Is Brian Lee finally ready for the NHL?
by Peter Raaymakers on Jul 12, 2010 7:00 AM EDT
in Senators prospects
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After the NHL lockout, the Ottawa Senators got pretty lucky: Against very long odds, the Sens moved up to ninth overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, and were poised to make their highest overall pick since 2001. When they drafted Brian Lee, there wasn't much known about him; he was pretty big, and he was putting up big numbers in Minnesota high school hockey. Given the Senators' blue line at the time, which included Zdeno Chara, Wade Redden, Andrej Meszaros, Chris Phillips, Anton Volchenkov, and Brian Pothier, it looked like he was going to be given time to develop in the NCAA, and even the AHL, before being asked to step up to Ottawa's squad.
And he was given a few years. Two at the University of North Dakota, and he put up 53P (6G, 47A) in 82GP and looked ready to take the next step--which was Binghamton. Lee had a few games in 2007-08, but wasn't expected to stick in the NHL, and didn't, although he put up good numbers in a shortened season with Bingo--and actually looked like one of the Senators' best defenders in their ugly first-round sweep at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Higher expectations came in 2008-09, and Lee played 53 games with Ottawa that season (mostly in the second half), registering 13P in 53GP. He was expected to get a real shot at full-time minutes this past season, but was outplayed by all of Erik Karlsson, Alex Picard, Chris Campoli, and Matt Carkner, and--perhaps a victim of his two-way contract--was demoted to the AHL again, taking a serious step back in his career. It was hoped Lee would use the demotion as motivation and step into a leadership role with Binghamton, but instead he wallowed and put up his worst AHL season statistically (on a per-game basis) in 2009-10. Late in the season, though, Lee was given a two-year contract, and this time he wouldn't be a victim of a two-way clause: It was an NHL-only deal.
It seems like we've been waiting for an eternity to see Lee step up and stake his claim on the Senators' NHL roster, but it's worth noting that he's still only 23 years old. The journey has seemed longer because he's been given short stints in the NHL, and those raised expectations for the following season. It certainly hasn't been a conventional path to the NHL (high school, USHL, NCAA, AHL, NHL, AHL... and so on), but with another shot at the NHL this season, everyone in Ottawa is wondering: Is Brian Lee finally ready to take the next step?
If he is, it won't be easy. The Senators have four defenders on one-way deals aside from Lee (Phillips, Matt Carkner, Filip Kuba, and Sergei Gonchar) as well as Karlsson (who, despite his two-way deal, is a sure thing), restricted free agent Chris Campoli, and highly-touted prospects Jared Cowen and Patrick Wiercioch waiting in the wings. That makes at least five, and as many as eight, players higher than Lee on the depth chart. So he's going to have to have a hell of a training camp.
Which might be a problem. If the past two seasons are an indication, Lee is a slow starter. Part of the reason he started the past two years in the AHL were poor showings in training camp, only offset by solid play or holes in Ottawa's lineup that opened up a spot for him in some NHL games. I can't speak to his off-season workout routine, but Lee had better be spending a few hours in the gym everyday if he hopes to make the NHL roster--and, beyond that, if he hopes to play anything other than benchwarmer (or press-box seat warmer).
Lee's best chance for making the Senators lies in his size. At 6'3" and 206lbs, he's a big kid. He hasn't regularly used his size in the NHL, but he has shown that he knows how to use it at times in both pro leagues he's played in, and playing within a system like Cory Clouston's might simplify the game for him and allow him to excel. But there is a well-documented need on Ottawa's blueline: shutdown defenders. Darren wrote about it on Friday, but with the loss of Volchenkov and apparent loss of Andy Sutton, the Senators need big players who can play defence to balance the offensive play of Karlsson, Gonchar, and Kuba. If Lee can incorporate some degree of physicality and defensive soundness into his fairly strong passing game, he could make himself a valuable, cap-friendly sixth defender--with room to move up in the lineup due to injuries, trades, or poor play from other players.
The key to Lee might be the comfort level head coach Clouston has with his play. They'd spent a couple seasons together in the AHL, and although it didn't help Lee much last season, Clouston knows what he can do. A comfort level and knowledge of Kommand Kloustonom (that is, Cory Clouston's highly regimented playing style) helped Ryan Shannon, Matt Carkner, and Peter Regin become NHL players, so there's reason to believe it could help Lee, as well.
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Does Lee Still Have "Potential"?
What hurts the most with Brian Lee is what would have happened if they has drafted Anze Kopitar instead of Lee.
With defencemen, alot of times you have to have a tremendous amount of patience… especially with today’s rules.
In the end, unless they are tremendous offensive talents, big dmen who won’t hit anyone for the most part do not become top four defencemen… and Lee falls in this category. He was not worthy of his lofty drafting position, and he has to live with that.
With the Sens emerging depth in the back end, Lee would serve as trade bait towards another top six forward… that is while he is still considered to have that age-old word… “potential”.
How the Sens proceed with Lee depends alot on how quickly Jared Cowan emerges.
A failed draft pick
Lee may have shown a lot of potential in the early days and was a high draft pick but he has not impressed at all. In the picture you use for this article he is getting the puck by hooking and holding and depending how the league calls it this year he will be penalized a lot. To me he lacks hockey intelligence and is not a fast decision maker. Too many time opponents rush him and he gives the puck away so he’s not even a good puck mover. If he needs more time to develop then he is in trouble as I see our up and coming “D” being better right away as opposed to down the road. Trade him while you still can based on that potential. This team is building an offensive minded and fast game that will consist of getting the puck out and moving it fast, he fails in that area and might be better served on a team that has better forward support.
Dan
by Hockey Playoff Run SensFan on Jul 12, 2010 10:00 AM EDT reply actions
Not Gone Yet
There has been a lot of negativity about Lee, but I don’t think he’s been given a decent shot yet. The only decent chance was the end of 2008/09 when he was paired with Philips and, as you mentioned, was one of the best players. He was playing well when he was sent down last year and most people noted that it was because of his contract – he was definitely not being outlplayed by Campoli or Picard or Karlesson at that time even though he hadn’t been lucky enough to be paired with Philips that time. Murray has said that he believes we have the defenseman the team needs already in a young player and everybody seems to assume that to be Cowan. I’m not sure that that is who Murray is talking about. It may be Lee who, (sorry Dan) is not holding or hooking at all in the above photo – he is just plying and engaged physical game. We’ve seen him do it effectively before at times. It is too bad he moped after bing demoted last year though. Despite this, I really see them trying him with Philips at the beginning of the year. Philips will make him a better player which will either make him a good permanent partner, or raise his trade value.
I think I'm with you
Everyone keeps getting caught up in the ‘we could have drafted Kopitar’ argument, but we didn’t. And we can’t hold that against Brian Lee, because he’s just the kid who was drafted. He hasn’t been given a fair chance, but I think he might not get a fair chance this season, either, because of the defencemen we already have under contract. But time will tell.
by Peter Raaymakers on Jul 12, 2010 10:36 AM EDT up reply actions
More importantly, the "We could have drafted Kopitar" argument never makes sense when you look at the team
Chara, Redden, Mezsaros, and Pothier would all be gone in short order. Meanwhile the team had fantastic forward depth. Lee fit the picture much better than Kopitar would have.
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by Mark Parisi on Jul 12, 2010 11:00 AM EDT up reply actions
BPA
That’s why you should take the best player available with high picks. Use lower picks to draft for need.
Indeed
That’s part of the reason Muckler is gone, in my opinion.
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by Mark Parisi on Jul 12, 2010 12:36 PM EDT up reply actions
i remember
When i was watching the 2005 draft (Crosby), i remember Peter MacGuire was saying that Kopitar was a european crosby and the only way he would not go second was because he was born in a non traditional hockey market. At first i was praying that they would have access to Carey Price and my jaw dropped when Montréal pricked him because they had a young hot goalie (Théodore). The second surprise was when the senators would pick a defensemen instead of a very highly touted prospect. I was very dissapointed and i have look at Lee ever since.
Also, yes all those defensemen were gone in short order, but the senators could have keep some of them if they would have looked at what they needed for the future instead of loving a player and not wanting to let him go (Redden)
by Bikini Cowboy on Jul 12, 2010 10:12 PM EDT up reply actions
that’s blinded by hindsight when it comes to Redden. The majority of media, experts, and fans would have chosen Redden at that point in time.
I am AWESOME! Are you?
I seem to recall more people wanting Chara over Redden
Ideally would have been both, but I think Chara was the preferred option. And what do we have to show for it all? I guess Redden’s failure made the pick of Erik Karlsson more significant. So that’s what I’m going to believe. Wade Redden, thank you for Erik Karlsson.
A snake in the class - Silver Seven - Cycle Like the Sedins
by Ryan Classic on Jul 13, 2010 8:42 PM EDT up reply actions
Of course, it's not nearly as accurate as my favourite self-indulgent image
A snake in the class - Silver Seven - Cycle Like the Sedins
by Ryan Classic on Jul 13, 2010 8:44 PM EDT up reply actions
Pretty harsh
For a guy who started the season 9-1-0 against the likes of Philly, Detroit, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and to a lesser extent, some good Dallas, Phoenix, and Nashville teams.
He later posted back-to-back-to-back wins against Detroit (again), Ottawa (breaking Clouston’s undefeated streak), and Washington.
Sure, he went into the tank after the trade deadline, but the rest of the Avs had already beaten him to it a couple of months earlier.
Even when comparing his 12-16-0 record to Budaj’s 20-29-5 season, not to mention the team’s determination to score two or fewer goals in each of Raycroft’s final twelve games, and I’d say the folks at MHH gave him far too much credit for that 3rd-overall pick.
Which is odd, because they’ve never been known to embrace hyperbole, or even to scapegoat players with minor roles. Clearly that team was bad because of 4th-liners like Tucker and Arnason, as well as the backup goalie. The other 17 players may have seen more minutes, but that just proves how bad their backup types actually were, to have squandered all the best efforts of the star players.
Now toss in last year’s 9-5-1 record and you have a backup who has played .500 hockey over the past 2 years, while taking the league minimum salary.
I am clearly the last Raycroft apologist on Earth, but I find it easy when he never cost your team a Tuukka Rask.
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 13, 2010 9:37 PM EDT up reply actions
Hey, I live in Vancouver
I’ve experienced the Raycroft Effect firsthand.
The team the Avs had that year sucked, plain and simple. And yeah, I hyperbolized a bit in the picture, but I watched that team play in front of Raycroft live. I also watched Raycroft in training camp last year. He is not a good goalie. How he managed that record with Vancouver last year I’ll never know.
A snake in the class - Silver Seven - Cycle Like the Sedins
by Ryan Classic on Jul 14, 2010 3:16 AM EDT up reply actions
Not even I could call him a good goalie
But I rarely pass up an opportunity to argue against the mighty MHH groupthinktank.
If the above image was captioned by you, then my apologies for attributing it to your Division rivals, but it had all the hallmarks of a typical MHH special.
So Leaf fans hate the guy, Avs fans hate him worse, and now Nucks fans have nothing good to say about him?
Don’t tell me I’m ….gulp …. no better than a B’s fan ….
Only one thing left for me to do now….
.
<harakiri style=“sword-align: center; object width=”1"; height=“24”; "color: rgb (255, 0, 0)></harakiri>
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 14, 2010 5:30 AM EDT up reply actions
Actually, I am the one who made it
I like MHH and their endless stream of nicknames, but I’m not a regular contributor. Colorado’s been my second-favourite team since 1995, and I genuinely thank Andrew Raycroft for being just unsuccessful enough to land us Matt Duchene (and Ryan O’Reilly).
Have you ever watched Raycroft live? The moment he feels like he doesn’t need to be ready to make a save (which is more often than most goaltenders), he puts his glove hand on the crossbar and leans back. He just looks slow and lazy. I took my dad to a Sharks-Avalanche game in the Shark Tank towards the end of the 2008-09, and even he was staring down at Raycroft and asking how he could possibly be an NHL goalie.
People in Vancouver actually really liked Raycroft. And to be fair, he was actually better than Roberto Luongo on most nights. He was the one in goal for the game the Canucks clinched a playoff berth. From all accounts he was nothing but a good teammate. He also had that sideshow moment when he played against Toronto and waved at the fans mockingly.
Side note: I’m not a Canucks fan. Don’t hate them, but don’t love them. I bleed red and black and gold, and sometimes burgundy.
A snake in the class - Silver Seven - Cycle Like the Sedins
by Ryan Classic on Jul 14, 2010 1:45 PM EDT up reply actions
Remind me again of why one should never assume?
I see the link to CLtS in your sig, and all of a sudden I’m jumping to conclusions. Forgive me, I’m new.
So anyway, I’ll make one last ditch effort to plead Raycroft’s case, then drop the whole subject. This is, after all, a thread devoted to Brian Lee, not the Dallas backup goalie.
I illustrated above how Colorado would have been drafting Tavares, after going wire-to-wire in the cellar, if not for Raycroft’s 9-1-0 start to the season. That record wasn’t padded the way some backups’ records usually are – he was tasked by Granato to face the toughest teams.
By the ASG, the fine folks over at MHH were firmly entrenched in the Ti4T mindset, yet when called upon in February, Raycroft again put up a winning streak against tough opponents (including being the guy who prevented Clouston from going undefeated as a rookie).
At that point in time, only DDC was willing to admit that I wasn’t insane for my view that (a) Raycroft wasn’t as bad as his readers all claimed, and (b) the Avs weren’t destined to finish last-place. I had always found him to be the sole voice of reason (Joe was only making sporadic appearances at the time), and that some of the, shall we say, unnamed OKC-based members were doing their best Debbie Downer impressions too often.
The whole thing became way too personal, even before that 3-game winning streak, after I had written a piece comparing the ’81 Nords and their comeback Spring to the position the Avs found themselves in as the 14th-seed.
It should be noted that despite me being wrong by season’s end, the 15th-seed at the time was St.Louis, who went on to leapfrog about 9 teams in the standings, so I stand by my assertion that the Avs were still in the race as of Groundhog Day.
Anyway, to make a long story short, I should delete the previous eight paragraphs I have also been a big Avs fan for years, but became less than enamoured with the community over at MHH after being told to restrict my “rainbows and lollipop” opinions to other fan sites.
I don’t mind when someone gets banned for all-out trolling, and can even understand someone’s less-than-flattering comments being deleted by the moderator, but to be subjected to the “ban-hammer” for asserting that the Sens are in fact better than most would would argue, is certainly something I would never expect on this site.
Hell, I would never expect it on any site, so forgive me if I don’t share your love for all the people over there. That doesn’t stop me from rooting for the Avs, though.
To finally answer your question, I did in fact attend several games at the Can that season. It may have been my snarky reply to one man’s lament that he would stop financially supporting the team, that eventually led to me permanent pariah status.
The reply in question?
And how much damage would that inflict on Kronke’s bottom-line, given that you are way out in OKC.
Ever seen someone get gang-raped by the masses on one of these boards? I likened that day to someone going into PPP territory and proclaiming that Wendel Clark was overrated. The new comments were flashing yellow all over my screen at a pace I couldn’t keep up with, and all because I had the gall to suggest that OKC boy wasn’t supporting the team, financially or otherwise, but certainly financially, and thus his threat to withhold funding for Stastny’s new contract was rather hollow.
But don’t get me wrong, I think DDC is amazing. It’s just too bad that I don’t get to read him as often as I did then.
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 14, 2010 6:47 PM EDT up reply actions
I wanted Duchene over Tavares, so Raycroft in a sense kept them afloat just enough to get the 3rd pick
Duchene wanted to go to Colorado. That’s far better than most teams get.
A snake in the class - Silver Seven - Cycle Like the Sedins
by Ryan Classic on Jul 14, 2010 7:25 PM EDT up reply actions
The only reason to watch the Entry Draft
Nobody will ever forget Duchene’s reaction to Hedman getting picked second. If I was a Bolts fan, I’d boo the guy every time he touched the puck.
I liked the split-screen that TSN employed on Esposito and Cherepanov, contrasting Angelo’s cool demeanor, sick threads, and family support, versus Cherepanov’s solitary nervousness.
This year, the director captured Fowler’s descent into frustration, but for some reason, ignored Brandon Gormley.
I also liked when Gudbranson admitted that his father was such a huge Habs fan, that he would only wear a Panthers jersey over top of his Habs sweater, because no other jersey would ever touch his skin.
The only thing better than seeing Duchene cheer for not getting picked 2nd overall, would have been seeing his reaction to Sherman going off the board, Hishon-style.
“What the Hell just happened?”
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 14, 2010 8:01 PM EDT up reply actions
Somewhat contradicting my comment below, lots of teams could have grabbed Alfredsson the year the Sens drafted him. Sometimes you just don’t know how things will turn out. At a certain point you have to forget about draft position and just make the most of the assets that you have in your organization.
Well, my longstanding argument is that the team that drafts the player is as equally as important as the talent of the player
Really, there are maybe two NHL-ready players in every draft. Four or five if the draft is deep. The rest need development, and how they’re developed is dependent on the team that picks them. On a different team, Alfie might have never been more than a third line player. Zetterberg was drafted low for a reason. Daigle busted because the team just figured he’d be a superstar right away, and in another organization with the right coaching and teammates he might have been. Instead, he never learned the work ethic needed to make it as a bona fide NHL player.
There’s so much that goes into developing a player once you pick them. I totally agree that at some point you have to throw out draft position (this was my argument for drafting Kabanov) but you can never throw out the question “Does this player fit in our organization?” If you do, you’re greatly increasing your chances for a bust.
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by Mark Parisi on Jul 12, 2010 12:47 PM EDT up reply actions
Daigle is a bad example to use
Daigle had the superstar potential all along and it’s not the organization that wrecked him. It was four million a year that did him in. Why do you think rookie caps were brought in? Daigle liked to party and the ladies a little too much. I don’t know how I would have been as a human being if had four million to spend at eighteen. Look at the NFL and see how many train wrecks there are in that sport and it’s easy to understand how these guys get lured to a seedy life.
by Hockey Playoff Run SensFan on Jul 12, 2010 1:50 PM EDT up reply actions
That's kinda my point about Daigle, though
Young kid on a young organization with little leadership gets a ton of money and not a lot of direction. The outcome isn’t that surprising.
Talent was never Daigle’s problem. He was the wrong fit for Ottawa because he needed a lot more structure in his life than a floundering post-expansion team could provide. Chris Pronger was headed down the same path until he was traded to St. Louis and played under Mike Keenan.
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Some facts i heard.
His agent said this several years after the fact. (i don’t remember the specific so stay with me)
The first negotiation for Daigle with the Senators was like this:
DAigle and his agent go with a high amount in their head at the negotiation (let’s say 2 million a year).
The senators and Daigle and his agent sit down and the senators offer a contract that is several millions above their high price. They say Yes and go their merry way.
Unfortunately, Daigle got garenteed money before he did anything. He had too much money to know what to do with it, so their comes in the cocaine.
I am not saying that Daigle is without blame, but his hockey career was destroyed because the Senators threw too much money at a young 18 year old.
Don’t forget that he was as highly touted as Crosby and Ovechkin.
by Bikini Cowboy on Jul 12, 2010 10:20 PM EDT up reply actions
Right... that's my point. Super talented, but no structure.
Wrong player for a team that couldn’t afford to develop someone and didn’t know how (as evidenced by the contract negotiation story).
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Imagine drafting Daigle now
It would be another story if Daigle were drafted by the Senators today. They would probably get him to live with Phillips for a year, play him on the the second or third line and generally bring him along slowly. He would have Alfredsson setting the tone in practice and Kovalev teaching him tricks to use on the power play.
The Senators have come a long way in their relatively short history. From a ‘wild west’ start where basically anything goes to a professional organization with direction, decent finances and a track record of being consistently competitive.
Indeed they have
There’s guarantee that Daigle would be better, but it would definitely be a much better culture to grow a gifted player in. You don’t have to look further than Regin and Karlsson for evidence of that.
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You really can’t help but wonder if Daigle did pan out. Say he did end up being the franchise player he was supposed to be? The Sens fortunes definitely could have been a lot different.
by modsuperstar on Jul 13, 2010 3:25 PM EDT up reply actions
He's a -6
I remember him taking those type of penalties at the worst times but never mind. Even though he may grow to be a good defensive guy I believe those coming up behind him will get there sooner making him expendable. In 82 games over three years he’s a -6 so defensively he’s not great and I don’t remember him on the power play so what does that leave. Don’t forget Runblad is coming in next year as well.
by Hockey Playoff Run SensFan on Jul 12, 2010 2:06 PM EDT up reply actions
I should have voted for top pairing just so it wasn't so lonely
Color me skeptical that Lee will play regularly with the big club this year. You look at the list of guys that outplayed him last year and you wonder how a career minor-leaguer like Carkner could outplay him so badly. And it’s not like Carkner was a goon — he played solid minutes for the team.
Mecha Karlsson, Cowen, Weircioch, and even Gryba might be on the team within the next two years, and I have to believe even they will all outplay him.
I’m not a fan of the way the team has “developed” Lee, but he has still gotten his shots in the NHL — several of them — and has yet to capitalize. There’s just no reason to believe he will on his next one, either.
Of course, I thought he was done with the team last year, so my opinion is extra meaningless here.
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I don’t think Carkner necessarily beat out Lee for the spot. Carkner just brought different things to the table that the team needed at that particular time.
by modsuperstar on Jul 12, 2010 11:52 AM EDT up reply actions
You're right, they're different players
But it’s not like Lee didn’t have a chance. Both Carkner and Peter Regin had such a strong camp that they couldn’t be ignored. If Lee had done the same, he would have made the team over Carkner. I truly believe that.
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by Mark Parisi on Jul 12, 2010 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions
The problem with Carkner
Don’t get me wrong I like Carkner but his passing is going to have to get a lot better if he is to remain in top 4 contention. This team is adopting a totally different philosophy next year that I look forward to seeing in practice. Gonchar, Karlsson are going to get the puck out fast and precisely to out flying forwards. The idea is to spend a lot less time in our zone and always pressuring the offensive zone. I see him out there keeping other teams fourth lines from getting too upity in our zone.
Dan
by Hockey Playoff Run SensFan on Jul 12, 2010 1:57 PM EDT up reply actions
Carkner is definitely a stopgap until our younger guys get here
I think he’d be out of place in the top 4, but he’s very competent on the third pairing. I expect his PK minutes to increase with Volchenkov gone.
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the advantage with Carkner
He is a 5-6-7 defensemen and will never be mistaken with a Markov, Green or any top four defensemen. As such he is gets paid third pair money. Don’t forget you need to have players to play in the bottom pair and Carkner is effective as such and is being paid as per his value.
by Bikini Cowboy on Jul 12, 2010 10:25 PM EDT up reply actions
knows his role
I agree. One of Carkner’s best attributes is that he knows what he can and cannot do. He focuses on his strengths(hitting, shot blocking, decent shot, toughness) and tries to minimize his weaknesses(fancy skating and puck handling). His mobility is so-so and when his legs start to go he will be basically done, but until then he is a good guy to have on your 3rd defensive pairing.
Big?
Is 6’3" and 206 lbs really that big in the current NHL with plenty of 6’5" 230-pounders around? I think Lee could still work out, but he is going to have to learn to be a good defender. He doesn’t seem to have the skills to be a top end offensive d-man as was hoped, so he is going to have to learn to kill penalties reliably and become an all-rounder. I can imagine him becoming a solid 2nd pairing defender if he could improve on the mental side of the game.
I think it's big
Certainly not as big as it gets, but he’s big—at least his frame, he could use to add some bulk to it. Still, I’m not sure what the average height in the NHL is, but I’d think Lee is bigger than that average.
by Peter Raaymakers on Jul 12, 2010 3:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Fav memes aside, let's look at the facts
The Habs are right around the league average, height-wise.
Now if you wanna talk bulk, then even Hal Gil’s half-tonne frame can’t make up for the Motumbo-on-a-diet shape of the typical Hab, but that’s nothing a good Wellwood-for-curtis Sanford trade couldn’t address.
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 13, 2010 2:31 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I may have just been trying to prove a point with that comparison
…. but I’m not the first.
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 13, 2010 8:26 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Rec'd, cause that's a little hilarious
A snake in the class - Silver Seven - Cycle Like the Sedins
by Ryan Classic on Jul 13, 2010 8:46 PM EDT up reply actions
It's hard to read
But I like Chara’s answer to the question, Who was your hockey idol?
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 13, 2010 9:42 PM EDT up reply actions
Yeah, me too
I bet he was like, “Me!” and they were like, “We can’t print that, let’s just put ‘none.’”
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Guys like Dats and Ovi get all the credit
And some liken them to hockey’s version of Shecky Green, but those Eastern-bloc guys have been funny for years.
I am reminded of an old pre-season feature that the Montreal Gazette used to run, where everyone was asked these types of questions. Igor Ulanov’s response to the two-parter, What kind of car do you drive? was “Toyota”, and his dream car was also “Toyota”.
Guys like Theodore replied that they drove a Ferrari and dreamt of driving some exotic car that I’d never heard of, but I literally lol’d when reading Igor’s answers.
Chara was obviously the shit on the ice, and I suspect he was also a great presence in the dressing room, so the only reason I see that we let him go was to cut the skate sharpening budget in half. What are those, like size 15 canoes he’s got on there?
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 14, 2010 6:02 PM EDT up reply actions
The article says they're size 12s
I’m a little skeptical of that claim.
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That would make Gionta's
What, a child-size 11?
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 14, 2010 8:03 PM EDT up reply actions
Geez, I was half-kidding
But it says he wears a size 5?
I swear to God, my feet were bigger in PeeWee.
by Spezzal Teams Playa on Jul 14, 2010 8:04 PM EDT up reply actions
Hilarious!
Shot blocking is a lot easier for a guy like Gill who already takes up 3/4 of the net :)
Let's call it "biggish"
I don’t imagine Lee ever becoming a physical force(personality-wise as much as physique), but he could certainly become a guy who doesn’t get pushed around. If he would dedicate himself to conditioning, physical development and most importantly mental improvement he could become a useful player.
Lee
I remember quite clearly when we drafted Lee. I was sitting with a buddy and we were both hoping that the Sens would take Marc Staal since we had just watched him and his Sudbury Wolves play the 67’s in a series(Foligno was also on that team as well). I didn’t know who Lee was but I remember telling myself this Lee better be damn good for passing on Staal. I didn’t know who Kopitar was either at the time but that was a huge miss by the organization under Muckler and Frank Jay I believe. If I’m not mistaken Tim Murray was with the Rangers who took Staal with one of the next picks.
Anyways, the draft is unpredictable getting guys so young but some scouts definitely are better at it than others. I really don’t see much of a future in the organization for Lee especially now that he has a one way contract. His best asset is his skating but other than that he doesn’t bring a whole lot. He is not very physical, he doesn’t have a good shot and he isn’t hard to play against. At one time, he was a good pairing with Phillips because Phillips complemented him well. In my mind, Karlsson has now taken that spot as he is a much better player than Lee. I cannot see a defence with Karlsson, Kuba, Gonchar and Lee out there. That would spell disaster and forwards would love playing in our zone even if we had two other grittier players to round out the top 6. In my mind you need a good balance of puck movers and guys who are hard to play against.
Brian Lee is a carear AHLer
Any good GM knows that if a player will never contribute to a cup win, it is important to maximize the asset, get whatever value possible and move on. Brian Lee is a borderline AHL player as his numbers indicate.
He had success with Phillips because that was the top pairing and was matched up against skill players on 1st and 2nd lines. Brian Lee is a defenseman best suited for playing skill as opposed to physical players.
When Lee was put in the 5-6 role he struggled because 3rd and 4th liners intimidate him. Lee cant succeed in the physical game because he is too easy to play against.
It’s top pair or bust and Lee couldn’t play 25 minutes a night and help us win a cup, or a game for that matter.
It’s time to deal him
hmm...
So Lee is good on the top pairing against skilled players of 1sr and 2nd lines in the NHL but he’s a career AHLer and we should trade him? Again, he played top-pairing minutes in the series against Pittsburgh and looked like out best player. So obviously he can play that much as long as he’s kept his conditioning up this summer. I’m not saying that he shouldn’t be traded and that he is a definite top-pairing guy. But he shouldn’t be traded until after he’s played with philips for a while – to get a good try (finally) sure, but more importantly because he will not garner much if he is traded right now. But if he shows to be competent – and Philips will make him look so – he can be traded for substantial assets.
Like Kalrsson is with Alfie, lives with him and keeps him on the straight and narrow. Also you saw Fleury go live with Lemieux for quite a while until the kid got himself grounded. Don’t say there were no veterans or leadership in Ottawa, that’s all the team had but management messed up big time and maybe his personality made him undesirable to others.
by Hockey Playoff Run SensFan on Jul 13, 2010 11:53 AM EDT reply actions
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