Wagner is another Kyle Clifford - Real Fast - Can't Score - Human Punching Bag
Not impressed.
Wagner is another Kyle Clifford - Real Fast - Can't Score - Human Punching Bag
Not impressed.
I must say I am baffled by the comparisons to Kyle Clifford. Clifford is strong on the puck, tough in corners, a physical forechecker and has OK but not great speed. Wagner is the opposite on each of those dimensions. Neither seems to have great hands. But i think Wagner's are better. Wagner’s speed is blinding. Honestly a more apt comparison in terms of skills would be with Trevor Lewis except that Lewis is also tougher in Wagner at this point. That said, next year will be very telling since Wagner was coming off of injury this year and it will be his second year in the AHL.
So, he's Tobias Rieder?
I guess there's always hope he finds his inner Grabner.
I think Rieder’s a good comparison. Although I also tend to think that Rieder is a more useful player than do most people on this board.
So?? you are NEVER impressed.
Wagner's still young. High speed, grit, and skill... could be a Chris Kreider-lite player.
Need to see more and whether/how Reider fits with our system, but excellent speed, seems to have decent hands, and an ability to force some mistakes. Averaged 12-14 goals a year on some terrible teams. How does that translate to Stevens's system? Too soon to tell. But, seems like if he is a 4th line guy you probably have an excellent team. And you are probably good if he is a 3rd liner. Given his tools, he might turn out to be valuable on the PK as well. If you expect him to be a top 6 forward then yeah, he's an issue.
I think there is more upside with Wagner than most 21 year olds given the time he missed due to injury and his impressive speed. I hope the Reign can find a skilled center for him to play a full season with this year. Other than some breakaways he really wasn't very noticeable. But the Reign just weren't that good last year and he got a late start and was coming off a major injury. There were a lot of slow older guys getting big minutes on that team (e.g., Moulson, Mersch, Auger).
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