What do you think? Personally I see Vatanen on the same talentlevel. A player who can compete like him on a mens league is really impressive. Murphy on the other hand seems to have the extra punch on D. Vatanen is also +20 in 25 games which is also impressive. Sizewise they are close whereat Murphy can still grow an inch or two. To me the Ducks got potentially one of the biggest steals of the last drafts.
What do you think? Personally I see Vatanen on the same talentlevel. A player who can compete like him on a mens league is really impressive. Murphy on the other hand seems to have the extra punch on D. Vatanen is also +20 in 25 games which is also impressive. Sizewise they are close whereat Murphy can still grow an inch or two. To me the Ducks got potentially one of the biggest steals of the last drafts.
As a Ducks fan, I'm extremely excited about him. Especially since he seems to be Lubo 2.0, hopefully he gets to North America soon enough to be mentored a bit by him. With Sami, Fowler and Schultz, the Ducks PP should hopefully be deadly for years, at very least from a defensemen point.
come on, give the guy some slack, thats Vatanen playing as an 18y old in the WC's against some of the best players in the world, he's bound to make some mistakes. And Mr. Regin is a very skilled individual
Awesome shot, best skater in sm-liiga, soft hands but he needs to improve hes defense a lot. Imo he is moderate defensively or below average in sm-liiga.
Awesome shot, best skater in sm-liiga, soft hands but he needs to improve hes defense a lot. Imo he is moderate defensively or below average in sm-liiga.
Below average defensively with the best +- in the league?! No way.
I agree that he is not amazing defensively but he has improved a lot from last season. Cīmon, he is 19 years old D-man playing against men and doing just fine, not to mention he is a beast offensively.
Awesome shot, best skater in sm-liiga, soft hands but he needs to improve hes defense a lot. Imo he is moderate defensively or below average in sm-liiga.
i disagree with the defensive part. he's great skating helps him a lot when it comes down to defense
Vatanen rumored to leave to KHL for the remainder of the season, apparently Omsk is offering $500K for his rights.
That would be insane, but that could work as a negative to have Vatanen stay in the A for us next year. This could be, in fact, a choose for the Ducks to keep him on the NHL to earn a pro-rate next year or the year after (if he stays in the KHL for a full year). Mmm, I would love to see how our Gem fairs against the most pro players aside from the NHL.
Awesome shot, best skater in sm-liiga, soft hands but he needs to improve hes defense a lot. Imo he is moderate defensively or below average in sm-liiga.
Sounds a ton like Erik Karlsson...Ducks fans, have some patience but your probably gonna love watching him play.
Below average defensively with the best +- in the league?! No way.
I agree that he is not amazing defensively but he has improved a lot from last season. Cīmon, he is 19 years old D-man playing against men and doing just fine, not to mention he is a beast offensively.
Mike Green was +39 last year. This kid is real small man, Karlsson's skating can make him a better defensive player than people realize as well...but his size does hold him back and can cause problems. With Sbisa and Fowler in the mix I can only expect that Anaheim will take it slow...It's better off, I wish we had the luxury of taking time with Karlsson...both of these guys will likely be very very good players when they hit 23-24 years old.
That would be insane, but that could work as a negative to have Vatanen stay in the A for us next year. This could be, in fact, a choose for the Ducks to keep him on the NHL to earn a pro-rate next year or the year after (if he stays in the KHL for a full year). Mmm, I would love to see how our Gem fairs against the most pro players aside from the NHL.
I don't think Vatanen would benefit much from playing in the KHL, he's more likely to face hard forechecking in SM-liiga than in the KHL where a majority of the teams play passively (so I've been told and have read comments from Finnish players). Sm-liiga style will prepare him better for the North American style than KHL.
Saw Vatanen live on several occasions at the WC in Germany.
Was impressed with his ability to play with men, but didn't feel that he displayed the speed or pure puck skills to excel with bigger men.
As he was only 18, a very respectable showing, but I could tell little about what his future could hold. His SIM Liiga numbers are quite impressive.
Ducks fans will have to be patient though. According to what I've seen (granted, only a sample size), he is gonna need his time to adjust to North America. That he may one day be a player like Timonen certainly isn't unthinkable...
Lets forget the defensive aspects of the game.
