Atkinson is 5'7'', 172 lbs. Obviously, he has to get stronger, but he can't make the same mistake Brassard did and lose his quickness, which is one of his greatest assets. I'd guess, without having seen enough to know his body type, he could carry another 10-15 lbs of muscle without damage to his game. At his height, 182-187 should be enough heft to become stronger on the puck and more competetive on the boards. Agree?
Martin St. Louis is only 5'9" and listed as 177 as his weight and he has done just fine.
I don't think Cam need to change his size at all. I don't want him to become a player that he shouldn't be like Brassard did by gaining a bunch of weight for training camp this past season.
Sure, where is that? 220? 210? 200? 190? Can't answer that. As far as immaterial, you did bring up Brassard as a comparative. Only followed your queue.
Brass was said to have impeded his game in that manner, the truth of it was immaterial. His was just a convenient example.
Quote:
I am not, in the least, concerned about Atkinson. He may make some mistakes along the way, but he'll learn quickly. If everyone had his mentality, on this team, we would be in the playoffs. Not seeing if we pick #1 or not.
I agree, but I think his efforts to gain strength must be monitored so they do not have a negative effect. 220? 200? No idea, but proper supervision should help his development to continue in the right direction. I really like what he brought to the team in these last few weeks and look forward to his continued development. Right now, he's the only returning player that I fully expect to see in next season's top six - RJ/Letestu/Prospal could be a very effective third line and I still see a significant possibility that Brassard could be moved.
IIRC there was an article or quote somewhere about Atkinson and Martin St. Louis. Something about training in the same place during the off season or Cam following what St. Louis does or something to that effect. I remember seeing that last summer, but I don't remember where.
For the record (according to NHL.com and/or bluejackets.com)
Brassard 6'1" 202 lbs DOB 9/22/87
Atkinson 5'7" 172 lbs DOB 6/5/89
St Louis 5'8" 178 lbs DOB 6/18/75
IIRC there was an article or quote somewhere about Atkinson and Martin St. Louis. Something about training in the same place during the off season or Cam following what St. Louis does or something to that effect. I remember seeing that last summer, but I don't remember where.
For the record (according to NHL.com and/or bluejackets.com)
Brassard 6'1" 202 lbs DOB 9/22/87
Atkinson 5'7" 172 lbs DOB 6/5/89
St Louis 5'8" 178 lbs DOB 6/18/75
Atkinson is from Greenwich,CT and Martin St.Louis lives in that town. Here's the article about some NHL players taking part in the exhibition game last summer. Kevin Shattenkirk is also from Greenwich and Max Pacioretty is also Connecticut native . http://greenwich.patch.com/articles/...andings-july-7
Last edited by bizzz: 04-09-2012 at 11:31 AM.
Reason: forgot the link
Brass was said to have impeded his game in that manner, the truth of it was immaterial. His was just a convenient example.
Ok, so using a possibly faulty premise to raise concern is ok? Sounds a bit like the weekly warnings over what will cause cancer.
I don't see anything to be concerned about, honestly. We might be approaching creating some FUD here. If S&C is going right, they will be monitoring things like explosiveness.
Ok, so using a possibly faulty premise to raise concern is ok? Sounds a bit like the weekly warnings over what will cause cancer.
I suppose I could have used Dickie Erosovich as an example, but, since you didn't go to high school with me, it probably wouldn't have meant much to you. The premise isn't faulty, though the example may be. Neither of us knows the truth of Brassard's problems, this year, but that was the reason put forward. It's a credible premise, players in many sports have been known to bulk up to the point of losing flexibility or explosiveness. In any case, I think we've rung just about everything we can possibly get from this discussion. Good luck, Cam.
The premise isn't faulty, though the example may be.
The premise that building too much bulk can affect your speed using Brassard as an example? Yes that premise is possibly faulty. Sure if Atkinson came is at 230 next season, I would expect that to impact his game. Since he isn't going to come in at even 200, I'm not concerned.
For the record, flexibility, explosiveness, and bulk are not, necessarily, mutually exclusive. You can, in fact, contain a good deal of bulk and maintain both explosiveness and flexibility. None of these guys are going to be competing in body building competitions anytime soon.
IIRC there was an article or quote somewhere about Atkinson and Martin St. Louis. Something about training in the same place during the off season or Cam following what St. Louis does or something to that effect. I remember seeing that last summer, but I don't remember where.
For the record (according to NHL.com and/or bluejackets.com)
Brassard 6'1" 202 lbs DOB 9/22/87
Atkinson 5'7" 172 lbs DOB 6/5/89
St Louis 5'8" 178 lbs DOB 6/18/75
He looks taller to me than St Louis. I like his attitude, and we all knew the goals would come based on his play on the ice. It was nice to see 5 of them in the last 2 contests, too bad he didn't put up the back to back hat tricks. If we make the right moves this offseason, Cam will be on the 2nd line with Prospal and Brassard next season.
My main interest in the Cam / Martin St. Louis connection is that if we have a small forward on our team: Who would be the best possible mentor for him? I don't think you could do much better than St. Louis. If Cam turns into our own version of St. Louis...
