That's true, but she is already dating another Finnish SM-liiga player...
And I think that quite good comparison to Armia on many ways is recently away passed Arto Javanainen. Both had similar will to score. I remembered when Armia scored in preseason game against lukko. It was evident that he wanted to put the puck into the net.
I think the questioning of his work ethics origin from the interview where he told that he likes playing the game more than practising alone. It was a bit badly translated (or he was a bit misunderstood).
Wow, did we really pass on McNeill for this guy? He better be worth it.
Well, one has 1st line upside and one is most likely a 3rd liner, so if Armia pans out, he should be an impact player.
He was the best player available, albeit raw and unfinished and therefore a risk, but his ceiling is incredibly high.
I'm glad they finally took a risk, even if we need center depth.
i am so excited for this draft pick. i mean sure we have incredible depth at rw. yet it seems like he has a lot to offer. it was interesting to hear that he had limited exposure to the nhl. almost confusing.
send him the la la la la fontaine video package.
armia is awesome. so happy
Last edited by ImpressedDAHagent: 06-25-2011 at 12:45 AM.
Like most of you guys I was pretty excited McNeill fell to us, but I'm also happy with the selection of Armia. It was probably time to inject some European blood into our prospect system, and while we have a lot of big/physical players down there, we really don't have anyone that is even close to the skill/size combo of Armia. He's got plenty of time to develop and looks like he has the potential to be a gifted goal scorer.
Like the pick. Lot of potential and I think hebwas the best player available. Sure it's not a center but I think years down the road this kid is going to be great.
I like taking the high end talent over the safer pick. We'll have plenty of opportunities to address size in the later rounds, but we probably only have 1 shot at getting a guy as talented as Armia.
What I don't like is that he's another winger on a team starved for centers. I would have rather we rolled the dice on someone like Namestnikov or Phillips.
Yes, I think he could definitely score 30 goals in any CHL league.
He certainly has the tools to do so.
And I agree, he is very fun to watch.
He has the "nifty mittens".
I am so happy we drafted another power forward. i realize that they play the same position but it would be interesting to see kassian skate with him. Both pretty big guys with hands.
Assuming they handle him correctly (subjective, I know), he'd already be playing with Ässät by then.
I went to check the schedule. Assuming he sticks with his current team, he has a game at the same time as the Sabres - Ducks will be played, some 160 miles apart.
Would've been nice for fans traveling to Finland to get a chance to see their 1st round pick play the night before or something.
Good and well managed teams can afford to take the best player available, and then work trades around what their system has to offer. I appreciate them not settling for a need when a high ceiling talent was available.
I see Boom or Bust here. and though I disliked it at 9:00 when I heard the pick, I think I've come around. i admit, I didn't do my homework on him and I don't really know who he is- because I thought there was NO way the Sabres would even look at a Euro.
I'm loving the video on this kid. In very limited viewing, he's slick right handed shot with great control and a quick release in deep, a nose for the net, and a knack for finding the puck. Very Vaneky qualities.
I don't think the work ethic knock is necessarily a reference to a disinclination to push himself physically, but rather a reference that he is more interested in offensive zone play than defensive. It's a lot easier to play an effective defensive game against your own peer group than men, and coming up he's probably been able to get away with being the offensive guy.
If he already had the polish of a complete game, there's no chance we'd have been early enough for him. I'm glad we're gambling on a high-end talent that coaches can work on.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jfb392
Can one of our new Finns expand on the required military service?
From what I've learned from HF lore, I'm guessing he's just a quick "cold spoon test" away from passing on through.
