Quote:
Originally Posted by wingmaker
I was really high on Granlund last summer. I thought he should have been ranked above Baertschi. However, his play this year took some of the shine off. In a year when there was lots of opportunities for young players, he never really stood out. Could have been just a bad year for him. Or the in and out nature of his playing time perhaps affected him. But really, I thought the other players in a similar position—Jooris, Shore, Ferland—made more of an impact with their time. Now, all three of those players are older than Granlund, so perhaps he takes a huge step this year. But I definitely think some other prospects have passed him in terms of their overall outlook with the organization moving forward.
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I really feel like Granlund is miscast as a centreman. He may be smart but he is simply too small to compete at that position, especially in the Western Conference.
One of the things that always impressed me about Granlund while he was in Finland and the AHL was his shooting ability. He has a great one timer and the ability to snipe. Unfortunately, we never see that at the NHL level and I think it's because he is too busy worrying about his defensive responsibilities as a centre.
I think he should be a permanent right winger and pattern his game after a Jere Lehtinen. On the RW, he can take advantage of his shooting ability and he can also focus more on offense.
When Hudler leaves at the deadline or at UFA, I would like to see Granlund pick up a lot of his minutes on the top two lines. I think he has the instincts and smarts to be a point producer on the wing, but not at centre.
