Gio in full hero mode in game 1 of the pre-season. I did like the way the entire sequence was highlighted by Lubo losing his mind explaining the grandeur of it all.
The Following User Says Thank You to GoJetsGo For This Useful Post:
I think the best part of that sequence is Gio skating from the far opposing blueline to cut off a guy who got the puck at centre, and looks like he wasn't even going full speed. If it wasn't a 3-1, he could've taken that guy before he got inside the blueline. Crazy fast.
The pre-season w/l record seems to me to be something that you don't worry about the first couple games and then look to improve upon as time goes on.
Anyway, I think the Flames had both games in hand (the little I could actually see on line) until they started experimenting with lines and D combos in the third periods.
As it is, what you look for at this early stage is what bubble guys like Shore/Nakladl/Wotherspoon/Poirier etc. are doing. Then I look for progress in the overall play the more the lineups get settled.
The hype for Nurse by Flames fans is getting to be a bit much.
Yes, he looks good. Big, physical and smooth skating.
But he's a defensman, and has looked very average to poor in his own end on my viewings so far. That doesn't mean anything long term, but as a defender he has a long way to go with his game before he's labeled a sure fire "great player for them".
Very difficult to make projections like that with defenders because of how huge a part of the game playing defensively is. And we all know in that setting (Edmonton) it's going to be an even more difficult assignment.
My thoughts exactly. Nurse to me has a phenomenal toolset - great size, grit, skating ability, passing, shooting and skates well with the puck.
What I notice he is horrible at sometimes is his decision making - especially under pressure. He seems a bit like a giveaway machine at the moment. Teams will be able to key-in on this and purposefully dump it on his side of the ice with a tonne of forechecking pressure.
However, with that being said, he is still very young and raw, and defencemen do take longer to develop. He will probably turn out to be a very important part of the Oilers' success (probably second only to McDavid) and a huge thorn in Calgary's side for years to come. Hopefully he will just 'Phaneuf-it' and be this flashy guy with an over-abundance of tools and be a first-pairing defencemen, yet make constant 3 third pairing mistakes. I do think he is one of the more interesting prospects from the Oilers' side of things to follow in the years to come.
But yes, he has some rather glaring issues, and I can't see him in the NHL to start the season this year. Call-up for sure - and then 'we'll see', but I think he is much too raw yet.
Last edited by Calgary4LIfe; 09-22-2015 at 01:45 PM.
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Calgary4LIfe For This Useful Post:
With regards to Nurse and defensive acumen: Show me a fresh out of junior defenseman who doesn't need to work on that. This is why defensemen are rarely ready as 18 or 19 year-olds, and also another reason why someone like Ekblad is incredibly rare. Both physically and mentally ready as an 18 year old on defense is hard to find.
Nurse will eventually learn the decision making process, especially now that McLellan is there.
__________________
"You know, that's kinda why I came here, to show that I don't suck that much" ~ Devin Cooley, Professional Goaltender
My thoughts exactly. Nurse to me has a phenomenal toolset - great size, grit, skating ability, passing, shooting and skates well with the puck.
What I notice he is horrible at sometimes is his decision making - especially under pressure. He seems a bit like a giveaway machine at the moment. Teams will be able to key-in on this and purposefully dump it on his side of the ice with a tonne of forechecking pressure.
However, with that being said, he is still very young and raw, and defencemen do take longer to develop. He will probably turn out to be a very important part of the Oilers' success (probably second only to McDavid) and a huge thorn in Calgary's side for years to come. Hopefully he will just 'Phaneuf-it' and be this flashy guy with an over-abundance of tools and be a first-pairing defencemen, yet make constant 3 third pairing mistakes. I do think he is one of the more interesting prospects from the Oilers' side of things to follow in the years to come.
But yes, he has some rather glaring issues, and I can't see him in the NHL to start the season this year. Call-up for sure - and then 'we'll see', but I think he is much too raw yet.
I would pretty much agree with everything you said here. He has the tool-box. Can he put it all together? That remains to be seen.
Did anyone notice right before the fight Bollig had words with Nurse? Smith came in shortly after and the fight started. Almost like Bollig said its me or Smith.
