Is this his best ever season? Statistically no. His line is 23-48-71
In Carolina he had a high of 32 goals and 83 points and in Columbus he had 77pts. However those were also accompanied by -26 and -5 plus/minuses. In Phoenix he's +24 which is by some distance his best ever. In 22 years he's only had one other season over +10.
In those seasons Columbus finished last in the West and Carolina finished out of the playoffs in 11th in the East.
Hopefully if he's enjoying it that much, he'll be keen to re-sign for next year.
Is this his best ever season? Statistically no. His line is 23-48-71
Well, considering he plays in the Tippet system and that league scoring is lower than in 06-07 I think you could make the case that those stats are his best.
I think Ray Whitney has forever changed this franchise to be honest.
We always seemed to be trying to find those big plodding physical type forwards rather than truly appreciate those players with hockey sense. We undervalued that type of skill.
After Whitney showed up and we saw how he truly opens up a game we started to go after the Andy Miele's as UFA's and we got rid of our Director of Amateur Scouting Keith Gretzky for Rick Knickle. Rick Knickle's primary attribute that he looks for in all prospects.... hockey sense.
Is this his best ever season? Statistically no. His line is 23-48-71
In Carolina he had a high of 32 goals and 83 points and in Columbus he had 77pts. However those were also accompanied by -26 and -5 plus/minuses. In Phoenix he's +24 which is by some distance his best ever. In 22 years he's only had one other season over +10.
In those seasons Columbus finished last in the West and Carolina finished out of the playoffs in 11th in the East.
Hopefully if he's enjoying it that much, he'll be keen to re-sign for next year.
I don't know but that pass tonight on Vrbata's second goal was absolutely beautiful!
As for him signing, in an interview not too long ago DM mentioned that as long as the Yotes are staying in Phoenix, signing the veteran FA's is a foregone conclusion. They want to be here and he wants them there. Granted that may have been under the assumption that if the Coyotes are still here in the offseason it's because someone actually bought them. i.e. I'm not sure a 4th year in limbo was a consideration
He's been really good defensively. Stripping the puck and getting his stick in lanes. Also, really good along the boards. Shows a ton of battle for little guy, especially given his age.
He's been really good defensively. Stripping the puck and getting his stick in lanes. Also, really good along the boards. Shows a ton of battle for little guy, especially given his age.
Honestly, I think his defensive game has taken a step under Tippett as well. This signing couldn't have gone any better...
He shows no signs of aging and even if his scope is reduced to power play specialist in the next 2 or 3 years assuming he plays that long....1,150 points will put him in the top 50 all-time scoring which is very achievable, ~1,200 points is top 40 range. Either likely gets him to the Hall of Fame.
He shows no signs of aging and even if his scope is reduced to power play specialist in the next 2 or 3 years assuming he plays that long....1,150 points will put him in the top 50 all-time scoring which is very achievable, ~1,200 points is top 40 range. Either likely gets him to the Hall of Fame.
Heck, 1000 pts according to Tyson Nash during the game last night puts him among only 72 other players in the NHL's history (thousands of players?) That may very well be HOF material already!
In Phoenix he's +24 which is by some distance his best ever. In 22 years he's only had one other season over +10.
Now he's +25, the highest forward in the NHL who isn't a Bruin (of which there are 4 ahead of him). Plus Vrbata's tied for 8th at +23. Weird that a team so awful with a man advantage has one of the best three forward lines in the league at even strength? They really are a "Prime" line...
Last edited by DirtyOldMan: 03-30-2012 at 01:34 PM.
Reason: add Vrby
He's been really good defensively. Stripping the puck and getting his stick in lanes. Also, really good along the boards. Shows a ton of battle for little guy, especially given his age.
That certainly does not go unnoticed by me... the man is a VERY well rounded player.
Now he's +25, the highest forward in the NHL who isn't a Bruin (of which there are 4 ahead of him). Plus Vrbata's tied for 8th at +23. Weird that a team so awful with a man advantage has one of the best three forward lines in the league at even strength? They really are a "Prime" line...
That +25 kills me, since I always associate a high +/- with good two-way play. Whitney may well be the team's MVP this season, but he sure could back-check harder.
I wasn't planning to go to Saturday's game, but now it's hard not to. It was cool to be present for Gartner's 700th goal. Doug Weight put up his 1000th point at The Job in an inconsequential game with the Islanders a few years back, and he got a pretty good ovation.
There are only six active players above 1000 points.
He's the smartest player on the ice on any given shift. He's got loads of experience to go with the raw hockey sense, and he's kept himself in good enough shape that he can take full advantage of it. Pretty much the only thing he can't do is hit, but he's so good at everything else that he doesn't need to hit.
Hall of Fame? We'll see. He's got a Cup and a couple All-Star appearances to go with his 1,000 career points. He may have a shot. His numbers look a bit low compared to other recent inductees, but in fairness to him, he played the bulk of his career during the dead-puck era. I wouldn't be surprised if he made it. But I could just as easily see him being a hockey Mark Grace, in that regard.
