Byfield

[symbology]

To me the problem with Byfield is in the OHL he was probably the fastest skater in the league and now he's not even the faster skater on his line and you could also say that about his size where he easily outmuscled kids with acne but now he's going against the Tom Wilson's of the world. I do see potential in him and even myself did compare him to Joe Thornton in terms of his trajectory but he's absolutely behind that at the moment. I don't think you can say the Kings bungled the pick as you could also say the Rangers should have drafted Stutzle as well. On draft day most not all but most said Byfield was the pick the Kings should make as at that moment he was set to be the heir apparent to Kopitar.

Um, what? Are you watching the same game that I am? He is top 7 in the league. Is that not fast enough for you?

This is from the NHL Edge sight.

 

[Halfwall]

This is an interesting commentary on the analysis of Byfields effectiveness:
View attachment 6757

Great. So they get to second or third base. Who cares if you can't score.

 

[symbology]

Great. So they get to second or third base. Who cares if you can't score.

Oh, you want them to score. Well....... Hopefully that will come soon.

 

[DarkLeftHand]

And..... it absolutely would not be the case if QB was not on that line.

Do you think this line would be any less effective if Trevor Moore was playing on the left wing?

 

[symbology]

Do you think this line would be any less effective if Trevor Moore was playing on the left wing?

I think it would be great with Moore on the wing. I was just saying that QB pushes that line. Without him, or a player like him that line will be dead in the water. Just like they were through the first 2-1/2 months of last season.

 

[symbology]

Do you think this line would be any less effective if Trevor Moore was playing on the left wing?

To expand on my answer. If you move Moore up to that line, who is going to drive and push Danault's line?

 

[Statue4Deano]

Everybody says this baloney but it isn't true. Thornton underpformed in his rookie season. He turned the corner in his second season and led the team in scoring by his third season.

Byfield has played better this season tbh. But he's really just a big and fast skater. His shot is not good and he lacks creativity with the puck. I've been saying this for at least a year. You don't spend the #2 overall on a guy to be a 1F forechecker. The Kings should have dumped him last season when he had premium value. But leadership won't admit they made a mistake passing on Stutzle so instead I'll continue to hear the misdirection claims of "but Thornton, Kempe, and Tage Thompson" in an attempt to downplay the failure.

Dumped him for what? What was offered in exchange?

This Kings roster has a massive need, 1st line LW. Byfield has a specific set of skills today that fills that need better than anyone else on the roster could (not sure why people are forgetting the rotating cast of wingers tried next to Kopitar and Kempe before Byfield). Using his current skillset to fill that need does not mean he's finished developing as a player. Player development is non-linear. It's really that simple.

Byfield is doing his job better than anyone else on the roster can. He's young, cheap, high character and his teammates enjoy playing with him. Is he going to ever put up the stats that Stutzle does? No probably not. Is he going to the be the next Joe Thornton? No. But there's absolutely nothing wrong with having a homegrown and developed 1st line player who gives the team a chance to win every night.

I've compared picking Byfield over Stutzle to taking Doughty over Karlsson before. But Doughty is a 1st ballot HOFer. So maybe it's probably closer to take Pietrangelo @ 4 over Karlsson.

Did the Blues regret taking Pietrangelo, a guy who never won the Norris, has exactly 3 All-Star appearances, has never won an individual trophy but played for St. Louis for 12 seasons and won 2 Cups, over Erik Karlsson, greatest offensive defenseman of his generation? I don't think so.

 

[DarkLeftHand]

To expand on my answer. If you move Moore up to that line, who is going to drive and push Danault's line?

Totally valid question, because that would definitely leave a hole on the Danault line, especially in Arvidsson‘s absence. To be clear, I’m not one of those people advocating for Byfield to be pulled from the first line. I like his energy levels, forechecking, and ability to positively impact the production levels of the first line as a whole. I’ve even stated a few other places that I’d be happy if he had zero goals and 82 assists at the end of the season. At least it would mean that somebody is scoring and that line is producing. That being said, my real point was that you could plug someone in on that left wing with similar qualities but a much lesser pedigree(2nd overall draft pick), and still probably get similar results.

 

[Dexter]

 

[kingsjohn]

2 down!

 

[Birdman]

 

[Statue4Deano]

 

[hokiecat]

Dumped him for what? What was offered in exchange?

This Kings roster has a massive need, 1st line LW. Byfield has a specific set of skills today that fills that need better than anyone else on the roster could (not sure why people are forgetting the rotating cast of wingers tried next to Kopitar and Kempe before Byfield). Using his current skillset to fill that need does not mean he's finished developing as a player. Player development is non-linear. It's really that simple.

Byfield is doing his job better than anyone else on the roster can. He's young, cheap, high character and his teammates enjoy playing with him. Is he going to ever put up the stats that Stutzle does? No probably not. Is he going to the be the next Joe Thornton? No. But there's absolutely nothing wrong with having a homegrown and developed 1st line player who gives the team a chance to win every night.

I've compared picking Byfield over Stutzle to taking Doughty over Karlsson before. But Doughty is a 1st ballot HOFer. So maybe it's probably closer to take Pietrangelo @ 4 over Karlsson.

Did the Blues regret taking Pietrangelo, a guy who never won the Norris, has exactly 3 All-Star appearances, has never won an individual trophy but played for St. Louis for 12 seasons and won 2 Cups, over Erik Karlsson, greatest offensive defenseman of his generation? I don't think so.

Pietrangelo is a 3 time all star. Doughty is a first ballot HOFer.

Byfield hasn't shown any evidence that he is going to be an all-star let alone have multiple all-stars in his professional resume. So I don't understand your comparison. Byfield feels more like Eric Johnson when you could have had Toews or Backstrom. Or maybe Daigle when you could have had Chris Pronger. We got a legit NHLer but needed a serious impact player at #2.

 

[emsomaso]

So we are talking about a:
- 21 year old that has missed a lot of proper development time,
- that has a huge body to grow into, something that everyone knows take a lot of time and that was taken into consideration during the draft,
- that is one of the faster skaters in the entire leauge, just look at his assist to 1-1 in tonights game,
- that gets a lot of praise for his play by his linemates who says they love playing with him,
- that perfectly compliments one of the best lines in the entire league with his speed, size, hustle and forechecking,
- that plays on a position (1 line lw) that have been a black hole for several years,
- that has 4 points and a +4 in the first 7 games of the season and this after a shaky start for the team,
- that seems to be a great kid/team-mate,

and some here are still calling him a bust. Sorry, but IMO that is beyond stupid…

I for one would take a 60-70 point Byfield (which I believe he will score this season) over a 90 point Stutzle every day! This since Byfield brings so much more than points to this team/his line and especially considering the style of play Kings use and the needs this team have!

And when he’s fully developed at least I’m sure he will prove that he’s totally worth picking at the 2nd overall position!

GKG

 

[Jerram]

So we are talking about a:
- 21 year old that has missed a lot of proper development time,
- that has a huge body to grow into, something that everyone knows take a lot of time and that was taken into consideration during the draft,
- that is one of the faster skaters in the entire leauge, just look at his assist to 1-1 in tonights game,
- that gets a lot of praise for his play by his linemates who says they love playing with him,
- that perfectly compliments one of the best lines in the entire league with his speed, size, hustle and forechecking,
- that plays on a position (1 line lw) that have been a black hole for several years,
- that has 4 points and a +4 in the first 7 games of the season and this after a shaky start for the team,
- that seems to be a great kid/team-mate,

and some here are still calling him a bust. Sorry, but IMO that is beyond stupid…

I for one would take a 60-70 point Byfield (which I believe he will score this season) over a 90 point Stutzle every day! This since Byfield brings so much more than points to this team/his line and especially considering the style of play Kings use and the needs this team have!

And when he’s fully developed at least I’m sure he will prove that he’s totally worth picking at the 2nd overall position!

GKG

Thanks for saying so well what I had been struggling to think of a way to say, so much this. I've lost track of the number of times I've heard a variation of "Byfield won't get an assist there but that goal doesn't happen without him" and that includes from the opposing teams announcers.

 

[Pevsfreedom]

He's making strides this year. I cringed every time he was on the ice last year.

I think most of the woe is to assume he kept playing like last year. My prime complaint being that he's afraid of the puck. He's looking very much now for shots and to get into scrums, chase down pucks, plant himself in the crease, get down low, be big and essentially do Brown type stuff. His skating is impressing me most, along with his puck confidence, so far.

It's a great sign for him.

 

[Guinevere]

So we are talking about a:
- 21 year old that has missed a lot of proper development time,
- that has a huge body to grow into, something that everyone knows take a lot of time and that was taken into consideration during the draft,
- that is one of the faster skaters in the entire leauge, just look at his assist to 1-1 in tonights game,
- that gets a lot of praise for his play by his linemates who says they love playing with him,
- that perfectly compliments one of the best lines in the entire league with his speed, size, hustle and forechecking,
- that plays on a position (1 line lw) that have been a black hole for several years,
- that has 4 points and a +4 in the first 7 games of the season and this after a shaky start for the team,
- that seems to be a great kid/team-mate,

and some here are still calling him a bust. Sorry, but IMO that is beyond stupid…

I for one would take a 60-70 point Byfield (which I believe he will score this season) over a 90 point Stutzle every day! This since Byfield brings so much more than points to this team/his line and especially considering the style of play Kings use and the needs this team have!

And when he’s fully developed at least I’m sure he will prove that he’s totally worth picking at the 2nd overall position!

GKG

Bravo! So tired of hearing he’s a bust! Not worth the second overall pick, blah blah blah!

He continues to grow! C’mon now, before with his big body he avoiding checking anyone and almost every game he fell on the ice. Of course, why should we take the opinion of his line mates (one who will end up in the hall of fame), coach or announcers?

I think he’s been one of better players on the ice this season. Go Byfield Go!

 

[AngelEyes]

Bravo! So tired of hearing he’s a bust! Not worth the second overall pick, blah blah blah!

He continues to grow! C’mon now, before with his big body he avoiding checking anyone and almost every game he fell on the ice. Of course, why should we take the opinion of his line mates (one who will end up in the hall of fame), coach or announcers?

I think he’s been one of better players on the ice this season. Go Byfield Go!

Fixed that for you.

 

[Guinevere]

Fixed that for you.

Ooops! Too much birthday celebrations yesterday!

 

[Statue4Deano]

Pietrangelo is a 3 time all star. Doughty is a first ballot HOFer.

Byfield hasn't shown any evidence that he is going to be an all-star let alone have multiple all-stars in his professional resume. So I don't understand your comparison. Byfield feels more like Eric Johnson when you could have had Toews or Backstrom. Or maybe Daigle when you could have had Chris Pronger. We got a legit NHLer but needed a serious impact player at #2.

Byfield has the potential to be a 3x All Star and be a 1st liner player on multiple Stanley Cup winning teams.

His goal for this season should be to find consistency. More good games than bad ones to start the season is a sure sign that he’s got a grasp on out how to turn his baseline into a good NHL winger at the age of 21. Then you mix in his elite physical tools and experience at this level and you get games like last night where he’s the best forward on a Stanley Cup contender.

We all asked for signs of improvement coming into this season. And that’s what he’s shown through the first few weeks of the season.