Below, he gets the puck with space in the middle of the ice, but he doesn’t use that space. The club is currently residing in the top half of Finland’s top division, but would look to improve on the standing with the Canadiens centre. Covering the impact of coronavirus on the sports world. 3 overall pick of the 2018 NHL Draft.. Kotkaniemi fell down and lost the puck. © 2004-2020 CBS Interactive. The Montreal Canadiens have selected centre Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the No. In the second clip, Kotkaniemi receives the puck in the wide lane. Jesperi Kotkaniemi to be loaned to Ässät in Liiga. Here are the individual Zone Entry stats for Habs' players from Game 1 vs PHI. Byron then gets the puck back in a position where he could make use of skating. In this sequence, the centreman didn’t have much of a choice of skating routes. This is where his skating failed him, however, as his lack of knee-bend prior to a hard brake prevented him from completing the manoeuvre. Finnish clubs have agreed to allow short term loans (while their counterpart in Sweden, the SHL has decided not to). He makes a drop-pass to his defenceman that doesn’t contribute to advancing the play. That’s not only because the young centerman will close that gap slightly by continuing to add strength, but because once he puts all his skills together, his ability to pick the best route, to change speed, to hide his play, and to manipulate defenders will allow him to move the puck from zone to zone more effectively. Lehkonen is forced to dangle him to keep possession. While many of his teammates rely exclusively on the fastball, Kotkaniemi mixes in some off-speed stuff. Kotkaniemi is expected to be loaned to his hometown club Pori Assat (Finland), Eric Engels of Sportsnet.ca reports. If the center can stay healthy, he should get back to being a 30-point producer as he was during his rookie campaign back in 2018-19. As soon as he did, Kotkaniemi accelerated down the wall and forced the defender to pivot to match his course. The Flyers had locked the middle of the ice and Drouin forced a wide lane entry by coming to meet his centreman, surrounding the pair with defenders. Even if he can attack at double the speed, Byron lacks the rush instincts of Kotkaniemi. 2020 NHL Draft 2020 Trade Deadline Latest News Prospects Analysis ... Jesperi Kotkaniemi to be loaned to Ässät in Liiga. Position: Center/Left Wing Shoots: Left Height / Weight: 6’2, 188 lbs Born: July 6, 2000 | Pori, Finland Nation: Finland. I compared his stride to that of Paul Byron, one of the best skaters in the NHL, in order to pinpoint what the Finnish centreman still has to improve in his form. The official announcement should be made shortly. Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin confirmed reports of the move in … Byron can easily outrace Kotkaniemi, yet it’s the younger of the two who ended up generating the most controlled zone entries against the Philadelphia Flyers — and by a wide margin. New, 102 comments. Lastly, when Artturi Lehkonen receives a pass in the middle, Byron, instead of exploiting to the open wide lane to enter the zone, skates right to his teammate. When he won’t be able to carry the puck up-ice himself, creative passes like the one below should allow him to still contribute to controlled zone exits and entries. section: | slug: canadiens-jesperi-kotkaniemi-set-for-loan-stint | sport: hockey | route: article_single_fantasy | By opening up his stance and shifting his weight on the heel of his right skate, he freezes the nearest defenders and manoeuvres around him. Kotkaniemi is the fifth member of the Canadiens to be loaned as everyone awaits the start of the North American season. Montreal Canadiens centre Jesperi Kotkaniemi will be loaned to his old club in Liiga, Ässät Marc Bergevin confirmed on Thursday. A player who comes in on the right path, at the right speed, and manipulates defenders by altering those two variables will have a much better chance at breaking through a set defensive trap than one who sprints straight ahead to try and slip through it. However, as Kotkaniemi grows and develops, it’s likely that he ends up a consistently better rushing threat than Byron, despite the gap in skating between the two players. The extended period of downtime before the NHL bubble playoffs, meant that Kotkaniemi had time to recover from a spleen injury as well as build up muscle. Why Jesperi Kotkaniemi is so effective at controlled transitions New, 13 comments While many of his teammates rely exclusively on the fastball, Kotkaniemi mixes in some off-speed stuff. The sequence ends with a spin-pass from the centreman toward Drouin coming off the bench. Not done yet, but should be done soon. In this play, Kotkaniemi picked the best possible path to enter the zone by reading the movement of his teammate. The Draft Analyst Ranking: PRE SEP JAN FEB MAY JUN; 4: 7: 9 — — — Regular Season. There, he has the necessary open ice to change corridors. Marc Bergevin’s off-season coup brings a lot of options to a Habs power play that sorely needs them. He will become the highest paid forward on the team. With the uncertainty of the start of the next NHL season this is the best solution for the Finnish centre to continue to develop. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. Let’s take a look at a few zone entries from Kotkaniemi. Marc Bergevin confirms that Jesperi Kotkaniemi is finalizing details to play with Assat in the Finnish Liiga while we await NHL training camp. Jonathan Drouin glides in his direction, likely expecting a dump-in, but Kotkaniemi keeps a deceptive stance with the puck. 6-keys: media/fantasynews/nhl/reg/free/stories, at A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s skating. Kotkaniemi was limited to … Kotkaniemi is expected to be loaned to his hometown club Pori Assat (Finland), Eric Engels of Sportsnet.ca reports. Kotkaniemi was limited to just 36 games this season and was held to a mere eight points. pic.twitter.com/nsWB6c48od. In transition, skating habits and patterns, deception, and handling abilities are just as important, if not moreso, than speed, acceleration, and agility. In today’s links, a possible temporary restructure gets hinted at, the details of the Gallagher contract, QMJHL pauses action for all Quebec-based teams, and more. 2020 Eastern Conference Quarter-finals Game 1: Montreal Canadiens @ Philadelphia Flyers, [Highlight] Tomas Tatar scores just over a minute in, The Canadiens can’t let the Flyers take advantage in front of Carey Price’s goal, Montreal Canadiens sign Jake Allen to two-year contract extension, Why I’m not worried about the Gallagher contract negotiations. Marc Bergevin’s off-season coup brings a lot of options to a Habs power play that sorely needs them. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. The 19-year-old center figures to rejoin the Habs for the start of training camp and should be in line for a third-line center role. Byron possesses other strengths in transition that make up for his lack of rush creativity or manipulation. But the down-shift and the look-off were a ploy to maintain a wide gap with the defender and get the necessary space to enter the zone. All Rights Reserved. In today’s links, Brendan Gallagher’s contract impasse, Marc Bergevin’s transformation of the Canadiens, and taking stock of the first week of free agency. The deal will not affect his season in North America and he will be released for Canadiens training camp, whenever that is to get underway. Montreal Canadiens forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi will be loaned to Finnish club Assat. Brendan Gallagher signs six-year extension with the Montreal Canadiens. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc. site: fantasynews | arena: nhl | pageType: stories | 4:52 pm ET, Canadiens' Jesperi Kotkaniemi: Lights lamp twice in Game 2, Canadiens' Jesperi Kotkaniemi: Scores again Monday, Canadiens' Jesperi Kotkaniemi: Opens scoring Saturday, Canadiens' Jesperi Kotkaniemi: Ready for training camp, Canadiens' Jesperi Kotkaniemi: Officially done for the year, Canadiens' Jesperi Kotkaniemi: Out indefinitely. Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Montreal Canadiens (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers) Some months later, after the Canadiens playoff run ended against the Philadelphia Flyers, it was all praise for Kotkaniemi. He shuffles it while looking cross-ice and slows down, giving the impression that he will, in fact, rim the disc down the zone. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Jesperi Kotkaniemi Porin Assat (SM-Liiga) Steve Kournianos | 10/12/2017 | Nashville | Profile. In other words, Kotkaniemi surpasses Byron in the mental aspect of skating and transition play, which is why he managed to find a trail through the Flyers’ defence on Wednesday. Tyler Toffoli can add interesting new wrinkles to Canadiens’ power play. In his attempts to do the same past the defensive blue line, Kotkaniemi has been more successful than his diminutive teammate. 2018 NHL Draft. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. By down-shifting, faking a turn, and then accelerating the other way, he could free himself to attack up ice, but he defers. In today’s links, a possible temporary restructure gets hinted at, the details of the Gallagher contract, QMJHL pauses action for all Quebec-based teams, and more. He sees Joel Armia driving mid-ice and decides to enter from that point, as he knows that the momentum of his teammate will push back the defenders slightly. Marc Bergevin says the priority is … The team has long been linked to Kotkaniemi… As soon as the opponent lunged for the puck, the forward initiated a cut-back. Fortunately, it made its way to Brett Kulak at the point. Tyler Toffoli can add interesting new wrinkles to Canadiens’ power play. Montreal Canadiens Schedule, Roster, News, and Rumors | Eyes On The Prize, Jesperi Kotkaniemi to be loaned to Ässät in Liiga, Links: Suggestions of a Canadian Division in 2020-21. Marc Bergevin says the priority is for him to play. For example, he’s particularly useful as a stretch forward in breakout situations. Still, Kotkaniemi ended up creating an entry with deception and a change of speed. One might expect to see Byron drive transition play more than Kotkaniemi as the winger has the natural speed advantage, but the centreman has moved the puck across the offensive blue-line in controlled ways more effectively. In the first one, the centreman skates inside space in the wide lane. If we look at Mikael Nahabedian’s tracked stats — a great ressource in these playoffs — since the start of the qualifying round, the same trend continues. He slowed down and let the backward momentum of the defenders create the necessary space to slip across the blue-line, and then used his superior handling ability to evade opponents. Kotkaniemi cuts across the surface and sneaks the puck inside the blue line. Brendan Gallagher signs six-year extension with the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Canadiens sign Jake Allen to two-year contract extension, Why I’m not worried about the Gallagher contract negotiations. Instead of picking up speed and attracting defenders to himself or changing lanes and displacing the defensive trap, instead of creating a mini two-on-one with Phillip Danault on his wing, Byron passes the puck early to his teammate, placing him in a difficult position as defenders have time to adjust and counter the entry attempt. The most successful draft in Wasserman hockey history features two top-ten picks: Quinton Byfield- 1st round, 2nd overall to the Los Angeles Kings; and Jamie Drysdale- 1st round, 6th overall to the Anaheim Ducks.