The Ryan Murray Thread (17' season injuries)

Hedman is the man. I was answering the question; 'is there anybody better'...

I think Hedman brings consistency to the position and plays it well. Doughty is up there and I think Karlsson is fading, but if I had to chose someone id take Victor.

 

Ya Im just looking for different opinions, appreciate yours Will.
there arent too many DOMINATE Dmen in the league right now, especially on the younger side.
Doughty would be a good option. Karlsson obviously a stud too. Personally I want a guy that can play in every situation though and Karlsson isnt that guy.
Heard that Hedman helped assist the equipment manager at the ASG in TB, I guess his dad was the equipment guy for MoDo while the kid was growing up. Good way for young Victor to learn and be around the game.

 

Klingberg and Burns get points but don't have the overall game like doughty and hedman.

 

I was thinking the same thing. Klingberg is having a great season points wise and Burns is a steady eddie.

I think Hedman is a +24 or 25 which is well above the league norm, but he's playing on a team that is head n shoulders above most teams statistically. TB having a great season.

I agree with Matty on Karlsson... he's more of an offensive type it seems to me and I just like what Victor is doing in comparison.

The top 10 in the NHL defenseman category are great in one way or another, but after that the bottom falls out. Its very thin and I wonder why sometimes. I guess the kids want all the glory of a Forward and not get held back in the defensive zone, lol.

 

Sweden would've had a crazy D core in the olympics this year if the nhl was going.

Hedman
Karlsson
Klingberg
Ekman-Larsson

 

thats insanely good. 2 lefties and 2 righties to boot.
Sweden doesnt have all taht much up front anymore though do they? Old men- Sedins, Eriksson, Zetterberg and then who...LAndeskog and Backstrom?

 

i always forget about Klingberg

 

True, the forwards are all aging and even the goalie.

 

He's under the radar in dallas, not a high draft pick either, (131st overall).

 

Forseberg comes to mind as the only real talent up front in the next generation category.

 

Ton of them in the NHL, but a lot of average Joe's. Some have some good upside maybe, like Will Ny the hockey guy in Toronto.

 

Also Anton Stralman on D.

 

The jurys still out for me, too many nights off, doesn't shoot enough. He still has to get his confidence going and figure out his game.

 

10 goals so far for nylander, on pace for 18. At this pace his deal shouldn't be over $5M, which would work good for the leafs.

 

Good Sweden hockey talk. I've got a buddy in the office from Sweden and I'll ask him for insights. I seem to recall that a few years ago the Three Crowns decided to fundamentally alter the philosophy to the game. That resulted in an emphasis on D, but also to get offense from the blueline. That seems to be working well. (Add their 2 high 2018 prospects, especially Dahlin, and it becomes ridiculously good.)

Skinny mentioned W. Nylander, and I think that he and his brother will be above average F's for years. There are some very good Swede prospects in pipelines now, e.g., Asplund. But I agree, their team (or national hockey identity) is built from the blueline forward.

When the King rides off into the sunset there are several young tenders that could step in. I think they'll be fine in G, but goalies are just too whack, too hard to project to start giving names to replace him.

 

Will has taken a bit more time to develop than what many expected after getting picked at #7. I think he still hasn't shown his potential.

If I were the Leafs I'd try to get him done long term if he'd accept something in the $5MM AAV range. If I were Will, I'd be angling for a shorter bridge deal.

He's going to be better than I think people expect.

 

Nylander has the talent, I think he needs another year or two to figure it out. He needs to be a bit more assertive, take the puck to the net more and shoot.

 

Pens F Conor Sheary out week to week, LBI.

 

Avalanche will be without Nathan MacKinnon for 2-4 weeks

This is not what the Colorado Avalanche needed right now.

Having already lost three games in a row and fallen out of the Western Conference playoff picture, the Avalanche will now be without their top player, Nathan MacKinnon, for the next two-to-four weeks due to an upper body injury.

It had already been determined that he was going to at least miss Thursday’s game in Edmonton, but that it was not going to be a long-term injury. After further evaluation that turned out to not be the case.

“It’s not a great feeling when you lose a guy like that because of what he means to our team,” said Avalanche coach Jared Bednar. “But I’m excited for the opportunity it presents other guys. We need other guys to step up.”

 

I now expect (hope) big things from RinTinTin.