Speculation: Player Discussion: Danil "Goose" Gushchin

[hotcabbagesoup]

During these past three wins, Gushchin has been on a line with Wennberg and Zetterlund, and the trio has created a single goal in every game. All goals have been even-strength goals and all of them are sustainable scoring plays in the NHL in that they are either 1) plays in transition and 2) plays very close to the net. I want to go into detail about these three plays since there is video of them. If I can find video of his play in other zones I will post them later.


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Offense Generation:
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vs UTAH
Utah dumps it deep forcing Shark defenders to retrieve. Goosey is the support forward on the far boards, the puck will come to him and there surely will be a battle. He looks over his shoulder ahead of time TWICE to see how much time he has with a Utah player bearing down on him. Puck comes to him and he puts a touch pass between his legs to Zetterlund for an easy breakout out of the d-zone. Result: Zetterlund ends up scoring at the other end.




vs LAK
Wennberg makes a touch pass in the neutral zone to spring a breakout. It very reminiscent of Gushchin's play the previous night. Gushchin provides numbers on the odd-man rush that ensues.




vs CHI
Goose goes to the net to support Zetterlund, stays in the front of the net and screens Mrazek and has his stick in Mrazek's face on a play where the goalie didn't know where the puck was. Result: GOAL on a loose puck.

Click to read more...

 

[coooldude]

I'm kind of ambivalent as to whether Goose stays or goes back down. He's been passable but kind of replaceable on 2LW. All of those plays are fine, he did the right thing, but weren't immediate and direct contributors to an expected scoring chance. The breakout chip was nice but who expected Zetts to have a free lane to the net from the DZ? The 2 on 1 support was expected but he didn't create anything. The screen was fine but he didn't create the loose puck. Bad goalie play if anything.

He's shown patience on puck in DZ to find the breakout and he's been fighting in the OZ for possession, but none of them are true play creation and he only really has a handful of big plays that could/should have been goals. Otherwise he is kind of just there, and there have been a handful of plays where he's been out-muscled for possession - uphill battle to win more than he loses.

Cardwell has looked, in limited minutes, as good or better off puck. He may not have the offensive upside of Gush but he has lineup versatility. I'd be happy to see either one keep getting ice time. I still suspect Gush gets 30-40 games this season and hopefully we see him actually establish himself a bit more.

So when Dell returns, one of them probably goes back down for more ice time. Might be Cardwell since he and Dell have more similar lineup roles today, unless Cardwell flashes tonight in the 2LW role. I'm probably more confident in Cardwell's ability to be a steady role player on our team in 3-5 years than Gush, but who knows.

 

[gaucholoco3]

I'm kind of ambivalent as to whether Goose stays or goes back down. He's been passable but kind of replaceable on 2LW. All of those plays are fine, he did the right thing, but weren't immediate and direct contributors to an expected scoring chance. The breakout chip was nice but who expected Zetts to have a free lane to the net from the DZ? The 2 on 1 support was expected but he didn't create anything. The screen was fine but he didn't create the loose puck. Bad goalie play if anything.

He's shown patience on puck in DZ to find the breakout and he's been fighting in the OZ for possession, but none of them are true play creation and he only really has a handful of big plays that could/should have been goals. Otherwise he is kind of just there, and there have been a handful of plays where he's been out-muscled for possession - uphill battle to win more than he loses.

Cardwell has looked, in limited minutes, as good or better off puck. He may not have the offensive upside of Gush but he has lineup versatility. I'd be happy to see either one keep getting ice time. I still suspect Gush gets 30-40 games this season and hopefully we see him actually establish himself a bit more.

So when Dell returns, one of them probably goes back down for more ice time. Might be Cardwell since he and Dell have more similar lineup roles today, unless Cardwell flashes tonight in the 2LW role. I'm probably more confident in Cardwell's ability to be a steady role player on our team in 3-5 years than Gush, but who knows.

I could see Cardwell heading down for the reason you mentioned but it should be Gushchin. Cardwell has looked more dangerous and engaged than Gushchin with significantly worse linemates.

It is a moot point since it is likely Celebrini and Dellandrea will be back soon.

 

[CanadienShark]

I could see Cardwell heading down for the reason you mentioned but it should be Gushchin. Cardwell has looked more dangerous and engaged than Gushchin with significantly worse linemates.

It is a moot point since it is likely Celebrini and Dellandrea will be back soon.

Cardwell hasn't been up for long at all, nor played many minutes in either game. I think Goose has the inside track for now. Either way, I'm glad we finally have some solid internal competition.

 

[Kcoyote3]

It's with a heavy heart that I'm going to let the Gushchin hype train die down. He had some opportunities and he didn't seize them. Think he needs some time back in the AHL to take what he's seen of NHL speed and physicality and adjust. Revisit him after the TDL and see if he's gotten some habits that have stuck. He wasn't clearly better than any of the forwards including most of the fourth liners, sans Kostin, so it makes sense that he gets sent down tomorrow.

 

[DG93]

It's with a heavy heart that I'm going to let the Gushchin hype train die down. He had some opportunities and he didn't seize them. Think he needs some time back in the AHL to take what he's seen of NHL speed and physicality and adjust. Revisit him after the TDL and see if he's gotten some habits that have stuck. He wasn't clearly better than any of the forwards including most of the fourth liners, sans Kostin, so it makes sense that he gets sent down tomorrow.

And he's not the most natural fit in the bottom-6 anyway, especially with Dellandrea coming back and Cardwell looking pretty good in a bottom-6 role. My prediction is Gushchin goes back down to the AHL this week, gets a last audition after the TDL, and then isn't brought back this offseason.

 

[Lebanezer]

It's with a heavy heart that I'm going to let the Gushchin hype train die down. He had some opportunities and he didn't seize them. Think he needs some time back in the AHL to take what he's seen of NHL speed and physicality and adjust. Revisit him after the TDL and see if he's gotten some habits that have stuck. He wasn't clearly better than any of the forwards including most of the fourth liners, sans Kostin, so it makes sense that he gets sent down tomorrow.

Understandable. I said this before, but to me it looks like he's trying really hard not to cheat for offense so he can address the weaknesses in his game pointed out by the coaching staff (defensive, off puck play). Much like Smith, but to a lesser degree, he looks like he's thinking too much.

 

[Star Platinum]

It's with a heavy heart that I'm going to let the Gushchin hype train die down. He had some opportunities and he didn't seize them. Think he needs some time back in the AHL to take what he's seen of NHL speed and physicality and adjust. Revisit him after the TDL and see if he's gotten some habits that have stuck. He wasn't clearly better than any of the forwards including most of the fourth liners, sans Kostin, so it makes sense that he gets sent down tomorrow.

 

[hohosaregood]

I do like some of the things he added in this stint. Seems like he may have figured out how to engage physically and trying to slip in front of guys on the forecheck to establish body position.

 

[gaucholoco3]

Gushchin and Bordeleau are in my opinion destined to be AAAA players. They play a game that needs to be in the top 6 but they just aren’t quite good enough to be top 6 on most teams and especially if they can’t crack the Sharks top 6 there is probably no place for them on other NHL rosters. Maybe Bordeleau’s PP game is good enough to hide him on the 4th line 5v5 but that is a unicorn position in the NHL.

The good thing is they can help elevate an already stacked Cuda team to true Calder Cup contender.

 

[Alaskanice]

I’m not touching this with a 10 foot pole.

 

[OrrNumber4]

He'a shown that the case against him is weak. He is not a defensive liability.

But the case for him also doesn't look great. He hasn't put up the numbers. He doesn't look particularly dangerous offensively. Those things will come with time, but I can also understand that with so much competition, management can't give him that rope.

 

[Juxtaposer]

He hasn't been bad, but he hasn't been good. And with his mediocre off-puck game, I just don't think that's enough.

 

[gaucholoco3]

I think Cardwell and Gushchin are the 13th and 14th best forwards on the team. They are both better than G Smith and Kostin. The problem is they won’t benefit from sitting in the press box and can both try and develop their game and still help the Cuda.

 

[sampler]

Personally, I still like Gush and I think he adds more than a grundstrom or the like.

That said, I did hope he'd light it up a bit more with real linemates. We'll see, but it would be shame if this is the last of him and he goes on to some other squad and dominates. Weirdly, Yanni Gourde comes to mind...

 

[OrrNumber4]

Personally, I still like Gush and I think he adds more than a grundstrom or the like.

That said, I did hope he'd light it up a bit more with real linemates. We'll see, but it would be shame if this is the last of him and he goes on to some other squad and dominates. Weirdly, Yanni Gourde comes to mind...

Gourde was never a true Shark.

 

[Alaskanice]

Personally, I still like Gush and I think he adds more than a grundstrom or the like.

That said, I did hope he'd light it up a bit more with real linemates. We'll see, but it would be shame if this is the last of him and he goes on to some other squad and dominates. Weirdly, Yanni Gourde comes to mind...

True on Gourde but it did take him 6 years to get to the bigs consistently.

 

[Bizz]

No, Waive Kostin. Gushchin actually provides something to the lineup.

 

[Hodge]

Maybe people will finally stop taking preseason games seriously.

 

[Pinkfloyd]

Maybe people will finally stop taking preseason games seriously.

Why? The team clearly does take them seriously otherwise he wouldn't have made the team.

 

[Hodge]

Why? The team clearly does take them seriously otherwise he wouldn't have made the team.

And it clearly paid off in spades.

 

[gaucholoco3]

Why? The team clearly does take them seriously otherwise he wouldn't have made the team.

He made the team as a reward for his preseason but it was always going to be temporary because they wouldn’t be able to last a road trip with 6D.

He would have been sent down if not for our lord and savior going on IR after 1 game.

If Celebrini didn’t get hurt then Gushchin would have been sent down for the road trip and would have been the first forward called up instead of Cardwell.

It is disingenuous to say preseason didn’t matter but the only thing it did was make him the first injury call up which was meaningful and helped him get 10 games when Celebrini got hurt.

Now his play in those games was uneventful which unfortunately for him is not good enough as he needed to take that spot and force them to keep him in the NHL. He clearly did not do that with even his biggest fan @Kcoyote3 even admitting he should be sent down.

At this point it is not even clear that he would be the first injury call up. He got his shot didn’t take advantage and likely will be passed over next time a Sharks FW is injured.

 

[Pinkfloyd]

And it clearly paid off in spades.

I mean, it did. Just because Gushchin hasn't been able to do anything with it doesn't mean it wasn't objectively the correct decision to make. That decision gave the team credibility when it comes to how they handle providing opportunities to players. Gushchin isn't the first player to make a team based on preseason performance and he won't be the last. The results of such players during the season following that preseason is mixed. Labanc impressed in New Jersey to earn a contract in Columbus and is producing relatively well.

He made the team as a reward for his preseason but it was always going to be temporary because they wouldn’t be able to last a road trip with 6D.

He would have been sent down if not for our lord and savior going on IR after 1 game.

If Celebrini didn’t get hurt then Gushchin would have been sent down for the road trip and would have been the first forward called up instead of Cardwell.

It is disingenuous to say preseason didn’t matter but the only thing it did was make him the first injury call up which was meaningful and helped him get 10 games when Celebrini got hurt.

Now his play in those games was uneventful which unfortunately for him is not good enough as he needed to take that spot and force them to keep him in the NHL. He clearly did not do that with even his biggest fan @Kcoyote3 even admitting he should be sent down.

At this point it is not even clear that he would be the first injury call up. He got his shot didn’t take advantage and likely will be passed over next time a Sharks FW is injured.

It's sports. Everything is temporary based on performance. He would've made the team regardless of Celebrini's status as Gushchin was on the team for game 1. If they needed to find another way, they would have because that was the situation at the time.

 

[gaucholoco3]

I mean, it did. Just because Gushchin hasn't been able to do anything with it doesn't mean it wasn't objectively the correct decision to make. That decision gave the team credibility when it comes to how they handle providing opportunities to players. Gushchin isn't the first player to make a team based on preseason performance and he won't be the last. The results of such players during the season following that preseason is mixed. Labanc impressed in New Jersey to earn a contract in Columbus and is producing relatively well.


It's sports. Everything is temporary based on performance. He would've made the team regardless of Celebrini's status as Gushchin was on the team for game 1. If they needed to find another way, they would have because that was the situation at the time.

What other option did the Sharks have. They have clearly decided they won’t waive G Smith or Kostin. All other players are deserving of a spot over him or won’t be waived. They had 14 FWds on 1-way contracts. They had no path to keep him.

I’m also convinced they knew Celebrini was going to only play the first game so they knew that Gushchin would have a spot.

 

[Hodge]

I was criticized on here for being too negative about the 2020 draft. Turns out I was way too optimistic. I genuinely believed we would get 1 200+ game NHLer (as opposed to the 3-4 most Sharks fans were projecting 1-2 years out) from it but now it seems far more likely there will be none.