Quote:
Originally Posted by troutman
The difference between Sven and Jackman:
Sven is being developed. He has an upside. Jackman is already developed, and plays a specific role.
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Exactly. You can look at this as Jackman in/Sven out (although, in this case, it's Bouma in/Sven out), but that's overly simplistic because they're not interchangeable parts.
Jackman is never going to be more than what he is now, a fourth-line grinder who doesn't really excel in any area of the game. Sven has the potential to be much more than what he has shown so far (and he has shown some signs of brilliance).
If they're having a video session with Sven this afternoon while the rest of the team is back at the hotel having their pregame naps, it's almost unfair to him to throw him onto the ice a few hours later and hope everything sunk in.
This way, they can do the video session, and give him a couple of days to process it. Plus, if in the video session, they show him stuff from Hudler and/or Cammalleri that they want him to emulate, he can focus on watching them play from above. You can't really expect him to watch what Hudler is doing on the ice if he's also on the ice.
It's also possible that the coaches want him to watch Niederreiter, who has been off to a strong start this season for the Wild. They have been compared to each other a lot over the years: both Swiss; both came over to play in Portland; a year apart in the draft, but less than a month apart in age. This year, they're both playing in a similar situation as a left winger playing on a line with a good young centre (Granlund) and a veteran right winger (Pominville) who leads the team in scoring.
Going into the game, Niederreiter has 9 points in 15 games, and has taken 36 shots. Sven has 5 points in 13 games, and has only taken 14 shots. So, it might just be as simple as telling Sven to watch his buddy and see what he's doing right.