Let's Talk About: T.J. Brodie

[Anduril]

Agreed about a career 3/4. Yandle is probably the best comparison. Offensive hockey sense and puck moving ability are his strengths. Unfortunately no big shot or bone crunching hits to go with it but a guy who will wow you in more subtle ways.

As he continues to grow, those wows will be more likely positive than negative.

[Fire]

Originally Posted by Mitch

Brodie is a 2nd pairing D-man, right now.

On one of the weakest teams in the league and the Flames have no top pairing defenseman currently on the team. I consider Giordano and Wideman 2nd pairing guys. In the future Brodie could be a #2 defenseman on a weak team but I can't see that on a contender.

[Mitch]

Originally Posted by Fire

On one of the weakest teams in the league and the Flames have no top pairing defenseman currently on the team. I consider Giordano and Wideman 2nd pairing guys. In the future Brodie could be a #2 defenseman on a weak team but I can't see that on a contender.

Only Wideman has played more minutes on average then Brodie in the past 5 games, or since the deadline.

You really haven't watched Brodie if you don't think he is a 2nd pairing d-man right now. The reality is, yes he is probably getting those minutes because he is playing on a weak team but he is handling himself well against the opposing top offensive lines. There's nothing that indicates he couldn't do the same if he were on another team.

[freakinsaprikin]

A little off topic, but I love how it's always that same posters that are "certain" a guy will never be "elite". Also on the flip side, always the same posters that are super optimistic about somebodies upside.

My guess is that Brodie will probably wind up somewhere in between both opinions. Guy has wheels and has shown the ability to grow as a professional.

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by freakinsaprikin

A little off topic, but I love how it's always that same posters that are "certain" a guy will never be "elite". Also on the flip side, always the same posters that are super optimistic about somebodies upside.

My guess is that Brodie will probably wind up somewhere in between both opinions. Guy has wheels and has shown the ability to grow as a professional.

This is the thing about Brodie, he's growing and learning every time I watch him. If he keeps this up for a couple of more years, he's going to be great.

[Fire]

Originally Posted by Mitch

Only Wideman has played more minutes on average then Brodie in the past 5 games, or since the deadline.

You really haven't watched Brodie if you don't think he is a 2nd pairing d-man right now. The reality is, yes he is probably getting those minutes because he is playing on a weak team but he is handling himself well against the opposing top offensive lines. There's nothing that indicates he couldn't do the same if he were on another team.

I hope you are right and he will definitely be a top pairing D-man but I prefer to take a more cautious approach when projecting young players/prospects. Maybe it's because I have seen so many over-hyped Flames prospects turn out to be duds to get my hopes up too much.

[DeluxeMoustache]

I think they need to find a partner to complement him and he will be fine.

Gio had Sarich there on the second pairing for a couple of years and they were very good together. Sarich has also looked very good with Brodie when they have played together.

In fact, side note on defensive pairings and Sarich. I don't get what is going on with him and his coaches. He had a couple of games with 20 plus minutes. First was the Edmonton debacle, he was on for 2 GA, including a PP goal against and then a late one, after everything was out of hand. Meantime, the Wideman/Gio tandem was on for 5 GA, and they were brutal. Then Sarich played a lot of minutes during the SJ game. Yes they lost in the end, but it was the team's best defensive game in a long time. They kept a lot to the outside on Kipper. Then Hartley cuts him back to 12 minutes (against Vancouver - 5 and 26 were on for 4 of 5 GA, 3 and 44 for the other goal). And last game, he gets 9 minutes. Not that it mattered or hurt the team, because Colorado is so bad. But just odd how Hartley is (not) using him.

So when Bouw and Butler played together, lots of GA. Gio and Bouw, lots of GA. Gio and Wideman, lots of GA. And we saw Gio's stats plummet when he was paired with Bouw. Gio has strengths being the mobile guy, but he was staying back as Bouw jumped in all the time.

That is the problem. Out of Bouw, Butler, Gio and Wideman, they all are mobile guys who can jump in, but none of them are solid enough defensively. That is ideal if you want to play run and gun, but you definitely can't do that when you are missing the required centers with a 2 way game.

Anyways, long story short, I hope they figure this stuff out. Brodie has shown a lot of progress and I hope they find a way to pair him with a guy who puts him in a position to succeed.

[Vulcan]

My guess is that Sarich has a nagging injury and isn't capable of playing big minutes often.

[Flames Fan, Ph.D.]

Originally Posted by Jebus

Wow, number 17 on that projection, and not even the highest rated Keith in the system. Nutty.
And The Anton was their #1 prospect in 2004? My how the mighty have fallen.

I don't mean to derail nor sound sarcastic, but has Babchuk suffered a significant injury during his career?

That report says he keeps players in front of him, has good speed and above average lateral movement. I think it's fair to say that all three attributes have taken a major hit. Is it just age or an injury early on that I'm not aware of?

[BigBrodieFan]

Originally Posted by freakinsaprikin

A little off topic, but I love how it's always that same posters that are "certain" a guy will never be "elite". Also on the flip side, always the same posters that are super optimistic about somebodies upside.

My guess is that Brodie will probably wind up somewhere in between both opinions. Guy has wheels and has shown the ability to grow as a professional.

I would probably venture to say that anyone who is paid a few million dollars to play hockey, regardless of how much the team he plays for stinks, is an 'elite' player.

NHL players are all 'elite.'

Maybe we should say 'the best of the elite.' Then again, if we're talking Wayne Gretzky-esque- would that be the 'Elite of the Best of the Elite?

[calgary2220]

Originally Posted by Tinordi

I must be watching a different Brodie. He's far from solid, he may grow into a poised defenceman but he's shakey out there. Makes bad reads, poor passes, inconsistent defensive zone play. All that is fine and to be expected but based on how I see him, overcoming those warts alone would project him to be a 3/4 guy. Just don't see the pedigree there to be a top pairing defenceman. I think his ceiling is somewhere higher than Leopold.

Chris Butler, no wonder you play like crap, stop posting on CP and start working out or something. Get over it, Brodie is better then you...

[handgroen]

Great showing from Brodie last night against vancouver.

couple things really strike me about his play
his skating is top notch
thinks the game at a very high speed
his decision making is going to get stronger with experience and it's going to be fun to watch him play with a younger flames team. He can fly around with the younger more talented forwards we have and will have after the draft.
I think we're going to see some elite talent on the flames very soon, and that talent is going to elevate brodie's ceiling, as opposed to a d-man with tangible limitations dragging down the creativity of skilled forwards.

[bubbsy]

yup he has looked good in the additional minutes since the deadline.

One thing i hope he improves is knowing when to just shoot the puck. I find that he often hesitates, allowing the other team defenses to react, resulting in most of his shots just being blocked.

[Joker]

I was undecided at the start of the season about whether or not Brodie would live up to the hype. I have to say, I am really impressed with his performance over the last few games. He has that Neidermeyer-esque ability to skate the puck out of trouble, and that is a huge advantage. With some strengthening and a little work on some decision making, the guy will be a 1-2 D-man, no question.

[DeluxeMoustache]

Last game he showed some skill, stickhandling in a phone booth. That was impressive.

[EVERLAST]

yeah when he kept the puck in near the end of the game and 3 players couldnt get the puck away from him I was laughing pretty hard....

This kid is a gem and I look forward to watching him for years to come

[Roof-Daddy]

I'm sold on him now. Kid has serious game.

I was always worried he wouldn't be effective defensively at the NHL level, but he has grown leaps and bounds in that department over the last couple seasons, so much that his defensive game is probably one of his strongest assets IMO.

So fast, smart and agile.

If his offensive game starts to develop while he gets used to logging the big minutes, and he keeps working hard, and stays defensively consistent, he's going to be a top D-man in this league for a long time.

[Joker]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

I'm sold on him now. Kid has serious game.

I was always worried he wouldn't be effective defensively at the NHL level, but he has grown leaps and bounds in that department over the last couple seasons, so much that his defensive game is probably one of his strongest assets IMO.

So fast, smart and agile.

If his offensive game starts to develop while he gets used to logging the big minutes, and he keeps working hard, and stays defensively consistent, he's going to be a top D-man in this league for a long time.

Still makes a few too many bad decisions when being pressured by a strong forecheck. Waits too long to shoot. If the development continues this way though, that will sort itself out. Excited to see him next season

[ForeverFlameFan]

Last 4 games of Brodie

Game 1: 0G/0A/-3/1 SOG/23:46 TOI

Game 2: 2G/2A/+1/5 SOG/25:49 TOI

Game 3: 0G/0A/0/1 SOG/26:45 TOI

Game 4: 0G/1A/+1/2 SOG/26:03 TOI

It's amazing that he is able to log so many minutes each and every game. He has easily been our best defenseman thus far in the season.

[Scornfire]

4 year rez? props