Kaapo Kakko Stinks

[-ERIK-]

Kakko I feel has definitely had more a chance to break out offensively ,he's played top 6 minutes almost all season and other than that 5 game streak he's underwhelming,

 

Laffy on the other hand while disappointing ,if wasn't the first overall pick and finished the season with about 18 goals and 10 assists as a third liner, thats not bad. He's got 8 goals now, which is despite all the send him to Ahl,is more goals than Kakko has. I'm more hopeful with Laffy than Kakko. I think there is plenty of room for Laffy to grow.

[Pete]

2 hours ago, Long live the King said:

 

This is the problem with watching your own team everyday.  We get fixated on things that annoy us about our young guys while pointing to highlights of other youngsters around the league.

 

End of November into December we loved Kakko's 9 points in 7 games.  Laf was playing much better since Panarin went on the COVID list and was gonna be the RW on that line before going on the COVID list himself.  They're still young.  Consistency will come.

 

I dont think either one of them is what's holding the Rangers back from being elite.  3C and 2 or 3 more reliable D are.

I don't understand how watching your own team everyday, and then watching other teams and seeing their young players excel far beyond what your own young players are doing is a problem at all.

 

If you don't think nobody scoring on the third line, including Laf, and no one scoring on the right side, including Kakko, are two of the three major issues with this team.... Then I don't know what to tell you and there's no common ground to start from.

 

We complain that the Rangers are a terrible 5 on 5 team, yet we have a number one overall pick who's getting favorable matchups and plays almost exclusively five on five and can't do anything at all unless he's paired with the best players on the team... I don't really know how you can call that anything other than disappointing.

 

Same with Kakko. He's playing with two of the best offensive players on the team and he can't even manage a couple of secondary assists or a lucky goal.

 

That is without a doubt disappointing and it has nothing to do with watching your own players or anyone else's players.

[Pete]

46 minutes ago, br-avery said:

Kakko I feel has definitely had more a chance to break out offensively ,he's played top 6 minutes almost all season and other than that 5 game streak he's underwhelming,

 

Laffy on the other hand while disappointing ,if wasn't the first overall pick and finished the season with about 18 goals and 10 assists as a third liner, thats not bad. He's got 8 goals now, which is despite all the send him to Ahl,is more goals than Kakko has. I'm more hopeful with Laffy than Kakko. I think there is plenty of room for Laffy to grow.

Glad to see your barometer for who should go the the AHL starts with being better than Kakko... Who has something like one goal in 20 games.

 

Might as well just say anybody who's better than me should be in the NHL. 

[-ERIK-]

Just now, Pete said:

Glad to see your barometer for who should go the the AHL starts with being better than Kakko... Who has something like one goal in 20 games.

 

Might as well just say anybody who's better than me should be in the NHL. 

So what's your answer?send both Kakko and Laf to a depleted Wolf pack?

Replace them with Greco and Gettinger ,does that make us better? Does that really benefit us or them in the long run ?

 

[Pete]

1 minute ago, br-avery said:

So what's your answer?send both Kakko and Laf to a depleted Wolf pack?

Replace them with Greco and Gettinger ,does that make us better? Does that really benefit us or them in the long run ?

 

It would be hard to get less from some other players who are in the AHL right now. 

 

And yes I do believe it would be better for them in the long run. They are pretty clearly over matched where they are right now.

[-ERIK-]

2 hours ago, Pete said:

It would be hard to get less from some other players who are in the AHL right now. 

 

And yes I do believe it would be better for them in the long run. They are pretty clearly over matched where they are right now.

I disagree ,they are NHL players .

I want or would like offense from them too though.

[The Dude]

2 hours ago, br-avery said:

So what's your answer?send both Kakko and Laf to a depleted Wolf pack?

Replace them with Greco and Gettinger ,does that make us better? Does that really benefit us or them in the long run ?

 

The question is.  Does it make the Rangers any worse? And if the answer isn't an overwhelming yes, then maybe they really should be sent down. 

 

Kakko, Lafreniere and Chytil are contributing so little that I see no reason other than lack of depth to NOT send them down. But even with that, maybe giving  these AHL fodder types jump starts a career or gives the higher regarded prospects the reality check that they need. 

 

I honestly think they should at a minimum right now, trade for a Brassard like player to plug in the 3rd line center spot, sending Chytil to the wing or to Hartford. It would send a message to the  kids, that their spots really are not guaranteed and that it's not hard to find a replacement. There's nobody here for competition at forward. 

 

 

[Pete]

29 minutes ago, br-avery said:

I disagree ,they are NHL players .

I want or would like offense from them too though.

You're right, they are players in the NHL. Just not good ones. 

[Dunny]

When I think I'm acting too cynical, here, Pete always shows up to brighten my day.

[-ERIK-]

55 minutes ago, The Dude said:

The question is.  Does it make the Rangers any worse? And if the answer isn't an overwhelming yes, then maybe they really should be sent down. 

 

Kakko, Lafreniere and Chytil are contributing so little that I see no reason other than lack of depth to NOT send them down. But even with that, maybe giving  these AHL fodder types jump starts a career or gives the higher regarded prospects the reality check that they need. 

 

I honestly think they should at a minimum right now, trade for a Brassard like player to plug in the 3rd line center spot, sending Chytil to the wing or to Hartford. It would send a message to the  kids, that their spots really are not guaranteed and that it's not hard to find a replacement. There's nobody here for competition at forward. 

 

 

Chytil has been worse than Laf and Kakko imo,and should be further along than he is now, why are we giving him a shot at wing then?

I honestly wouldn't mind seeing us make a move for 3rd line center though ,Brassard I don't know about anymore

Giroux and Gourde are interesting options

[josh]

14 minutes ago, Dunny said:

When I think I'm acting too cynical, here, Pete always shows up to brighten my day.

 

This season might be the grumpiest the forum has been in over a decade. 

[Pete]

5 minutes ago, josh said:

 

This season might be the grumpiest the forum has been in over a decade. 

I would be happier watching the youth develop rather than have opportunistic wins mask very real issues that will haunt us later this year and in the near and distant future...unless something changes. 

[josh]

1 hour ago, Pete said:

I would be happier watching the youth develop rather than have opportunistic wins mask very real issues that will haunt us later this year and in the near and distant future...unless something changes. 

 

[The Dude]

1 hour ago, br-avery said:

Chytil has been worse than Laf and Kakko imo,and should be further along than he is now, why are we giving him a shot at wing then?

I honestly wouldn't mind seeing us make a move for 3rd line center though ,Brassard I don't know about anymore

Giroux and Gourde are interesting options

Because,  I'd like to try and get him going. He once showed a ton of potential.  Plus, they have no other options, nor has this been tried yet. 

 

 

[Pete]

7 minutes ago, josh said:

 

[AliveIn94]

On 1/12/2022 at 8:00 PM, Tomas Sandstrom said:

And the Rangers Organization bares none of the blame for this?

 

Look, the players have to take responsibility.  The stats are the stats, and they don't lie.  But there are a lot of factors which play into this.   

 

I'm not giving up on these guys yet, and I don't think any Rangers fan should.  Disappointed, sure.  But I am still hopeful that it comes together, for both the players and the team.  Hopefully, the talent can overcome other factors within the organization.

 

This. I have a good feeling about the leaders on this team and our coach, book's out on Drury but nothing truly terrible yet. If I see a frustrated Kakko or Laf along with the coach or those leaders, then there's warning signs.

 

But there's no indication in the locker room or from the org that it's a lost cause. This just reminded me of Dalin and Svechnikov, Dahlin was a generational dman, Svechnikov an elite scorer. Dahlin had a really good rookie year then had a new coach and a mostly depleted roster and suffered setbacks. New coach, eichel gone, starts to get back on track. Svech gets drafted to a vet team that hires a soon-to-be great coach in Brind amour, consistent time with Aho and Teurovainen. Skinner and Lindholm, two excellent top 6 at the time are gone or soon to be. Is Dahlin a disappointment when buffalo explodes around him? No, he's still an elite potential player. Is Svechnikov a better player because Carolina cleared the way for a dynamic offensive player with a higher ceiling than the two they had?

 

Kakko and Laf are in a pretty unique spot for top picks. At any given time, there's at least 4 guys who are proven top NHL players to take over and make decisions. Maybe they're too deferential as young guys, maybe the top players say, "Hey just pass it to me." The kids are young they have time especially if the world gets "normal" after covid. Not too worried, expected a bit more but I think they get better every week.

 

As a Jets fan, I hear the same thing about Zach Wilson, who has to carry the dumpster fire Jets as a #2 pick. He's still showing promise but fans still want to blow it all up again. What's the point of top picks if they don't have leeway to reach their potential? It took Kreider the past two or three years to get to this level of consistency, Strome had to go through two awful rebuilding teams. The gamble on Kreider worked well, and Strome has nearly reached his full potential playing here.

 

Have they not become as good as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or Taylor Hall, #1 picks in their own right? I think they're better because they learned it here, put it all together here. Is that not development?

[The Dude]

55 minutes ago, AliveIn94 said:

 

This. I have a good feeling about the leaders on this team and our coach, book's out on Drury but nothing truly terrible yet. If I see a frustrated Kakko or Laf along with the coach or those leaders, then there's warning signs.

 

But there's no indication in the locker room or from the org that it's a lost cause. This just reminded me of Dalin and Svechnikov, Dahlin was a generational dman, Svechnikov an elite scorer. Dahlin had a really good rookie year then had a new coach and a mostly depleted roster and suffered setbacks. New coach, eichel gone, starts to get back on track. Svech gets drafted to a vet team that hires a soon-to-be great coach in Brind amour, consistent time with Aho and Teurovainen. Skinner and Lindholm, two excellent top 6 at the time are gone or soon to be. Is Dahlin a disappointment when buffalo explodes around him? No, he's still an elite potential player. Is Svechnikov a better player because Carolina cleared the way for a dynamic offensive player with a higher ceiling than the two they had?

 

Kakko and Laf are in a pretty unique spot for top picks. At any given time, there's at least 4 guys who are proven top NHL players to take over and make decisions. Maybe they're too deferential as young guys, maybe the top players say, "Hey just pass it to me." The kids are young they have time especially if the world gets "normal" after covid. Not too worried, expected a bit more but I think they get better every week.

 

As a Jets fan, I hear the same thing about Zach Wilson, who has to carry the dumpster fire Jets as a #2 pick. He's still showing promise but fans still want to blow it all up again. What's the point of top picks if they don't have leeway to reach their potential? It took Kreider the past two or three years to get to this level of consistency, Strome had to go through two awful rebuilding teams. The gamble on Kreider worked well, and Strome has nearly reached his full potential playing here.

 

Have they not become as good as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or Taylor Hall, #1 picks in their own right? I think they're better because they learned it here, put it all together here. Is that not development?

Put what together? They stink. I honestly just had to check if Kakko was in the lineup . It's the 3rd period of the Philly game. 

[AliveIn94]

2 minutes ago, The Dude said:

Put what together? They stink. I honestly just had to check if Kakko was in the lineup . It's the 3rd period of the Philly game. 

I meant Strome and Kreider.

[The Dude]

1 minute ago, AliveIn94 said:

I meant Strome and Kreider.

Which is something else I'd like to nitpick. We've been waiting for Kreider to put it together for 7 or 8 years. 

 

Strome had to be traded to his 3rd team to "put it together ". 

 

I wish I shared your optimism. Oddly I pull more for the undergogs like Gauthier, Hajek and Chytil. Or atleast give them more slack. 

[Phil]

[josh]

Played a solid game, had a point. 

 

 

[Phil]

"Played a solid game."

> Fifteen games without a goal now.

 

"had a point."

> secondary assist.

[Dunny]

His hands are just so choppy. Nothing smooth about it. Chop chop chop. Watch the GWG. Really weird, and it's been case since day 1.

[josh]

1 minute ago, Phil said:

"Played a solid game."

> Fifteen games without a goal now.

 

"had a point."

> secondary assist.

He was screening the goalie! 

[Phil]

1 minute ago, josh said:

He was screening the goalie! 

 

Kreider does that and has 20+ goals.

Kakko did it once and he's on his way to 20+ without a goal at all.