I'm at peace with what he is. He will never be the superstar player he is paid to be. As to why, it's been debated a million times but the sooner you let go of that dream, the easier it is. I'm not the one paying his salary. The team needs his contract to reach the cap floor. The team is rebuilding so he's not relied upon to produce offence every single night to drag this team to the playoffs. In fact, it would be detrimental to the team for him to be producing at a 100 point pace right now. We NEED the team to get high draft picks and 15th place on the draft floor isn't going to cut. IMO the lower his point total, the higher the possibility of the team getting a better draft pick.
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I went down the Huberdeau youtube rabbit hole again today, and honestly watching this video...Huberdeau's skill set doesn't actually look that much different to me.
His skating is similar in that he's mostly gliding (maybe a couple more flashes where he shows a burst of speed), his passes look a little crisper but he attempts similar types of royal road passes, and nothing about his individual skill or effort really overwhelms you in the video.
But to me the biggest difference really seems like it's a combination of system and confidence.
He had more confidence to hold on to the puck and "attack" the defenders, but the most noticeable thing to me in these videos is how much "motion" that Florida had around Huberdeau.
Much like his time in Calgary when he has the puck on his stick Huberdeau is actually quite static, it's not like he's Johnny Gaudreau'ing his way through other teams.
But the movement around him is much different. That Florida system had players converging towards the opposition net and moving around the offensive zone in a way our offensive system in Calgary just doesn't.
In Calgary every one is static. Huberdeau is static on the puck, maybe you have one net front guy, and then everyone else is static around him, and he's trying to force passes to people because there are no lanes and he's not moving his feet to create space or lanes for himself.
In Florida the other forwards are always attacking the net or in motion in the offensive zone, and you even have the dmen getting into shooting positions in a way that facilitated opening up passing lanes for him that just doesn't happen in Calgary. So even if he wasn't moving his own feet, the motion around him would open up space.
Now overall I don't think the Flames have the top to bottom speed on the roster to play that aggressive game the Panthers played, because in Florida they could take those chances and get back (and still gave up a lot defensively - there is a reason Maurice changed systems to lead them to back to back Finals appearances).
This Flames roster isn't fast enough or skilled enough to play the way those Panthers teams did, and has to play a lot more passive and structured system. I don't think Huberdeau will ever find his offensive game again playing in this system, especially since he seems very focused on not cheating to try to generate offense as a Flame.
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He generally seems happier this season. I don’t expect his production to increase significantly by the end of the season, but as long as he can be positive and help the team grow, I won’t harp on him too much. Expectations are low enough that it does feel like the stakes are big if doesn’t reach a PPG.
I honestly do wonder if there was an old guard / new guard conflict between him and Lindholm. Not saying Lindholm was a problem in the locker room, but sometimes guys just don’t click.
__________________
"A pessimist thinks things can't get any worse. An optimist knows they can."
I went down the Huberdeau youtube rabbit hole again today, and honestly watching this video...Huberdeau's skill set doesn't actually look that much different to me.
His skating is similar in that he's mostly gliding (maybe a couple more flashes where he shows a burst of speed), his passes look a little crisper but he attempts similar types of royal road passes, and nothing about his individual skill or effort really overwhelms you in the video.
But to me the biggest difference really seems like it's a combination of system and confidence.
He had more confidence to hold on to the puck and "attack" the defenders, but the most noticeable thing to me in these videos is how much "motion" that Florida had around Huberdeau.
Much like his time in Calgary when he has the puck on his stick Huberdeau is actually quite static, it's not like he's Johnny Gaudreau'ing his way through other teams.
But the movement around him is much different. That Florida system had players converging towards the opposition net and moving around the offensive zone in a way our offensive system in Calgary just doesn't.
In Calgary every one is static. Huberdeau is static on the puck, maybe you have one net front guy, and then everyone else is static around him, and he's trying to force passes to people because there are no lanes and he's not moving his feet to create space or lanes for himself.
In Florida the other forwards are always attacking the net or in motion in the offensive zone, and you even have the dmen getting into shooting positions in a way that facilitated opening up passing lanes for him that just doesn't happen in Calgary. So even if he wasn't moving his own feet, the motion around him would open up space.
Now overall I don't think the Flames have the top to bottom speed on the roster to play that aggressive game the Panthers played, because in Florida they could take those chances and get back (and still gave up a lot defensively - there is a reason Maurice changed systems to lead them to back to back Finals appearances).
This Flames roster isn't fast enough or skilled enough to play the way those Panthers teams did, and has to play a lot more passive and structured system. I don't think Huberdeau will ever find his offensive game again playing in this system, especially since he seems very focused on not cheating to try to generate offense as a Flame.
Agreed that all Calgary players, including Huberdeau, are way too static in the offensive zone, leading to countless blocked shots from the point and turnovers. The offensive zone part of the system sucks. Things only happen when an individual player, such as Zary, or sometimes Kadri or Andersson, takes it upon themselves to weave back and forth inside the offensive zone.
He’s more or less fallen back into the same trap as last year. He’s not floating around. He does work hard. But the offense has dissappeared again and too many turnovers.
I have come to terms with him being a 40 point guy and getting paid 10.5 m. One thing I cant come to terms with is him throwing to the puck up the middle to a D with two opposing team forwards bearing down on said player and causing odd man opportunity's in OT or at critical parts of the game. If you cant find a play get it deep. I think the coaches have to look at him like they would a Lomberg or Kirkland at this point.
I have come to terms with him being a 40 point guy and getting paid 10.5 m. One thing I cant come to terms with is him throwing to the puck up the middle to a D with two opposing team forwards bearing down on said player and causing odd man opportunity's in OT or at critical parts of the game. If you cant find a play get it deep. I think the coaches have to look at him like they would a Lomberg or Kirkland at this point.
agreed, he has to be looked at as just another player. i havent noticed the last few games but Huska always has him on the PP1, that cant happen. If he isnt playing well, he needs to go on the second PP or in some cases no PP at all. He is what he is and even the biggest Huberdeau fans have to admit this will likely not improve much. As has been mentioned in this thread, he is a sunk cost
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It’s interesting to think about who the wingers will be on the top 9 next year, especially if Conroy acquires someone who can play C in the NHL and we stop trying to force wingers in that role.
Then next year you have:
Sharangovich
Zary
Coleman
Coronato?
Pospisil?
Honzek?
Huberdeau?
I can’t believe they will seriously entertain re-signing Kuzmenko.
Once a beloved first-team NHL star. Now completely lost his confidence. Consistently passes up prime scoring opportunities. Kind of a joke around the league, but trying to rebuild his game and reputation.
Haha...more seriously though, what was the last player out of Quebec who was a true franchise player? Lecavlier, St Louis and Bergeron?
Any more recent? Bergeron was drafted in 05 I think
Been a long time. Is there something wrong the q?
Agreed. I was thinking back to the best player the Flames have ever drafted from the Q. I guess it would be Denis Gauthier. Not that impressive. Right now, doesnt look like Peltier will surpass him. Thankfully they dont draft many guys from that league.
I used to disagree that it was the system around him that was hurting his production since I figured highly skilled star players can produce in any system and it's not like the Flames employ a NJ Devils circa 1990 kind of system. But I've come around now to the idea and think it likely is the system that doesn't suit Huberdeau's game. SuperMatt18 laid it out well in his post.
