Feaster up on the Fan right now - Granlund Signed By Flames

[dammage79]

Originally Posted by MyFlamesFirst

Just listened to this interview. If you haven't listened yet I would suggest you do. I gained a little bit of insight into how the flames management think. Definitely took more out of this interview in comparison to others.

Which interview? Do you have a link?

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by dammage79

Which interview? Do you have a link?

http://pmd.fan960.com/audio_on_deman...-Interview.mp3

[Street Pharmacist]

Originally Posted by Flames Draft Watcher

You are getting confused about what we're talking about.

Murphy was confirmed to be ahead of Sven on the Flames final draft list.

There was another player ahead of Sven on the Flames draft list that they moved behind Sven the night before the draft because they thought Sven's upside was higher. We'll call him player X. When it came our turn to pick Murphy was gone so we had our choice of player X and Sven. The scouts had moved Sven ahead of player X so we picked Sven. Player X went later in the 1st round.

They are happy they moved Sven ahead of player X because Sven has turned out well. People in this thread are speculating who player X is. Player X clearly isn't Murphy.

Solve for x

[Henry Fool]

Originally Posted by Street Pharmacist

Solve for x

It's at the end of the interview. He's talking about player x not having as much room for growth and upside, the fear that he already was then what he would become as he matures. Sounds like McNeill but I don't know if he fits the type that the Flames were drafting for.

[Henry Fool]

On the other hand Armia was a bit boom or bust, with high upside but questions about his overall game. Not bad attitude but a tendency to become passive at times. I don't think the Flames would have even considered a player with possible on-ice work ethic related issues.

[Saqe]

Originally Posted by Henry Fool

Mikael's footspeed has improved. Markus is a bit faster than Mikael was. He's also not that similar to him in playstyle so the comparison isn't necessarily helpful. Markus doesn't have Mikael's vision or playmaking or stickhandling, he projects to be more of a goal scorer or all around offensive player. His type isn't as clearly defined as Mikael's, but he's more of a trigger man than his older brother who is a playmaker.

Size is an issue for both. I don't expect skating to be a problem. But I would drop the comparison with his brother altogether.

I should have been more clear about the comparison, yeah Mikael is definately the playmaker compared to Markus. What I was referring to was the physical qualities of them, where I don´t see really any difference (speed, size, physicality) and what is the only reason why his brother Mikael has really struggeled this season.

I´ve watched nearly all games that MiG has played this season and at the start of the season he was getting thrown around like a ragdoll whenever he faced contact (he has gotten much better though and really shines in PP for example). It´s not that he is shy of contact but just isn´t able to handle it yet. And when he gets his legs moving he has good speed but nothing that he can create separation with. As much as I have seen Markus, these qualities are very similar with him- he just has less skill than Mikael. It makes me wonder how he could ever play in the same role in the nhl as he does in Europe. I don´t really see how he could fit the role of a 3rd/4th liner.

[Henry Fool]

Speed isn't an issue for Mikael anymore and he holds his ground on the boards better than in the beginning of the season. Getting 5 minutes of ice time while subbing for Mike Rupp here and there doesn't give him much of a chance to showcase his talents, but I see clear progress in how he's adjusting.

So I don't expect speed to be issue for Markus either. Both are small of course. You're right that he's never going to be a grinder, but he can be a useful secondary scoring player on the 2/3 lines if he develops.

Off topic, but Minnesota is really suffering now for not being able to give enough time for Granlund to adjust on a scoring line before throwing him out of the lineup. Their second and third lines really sucked against the Flames.

[bucksmasher]

Originally Posted by Henry Fool

It's at the end of the interview. He's talking about player x not having as much room for growth and upside, the fear that he already was then what he would become as he matures. Sounds like McNeill but I don't know if he fits the type that the Flames were drafting for.

I think it was McNiel too, Flames were kind of "penciled in by media" to pick him, however much weight they hold.

[Henry Fool]

Originally Posted by bucksmasher

I think it was McNiel too, Flames were kind of "penciled in by media" to pick him, however much weight they hold.

Kind of scary to think that they were so close to taking him.

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Originally Posted by Henry Fool

Kind of scary to think that they were so close to taking him.

Talk about jumping to conclusions. There's no evidence they were close to taking McNeill, just the conjecture of a few fans.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by Flames Draft Watcher

Talk about jumping to conclusions. There's no evidence they were close to taking McNeill, just the conjecture of a few fans.

While it may just be conjecture of a few fans it is a reasonable estimation that it could be McNeill. I also think it could be Connor Murphy, Joe Morrow or Stefan Noesen. But we will never know who it really is, let's just be glad we picked Sven instead.

[FAN]

I actually liked McNeill, Armia, and J.T. Miller (I saw him as a home-run pick) more than Baertschi at the time of the draft. Just seemed like less risky picks at the time.

Anyhow, I still like McNeill, although not as much as at the time of the draft. I see much less offensive potential in him, but I still see him as developing as a solid top 9 center in the NHL.

[Henry Fool]

Originally Posted by Flames Draft Watcher

Talk about jumping to conclusions. There's no evidence they were close to taking McNeill, just the conjecture of a few fans.

Yes, yes, we all realise that. But the point of Feaster's story is still that they were very close to picking someone who didn't develop, whether it was McNeill or someone else.