I reckon he ends up as an ice hockey player.Is this guy still gonna be anything?
Pretty hard to put last year's injury aside. He broke his ankle in the last preseason game and didn't return until the back half of the season. Reports from the AHL Moose, was that he didn't get his skating back to the pre-injury point until season's end. It was basically a lost season NHL wise. Most Jets fans are optimistic he can come into camp and take it from where he was prior to the injury, as all reports were he had made the NHL roster up until the injury.Now it's just a matter of whether they actually play him. Last year's injury aside, his upside was better than most of the bottom 4 for Winnipeg.
It seems like a lot of finns never live up to the hype.
There's of course players from Finland that are amazing. But it seems like the majority of the 1st round picks never live up to the hype.
Laine, Puljujärvi, Honka, Kakko, Heinola, Kotkaniemi etc.
Laine, Puljujärvi, Kakko and Ristolainen had INSANE hype and they looked so good though. It's weird that the majority of their best prospects just don't cut it.How many Finns are drafted in the 1st round? They don't really make up a large portion of the NHL player or prospect base in general.
I imagine if you run the numbers, they don't bust any more than players from other countries if you base it on percentages.
Barkov, Aho and Rantanen say hi.Laine, Puljujärvi, Kakko and Ristolainen had INSANE hype and they looked so good though. It's weird that the majority of their best prospects just don't cut it.
If he stays healthy I don't see any scenario where he doesn't.Still hope he can become an everyday player
And Kristian Vesalainen says "Would you like fries with that?"Barkov, Aho and Rantanen say hi.
And Kristian Vesalainen says "Would you like fries with that?"
Scouting in Finland has declined. More and more players just aren't mature enough to live on their own when they come over and it hurts their development when they would have become solid NHLers with one more year in Liiga.It seems like a lot of finns never live up to the hype.
There's of course players from Finland that are amazing. But it seems like the majority of the 1st round picks never live up to the hype.
Laine, Puljujärvi, Honka, Kakko, Heinola, Kotkaniemi etc.
Heinola looked destroyed after being sent down the first time. I don't know how the Jets communicate with young players, but it seemed like he was told that he was good enough and then did not get a good enough explanation (lacking defensively, filled in for injuries) as to why he was sent down. Hasn't been the same player since then.Jets just really can't seem to catch a break with these Finnish players. So weird. Both of Vesalainen and Heinola seemed like they were gonna be good ones...and just haven't been able to get anything done at the NHL level.
Even Kupari who looked like an okay Bottom-6er with the Kings, basically managed to get absolutely nothing accomplished in the games he was even able to actually play with the Jets.
Kakko will make it. But as an utility player. Very disappointing considering his tools.Laine, Puljujärvi, Kakko and Ristolainen had INSANE hype and they looked so good though. It's weird that the majority of their best prospects just don't cut it.
How exactly did Laine bust? Ristolainen's development got f***ed by too big of a role too early and now he is damaged goods. Kakko is still only 23, so he still has time to break out. Only one of those that can be considered a bust is Puljujärvi.Laine, Puljujärvi, Kakko and Ristolainen had INSANE hype and they looked so good though. It's weird that the majority of their best prospects just don't cut it.
And Heiskanen says "no thanks, I just had chicken wings with my buddy Lundell who just won the stanley cup"And Kristian Vesalainen says "Would you like fries with that?"
Not a bust, but compared to the hype Laine is a huge disappointment so far.How exactly did Laine bust? Ristolainen's development got f***ed by too big of a role too early and now he is damaged goods. Kakko is still only 23, so he still has time to break out. Only one of those that can be considered a bust is Puljujärvi.
Agreed.Kakko will make it. But as an utility player. Very disappointing considering his tools.
I never said that every finnish player is lacklustre...Barkov, Aho and Rantanen say hi.
He lived up to the hype and even exceeded it in his first two years playing for Winnipeg. What he didnt live up to are the expectations that kept rising after that.Not a bust, but compared to the hype Laine is a huge disappointment so far.
He will truly be one of the players in the team this season.Is this guy still gonna be anything?
If he doesn't make the team from training camp then someone will surely claim him and I'm hoping it's the Panthers as unlikely it would be.Big season for Heinola. He's no longer waivers exempt so a roster spot is his to lose and they're going to give him every opportunity to show that he belongs which is the polar opposite to previous seasons. Making the roster should be the minimum expectation right now, and then from there you battle for ice time.
Stanley only played 44 games over the past 2 seasons and averaged like 14 mins per game. Miller is getting older and has seen his minutes reduced. They also brought in Fleury and Coghlan who have been struggling to find a regular spot with NHL teams and are years older than Heinola.
The competition is basically as weak as it gets for a team capable of making the playoffs.
Nah, 1-2 seasons aren't enough.He lived up to the hype and even exceeded it in his first two years playing for Winnipeg. What he didnt live up to are the expectations that kept rising after that.