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RW Kasperi Kapanen (2014, 22nd, PIT; traded to TOR)

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PlusMinusZero said:
Well,maybe it's better to play in Liiga because hes playing against men's instead of boys.There are grownups in the AHL too but I think that competition would be harder in Liiga than it would be in AHL.Only positive thing that I would find is that he would get used to smaller rink,and those games that i've seen from him.He already knows how to play in small ice.

EDIT:And Liiga is not beer league kind of league,it's pretty competitive so anykind of tough competition to a young kid is good for him.Or do you disagree?
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It's not that I consider european leagues inferior, but moreso that the game is quite different in North America. If, ultimately, the goal is to have a prospect succeed in the NHL, you'd better have him play the NA game as early as possible.
 
Passchendaele said:
It's not that I consider european leagues inferior, but moreso that the game is quite different in North America. If, ultimately, the goal is to have a prospect succeed in the NHL, you'd better have him play the NA game as early as possible.
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Furthermore, if he would play in the AHL he would get coached with a similar system to prepare him for the NHL. It's always good to know that call-ups have the system down when they play in the NHL.
 
I hope he dodges the AHL. I still want to see him play. Now it looks like he could be getting at least those 9 games thought.
 
Passchendaele said:
It's not that I consider european leagues inferior, but moreso that the game is quite different in North America. If, ultimately, the goal is to have a prospect succeed in the NHL, you'd better have him play the NA game as early as possible.
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That has been disputed by studies in the past. Any type of discussion like this is a generalisation and doesn't study the individual, but European leagues have a fine record for developing their own talent, so why change this?

Not for all, but the AHL at 18/19 can be really physically challenging on some players. A much more physically demanding, both in style and schedule, combined with a different tactical and style element and potential culture shocks are concerns and can ruin a player. Kapanen didn't have a great draft year either ... it wasn't like he was a significant player at home yet.

Let a player develop and hone his skills at home first, then adapt him to the NA game. Trying to make a player adapt, rather than mature and grow first, always seems bizarre to me. If Kapanen can't adapt to NA ice at 20/21, he wasn't going to do so at 18. Conversely, some of the concerns listed above can potentially happen before then.

Don't rush a player for the sake of "HE'S ON NA ICE".
 
Passchendaele said:
It's not that I consider european leagues inferior, but moreso that the game is quite different in North America. If, ultimately, the goal is to have a prospect succeed in the NHL, you'd better have him play the NA game as early as possible.
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Except when the player isn't physically ready. Kapanen clearly isn't based on the comments by the Penguins.
 
kikkerlaika said:
Furthermore, if he would play in the AHL he would get coached with a similar system to prepare him for the NHL. It's always good to know that call-ups have the system down when they play in the NHL.
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European rinks have the same offensive and neutral zone dimensions now that are in NA and his team plays a very puck control heavy system. Can't think of a better environment fora kid with his current physical attributes.
 
Jussi said:
European rinks have the same offensive and neutral zone dimensions now that in NA and his team plays a very puck control heavy system. Can't think of a better environment fora kid with his current physical attributes.
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My comment wasn't meant in regards to how the rink is sized. It's no surprise to hear that KalPa is concentrating on puck control, since you can definitely see it in Kapanen.

When I watched him the last few games, I think that getting slowly used to the more physical game wouldn't be so bad. And the AHL is (now correct me if I'm wrong) probably somewhere in the middle between the NHL and Liiga when it comes to that. Maybe it could be too soon for him, though.
(The AHL-affiliate of the Penguins has a lot of players that are smaller/the same height&weight compared to Kapanen, so he wouldn't stand out too much.)

But in the end I wouldn't be surprised to see him play in Finland next year.
 
With Megna sent down and Bennett injured I think we will see Kapanen for at least a nine game spell.
 
From here:
"What you like so much about him is just his skill with the puck, his ability to make plays," associate general manager Jason Botterill said.

"He has very good vision on the ice. You saw his hands around the net. He can make that very high-end skilled play."

Whether his work in his own zone is ready for the NHL remains to be seen - "Defensively, he still has to learn the game," Johnston said - but the Penguins don't necessarily have to rush to judgment on whether to return Kapanen to his team in Finland.

If they can't decide whether to keep Kapanen before training camp ends, he could appear in as many as nine regular-season games without triggering the first year of his contract.

"I would say everything is on the table right now," Botterill said.
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Sounds more like it's either NHL or Liiga.
 
Shrimper said:
With Megna sent down and Bennett injured I think we will see Kapanen for at least a nine game spell.
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Keeping Kapanen up for the 9 games would require waiving either Sill or Samuelsson even with Bennett going to LTIR. So unless they want to risk losing either (mostly Samuelsson since Sill would be the 13th forward up) there may not be cap room to keep Kapanen up even for the 9 games. And if they want to sign Carcillo, they'd need to waive both Samuelsson and Sill to give Kapanen that audition while Bennett is out.

That is of course assuming no else besides Bennett goes to LTIR to start the season with.
 
For what I've read he may not have NHL physics just yet. But he's showing signs of NHL skill already and that's a good sign. Wasn't a big fan of him after u18 championships but I see a very bright future in front of him due eventually propably being paired up with the best player in the world. Kapanen will have good odds winning Calder on his first NHL season whenever that may be.
 
kikkerlaika said:
From here:


Sounds more like it's either NHL or Liiga.
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Probably because he has a contract in Finland. I think -- granted I'm not a CBA expert -- if the Pens wanted to put him in the AHL, they'd have to put him in enough NHL games first (ie: more than 9) that his contract can't slide, like the Sabres with Ristolainen last year.
 
I'd let him go to the last round of cuts but then send him back to Kalpa. His hands and instincts are good but I think he'd wear down pretty quickly in the NHL right now.
 
Vujtek said:
Keeping Kapanen up for the 9 games would require waiving either Sill or Samuelsson even with Bennett going to LTIR. So unless they want to risk losing either (mostly Samuelsson since Sill would be the 13th forward up) there may not be cap room to keep Kapanen up even for the 9 games. And if they want to sign Carcillo, they'd need to waive both Samuelsson and Sill to give Kapanen that audition while Bennett is out.

That is of course assuming no else besides Bennett goes to LTIR to start the season with.
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If they put Bennett on LTIR (which they should, considering the 6 week/12 game projection), then Kapanen takes up just 25k of extra cap space. Carcillo has no bearing on that, since he's not a replacement for Bennett.
 
Freeptop said:
If they put Bennett on LTIR (which they should, considering the 6 week/12 game projection), then Kapanen takes up just 25k of extra cap space. Carcillo has no bearing on that, since he's not a replacement for Bennett.
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Yes, but the team with Bennett on it can only squeeze 22 players under the cap. Currently Samuelsson is pretty much heading to waivers. With Bennett going to LTIR it would give time on not needing to waive Samuelsson and start the season with 23 players. But that's not possible with Kapanen on the team. If Kapanen replaces Bennett, then there's not much choice but to waive the 8th D-man (Samuelsson).

Carcillo has bearing on Sill's and Samuelsson's spot on the team, just like I compared him to them. And if the team wants to keep Carcillo, Sill and Samuelsson, then he has bearing on Kapanen as well.
 
Proved his worth in preseason. Will be playing alongside Crosby/Malkin in a year. Jackpot for penguins.
 
Nothing has been confirmed yet and that link was debunked by Dejan. Staying with his parents so we'll probably find out tomorrow.
 
Shrimper said:
Nothing has been confirmed yet and that link was debunked by Dejan. Staying with his parents so we'll probably find out tomorrow.
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Rosters are finalized today, so we'll find out within an hour.
 
Rumors say that he is already in Kuopio though, were in Helsinki last night.
 
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