Small player, but built like a tank. Not very technically skillful yet, but has a good shot and takes the puck to the net. I love players who aren't afraid of getting in the the dirty areas and causing a ruckus. I like this pick.
Any thought of him coming to NA and playing here, or will he continue his development in finland?
Small player, but built like a tank. Not very technically skillful yet, but has a good shot and takes the puck to the net. I love players who aren't afraid of getting in the the dirty areas and causing a ruckus. I like this pick.
Any thought of him coming to NA and playing here, or will he continue his development in finland?
Kärpät will most likely be one of the top teams in FEL next year and they have produced some good players so most likely he'll stay. And IMO he should.
Kärpät will most likely be one of the top teams in FEL next year and they have produced some good players so most likely he'll stay. And IMO he should.
Our AHL affiliate in Milwaukee should be pretty well stocked next season, so I really don't think there's much question as to whether Salomaki returns to play in Finland next season. Depending on how far along he comes in his development during next season though might determine whether or not the Preds bring him over then.
I'd say at this point he's 2-3 years from NHL ready. Two years from seeing NHL action if he comes over either this summer or next and three years if he stays two more years in Finland.
Our AHL affiliate in Milwaukee should be pretty well stocked next season, so I really don't think there's much question as to whether Salomaki returns to play in Finland next season. Depending on how far along he comes in his development during next season though might determine whether or not the Preds bring him over then.
I'd say at this point he's 2-3 years from NHL ready. Two years from seeing NHL action if he comes over either this summer or next and three years if he stays two more years in Finland.
I think Salomäki will be the first Finn from 2011 draft to play in the NHL. But if he does what seems to be the trend for Finnish players and gets his military service out of the way before leaving he'll be in Finland for atleast 2-3 years.
Kärpät will most likely be one of the top teams in FEL next year and they have produced some good players so most likely he'll stay. And IMO he should.
What type of role does he play with the team? (special teams, icetime, etc)
What type of role does he play with the team? (special teams, icetime, etc)
Kärpät is stacked up front yet again so I guess 3rd line. But if he plays well in pre-season and in the first games he could get to the 2nd line. Not likely to get a lot of PP time, likely to be a PKer.
E: Just checked, he had ATOI of 10:48 during the 2010-11 season. I don't expect it to raise much, maybe to 13-15 mins tops.
What type of role does he play with the team? (special teams, icetime, etc)
Last season he averaged 10 mins (and used it damn well tbh, one of the most physical guys in whole team) per game but its gonna grow. As i said earlier they can have 3 pretty good lines and its his to take. And every line could be the "first line". Noone will have spot in the special teams but they gotta earn it. Id love him to play with Donskoi and Viuhkola with beeing screen/crease guy in the PP though! If no new additions are made ive him projected as 4th best winger and with ability to center any of the top 3 lines. (actually quite a few guys in the team can play winger/center so any line matches are pretty much possible in this point not to mention possible injuries
Second best Finn in the draft after Armia. I assume he will play in the third line with Kärpät next season.
Quote:
Originally Posted by FinHockey
Kärpät is stacked up front yet again so I guess 3rd line. But if he plays well in pre-season and in the first games he could get to the 2nd line. Not likely to get a lot of PP time, likely to be a PKer.
E: Just checked, he had ATOI of 10:48 during the 2010-11 season. I don't expect it to raise much, maybe to 13-15 mins tops.
Quote:
Originally Posted by walle
Last season he averaged 10 mins (and used it damn well tbh, one of the most physical guys in whole team) per game but its gonna grow. As i said earlier they can have 3 pretty good lines and its his to take. And every line could be the "first line". Noone will have spot in the special teams but they gotta earn it. Id love him to play with Donskoi and Viuhkola with beeing screen/crease guy in the PP though! If no new additions are made ive him projected as 4th best winger and with ability to center any of the top 3 lines. (actually quite a few guys in the team can play winger/center so any line matches are pretty much possible in this point not to mention possible injuries
Terrific heart, passion, work ethic and competitiveness. Plays hard and in for face at all times. Nasty, hard-edged kid is a real agitator and a tough ***** to play against. Very strong in puck pursuit - if he doesn't have it, he'll go get it. Built like a block of granite with a low centre of gravity. Has better stick skills than we gave him credit for. A major crease crasher. Has good hockey sense, but not enough playmaking skill to have higher than third line upside. Stone defensively and does a great job on the PK unit.
Projection: Aggressive agitating 3rd liner
Style compares to: A less dirty Cal Clutterbuck
Miikka Salomaki - The second round had a lot intriguing picks. Rocco Grimaldi falling to the Panthers was one and the Blues taking a chance on the mysterious, but talented Dmitri Jaskin was another, but the best pick of the second round was when Nashville took Salomaki 52nd overall. Salomaki is a player who just screams Barry Trotz. He can do a bit of everything and is extremely difficult to play against. His physicality and two-way competitiveness allow him to create chances that aren't always pretty, but get results. Great pick by the Preds.
I feel differently, the more I hear some his goals come from grit and physicality. He sounds strong and developed for his age. But that can mean he can score much more against young players than he will later. Later he won't have the physical advantage. He doesn't have the frame to put on enough muscle to be considered a big man in the NHL. I'd feel more confident if a player was underdeveloped physically but had the frame to grow into, then to hear some of his numbers are coming from it and that at 18 or 19 he was a tough two way guy.
There's a couple forwards I'd rather have that went shortly after Hellberg. I can't understand why we didn't try to wait and go for Hellberg with the second pick. Oh well. All of the picks are a ways from the NHL, so maybe the goalie depth was the best thing.
I feel differently, the more I hear some his goals come from grit and physicality. He sounds strong and developed for his age. But that can mean he can score much more against young players than he will later. Later he won't have the physical advantage. He doesn't have the frame to put on enough muscle to be considered a big man in the NHL. I'd feel more confident if a player was underdeveloped physically but had the frame to grow into, then to hear some of his numbers are coming from it and that at 18 or 19 he was a tough two way guy.
He played against men in SM-liiga in 2010-11 and will do so in 2011-12. So he can already outmuscle grown men and now just juniors. Don't know if I misunderstood your post but whatever.
He played against men in SM-liiga in 2010-11 and will do so in 2011-12. So he can already outmuscle grown men and now just juniors.
Yeah, but for just 10 points in 40 games. Not much of his performance has been proven against the men yet. It is a good point that he was playing against older players enough to be scouted.
Quote:
Don't know if I misunderstood your post but whatever.
Yes, that's what I meant. Can he perform against men? Will he be able to use "muscle" against NHL players? Of course, while I say he doesn't seem to have as much room to grow, surely he will get stronger for the next few years, so maybe he will be able to. Plus his skills will improve too.
But I prefer hearing that players are looking good from skills, not because of their physical strength. It was one thing I wondered about Colin Wilson, since he was always said to be a weight lifter. It has pros and cons, I think guys who physically get strong earlier than their peers can be overrated.
Did you say an 18 year old won't get much bigger? Also, how do you know what his frame will hold? I've seen guys that were 5"11 210 that looked small.
Maybe. (And that's exactly right, he could be 210 and not be pushing anyone around in the NHL) But I really don't care if someone admires his strength and tells me that's why he was a great pick... It's a lot better than being of average strength or weak. But it doesn't jazz me up as much as "he's got lots of skill, he just needs to add muscle to his 5' 11" frame"
Here they are saying "he may not be as skilled as some guys, but he's strong." Ok... a future grinder? I'm a long way from saying he sucks. I see skill in his highlight videos, and if he can develop he may be good, but most reviews of him seem to downplay that part of his game and talk abotu strength and grit and two way 'Trotz-like' play..
Yeah, but for just 10 points in 40 games. Not much of his performance has been proven against the men yet. It is a good point that he was playing against older players enough to be scouted.
Being a "full-time" SM-liiga player in your draft year is very rare. This year only Armia and Salomäki of the first-time eligible Finns played in SM-liiga. 10 points in 40 games is very good for his age considering that he isn't expected to be a scorer. I'm pretty sure had he played in the jr. A SM-liiga he would've been well over PPG and you wouldn't be worried. But now that you see he only had 10 points in 40 games you can't help but be worried. And that's fine. You probably know as much about SM-liiga and Finnish hockey leagues in general as I know of American hockey leagues (excluding NHL and AHL).
Being a "full-time" SM-liiga player in your draft year is very rare. This year only Armia and Salomäki of the first-time eligible Finns played in SM-liiga. 10 points in 40 games is very good for his age considering that he isn't expected to be a scorer. I'm pretty sure had he played in the jr. A SM-liiga he would've been well over PPG and you wouldn't be worried. But now that you see he only had 10 points in 40 games you can't help but be worried. And that's fine. You probably know as much about SM-liiga and Finnish hockey leagues in general as I know of American hockey leagues (excluding NHL and AHL).
No,You don't understand my point, I didn't make it clearly. It doesn't matter what I would know or not know about the older league to my point.
I'm not worried about 10 points in 40 games... AT ALL. I barely even checked what he had scored. I mentioned the number after you said he could do it against men, and I wondered how could he be proven with little ice time? I'm not estimating his future from the past year in the older league. It tells little since he was a rookie and didn't have the ice time. So why would I worry about those numbers? I didn't. But you said he's proven he can muscle the men. He isn't 'proven' against men. He hasn't played enough against men. We'll learn a lot more this season how he does.
And no a point per game in the junior league wouldn't make any difference, how would it? My entire argument was explaining why those numbers could be inflated. But I liked that Miikka did well in some tournaments, where the standard of play is high for that age.
All I said was I prefer hearing young guys are scoring due to their skill, not strength or 'banging'... I do see skill in his game from the vids I can find. There were a couple other players I'd rather have had earlier, but we picked a goalie. At the draft spot, Miikka sounds good according to many of you. Having of finnish ancestry myself I am rooting for Miikka. I am glad the scout said he was a great pick. I'm glad you think so as well. I'll hope you are both correct.
Ok. Don't know how I understood that you were worried about his offensive production.
Obviously I care about offensive production. I care whether his game will improve as he moves up. All I was saying if his game is due to strength, he could be overrated. As it seems more likely for young players to add considerable strength then add considerable skill. We see the first one all the time, the second one far less often.
So yes, it is good if you see him play in the older league and say his game looks to fit very well there already. That's good information, thank you. (But I didn't worry about his numbers there, I assumed he had not played lots of minutes on offensive lines as a rookie.)
Salomaki doesen't try to outmuscle but he outworks other players. When he decides to go into corner his pain in the ass like pitbull. Working hard, play hard and uses his smarts. He is strong already at 17 maybe even stronger in couple years but his will power is his strogest asset. There is much stronger players than Salomaki in NHL but Salomaki is Very aggressive, his pressure on opponent is endless. I can imagine what his opponent is thinking When they see him coming " omg not him again! Gotta get rid off the puck! " he gonna be trotz Next pet.
Salomaki doesen't try to outmuscle but he outworks other players. When he decides to go into corner his pain in the ass like pitbull. Working hard, play hard and uses his smarts. He is strong already at 17 maybe even stronger in couple years but his will power is his strogest asset. There is much stronger players than Salomaki in NHL but Salomaki is Very aggressive, his pressure on opponent is endless. I can imagine what his opponent is thinking When they see him coming " omg not him again! Gotta get rid off the puck! " he gonna be trotz Next pet.
Sounds good to me. Be good for him to pin guys and force them to cough up the puck.
I barely even checked what he had scored. I mentioned the number after you said he could do it against men, and I wondered how could he be proven with little ice time? I'm not estimating his future from the past year in the older league. It tells little since he was a rookie and didn't have the ice time. So why would I worry about those numbers? I didn't. But you said he's proven he can muscle the men. He isn't 'proven' against men. He hasn't played enough against men. We'll learn a lot more this season how he does. 
Maybe that's a reason for me to pay a bit closer attention to SM-liiga...
