The Erik Karlsson Watch

SpezDispenser wrote:Lee can be sent to Bingo, but it's the wrong move IMO. Picard may be the Press Box guy for a while.

As N4L, Rooney, Asq, and I have been trumpeting: Picard is going to surprise many of you and absolutely shock the rest of you :n:

cas wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Lee can be sent to Bingo, but it's the wrong move IMO. Picard may be the Press Box guy for a while.

As N4L, Rooney, Asq, and I have been trumpeting: Picard is going to surprise many of you and absolutely shock the rest of you :n:

I think so too. Looking forward to see him play this season.

There's 5. The other 99.9% of the fan base should get a pleasant surprise

I think the same thing can be said of Lee. I'm not ready to give up on him yet, he's just far too young to just be passed over. He's a big kid, with the potential to rack up assists from the back end as well as play very good defensive hockey.

People forget he's only 22 whereas Picard is almost two and a half years older than him.

It's tough to pass over one guy for the other, but something has to give soon on the Ottawa blueline especially with Cowen and Weircioch being possibly ready as early as next year (especially Cowen who might even challenge for a spot this year according to some).

cas wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Lee can be sent to Bingo, but it's the wrong move IMO. Picard may be the Press Box guy for a while.

As N4L, Rooney, Asq, and I have been trumpeting: Picard is going to surprise many of you and absolutely shock the rest of you :n:

How can you possibly send Lee to Bingo after the strides he took at the end of last year? This is a major year for his development. It would be a set back for him IMO.

PKC wrote:I think the same thing can be said of Lee. I'm not ready to give up on him yet, he's just far too young to just be passed over. He's a big kid, with the potential to rack up assists from the back end as well as play very good defensive hockey.

People forget he's only 22 whereas Picard is almost two and a half years older than him.

It's tough to pass over one guy for the other, but something has to give soon on the Ottawa blueline especially with Cowen and Weircioch being possibly ready as early as next year (especially Cowen who might even challenge for a spot this year according to some).

We don't have to worry about Cowen this year. But I agree, Murray's created a dilemma for himself with Picard and Lee and Karlsson all fighting for a spot. Two of the three can make it, who doesn't? I choose Picard right now, but it's because of the numbers game, I'd like to see what he can bring under Clouston.

Good luck with this situation Murray, it's a weird pickle.

SpezDispenser wrote:

cas wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Lee can be sent to Bingo, but it's the wrong move IMO. Picard may be the Press Box guy for a while.

As N4L, Rooney, Asq, and I have been trumpeting: Picard is going to surprise many of you and absolutely shock the rest of you :n:

How can you possibly send Lee to Bingo after the strides he took at the end of last year? This is a major year for his development. It would be a set back for him IMO.

Exactly. But, by the same token, how do you pass over Picard who could potentially put up 30+ points while playing on the second powerplay unit? Decisions, decisions.

SpezDispenser wrote:

PKC wrote:I think the same thing can be said of Lee. I'm not ready to give up on him yet, he's just far too young to just be passed over. He's a big kid, with the potential to rack up assists from the back end as well as play very good defensive hockey.

People forget he's only 22 whereas Picard is almost two and a half years older than him.

It's tough to pass over one guy for the other, but something has to give soon on the Ottawa blueline especially with Cowen and Weircioch being possibly ready as early as next year (especially Cowen who might even challenge for a spot this year according to some).

We don't have to worry about Cowen this year. But I agree, Murray's created a dilemma for himself with Picard and Lee and Karlsson all fighting for a spot. Two of the three can make it, who doesn't? I choose Picard right now, but it's because of the numbers game, I'd like to see what he can bring under Clouston.

Good luck with this situation Murray, it's a weird pickle.

He's gonna have to pick between Phillips and Volchenkov too pretty soon if he wants to make room for Cowen or Weircioch next year.

The only way Picard will surprise anyone is if he finally realizes he isn't an offensive defensman in the NHL, he must better suited to be a shutdown guy but refuses to.

SpezDispenser wrote:How can you possibly send Lee to Bingo after the strides he took at the end of last year? This is a major year for his development. It would be a set back for him IMO.

Three words: TWO WAY CONTRACT.

shabbs wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:How can you possibly send Lee to Bingo after the strides he took at the end of last year? This is a major year for his development. It would be a set back for him IMO.

Three words: TWO WAY CONTRACT.

I firmly believe that the best player should be put on the roster regardless of contract status. If Lee is much better in training camp than Picard, Picard'll be riding pine for the season until an injury makes some space for him.

PKC wrote:

shabbs wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:How can you possibly send Lee to Bingo after the strides he took at the end of last year? This is a major year for his development. It would be a set back for him IMO.

Three words: TWO WAY CONTRACT.

I firmly believe that the best player should be put on the roster regardless of contract status. If Lee is much better in training camp than Picard, Picard'll be riding pine for the season until an injury makes some space for him.

I agree, but in the cap era, often contract flexibility takes precedent. With Smith retiring, we have a bit more room so perhaps it won't be such a huge temptation for Murray.

SpezDispenser wrote:

cas wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Lee can be sent to Bingo, but it's the wrong move IMO. Picard may be the Press Box guy for a while.

As N4L, Rooney, Asq, and I have been trumpeting: Picard is going to surprise many of you and absolutely shock the rest of you :n:

How can you possibly send Lee to Bingo after the strides he took at the end of last year? This is a major year for his development. It would be a set back for him IMO.

I agree and I agree with PKC's take on the situation, but its a matter of degrees and Picard is just that much more ready Imo.

I disagree with Mark that Picard is better suited as a shutdown defenseman. Imo he's much more suited to be a Lidstrom-esque (obviously not referring to calibre, though) defenseman. He's an all-around D-man. He may never put up 60 points like Lidstrom, but he can definitely make it in the NHL.

Lee, on the other hand, truly is much more suited to being a shutdown D-man. In fact, he has to make that change. The strides we saw from him last season were in his defensive game. He wasn't any more effective offensively, but he was much more physical and a far bigger presence than he had been prior. He has to go the way of Jason Smith if he wants to have a career in the NHL.

PKC wrote:I think the same thing can be said of Lee. I'm not ready to give up on him yet, he's just far too young to just be passed over. He's a big kid, with the potential to rack up assists from the back end as well as play very good defensive hockey.

People forget he's only 22 whereas Picard is almost two and a half years older than him.

It's tough to pass over one guy for the other, but something has to give soon on the Ottawa blueline especially with Cowen and Weircioch being possibly ready as early as next year (especially Cowen who might even challenge for a spot this year according to some).

Yep, you're right. People have been far too quick to pass Lee over and get rid, I think he's going to blossom into a solid d-man. Like Redden was in his glory days.

PKC wrote:

shabbs wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:How can you possibly send Lee to Bingo after the strides he took at the end of last year? This is a major year for his development. It would be a set back for him IMO.

Three words: TWO WAY CONTRACT.

I firmly believe that the best player should be put on the roster regardless of contract status. If Lee is much better in training camp than Picard, Picard'll be riding pine for the season until an injury makes some space for him.

Except for the fact that he won't be "much better"... If he's better, it will be by a very small margin and it won't be enough to override the 2-way quandry. He may stay with the club in the early part of the season, but barring an injury during that timeframe, he will likely be Bingo bound.

SpezDispenser wrote:

PKC wrote:I think the same thing can be said of Lee. I'm not ready to give up on him yet, he's just far too young to just be passed over. He's a big kid, with the potential to rack up assists from the back end as well as play very good defensive hockey.

People forget he's only 22 whereas Picard is almost two and a half years older than him.

It's tough to pass over one guy for the other, but something has to give soon on the Ottawa blueline especially with Cowen and Weircioch being possibly ready as early as next year (especially Cowen who might even challenge for a spot this year according to some).

We don't have to worry about Cowen this year. But I agree, Murray's created a dilemma for himself with Picard and Lee and Karlsson all fighting for a spot. Two of the three can make it, who doesn't? I choose Picard right now, but it's because of the numbers game, I'd like to see what he can bring under Clouston.

Good luck with this situation Murray, it's a weird pickle.

Not a big issue here, really. Picard's pretty much got a lock on the bottom pairing (people can say otherwise, but his one-way deal is a clincher, for sure). That leaves Lee and Karlsson (both on two-way deals), who I imagine will spell each other off and take turns traveling the road to Bingo and back again. If Picard falters, he sits while the other two play. Picard doesn't make so much ($800K) that it's much of an issue.

It's pretty simple, really. You want a 7th D on hand, after all. The real thing to come out of camp will be a finalization in terms of realizing that -- with (potentially) 7 other NHL ready D and a plethora of bottom 6ers -- there's no place for Schubert on this team. I like his flexibility and think we might actually come to miss it, but I still think Schubert will be gone (either via trade or waivers) before the start of the regular season, pretty much guaranteed.

As for Mark's comments about Picard being a shut down guy, I really don't know what he's talking about there. Picard has a big, big shot, is pretty accurate, and was the only guy on our backend last year (before Campoli) who knew how to get it through bodies and onto the next. He's a good 5-6D option, and he runs the 2nd PP unit quite well. His problem has always been his play in his own end -- but, in his defence, the play of the entire Senators team in its own end was, before Clouston and after Picard's injury, brutal. To become a regular NHLer and stick to this team, Picard has to be more consistent in his own end -- what he does in the other team's end is, largely, fine.

Anyway, whatever happens, we need at least one of these young, smaller, offensive Ds (Campoli, Picard, Lee, Karlsson) to step up and play responsible defensive hockey without losing their offensive flare. If Lee become the kind of player he showed flashed of last year (tougher, harder in his own end) and Karlsson becomes what we all know he can be, Picard will be displaced before the end of the year. If not, it will be a D carousel for most of the season.

PKC wrote:
He's gonna have to pick between Phillips and Volchenkov too pretty soon if he wants to make room for Cowen or Weircioch next year.

Meh...Wiercioch is a couple of years away IMO. But I choose A-Train 10 out of 10 times.

I'd take Phillips over A-Train, but I hope we can keep both.