How do you think his situation will be handled by Jaques Martin? 26 and 23 goals.
He deserves first line minutes. Martin was largely responsible for the development of Marian hossa and Martin Havlat. So maybe he can help out Kostitsyn.
imagine if he starts using his body more..he can lay some people out
what???????
i agree with you kostitsyn vs havlat but hossa is another notch above kostitsyn imo. Andrei doesnt have the two-way game that hossa has and had at the same age and also doesnt have the drive of a hossa.
fair enough...the drive is the big question mark...will andrei apply himself to be better defensively..how will he handle being the go to guy on his line for years to come...its all mental with him imo
take it for what it's worth but typically players tend to have the same amount of points that they had at 22 years old, one year you get more, some years less but it's about where it stays
so for Andrei it means he's about a 50-55 point guy, he might get 60 one year and 40 the other but it should stay around 50-55, so for me you can't really count on him to be steady force on the first line, though he could complement 2 players superior to him
Last year was his 2nd full season in the league, and sophomore slumps happen to everyone. I expect him to breakout next year and take Kovalev's role away from him. That is assuming no high-end RW's are pursued in the offseason.
It's a matter of believing and being confident in him. Carbonneau didn't give Andrei that. You've gotta give him the ice-time, you gotta show him you believe in him and I think Andrei will respond.
i agree with you kostitsyn vs havlat but hossa is another notch above kostitsyn imo. Andrei doesnt have the two-way game that hossa has and had at the same age and also doesnt have the drive of a hossa.
Guess what Hossa had that Andrei didn't have at the same age.
If Andrei earns his spot in camp, sure, if he shows up disinterested with a lazy, selfish attitude like he did for the most part last year?
The easy, simplistic way out is to blame coaching for selfish, lazy players who don't work hard. It's up to Andrei, and no one else, to show he's got some determination, fire and willingness to do what it takes to be a 1st line player.
I just want to add (was in a rush earlier) that no matter who we get our hands on, Andrei should take up a larger role this season for sure. We all know that not all four of Koivu, Kovalev, Tanguay and Lang will be back next season; anyways no one knows for sure but at least hiring the coach was a big step forward, no I think they are mostly focusing on the draft and possible deals that might be on the table. Let's face it he is our best natural goal scorer on the team besides Kovalev, who's future is uncertaina s previously mentioned.
JM has to work with him closely but I think he can help slingshot Andrei's progression.
I like the comments on Jacques Martin, I live in Gatineau and work in Ottawa, although my team is the Habs I have seen a lot more live games from the Habs then I did with Montreal. If there is one thing that Kostsitsyn will learn with Martin is that he needs to earn is ice time with consistant effort and defensive awarness.
There is no way this guy will score 30G this year, I would not be suprised if he spend the season along the side of Lapierre and Latendresse. This year will be a development year and if he gets the message from Martin (which is not a guaranty) he will get is fair share of point and we might have ourselve an Hossa clone by the end of next year....
A coach that knows how to properly develop young players, a coach that puts his talented players on the top lines, who doesn't tolerate little efforts, that teaches how to play effectively at both sides of the ice and that knows where to put players on the right side of the ice. See where i'm going with this...
i agree with you kostitsyn vs havlat but hossa is another notch above kostitsyn imo. Andrei doesnt have the two-way game that hossa has and had at the same age and also doesnt have the drive of a hossa.
How do you think his situation will be handled by Jaques Martin? 26 and 23 goals.
nothing will be given to andrei. He's got to earn it. From what we saw of him last season, he needs to win those minutes from somebody else.
Is Andrei capable of it? I think the kid has fringe first line potential, but just handing it to him without working for it will only give him the wrong message. If he earns it, then I have no problem.
Thats what it all comes down to. Andrei's season is going to come down to how hard he wants to work to score points and play good hockey. If he just wants to go out there and go through the motions....then he'll have another disappointing season, but if he wants to go out there and play tough, take hits to make plays and hustle the whole time he is on the ice, then he'll have a great season and score some big points for the Habs.
Coaching has a lot to do with it too, but if Martin is giving Andrei lots of icetime and he still isn't producing, then the blame is on Andrei.
