The Panarin - Strome problem
- Thread starter dshea19
- Start date
-
Xenforo Cloud will be upgrading us to version 2.3.5 on March 3rd at 12 AM GMT. This version has increased stability and fixes several bugs. We expect downtime for the duration of the update. The admin team will continue to work on existing issues, templates and upgrade all necessary available addons to minimize impact of this new version. Click Here for Updates
NYR Viper
Registered User
I don't see this as a problem. If they're scoring at or near a ppg with someone like Blackwell on their RW then that helps the overall depth of the team AND keeps the overall cap hit down on that line.
I am hoping someone like Gauthier can grow into that role as he is a monster on the boards and in puck battles. Seems like a match, but it hasn't been tried.
I am hoping someone like Gauthier can grow into that role as he is a monster on the boards and in puck battles. Seems like a match, but it hasn't been tried.
Gonna get heat for this, Kakko lost his spot in the Top 6 rightfully so. He has had these flashes but hasn’t looked good overall. Lafreniere is in the same boat but has been slightly better, and he is a 19 yo rookie so give him slack.
You cannot break up KZB who has been red hot, and the Strome and Panarin connection is magic right now, if they need a more gritty type forward to make them better so be it. Kakko has not looked good up there with them.
I feel people are forcing guys like Kakko, Lafreniere into the Top 6 and more mins but when other players are outperforming them, shouldn’t be upset if they are getting less ice time. That’s just how it goes. If the team is struggling to score, well that’s another thing.
You cannot break up KZB who has been red hot, and the Strome and Panarin connection is magic right now, if they need a more gritty type forward to make them better so be it. Kakko has not looked good up there with them.
I feel people are forcing guys like Kakko, Lafreniere into the Top 6 and more mins but when other players are outperforming them, shouldn’t be upset if they are getting less ice time. That’s just how it goes. If the team is struggling to score, well that’s another thing.
Last edited:
Synergy27
F-A-C-G-C-E
being in the top 6 would be great...but I also like kakko and chytil together...let the kids grow together might not be a bad thing and hopefully leads to us having a real solid top 9
and hopefully gauthier can grow into that complementary player on the panarin/strome line if strome is still around.
Synergy27
F-A-C-G-C-E
We all know we have a glut of wingers. How that’s dealt with is the next big challenge for this management group and likely the defining factor in whether or not they win a Cup.
Problem might solve itself if Kakko isn’t a player.
Problem might solve itself if Kakko isn’t a player.
itsPLkielbasa
Registered User
Give the kids some time. They aren't going to be all stars overnight. Some take longer to break out/develop.
Yes, they were chosen #1 and #2 but they aren't McDavid.
Yes, they were chosen #1 and #2 but they aren't McDavid.
Hire Sather
He Is Our Star
Yeah it really sucks that Strome is a good and productive player...
Kakko and Laf being terrible is the problem.
Kakko and Laf being terrible is the problem.
SA16
Sixstring
So it's a big problem that the team can produce with a cheaply priced RW? Not seeing the issue here...
Peltz
Registered User
- Oct 4, 2019
- 3,925
- 5,628
I am going to echo the others and say that I don't agree that a balanced line is a problem. Spreading offensive talent and grit around the team is what it takes to make a team deep.
Kakko and Laf are just not physically mature enough to dominate games yet. They're getting experience on the 3rd line, and they'll add muscle in the offseason like all young prospects do.
But if you watch tape on each of them from juniors, neither of them are the type that dances around players with elite cornering ability. Nor are they snipers. They both hit and get to dirty areas to create plays. And Kakko especially plays a physical game.
Everyone just needs to be a lot more patient with them and just accept the fact that they are not at the stage of their careers yet where they're going to produce much on the score sheet outside the occasional beautiful pass or laserbeam shot. They just don't have the size to get between the circles and hang there against NHL sized defensemen.
That's why you probably won't see the organization or players get frustrated by this: everyone knows it's true. Heck just look at them on the ice. They've still got small frames compared to everyone out there.
Kakko and Laf are just not physically mature enough to dominate games yet. They're getting experience on the 3rd line, and they'll add muscle in the offseason like all young prospects do.
But if you watch tape on each of them from juniors, neither of them are the type that dances around players with elite cornering ability. Nor are they snipers. They both hit and get to dirty areas to create plays. And Kakko especially plays a physical game.
Everyone just needs to be a lot more patient with them and just accept the fact that they are not at the stage of their careers yet where they're going to produce much on the score sheet outside the occasional beautiful pass or laserbeam shot. They just don't have the size to get between the circles and hang there against NHL sized defensemen.
That's why you probably won't see the organization or players get frustrated by this: everyone knows it's true. Heck just look at them on the ice. They've still got small frames compared to everyone out there.
Rongomania
Registered User
Youre prob right,, it's something that's bothered me a lot bc then why did we bring them both over as rookies if their game couldn't be played without more time being spent building up their bodies?
Laf HAD to play here undoubtedly but especially with kakko, chytil and kravtsov we weren't winning anything last year or the year before so why wouldn't we have saved the elc and let him spend another year or even two growing into that frame? Those elc years are worth our players weight in gold and we utterly wasted them.
The more I think about it the more obvious Gorton simply doesn't evaluate players or roster construction with an acceptable degree of accuracy and keeps sacrificing the future bc he incorrectly keeps thinking we're ready now
So much short sightedness revolving around our use of cap, our trades and our handling of teenage prospects
Last edited:
KirkAlbuquerque
#WeNeverGetAGoodCoach
The only issue I see is that Blackwell isn't someone that can bring it on a game to game basis. He's someone that needs to be operating at over 200% just to be an nhl caliber player and that burns him out. The coach is going to have to realize when he needs a recharge and maybe try a Goat or Kravtsov in there when he's ready. I'm fine with letting the kids develop on their own line.
Kakko, at his best, should be a high IQ player who uses his size to be a possession monster. He’s not a speedster nor a sniper with an elite shot. The latter type comes onto the scene with a bang (and sometimes peaks early), while the former takes time to develop.
There were stretches while Panarin was out where Kakko looked like our best forward. Great along the boards and stripping pucks like he’s Stone or Datsyuk. He lacks the size and IQ to do that consistently, especially against better competition, but it will come. And maybe it’s better he develops into that role facing weaker competition w/ his peers on the 3rd line.
There were stretches while Panarin was out where Kakko looked like our best forward. Great along the boards and stripping pucks like he’s Stone or Datsyuk. He lacks the size and IQ to do that consistently, especially against better competition, but it will come. And maybe it’s better he develops into that role facing weaker competition w/ his peers on the 3rd line.
Machinehead
HFNYR MVP
A grinder, you say?
You mean like, Ka...
I'm not gonna say it.
You mean like, Ka...
I'm not gonna say it.
KirkAlbuquerque
#WeNeverGetAGoodCoach
The Strome problem is that he's gonna be off this team after next year and we won't have anyone to replace him. He's a solid, scoring 2nd line center. He's not a great 200 foot player but he has value, and his chemistry with Panarin can't be denied at this point.
DanielBrassard
It's all so tiresome
Jesper Kakko the elite grinder.
DanielBrassard
It's all so tiresome
What's the issue here? That Panarin-Strome can be a top line even with guys like Fast/Blackwell on their wing? Even then I don't think that will keep guys like Gauthier/Kravtsov/Kakko off that line in the future. But right now it's the best combination in terms of balance.
dshea19
Registered User
- Jun 9, 2015
- 620
- 686
I hear what some of you are saying, but it is a problem when they can't operate well with other high potential players. If Gaut worked there in the same way Kreider works on KZB, great. I am all for balancing the grit, but I don't believe in Strome as someone you can trust in the playoffs or when things get rough. Kakko seems to need the puck on his stick so I think he needs to adjust to finding the open slots for shooting to adjust to so many guys on the team that also need to have the puck on their stick. Kakko definitely has work to do, but my gut tells me that the long-term benefit is a line where Kakko and Panarin are the wings and they have a solid two-way center that is a faceoff monster. If you can't tell, I don't see Strome as being anything of long term value.
Blackwell doesn't have the skills to play with these guys long term; or even short term really. He's a passenger now. I would like to see Kravtsov or Gauthier on that line since I want to see 72, 24,and 13 left alone for a while.
