Jonathan Ericsson Watch Thread

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Some scouting reports on Ericsson had him as a top 4 defenseman who at one time, was thought to even be a partial replacement for Lidstrom.

You're going to need to back that up with a link or something because I've never heard or seen anything like that. A replacement for Lidstrom?? No way.

If people seriously thought a converted forward who's only been playing defense less than 10 years in his life was going to replace Lidstrom, no wonder they're so disappointed with Ericsson.

Hockey's future, who I think is often overly optimistic with prospects had him as a 4-6 guy. I could see early in his development maybe hoping he'd be a #2-3, though even that would be extremely optimistic.

Unless I'm missing something, I haven't seen an improvement that earns him a pass on these criticisms.

Which is why in the portion you quoted I said he needed to utilize those assets better. I wasn't giving him a pass.

Again, the White comparison is to outline that one player (White) has seized a golden opportunity while another (Ericsson) has not. Yes White has put up 20+ points several times, but not at the pace he is on now and is on pace for a career high of about 30+. Both are the same age, yet White has bounced from team to team and still been able to maintain a good level of play consistently. So yes, he has jumped ahead from a developmental point since consistency is a hallmark of all high level players.

And the point about White playing with Lidstrom only serves to further highlight Ericsson's lack of progress. Ericsson has had 3+ years under Lidstrom and White has had 23 games. Who's made more of that at this point?

Moral of the story: Ericsson needs to get his s*** together and take on the bigger role that he is now paid to perform and not just be a big body with a good first pass for 3 million dollars.

White was already an established defenseman in the NHL when he came here. He was already a better defenseman than E when he came to the Wings, so it's not really seizing some opportunity that Ericsson had and passed up somehow. Criticizing Ericsson for not being Ian White doesn't make much sense to me.

I've said many times I doubt that Ericsson will earn his full contract. But he is improving and has been a solid D man for the Wings, if an overpaid one.

Edited December 1, 2011 by haroldsnepsts

[Red Wings Addict 787]

You're going to need to back that up with a link or something because I've never heard or seen anything like that. A replacement for Lidstrom?? No way.

At the time of his '09 playoff performance, I remember some talk (from NBC, probably Milbury and McGuire, go figure) about Ericsson winning a Norris trophy sometime in his future and the possibility of him being a replacement for Lidstrom. This was the Ericsson hype at its finest.

[Esquire 324]

You're going to need to back that up with a link or something because I've never heard or seen anything like that. A replacement for Lidstrom?? No way.

If people seriously thought a converted forward who's only been playing defense less than 10 years in his life was going to replace Lidstrom, no wonder they're so disappointed with Ericsson.

Hockey's future, who I think is often overly optimistic with prospects had him as a 4-6 guy. I could see early in his development maybe hoping he'd be a #2-3, though even that would be extremely optimistic.

PARTIAL replacement. Which means to imply that he's a big factor in helping to plug the hole, not replace it completely. Here's one link I have:

http://www.redwingscentral.com/2008/11/12/64/preliminary-ericsson-no-1/

Ericsson remains Red Wings Central’s No. 1 prospect. The 6-foot-5, 218-pounder will one day factor into Detroit’s top four. As McNamara said, “He does everything like an NHLer, and he’ll be in the NHL within the next year.”

...

01. D Jonathan Ericsson, Grand Rapids (AHL). Of all the compliments Ericsson deserves, perhaps the most appropriate is owed to his patience. He’s an NHL blueliner masquerading as an AHLer, but not for long. Ericsson almost didn’t get signed three years ago; now he’s a franchise cornerstone.

Which is why in the portion you quoted I said he needed to utilize those assets better. I wasn't giving him a pass.

Noted.

White was already an established defenseman in the NHL when he came here. He was already a better defenseman than E when he came to the Wings, so it's not really seizing some opportunity that Ericsson had and passed up somehow. Criticizing Ericsson for not being Ian White doesn't make much sense to me.

I'll respectfully disagree here. Any time you can join a team with Lidstrom on your line, that's a big opportunity for your career advancement. Despite White being an already good defenseman, he's actually getting better. Most of the Wings defense have made significant strides in their development over a 3 year period in Detroit, whether under Lidstrom's guidance or Babcock's, but we're still waiting on Ericsson.

If Lidstrom retires next season, who is Ericsson going to look to to model his game after or look to for advice on defending? NOW is the time for Ericsson to start making strides, not later.

I've said many times I doubt that Ericsson will earn his full contract. But he is improving and has been a solid D man for the Wings, if an overpaid one.

I can't wait for next season when our 3 million dollar 3rd line defenseman is battling with our rookie stud for ice time. Sheesh.

[Red Wings Addict 787]

Oh my God... Ericsson... Franchise cornerstone... I had to clarify that definition in my head for a quick minute. Usually when I hear franchise cornerstone I think of Yzerman, Lemieux, Crosby, Ovechkin, etc. But the term actually encompasses guys like Kris Draper as well since he was a Red Wing for so long. Perhaps Ericsson can be the best luxury 3rd pair defenseman in the league one day.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

PARTIAL replacement. Which means to imply that he's a big factor in helping to plug the hole, not replace it completely. Here's one link I have:

http://www.redwingscentral.com/2008/11/12/64/preliminary-ericsson-no-1/

Franchise cornerstone? That's just some guy at redwings central, and he's apparently smoking crack. Especially because he's not projecting E to be that. He's already calling him a franchise cornerstone. Which he obviously is not.

E was definitely the #1 prospect once upon a time, but like I said, I think #4 D man was about his most realistic NHL potential.

I'll respectfully disagree here. Any time you can join a team with Lidstrom on your line, that's a big opportunity for your career advancement. Despite White being an already good defenseman, he's actually getting better. Most of the Wings defense have made significant strides in their development over a 3 year period in Detroit, whether under Lidstrom's guidance or Babcock's, but we're still waiting on Ericsson.

If Lidstrom retires next season, who is Ericsson going to look to to model his game after or look to for advice on defending? NOW is the time for Ericsson to start making strides, not later.

I can't wait for next season when our 3 million dollar 3rd line defenseman is battling with our rookie stud for ice time. Sheesh.

Ericsson shouldn't be trying to model his game after Lidstrom. He should be trying to model it after Pronger, if anyone. I realize Pronger isn't a teammate, but Lids hockey IQ is so off the charts Im' not sure how relevant it would be to model E's game on his. Ericsson will never have that hockey sense.

And I said in another thread, if Smith continues to play as well as he has, I think he'll be competing with Kindl more than Ericsson. Kindl's role has much more overlap with what Smith's would be on the Wings. A more offensive-minded puck moving D man who plays on the PP. Whereas Ericsson can still carve out a niche to be a physical more stay at home guy who plays PK minutes.

Like I said, I think he's overpaid too. Id' be surprised if Ericsson is ever more than a #4/5 guy. If he's knocking guys around, playing solid D, and is eating up PK minutes, maybe he'd be worth that contract. I think if Holland had White and Commie locked up first, Ericsson doesn't get that much money.

Edited December 1, 2011 by haroldsnepsts

[Esquire 324]

Franchise cornerstone? That's just some guy at redwings central, and he's apparently smoking crack. Especially because he's not projecting E to be that. He's already calling him a franchise cornerstone. Which he obviously is not.

E was definitely the #1 prospect once upon a time, but like I said, I think #4 D man was about his most realistic NHL potential.

A giant rock by the sounds of it. lol

Ericsson shouldn't be trying to model his game after Lidstrom. He should be trying to model it after Pronger, if anyone. I realize Pronger isn't a teammate, but Lids hockey IQ is so off the charts Im' not sure how relevant it would be to model E's game on his. Ericsson will never have that hockey sense.

And I said in another thread, if Smith continues to play as well as he has, I think he'll be competing with Kindl more than Ericsson. Kindl's role has much more overlap with what Smith's would be on the Wings. A more offensive-minded puck moving D man who plays on the PP. Whereas Ericsson can still carve out a niche to be a physical more stay at home guy who plays PK minutes.

Fair enough. Maybe "model his game after" wasn't the proper term. I'm just waiting for him to consistantly and effectively use his size to the point where other teams actually respect it. Nobody I've seen play against him so far has shown that they really acknowledge he's there for the most part!

Like I said, I think he's overpaid too. Id' be surprised if Ericsson is ever more than a #4/5 guy. If he's knocking guys around, playing solid D, and is eating up PK minutes, maybe he'd be worth that contract. I think if Holland had White and Commie locked up first, Ericsson doesn't get that much money.

I think we're on the same page overall here.

[Red Wings Addict 787]

Franchise cornerstone? That's just some guy at redwings central, and he's apparently smoking crack. Especially because he's not projecting E to be that. He's already calling him a franchise cornerstone. Which he obviously is not.

E was definitely the #1 prospect once upon a time, but like I said, I think #4 D man was about his most realistic NHL potential.

I think the definition of franchise cornerstone is extremely similar to life-long Red Wing. Or insert whatever team name there. Kris Draper for example was a franchise cornerstone because he was the unquestionable leader of the bottom six. He worked his way up, set the example and did it for a long time. I think you can be a franchise cornerstone if the organization values you so much that they keep you for a long time and trust you with certain responsibilities year after year. On the other hand, guys like Crosby and Ovechkin are franchise superstars, not just cornerstones.

[Guest Heaten]

I've been happy with Ericsson, he seems to be filling his role nicely. He's going to get better. Defensemen don't even reach their peak til their early/mid 30s. The guy just scored a nice goal yesterday, he's showing got the offensive tools to go with his size and shut-down defense.

Edited December 1, 2011 by Heaten

[Holmstrom96 347]

Ericsson made some great tape to tape passes tonight... to the wrong color jersey. I also like the penalty he took that Colorado converted on. It's not all his fault though, apparently the Wings are supposed to play in more than just the first period.

Edited December 5, 2011 by Holmstrom96

[Guest Crymson]

Two horrendous defensive plays in two minutes by Ericsson. Brilliant.

[BryceWings 0]

I think he just didn't have trust for the other guy to get covered correctly. But he definately coulda closed the gap.

[Red Wings Addict 787]

[ShanahanMan 473]

Best off-season signing EVER

[GMRwings1983 8,794]

Best off-season signing EVER

I agree.

Holland is such a genius.

[Aussie_Wing 354]

3+ million for this bloke?

Ericsson must be loving life.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Two horrendous defensive plays in two minutes by Ericsson. Brilliant.

Haven't been able to watch the game tonight as I'm working, but I checked in for the GDT thought this was funny. You haven't posted since the Avs game. Since then your only posts are the one above and these gems:

In before Harold says that Ericsson is better because he gets more icetime.

Ericsson AGAIN! I ******* hate this guy.

Jonathan Ericsson ******* up? NO WAY!!!

So you apparently were lurking until you were able to bash Ericsson and then me.

How does it feel to be the exact kind of poster that you're constantly lecturing here?

Edited December 7, 2011 by haroldsnepsts

[Guest irishock]

f***

[Guest Crymson]

Haven't been able to watch the game tonight as I'm working, but I checked in for the GDT thought this was funny. You haven't posted since the Avs game. Since then your only posts are the one above and these gems:

Yeah, that was an enormously huge amount of time---roughly 48 hours.

So you apparently were lurking until you were able to bash Ericsson and then me.

See above.

How does it feel to be the exact kind of poster that you're constantly lecturing here?

Is "no, u" really the best you can do?

[Hockeytown0001 7,652]

3+ million for this bloke?

Ericsson must be loving life.

$3.25 to be exact.

[Guest irishock]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1QCBF3h_tM

[dobbles 252]

i think ericsson deserves to sit for commodore for a game or two. there needs to be consequences for bad play.

[Detroit # 1 Fan 2,204]

It's not just that he sucks, but that he isn't punching anyone in the face over his growing frustration with his play. That, makes him useless.

[Guest Crymson]

I'd replace him with Smith. Permanently.

[Guest irishock]

Ericsson either mans the f*** up and beat up opponents or he deserves to be a healthy scratch for the Griffins

[Drake_Marcus 890]

It's not just that he sucks, but that he isn't punching anyone in the face over his growing frustration with his play. That, makes him useless.

Agreed. Someone email Ericsson Perry's home address.