Habs Fan in Edmonton Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 I don't claim Florian is a top prospect only that for a 4th round pick he is not a bad gamble as most 4th rounders don't make it to the NHL. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 6 Author Share Posted January 6 Yes... but my point is id rather gamble on someone who would become a top 9 player if they make it.... see Sean Farrell, than someone who will become a 4th liner if they make it. Both are gambles, but why try a longshot bet to win $10 when you can take a Longshot to win $1000 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 Guindon 1a 5 shots Reinbacher 20:14 0pts in 4-0 loss Kapanen 2g2a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neech Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 6 hours ago, Commandant said: McCarron who was acquired off the scrap heap and is paid a minimal.salary. I can find fourth liners on waivers or.cheap in free agency every time. I dont want to draft them in any round. Give me a kid with scoring talent but lacks something in his game with all my late picks.... even if 9/10 bust, the one who does play in my top 9 is more valuable than the 4th line scrub i can get in free agency for league minimum. He'd still be an above average 4th round pick. I agree with the philosophy outlined above, but you also want these type of players in the system. It's clear we made the pick for family reasons, though, and trusting that the growth that Arber had shown after his draft year would transfer to Florian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 Florian seems a long shot, but so did his brother and low risk pick. Can he skate quick enough for pro hockey i wonder? Canadiens: Florian Xhekaj Greatly Increased Production In Second OHL Season (awinninghabit.com) The All-Star Team has been selected by media as follows: Goal: Hugo Havelid (SWE) Defence: Lane Hutson (USA), Theo Lindstein (SWE) Forward: Cutter Gauthier (USA), Jiri Kulich (CZE), Jonathan Lekkerimaki (SWE) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs Fan in Edmonton Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 10 hours ago, Neech said: It's clear we made the pick for family reasons, though, and trusting that the growth that Arber had shown after his draft year would transfer to Florian. Agreed. There is no guarantee Florian will make it because he is Arber's brother but sometimes certain traits are common in family members (ie. Sutter brothers) and obviously the Habs got to know the Xhekaj family well. They realized these were not spoiled kids and would give it everything they have to make it. I don't disagree at all with the philosophy of swinging for the fences in the later rounds but the Habs also had 7 picks after the 3rd round in 2023, why not use 1 of these on a guy who might turn out to be a very effective 3rd/4th line player. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 6 Author Share Posted January 6 10 hours ago, Neech said: He'd still be an above average 4th round pick. I agree with the philosophy outlined above, but you also want these type of players in the system. It's clear we made the pick for family reasons, though, and trusting that the growth that Arber had shown after his draft year would transfer to Florian. Its if he makes it though. This kid is a long shot to even be a fourth liner. If it was a guaranteed fourth liner, id say fine, a fourth or fifth round pick can be swapped for a fourth liner at the deadline and i wouldnt complain about that. But if we are gambling on longshots id rather gamble for high upside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neech Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 4 hours ago, Commandant said: Its if he makes it though. This kid is a long shot to even be a fourth liner. If it was a guaranteed fourth liner, id say fine, a fourth or fifth round pick can be swapped for a fourth liner at the deadline and i wouldnt complain about that. But if we are gambling on longshots id rather gamble for high upside. Nothing is guaranteed in the draft, everyone is a long shot to make the NHL. We're taking a swing on size, toughness and pedigree, which is a similar idea to taking a swing on scoring talent. Josh Anderson in his draft year had 22 pts in 64 games, and played two more junior seasons without ever reaching a point per game, despite showing major improvement in scoring. He was drafted around the same position as Florian and turned out to be a home run pick in the 4th round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 6 Author Share Posted January 6 And the number of examples of josh anderson types is few and far between. Just cause there was one unicorn doesnt mean you keep betting on it. While everyone is a Longshot, it doesnt make it the same. Chances are the skilled players work far more often and end up far more valuable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 6 Author Share Posted January 6 If his name was Frank Jackson, he wouldn't have even gotten drafted. This is all cause his brother. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs Fan in Edmonton Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 14 minutes ago, Commandant said: If his name was Frank Jackson, he wouldn't have even gotten drafted. This is all cause his brother. Arber didn't get drafted either and a lot of teams are kicking themselves about that. The bottom line is time will tell with Florian. Maybe there weren't a lot of really skilled guys left in the 4th round. I am willing to give the Habs scouts the benefit of the doubt on this one. Perhaps they thought he wouldn't be around if they waited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 Kids did fine. Habsent Minded: Wrapping up the World Juniors (habseyesontheprize.com) Canadiens' Lane Hutson is NHL-Ready (thehockeywriters.com) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 6 Author Share Posted January 6 12 minutes ago, Habs Fan in Edmonton said: Arber didn't get drafted either and a lot of teams are kicking themselves about that. The bottom line is time will tell with Florian. Maybe there weren't a lot of really skilled guys left in the 4th round. I am willing to give the Habs scouts the benefit of the doubt on this one. Perhaps they thought he wouldn't be around if they waited. Florian isnt Arber. They are different people. Jarred Staal.has three brothers in the NHL. He was never any good but was drafted cause his name. Matthew Strome couldnt skate. He was drafted cause his two brothers I stand by my point. If he wasnt Arber's brother, no one on this board would care. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 6 Author Share Posted January 6 Case in point.... without googling who knows who our 5th round pick was in 2023? Who knows what NCAA team he is playing for? How much has he been discussed since the draft? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plutarch Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 2 hours ago, Commandant said: Case in point.... without googling who knows who our 5th round pick was in 2023? Who knows what NCAA team he is playing for? How much has he been discussed since the draft? Counter point. Not that I have a dog in the fight but... Who were the habs other two 4th round picks? They've both been discussed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs Fan in Edmonton Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 3 hours ago, Commandant said: I stand by my point. If he wasnt Arber's brother, no one on this board would care. Maybe, maybe not. I think we have beat this one to death. Time to move on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 7 Author Share Posted January 7 1 hour ago, Plutarch said: Counter point. Not that I have a dog in the fight but... Who were the habs other two 4th round picks? They've both been discussed. Yeah cause one is playing 20 minutes a night in the KHL and putting up points, which is a great sign for a teenager. The other has had basically one discussion and its about how much hes struggled as a Q goalie. Here we have a forward who is being praised BUT his OHL numbers are less than what is ideal for a 19 year old forward, especially one with his size. That's the issue, Konyushkov has earned the praise (just like Farrell did, and just like Brendan Gallagher did in the first few posts of this thread 10+ years ago). We've also been pretty realistic with Quentin Miller saying yeah hes struggling right now, but that can happen with teenage goalies. Sam Harris has been pedestrian in the NCAA and no one is talking about him, and thats rightly so based on the results. Meanwhile lots here are excited by Florian Xhekaj and i just dont see the reason for the excitement. His OHL scoring isnt anything remarkable. In fact for his age and draft pedigree, its below what historical stats show a legit forward prospect should do at his age. But we have people here excited by it. My entire point is that if you had the same prospect and he didnt have a brother in the organization, hed be considered a middling prospect right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs Fan in Edmonton Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 4 minutes ago, Commandant said: Meanwhile lots here are excited by Florian Xhekaj and i just dont see the reason for the excitement. His OHL scoring isnt anything remarkable. In fact for his age and draft pedigree, its below what historical stats show a legit forward prospect should do at his age. But we have people here excited by it. My entire point is that if you had the same prospect and he didnt have a brother in the organization, hed be considered a middling prospect right now. I am not sure if excitement is the right word. The fact he grew a couple inches in the summer made me think he still has a lot of developing to do as it takes big guys a little longer to develop. I agree that he does get more publicity because he is Arber's brother but I definitely think the Habs scouts saw something there. There are other prospects I am much more excited about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted January 7 Author Share Posted January 7 52 minutes ago, Habs Fan in Edmonton said: I am not sure if excitement is the right word. The fact he grew a couple inches in the summer made me think he still has a lot of developing to do as it takes big guys a little longer to develop. I agree that he does get more publicity because he is Arber's brother but I definitely think the Habs scouts saw something there. There are other prospects I am much more excited about. It does take bigger players a little longer, but usually that slowing of development comes when they start playing against men, and not when they are against fellow teens. Usually at that age the extra size and strength is just an asset. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 Engstrom 2a (14pts 31gms SHL) Kapanen 2a, 6pts in last 2 games?(16pts 27gms LIIGA) Miller 5g 25 shots in 2nd games with new team (3.15 0.897%), still giving up lots goals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alfredoh2009 Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 23 hours ago, Habs Fan in Edmonton said: Agreed. There is no guarantee Florian will make it because he is Arber's brother but sometimes certain traits are common in family members (ie. Sutter brothers) and obviously the Habs got to know the Xhekaj family well. They realized these were not spoiled kids and would give it everything they have to make it. I don't disagree at all with the philosophy of swinging for the fences in the later rounds but the Habs also had 7 picks after the 3rd round in 2023, why not use 1 of these on a guy who might turn out to be a very effective 3rd/4th line player. 100% agree Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlbalr Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 15 hours ago, Commandant said: Meanwhile lots here are excited by Florian Xhekaj and i just dont see the reason for the excitement. His OHL scoring isnt anything remarkable. In fact for his age and draft pedigree, its below what historical stats show a legit forward prospect should do at his age. But we have people here excited by it. My entire point is that if you had the same prospect and he didnt have a brother in the organization, hed be considered a middling prospect right now. To me, the most intriguing part of his year is the position change. He's a legitimate centre this season which only helps his overall value. I agree, the campaign he's having offensively isn't overly thrilling but for someone who profiles as a fourth liner, it's nice to see he can hold his own to an extent in a scoring role. His stat line reminds me a bit about another former junior centre with a fourth-line profile, Michael Pezzetta. I agree, the fourth round was still too early for someone whose ceiling is probably a fourth-line tough guy but he has taken a step forward development-wise which is a small something at least, though not worth getting too excited about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 Bogdan 0pts 22:19 Xhekaj 0pts 0 shots Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs Fan in Edmonton Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 9 hours ago, dlbalr said: I agree, the fourth round was still too early for someone whose ceiling is probably a fourth-line tough guy but he has taken a step forward development-wise which is a small something at least, though not worth getting too excited about. I think the Habs drafted Florian thinking he could be more than a 4th line tough guy. When they drafted him he was 6' 1", 174 lbs hardly the physical characteristics of a guy you project to be a 4th line tough guy in the NHL. I think they think his ceiling is higher than you think it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alfredoh2009 Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 8 hours ago, Habs Fan in Edmonton said: I think the Habs drafted Florian thinking he could be more than a 4th line tough guy. When they drafted him he was 6' 1", 174 lbs hardly the physical characteristics of a guy you project to be a 4th line tough guy in the NHL. I think they think his ceiling is higher than you think it is. if he looks as good as RHP looked last year, at the same age, I will be happy. He is bigger (6'4"/194lbs vs 5'9" 184lbs) which would make him an interesting bottom-6. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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