He does park himself in front of the net but what hes also doing is not just staying there. He moving getting into open positions and also giving his linemates options for passes (behind the net, in the corner etc).
Agreed, he is doing a great job and showing a lot of awareness to be in the right spot to score.
Another thing Kassian does well is use a strong base -- probably aided by all the work he did last summer. He's not the biggest power forward at this point in his career, but he plants his feet widely and has very good balance. Watch the way he uses his body to shield the puck. He even does it 5-7 feet before he gets to a puck along the boards to stop the defender from catching him off balance.
That part of his game reminds me a bit of Joe Thornton.
Another thing Kassian does well is use a strong base -- probably aided by all the work he did last summer. He's not the biggest power forward at this point in his career, but he plants his feet widely and has very good balance. Watch the way he uses his body to shield the puck. He even does it 5-7 feet before he gets to a puck along the boards to stop the defender from catching him off balance.
That part of his game reminds me a bit of Joe Thornton.
Good point. Today's defencemen are so big. After years of watching Canucks fall down in the corners I'm always amazed at how solid he is. The Sedins have been dishing off the puck to him along the boards and he has held off two defenders at times to make a play. You can see him bracing even before he gets the puck.
One other thing I noticed last night is that he braced in the corner and then snuck a peek to see where Daniel was even before Henrik had passed the puck to Kassian. That really surprised me for a guy his age as it is usually the Sedins who sneak that peek.
Another thing Kassian does well is use a strong base -- probably aided by all the work he did last summer. He's not the biggest power forward at this point in his career, but he plants his feet widely and has very good balance. Watch the way he uses his body to shield the puck. He even does it 5-7 feet before he gets to a puck along the boards to stop the defender from catching him off balance.
That part of his game reminds me a bit of Joe Thornton.
Yes and he made a really good play in the third doing this behind the net to let the puck ring around the boards to Henrik. Took up space so the dman couldnt intercept.
Keith deserves something for the elbow on Daniel but I hope nobody takes it too far. The Canucks should just play a physical game and take some liberties with players like Kane and Toews when they get a chance. They will have to be smart about it out because the Hawks PP is pretty stacked.
Keith deserves something for the elbow on Daniel but I hope nobody takes it too far. The Canucks should just play a physical game and take some liberties with players like Kane and Toews when they get a chance. They will have to be smart about it out because the Hawks PP is pretty stacked.
You're right.
And I've come out and said repeatedly that the Canucks need to be careful in making sure Zack knows when to pick his spots and not hurting the team.
That being said if he got five, an instigator and a game misconduct for mauling Keith (like, so badly that Keith didn't even take a penalty) I would have a hard time feeling badly about that.
And I've come out and said repeatedly that the Canucks need to be careful in making sure Zack knows when to pick his spots and not hurting the team.
That being said if he got five, an instigator and a game misconduct for mauling Keith (like, so badly that Keith didn't even take a penalty) I would have a hard time feeling badly about that.
I'd have to say I'd MUCH rather Volpatti or Weise get tossed than Zack. 7 minutes in penalties and losing our leading goal scorer (so far) would suck, and a beating like that would likely result in a suspension. Just about anyone over 200 lbs could tune Keith, so I'd prefer not losing Kass, as he's actually making an impact on this team with more than his fists at this point.
I love that he's only too happy to protect the Sedins, but vigilante crap, and heavyweight fights are best left to 4th liners. This is where he hopefully DOESN'T follow Bertuzzi's career path.
I do agree about the career path, and I'm not preaching for a Bertuzzi incident here.
I think Kassian making his presence known means a lot more than Volpatti or someone attempting the same.
The message "you had better keep your nose clean when our fourth liner is on the ice" is a lot different than what would be evident if Kassian were to clean Keith's clock.
And anyway - it would be bad for the team if Kassian did that, but like I said I'd have a hard time feeling bad about it personally.
Reading the Sabres board, they seem pretty sensitive now. All summer and during the trade it was all smiles because they thought they won the trade. One even went as far as to state that Foligno is better at every facet of the game than Kassian. ya ok.
Now they're including the Sulzer - Gragnani in the trade. Umm ok....
When the Sedins get in sync, I think we're going to see Kass get a pretty good amount of assists.
Reading the Sabres board, they seem pretty sensitive now. All summer and during the trade it was all smiles because they thought they won the trade. One even went as far as to state that Foligno is better at every facet of the game than Kassian. ya ok.
Now they're including the Sulzer - Gragnani in the trade. Umm ok....
When the Sedins get in sync, I think we're going to see Kass get a pretty good amount of assists.
I doesn't help that certain posters won't leave them alone...
coho and vanek look pretty damn dangerous together.
I watch all the buffalo games and know alot of buffalo fans and vanek's tear has nothing to do with hodgson or chemistry. Trust me. Vanek's been doing this without hodgson. Hodgson hasn't got any points in the past few games and vanek's been on a tear for that time too, most fans know hes the weak link on that line and theres not a whole lot of chemistry there yet.
Hes doing well but i wouldn't say they have chemistry yet, hes simply getting rewarded being on a line with two good players and one who is playing amazing to start the season.
Im not a hodgson hater, like i said, he's doing well. Just thought i'd give me insight because i watch alot of their games and follow them closely. Just saying i wouldn't call it chemistry, they wouldn't have a problem putting another center on that line if they had somebody more capable. Ennis fits welll with stafford and foligno. Leaving hodgson basically the only option for that line
Last edited by pseudonymous01: 01-31-2013 at 08:24 PM.
The few games I've seen Hodgson with Buffalo this season, he's looked great offensively making some creative plays, but he's been victimized a bit defensively too. He'll learn to at least be decent defensively though - he's a smart player. And while he isn't driving the line, I think he is probably helping Vanek and Pomenville quite a bit by being a one shot scoring threat on that line.
And I've come out and said repeatedly that the Canucks need to be careful in making sure Zack knows when to pick his spots and not hurting the team.
That being said if he got five, an instigator and a game misconduct for mauling Keith (like, so badly that Keith didn't even take a penalty) I would have a hard time feeling badly about that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wolfhard
I'd have to say I'd MUCH rather Volpatti or Weise get tossed than Zack. 7 minutes in penalties and losing our leading goal scorer (so far) would suck, and a beating like that would likely result in a suspension. Just about anyone over 200 lbs could tune Keith, so I'd prefer not losing Kass, as he's actually making an impact on this team with more than his fists at this point.
I love that he's only too happy to protect the Sedins, but vigilante crap, and heavyweight fights are best left to 4th liners. This is where he hopefully DOESN'T follow Bertuzzi's career path.
These. I've said this before, but I don't want him fighting 4th liners and plugs like Eager. Only if it's to punish someone for a cheap or dirty hit. What with all the concussion scares going around about fighting too...
ya ok.
