Re: Laker Hockey 2009-10
I don't want to split hairs with you, but just because the USNDP is based in A2 doesn't mean that Michigan is securing more of these kids. Like I said, it makes it easier for visits, but that is all. I think we agree with the rest of your points. Most of these kids already have an idea where they want to go based on their immediate playing time capability, in order to showcase themselves for NHL scouts. For instance, if Michigan already has a lineup laden with junior and senior talent at key positions, especially goaltending, a recruit may opt for a different school. I think it also factors into the type of system a given program runs and whether it fits the recruit's skill set.. i.e. size, speed, etc.
Not all of these kids "fit" the program and chemistry. For instance, I thought Jack Johnson was a terrific individual talent, set scoring records for defensemen at Michigan, but his overall play was not always conducive to the team's success. He frequently took too many penalties, was caught out of position and didn't play a team game. Subsequently, the team failed in their end quest to win championships, even with the rest of the solid talent they had. He was fun to watch, but was not fundamentally sound and it hurt his teammates, more often than it helped. If you review his three years in the NHL, this is the first year that he has "gotten it". He is playing a much better fundamentally sound game and is contributing better to the Kings than any individual effort he made (and paid for) during his first two years in the league.
Well, anyway, I hope you get my point.
Good luck to the Lakers the rest of the season.
I don't want to split hairs with you, but just because the USNDP is based in A2 doesn't mean that Michigan is securing more of these kids. Like I said, it makes it easier for visits, but that is all. I think we agree with the rest of your points. Most of these kids already have an idea where they want to go based on their immediate playing time capability, in order to showcase themselves for NHL scouts. For instance, if Michigan already has a lineup laden with junior and senior talent at key positions, especially goaltending, a recruit may opt for a different school. I think it also factors into the type of system a given program runs and whether it fits the recruit's skill set.. i.e. size, speed, etc.
Not all of these kids "fit" the program and chemistry. For instance, I thought Jack Johnson was a terrific individual talent, set scoring records for defensemen at Michigan, but his overall play was not always conducive to the team's success. He frequently took too many penalties, was caught out of position and didn't play a team game. Subsequently, the team failed in their end quest to win championships, even with the rest of the solid talent they had. He was fun to watch, but was not fundamentally sound and it hurt his teammates, more often than it helped. If you review his three years in the NHL, this is the first year that he has "gotten it". He is playing a much better fundamentally sound game and is contributing better to the Kings than any individual effort he made (and paid for) during his first two years in the league.
Well, anyway, I hope you get my point.
Good luck to the Lakers the rest of the season.
...if Edmundson was better than Inglis or BMW than he would already be playing. I hope that was a joke