Datsyerberger 279 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 (edited) I've been wondering if I'm the only person here who does not hate Kopecky. I propose that his whipping boy situation this year is inescapable: Sammy is playing well on a small contract. Lilja is playing well on a small contract. Lebda has been playing better, and doesn't play half the time. Cheli is too old and doesn't play enough to be a real whipping boy. Everyone seems to like Meech. Datsyuk rocks. Zetterberg rocks. Hossa rocks. Lidstrom rocks. Raffi has high point totals. Kronwall has good point totals and has been better defensively lately. Stuart is on IR. Homer is injured, and is too likable when he isn't. Hudler has been a surprise. Franzen is solid. Flip is one of our top ES point producers. Cleary PKs well. Helm has played a handful of games. Leino has played a handful of games and kicked ass. Osgood always gets flak regardless of circumstance and is thus exempt. Conklin has done well. Draper is a vet and still does faceoffs well. Maltby gets a lot of leeway for being a vet and playing on the PK. Kopecky plays on the 4th line with the 2 least offensively talented people on the team and thus doesn't put up numbers: Target sighted! I actually usually like what I see from this guy (given his role) when he plays. He works hard. He has an acceptable skill set. I think we'd see him on the 3rd line more (And thus putting up better numbers), but we have a very desirable problem: too much talent in the upper echelons. He's thus doing well at filling his current role: thump and bang. In case noone noticed, the 4th line doesn't have crappy +/- because of terrible defense.. it's because their offensive production is so low it's a ******* celebration when Draper scores anything other than an EN. Edited February 11, 2009 by Datsyerberger Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
finalfilppula 2 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 (edited) i'm really inclined to believe in guys on our team that aren't producing as well as others. this is because i trust the red wings brass in their judgment, who, ostensibly, know a hell of a lot more than us. Edited February 11, 2009 by finalfilppula Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Secret 304 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 Sorry, but I think Kopecky is a bum. I think he is a wasted roster spot, except for the fact that its been said that he had an influence on Hossa coming to Detroit... that would be his best quality. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Z is next captain! 0 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I wish we would dump him. WHat does he bring to the table that gives him a roster spot. IMO he should be scratched for Helm or Leino. Food for thought: I know alot of people would love to see maltby gone but the one amazing thing he has is his defensive ability. I wonder what he would be like playing as a defenseme I know this is off topic but: imagine if the red wings had been able to draft Spezza like they where supposed to instead of ottawa.(I could be wrong but I clearly remember him being a red wing prospect and then ottawa drafted him instead) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Crazy 201 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 Kopecky has been playing better in the last 10 games. I think that both Babcock and Holland see something in this kid and I think we have to trust them on it. I think he will be a Maltby replacement someone to grind, shutdown, and PK without putting up alot of points. That is my take. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MrSandMan Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I have no problem with Kopecky. He's not winning us or losing us games. Some people here have this delusion that taking him off the roster will some how instantly sweep us through the playoffs to win the cup in 16-0. Not gonna happen. Kop is doing just fine for what he does. He's no Datsyuk, never has been, never will be. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Datsyerberger 279 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I wish we would dump him. WHat does he bring to the table that gives him a roster spot. I dunno, 9 pts, 84 hits in 52 GP with only 9:43 ATOI, and only 28 PIMs. Compare to other teams' 4th liners with similar ATOI. Furthermore, try to find one of those players with that sort of hits:PIMs ratio. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Z is next captain! 0 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I dunno, 9 pts, 84 hits in 52 GP with only 9:43 ATOI, and only 28 PIMs. Compare to other teams' 4th liners with similar ATOI. Furthermore, try to find one of those players with that sort of hits:PIMs ratio. Good point, I guess with all the stars on our team he kinda goes unnoticed to me Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungGuns1340 1 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I dunno, 9 pts, 84 hits in 52 GP with only 9:43 ATOI, and only 28 PIMs. Compare to other teams' 4th liners with similar ATOI. Furthermore, try to find one of those players with that sort of hits:PIMs ratio. Thats because Kopecky's hits are crap. Was he credited for the "hit" he put on Hamhuis that got himself smoked? I would take Datsyuk's hits over Kopecky's any day of the week. Just because you get credit for a hit doesn't mean its actually doing anything. Thats my biggest issue with Kopecky. Either hes being lazy or stupid when it comes to hitting, but he just sucks at hitting. 84 hits and not one of those hits has been impressive. In fact, with the way he falls down on over half of his hits, his hitting game is more of a detriment to the game than it is a positive, because he takes himself out of the play all the time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungGuns1340 1 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 Good point, I guess with all the stars on our team he kinda goes unnoticed to me He goes unnoticed because he doesn't do anything noticeable. Including his "hits." Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Secret 304 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 He goes unnoticed because he doesn't do anything noticeable. Including his "hits." Maybe that hit count is how many times he's hit the ice? He's great at those type of hits. I still think he has possibility to be a 20 goal scorer if they'd let him use a snow shovel instead of a hockey stick. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Datsyerberger 279 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 He goes unnoticed because he doesn't do anything noticeable. Including his "hits." Ho-hum. Generally, I'm pretty happy when my 4th liners go unnoticed, because it means they're not making horrible defensive gaffs or gathering up a plethora of stupid penalties. What? He doesn't score 50+? What? He doesn't fight often? (Who on the Wings does?) What? He doesn't commit often to dirty hits in an attempt to make them look 'big'? What? His line gets scored against every so often? What? He doesn't rack up PIMs for my fantasy team? Worthless player. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MrSandMan Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I have no problem with Kopecky. He's not winning us or losing us games. Some people here have this delusion that taking him off the roster will some how instantly sweep us through the playoffs to win the cup in 16-0. Not gonna happen. Kop is doing just fine for what he does. He's no Datsyuk, never has been, never will be. Thats because Kopecky's hits are crap. Was he credited for the "hit" he put on Hamhuis that got himself smoked? I would take Datsyuk's hits over Kopecky's any day of the week. Just because you get credit for a hit doesn't mean its actually doing anything. Thats my biggest issue with Kopecky. Either hes being lazy or stupid when it comes to hitting, but he just sucks at hitting. 84 hits and not one of those hits has been impressive. In fact, with the way he falls down on over half of his hits, his hitting game is more of a detriment to the game than it is a positive, because he takes himself out of the play all the time. Just wanted to point out the delusion on this forum. Here we have a guy [again] comparing Kopecky to Datsyuk. *sigh* I'll repeat myself, Kopecky is no Datsyuk, never has been, never will be. [period] Kop does fine for what he is paid to do. He's not the sole reason why we lost all our games, he's just the *official* LGW's whipping boy... and it's getting old and pathetic! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
esteef 2,679 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 Just wanted to point out the delusion on this forum. Here we have a guy [again] comparing Kopecky to Datsyuk. *sigh* I'll repeat myself, Kopecky is no Datsyuk, never has been, never will be. [period] Kop does fine for what he is paid to do. He's not the sole reason why we lost all our games, he's just the *official* LGW's whipping boy... and it's getting old and pathetic! Way to miss the point entirely. YoungGuns was comparing Datsyuk's HITS to Kopecky's HITS. Kopecky is paid to hit, Datsyuk is paid to score goals and yet has better hits on average than Kopecky. Our top line offensive player is doing the 4th liners job better than he is. That's the point, overall player skill is not being compared here. esteef Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Datsyerberger 279 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 Way to miss the point entirely. YoungGuns was comparing Datsyuk's HITS to Kopecky's HITS. Kopecky is paid to hit, Datsyuk is paid to score goals and yet has better hits on average than Kopecky. Our top line offensive player is doing the 4th liners job better than he is. That's the point, overall player skill is not being compared here. esteef Fact is, Datsyuk is a pretty spectacular hitter, when he does it. Kopecky hits more often with much less minutes, and that's what he's paid to do. Each one doesn't have to topple a skyscraper. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ben_usmc 253 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 (edited) I wish we had the Kopecky that 1st came up against teh Flames. That Kopecky was a beast, he hit everything in sight, I believe he even laid a good one on Phaneuf. I'm wondering if he has changed his game because of the serve injuries he's had, or maybe he is no longer capable of it because of those injuries. It will be interesting to see how he progresses with a full season; hopefully without a sevre injury. I also wonder how he would look with a fighter, that's why I don't think the Maltby comparision is bad. A new grind line of Abby/Helm/Kopecky, maybe he would feel safer with more hitters out there. Also he kicked some dudes ass in the AHL it would be nice to see him do that some more. Edited February 11, 2009 by ben_usmc Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
P. Marlowe 748 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 Kopecky is OK. Hockey fans are sometimes a bit strange. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest mindfly Report post Posted February 11, 2009 You can barely call him a kid, he's freakin 27years old Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Secret 304 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I often wonder what Kopecky would look like in a Maple Leafs jersey... or how about a Canadiens jersey? Maybe we will be lucky to see it happen sooner then later. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
esteef 2,679 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I wish we had the Kopecky that 1st came up against teh Flames. That Kopecky was a beast, he hit everything in sight, I believe he even laid a good one on Phaneuf. I'm wondering if he has changed his game because of the serve injuries he's had, or maybe he is no longer capable of it because of those injuries. It will be interesting to see how he progresses with a full season; hopefully without a sevre injury. I also wonder how he would look with a fighter, that's why I don't think the Maltby comparision is bad. A new grind line of Abby/Helm/Kopecky, maybe he would feel safer with more hitters out there. Also he kicked some dudes ass in the AHL it would be nice to see him do that some more. That's the Kopecky I wanna see. We've got enough facewashers. esteef Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
McCartyFanForLife 17 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 He'll be awesome in the playoffs this year. If we face a hot goaltender, we can send him on a breakaway and he'll just the bowl the goalie over... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Datsyerberger 279 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 He'll be awesome in the playoffs this year. If we face a hot goaltender, we can send him on a breakaway and he'll just the bowl the goalie over... Only if their d-men cooperate and push him. If not, he probably just flies by, doesn't get a shot off and slams into the boards (insert more stereotypical LGW views of Kopecky) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MrSandMan Report post Posted February 11, 2009 He'll be awesome in the playoffs this year. If we face a hot goaltender, we can send him on a breakaway and he'll just the bowl the goalie over... I might be the minority here, but I do not mind one bit that Kop took 2 minutes for barreling the goaltender. Driving to the net is exactly what we want! I'll give him 2pts just for driving the net. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Selke13 0 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 i like kopes probably alot more than the avg person on LGW, partly because hes slovak. that being said i think hes a bit of a bender. he has awkward strides and seems to bend at his waist too much, and has a hard time staying on his feet. i think he does have some skill though and is worth keping for the fourth line. remember the breakaway goal he had last year? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heroes of Hockeytown 694 Report post Posted February 11, 2009 I might be the minority here, but I do not mind one bit that Kop took 2 minutes for barreling the goaltender. Driving to the net is exactly what we want! I'll give him 2pts just for driving the net. There's an appreciable difference between "driving to the net" and "taking a bad penalty." Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
