’s a complete mental shift there in how you prepare and attack games.

Size isn’t an issue anymore with so much beef up front and in the back end. Not going to have teams push you around when you’re bigger then they are and can push back harder.

Montreal fans LOVE their star players. Imagine the atmosphere when Laine first gets introduced and lights up the lamp. It’s going to be electric and the players feed off that energy. Games will mean more and the atmosphere will help propel the team further.

I’m sure there are more but the top line and trickle down effect on this club will be material and I can’t wait to watch!

 

[RealityBytes]

Lot of hype in remembering what Laine was ... but not what he is. Right now he is not what he was. He only played 18 games for Columbus last year and had poor +- results in the last four years. Basically he is an expensive reclamation project with attitude that may or may not turn out. Having him for $8.7M for two years is a big gamble.

Now we sit and watch. Will he return to his former glory, or will he just get back to being a middle level player, or will he be another PLD. No way to know at this point. Of course he'll start strong, all players do on a new team, but what will be the final result of this "experiment". It will be interesting to watch.

 

[Sterling Archer]

Lot of hype in remembering what Laine was ... but not what he is. Right now he is not what he was. He only played 18 games for Columbus last year. Basically he is an expensive reclamation project with attitude that may or may not turn out. Having him for $8.7M for two years is a big gamble.

Now we sit and watch. Will he return to his former glory, or will he just get back to being a middle level player, or will he be another PLD. No way to know at this point. Of course he'll start strong, all players do on a new team, but what will be the final result of this "experiment".

Glad he only played 18 games. Got his head and body right and says he’s feeling top shape. Now it’s time to go to work after his reset. Didn’t hurt Selanne to miss an entire year and recover from nagging injuries.

 

[morhilane]

Are Habs under the cap with this trade? Or we have to make another move

Over the cap with 15 forwards (this include RHP who will start the season on IR so he can't be waived).

I expect the Habs to start with 12 forwards and 6 dmen. Pezz, ABB and one of the waiver exempted Ds everyone think made the NHL will start in the AHL putting the Habs at about $500k under the cap. No need to put Price on LTIR until injuries accumulate.

But Hughes might have other trade planned too.

 

[Noldo]

Personality wise, I think that Laine is exactly the type who may excel in Montreal. He wants to be a star and wants to have the puck on his stick when the game is on the line. When he was younger, that made him seem arrogant and kinda a**hole, especially compared to typical Finnish juniors. If he has managed to mature, he can really shine in big lights.

Of course the big question is, whether he has developed the ability to cope with the fact that at some point things are not going to go his way. Previously Laine let his emotions to dictate his game (and potentially even his life) too much. When things were good, he was a god (he has some insane stretches and, unsurprisingly, did very well in special games such as the time he played in Finland), but when pucks were not going in, his overall game (and spirit?) pummeled.

If he has learned not to let his emotions to drive him so much - never too high, never too low, which was the first lesson Mikko Koivu said he learned in North America - he can be great. But Montreal can be brutal and not help a player out of his funk. Hopefully Laine has truly learned to get assistance he needs.

 

[BB88]

Lot of hype in remembering what Laine was ... but not what he is. Right now he is not what he was. He only played 18 games for Columbus last year and had poor +- results in the last four years. Basically he is an expensive reclamation project with attitude that may or may not turn out. Having him for $8.7M for two years is a big gamble.

Now we sit and watch. Will he return to his former glory, or will he just get back to being a middle level player, or will he be another PLD. No way to know at this point. Of course he'll start strong, all players do on a new team, but what will be the final result of this "experiment". It will be interesting to watch.

Lot of people have wrong views on Laine from his Columbus days

He went ppg with zero star caliber players on the team and was their best player.
His overall game has improved but he’s not quick enough skater to be the guy on a team

Frustrating to watch in the sense that the skill set/tools scream superstar but skating won’t allow him to reach that ceiling. His passing is very underrated part of his game

Edit

& who wouldn’t have poor defensive results in Columbus? (As an offensive player)

1st year:
Torts gave up on coaching, PLD & Jones asked for a trade, which meant start of a rebuild

Year 2, rookie coach (absolute failure) went ppg with zero star players on the team. Jenner was the best C they had on the roster

Year 3, Columbus had franchise record for players lost on injuries, just a total waste of a season. Especially during that season their defensive structure/game was echl level, constant defensive collapses and zero shots saved by their goalie. Even still around ppg player. Again no 1C Jenner was the best C they had on the roster

Year 4, concussion early in the season+ injuries+ experiement at C


Just look at what happened to Gaudreau once he got there& Laine was easily the better player of the 2

I’ve been extremely critical of Laines development but with that said Columbus was a complete tire fire during Laines era. They were forced basically to start a rebuild when he got there and they had multiple failed 1st time coaches experiments. When they got to Finland to play Colorado our media people were shocked how badly run that team was, coaching wise and openly mocked them. Especially when they got to follow Colorado as a comp.

Also as I said in the trade thread Laine has changed his offseason training and has been working with NFL players and for the 1st time in years he seems to be in a good place. It’s not easy to go through what he had at such a young age while also having to have to go through it in front of millions

 

[Koivu11]

He will wear #92.

 

[Essenege]

Last time the guy played 60 games in a season was before COVID.

Him playing 50 games and scoring 20 would be a win.

But wouldn't be shocked if he's injured/out by November.

The counter argument is that his 2 55 games seasons in Columbus are his most productive in his career on a PPG basis.

 

[le_sean]

The skill is undeniable, but I think he's been misfit with the teams he was on. There aren't really any details about the issues in Columbus, but it's quite widely known that leadership in Winnipeg (Wheeler, Scheif) kinda buried the kid. Once he hit his stride in Columbus, he was still playing good albeit one-dimensional hockey. In his only two "full" seasons with the team, he scored at a higher PPG rate than anyone else. There's a lot of recency bias in the NHL and last season being a write-off pretty much turned him into a ghost in most people's minds.

He alluded to taking things personally when he was young. I’m wondering if Wheeler and Scheifele were just trying to push him to become a better and more complete player and he didn’t bother listening, which created a divide in the room (widely reported to be true with the Jets at the time). At least he’s aware of this now.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Demidov will have 91

Love numbers in the 70s and 90s.

 

[Nedved]

Hope he can stay healthy all year and have his confident back.

Seem to be in the right place mentally and he’s now married and had a big offseason training.

positive attitude on hf habs. I've seen it all now.

Demidov will have 91

Love numbers in the 70s and 90s.

I just had fedorov pop in my brain.

 

[BB88]

He alluded to taking things personally when he was young. I’m wondering if Wheeler and Scheifele were just trying to push him to become a better and more complete player and he didn’t bother listening, which created a divide in the room (widely reported to be true with the Jets at the time). At least he’s aware of this now.

If that was true their locker room wouln’t only have gotten worse when he left

It’s not a secret that locker room was toxic

Big Buff mystery, ending his career just like that
Multiple players asking out
Maurice quit the team
Past coaches/players called out the team
Stripped Wheeler of the C and bought him out

Once Laine got traded Jets underperformed for years and once got Wheeler out of the house had a season where they overachieved

 

[PavelBrendl]

He will wear #92.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

 

[schwang26]

With the addition of Laine how close to being legitimately able to compete for a playoff spot?
1 player? 2?

Need a strong 4th line.

 

[themilosh]

With the addition of Laine how close to being legitimately able to compete for a playoff spot?
1 player? 2?

If Dach can stay healthy, i see no reason why we wont he challenging fir a playoff WC this year.

The key to Laine is Dach being healthy. A passer like Dach needs a shooter like Laine, and vice-versa. Alternatively, you play Caufield with Dach with the same great complimentary. Suzuki can play with anybody.

We better have hired the greatest Witch doctor from Haiti to protect these two..

Im thinking like the voodoo rasta gangster in Predator 2.. roll the bones..

 

[Jaynki]

The montreal market will have the effect on Laine it had on Kovalev.

We could not pass up this opportunity. Incredible.

Such a pivotal acquisition in opening up our competitive window and bringing our rebuild into the next stage, which is being a playoff candidate year in and year out.

 

[ahmedou]

Player Discussion Patrik Laine

 

[Pompeius Magnus]

He will wear #92.

It's an ugly number, but I might grow into it with time I guess.

 

[417]

Lot of hype in remembering what Laine was ... but not what he is. Right now he is not what he was. He only played 18 games for Columbus last year and had poor +- results in the last four years. Basically he is an expensive reclamation project with attitude that may or may not turn out. Having him for $8.7M for two years is a big gamble.

For who?

Now we sit and watch. Will he return to his former glory, or will he just get back to being a middle level player, or will he be another PLD. No way to know at this point. Of course he'll start strong, all players do on a new team, but what will be the final result of this "experiment". It will be interesting to watch.

Patrick Laine could not take a single stride for the Montreal Canadiens, and it would be difficult for anyone to twist themselves into a pretzel to explain how trading for him was a mistake.

But no doubt people will try

 

[overlords]

It's an ugly number, but I might grow into it with time I guess.

on the bright side, it's a number that should help keep expectations in check