Emile Fricken' Poirier

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Crumpy-Gunt

Yeah I stopped looking at the QMJHL overall stats a month or so ago because I get really jelly when I see Mantha's stats. I keep telling myself its because hes on a good offensive team with a bunch of high scorers also above a point per game. But I am likely wrong and he is just a freakishly good prospect that wasnt on our 'list'.

He could have been on the Flames' list. He was drafted 2 spots ahead of Poirier, so the Flames didn't get a chance to take him even if he was on their list.

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Didn't Poirier also have 1 assist? (so 9 points as well, but 8 of them goals?)

no he just had 8 goals

http://theqmjhl.ca/roster/show/id/8455

click Game by Game for breakdown

[Caged Great]

Originally Posted by getbak

He could have been on the Flames' list. He was drafted 2 spots ahead of Poirier, so the Flames didn't get a chance to take him even if he was on their list.

Mantha is going to be one of those top 6 players or bust. He doesn't play a good two way game at all. I'd take Poirier 10X out of 10, just because he at worst will be a 3rd line guy like Cogliano/Lombo or Glencross.

[Maritime Q-Scout]

Poirier is in town on Saturday (so another English radio broadcast). I'm excited to see him in person.

Also means I have 5 days to scam a free ticket...

[Calgary4LIfe]

Originally Posted by Crumpy-Gunt

Yeah I stopped looking at the QMJHL overall stats a month or so ago because I get really jelly when I see Mantha's stats. I keep telling myself its because hes on a good offensive team with a bunch of high scorers also above a point per game. But I am likely wrong and he is just a freakishly good prospect that wasnt on our 'list'.

Not that I am unhappy with having Klimchuk and Emile but looking at the mock draft as an armchair scout I wanted us to take Mantha or Freddy Gauthier because he/they projected as a talented power forward type, perfect for our smaller prospects to play on a line with. He put up 51 points in his first full season in the Q. 20th overall.. 47 goals 97 pts in 44 games

Damn

I would much rather have Klimchuk and Poirier.

Gauthier was projected to be a good 3rd line defensive forward, wasn't he? I thought he was one of the worst players on Team Canada, and didn't see any 'elite defensive abilities' on the squad. He also looks like he regressed this year, which is a huge red flag (though I do not know the situation there). On team Canada, I thought Reinhart was better defensively.

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/p...php?pid=160357

There is actually nothing except his size that I like about Gauthier.

Mantha, on the other hand... The only issue I had read about him is his supposed 'lack of intensity' or something. One has to question how you can score that often, if you don't have that drive (though as a Calgary Flames fan, one I guess just has to look at Howse for a very good example).

I do think Mantha will be a very good player, and I also wish we had him in the system - but as Getback pointed out, he was gone already.

[Tyler]

Great snippet here with Poirier.

I'll do anything for the logo on this jersey.

http://t.co/ey6TyYzsxb

[Goodlad]

[BlackWallStreet]

Emile's a boss and a half

[puds]

Couldn't of had Mantha where we drafted - so no issue there. Glad to have Porier over Gauthier.. Don't think Gauthier at best projects to be an elite third liner.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Pretty good month for Emile in regards to scoring. 14 points in 9 games (10G 4A). Still has one more game this Friday to close out the month of February.

[Calgary4LIfe]

NHL.com article on Poirier:

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=705903

Poirier plans on doing everything he can to show he belongs.


"I think when I see that and I know the Flames have confidence in their young guys that are going to come in the next few years, that's a big thing," he said. "I'm going to train hard to arrive there in shape and give my best to make the team next year for sure."

[saillias]

Originally Posted by puds

Couldn't of had Mantha where we drafted - so no issue there. Glad to have Porier over Gauthier.. Don't think Gauthier at best projects to be an elite third liner.

Another reason not to worry about Mantha - he'll have a full beard and speckled grey hair by the time Detroit calls him up. Poirier, who knows, he might be good enough to get NHL games next year.

[c.t.ner]

Not sure if this is the right place to ask this, but for anyone familiar with the QMJHL when do they release the playoff schedule and how does that work.

Going to be back in Ottawa near the end of the month and want to catch a Poirier and a Gatineau game and I think it's Playoff time around then.

[Brad Marsh]

Hard not to be excited about this guy.

Central scouting had Poirier ranked 39th among NA skaters in their final pre-draft rankings. He was a bit of an "off the board" pick at 22, but the Flames like the progress he made during his draft year.

11/12: 67 GP, 15 g, 25 a, 40 p, 53 pim, -17, (0.60 ppg)
12/13: 65 GP, 32 g, 38 a, 70 p, 101 pim, even, (1.07 ppg)

It was a significant jump and I personally do subscribe to putting more weight on draft year development curve.

The pick was somewhat controversial initially for Flames fans because of his relatively low rankings in pre-draft reports, coupled with the fact that other, much higher ranked picks (i.e. Hunter Shinkaruk) were still available when the Flames picked.

That controversy dissipated rather quickly, I thought, the more the collective fan base learned about Poirier: blazing speed, good hands, nice size at 6'1", and plays with an edge.

I haven't seen much of Poirier except for a couple of televised games and highlight packages and admit that much of my enthusiasm ia based on those and what I read on stats lines, but from everything I can gather, he's had a heck of a season, and seemingly each game he plays only confirms that the Flames made a great choice with this pick.

For example, he has taken another major step this year production-wise:

61 GP, 43 g, 41 a, 84 p, 127 pim, +27, (1.38 ppg)

You couldn't ask for anything better than that, IMO. Worst case you see a step backwards, it's not uncommon to see players plateau, but with Poirier, another big step forward.

So where is the limit for this player? Hard not to be excited about this pick and looking forward to seeing what's in store for him next season in what will almost certainly be his first as a pro.

[Enoch Root]

I really like the Poirier pick over Shinkaruk: better size, better speed, better shot, and much grittier. In other words, better NHL skill set. And his progression, vs Shinkaruk's regression, is a huge deal.

Having said that, I think fans' expectations for Poirier may be a bit high. First of all, I don't think there is any chance he makes the team next year - but that really is neither here nor there at the end of the day.

Where I think expectations are overshot a bit are in his ceiling. I don't see a 1st line winger, personally. If his PPG were more 1.6 - 1.8 or so, I might have more optimism on that front, but really, I see him as a solid, two-way, 20-25 goal guy. In other words, a really good 2nd/3rd liner. But not an elite player.

Edit: which, to be clear, would be AWESOME

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by c.t.ner

Not sure if this is the right place to ask this, but for anyone familiar with the QMJHL when do they release the playoff schedule and how does that work.

Going to be back in Ottawa near the end of the month and want to catch a Poirier and a Gatineau game and I think it's Playoff time around then.

They won't release the schedule until the match-up are set as it can vary based on availability at the arenas.

Season ends on March 15 and Gatineau will end up with home ice so they'll likely have home games on March 21 and 22.

The playoffs seedings are league wide and right now they'd be playing Cape Breton so they would likely go 2-3-2 since that is a hefty road trip so they might not be back home again until 31st or the 1st. If they play someone Rouyn-Noranda or Victoraville it could go 2-2-1-1 and they'd probably be back home for the 28th or so.

[Calgary4LIfe]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

I really like the Poirier pick over Shinkaruk: better size, better speed, better shot, and much grittier. In other words, better NHL skill set. And his progression, vs Shinkaruk's regression, is a huge deal.

Having said that, I think fans' expectations for Poirier may be a bit high. First of all, I don't think there is any chance he makes the team next year - but that really is neither here nor there at the end of the day.

Where I think expectations are overshot a bit are in his ceiling. I don't see a 1st line winger, personally. If his PPG were more 1.6 - 1.8 or so, I might have more optimism on that front, but really, I see him as a solid, two-way, 20-25 goal guy. In other words, a really good 2nd/3rd liner. But not an elite player.

Edit: which, to be clear, would be AWESOME

It is tough to base prospects on points sometimes. Not only do you have to take into consideration if he is playing for an offensive team, or a more defensive team, but also what his linemates are. I would love to see Poirier's advanced stats and see his quality of competition numbers. Why? Let's first take a look at his progression.

Poirier's rookie season:
Hyka (18 year old) - 64 pts
Regimbald (19) - 45pts
Ouellet (20) - 40pts
Poirier (16) - 40pts

Nothing that 'outstanding'. Fairly strong rookie season to get himself on the radar for the next year's draft, but you can say 'unspectacular'.

Poirier's 2nd season (draft year):
Poirier (17) - 70pts
Hyka (19) - 54pts
Chapman (18) - 54pts
Reway (17) - 50pts

What is really interesting about this year, is that Poirier had an outstanding 2nd half. He should have been on the radar for the other teams to start paying more attention against him, and he should have started seeing an increase in quality of competition. What is interesting, is that his teammates weren't quite as strong, and the more he put himself on the 'radar' and facing better competition, the better he did. This is when he started getting noticed by scouts more and started his jump up the rankings prior to the draft. Finished off with a very strong playoff performance (again, increasing his gpg and ppg, though obviously small sample size).

Currently:
Poirier 84 pts
Reway 58 pts
Karabacek 46 pts

This is where it gets a little crazy for me. I would assume he is facing by far the best quality of competition night in and night out, with little support from his teammates. You would expect a jump in production post-draft (would be disappointing if it didn't happen), but at the same time he is making big jumps with lesser linemates, while facing better competition. The more pressure this kid faces, and the more adversity other teams send out against him, the better he does. He has been increasing his production when it matters more and/or when there is more pressure on him(2nd half of last season + playoffs, poorer quality of teammates this season + increased pressure from other teams).

He can very well just be one of those prospects taking advantage of increased minutes. However, often a good indicator of prospects who are merely taking advantage of more ice seem to get much more PP time as well. I don't have the numbers of how much PP time he gets, or how many points he gets, but this is really interesting:

6 PP goals this season (one would expect it higher for a player in his situation)
8 SHG - how does a high-level scorer manage more SHGs than PPGs? I can understand a role player, but NOT the leading scorer for ANY team.

One thing we can exclude is that Poirier's stats probably aren't too 'padded' by ample PP time (would love to get his points breakdown, as that is often very telling - i.e. the Shremp debate). For example, Gelinas (just above him in the points race in the QMJHL) has 14 PP goals.

I am not pushing the envelope saying: "this kid has top-line talent written all-over him!", but the numbers make for a compelling argument. I think it is safe to say his projection is that of a top 6 winger. I would not count on nor would I discount him being a top-line winger in the future, however. He seems to have all the tools and drive to get there - but of course he is a prospect and there is no telling how far he will develop or not.

With regards to the bolded in your post (which started off this embarrassingly long post to start with), one has to wonder if his point totals would be substantially better if he was in Mantha's shoes (Mantha 115pts, Marcotte 95, Gelinas 88, Gazola 72), or on another high-scoring team with over-agers or other top prospects to play with. One would assume his production would probably be higher, but that isn't certain.

I do think there is a chance Poirier makes the team next year, but only if he really gets in shape. His speed is way above average (which is one of the bigger obstacles), and he seems to have a very good defensive game (loads of PK time), and he plays a very gritty game (the ONLY player amongst the current top 20 in QMJHL scoring with a higher than 90 PIM - he has 127).

I don't think he is a shoe-in, but it wouldn't surprise me if the Flames either start him in the NHL next year, or if he gets called up and sticks early on. He just needs to put on a bit of size like Monahan did this past off-season. I remember Feaster explaining why Poirier was cut early on - it was because he wasn't as fit as what professionals are, so perhaps he learned and comes back "NHL-fit" next season?

I do think your projection of him being a good 20-25 goal scorer can be bang on, but the numbers MAY be pointing towards a bit higher ceiling. Definitely a huge win if he becomes a 20-25 goal scorer though, absolutely. With prospects, you often never know until they get there, but there is lots of reasons to be excited (even overly-so) about this kid.

[Enoch Root]

I did -and do - take more into consideration than just stats.

[Party Elephant]

Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe

very long post

Excellent breakdown. I'm very excited to see what this kid can do at training camp.

[Maritime Q-Scout]

QMJHL playoff seedlings are still relatively close.

If Gatineau plays Cape Breton I would expect them to take it. Cape Breton hasn't fared well against the western Quebec teams (mind you travel would be a factor as I feel that's why Cape Breton won their game at home at home).

But yes 2-3-2 would likely be the format, with each team flying (it's too far in a playoff series to drive).

I'd be on with this as a) I get to see more of Porier, b) if Cape Breton wins Porier could go to Abbotsford win/win, and c) English broadcasting for CP. Any questions for Porier that folks have I could likely funnel though the local media here.