Looking at the team's depth chart (and signed/rfa defenders) it looks like Plante has a real chance to spend extended time in the NHL in 11-12.
There are some red flags. A harbinger of Plante's future might be the team's acquisition of similar player-type Colten Teubert, and his healthy scratches down the stretch were curious.
The item that we should probably be pondering is this: if Plante were a more finished product, the McIlrath interest, the Teubert trade and the Siemens rumors would be a distant bell. There's something about Alex Plante that has someone unconvinced.
Alex Plante 10-11
- Boxcars: 3gp, 0-0-0 -2 (NHL)
- Boxcars: 73gp, 2-15-17 +11 138pims (AHL)
- What do these numbers tell us? Plante's AHL numbers are a nice step in the right direction. He was a HS at times during the year and he spent time on the third pairing too. However, there's also evidence Plante progressed and played tougher minutes too, so I'd suggest it is reasonable that he progressed as a prospect over the season.
- How could these numbers be better? I think he's on track. I'm not sure what kind of upside we're looking at, those junior numbers didn't come with him (no PP time= fewer counting numbers).
- Where does he slot in on the depth chart? At a guess, I'll say Whitney, Gilbert, Foster, Petry, Smid, Peckham and Taylor Chorney are clearly ahead of him. After that, I'll guess that Plante, Teibert and Kevin Montgomery are in the mix for callups. Plus the Oilers will no doubt sign a couple of retired NHL veterans like Joe Hall and Doug Harvey.
- Do you think he's in trouble? A little trouble. I'd say that the trade for Colten Teubert blocks Plante a little and makes him a candidate for trade. I have no evidence, but LAK had a laundry list of prospects in the minors and the Oilers acquired Teubert. It sounds to me as though they were looking for a very specific skill set and those skills are supposed to be Plante's strengths.
- Can't both of them make it? Sure. But if Teubert and Plante make it, where does that put Peckham and Smid? The Oilers are likely to proceed with Whitney, Petry and Gilbert (or Gilbert replacement) at the top of the depth chart as the puck movers/complete defenders, so there's room for at most three stay-at-home types (two if they keep Foster and go with two DD).
- Among the stay-at-homes, where does Plante rank? I'd place Smid and Peckham above the rest and then it's a photo finish.
- Does he have any trade value? I don't think so, that's why Smid makes more sense as a trade asset.
Prediction for 2010-11: 16gp, 0-0-0
Actual 2010: 3gp, 0-0-0
In the mix but nothing is certain
but is doug harvey good in the room?
ReplyDeleteYOU HATE SMID!!!
ReplyDeleteIt's okay, I do too.
Why would somebody go to the effort of photoshopping a picture to make it appear as though the defender blocking the shot and the goaltender are playing for the Carolina Hurricanes when they are actually wearing Canuck uniforms as evidenced by the defender reaching to deflect the shot? Anywhoo, great blog LT...
ReplyDeleteI must be crazy because I swear they were Flames jerseys 2 seconds ago.
ReplyDeleteAlex Plante's progress (or lack thereof) is the reason I worry about the first round LA pick this year. Well, his and the Riley Nash fiasco.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't exactly a stellar draft class in 2007, so of course the Oilers got 3 first round bullets that particular year.
Plus the Oilers will no doubt sign a couple of retired NHL veterans like Joe Hall and Doug Harvey.
ReplyDeleteI hear Hall and Khabby played stick ball with Jesus.
I have no evidence, but LAK had a laundry list of prospects in the minors and the Oilers acquired Teubert. It sounds to me as though they were looking for a very specific skill set and those skills are supposed to be Plante's strengths.
Either that or Lombardi did a sales job on him.
Remember v3.0 having no idea that Tuebert had been a healthy scratch in Manchester? (Jones put the question to him at the post trade deadline presser and v3.0 looked more blank than usual)
If they didn't know Tuebert had been a HS, I'm not sure they actually scouted him. (or Gare's team was doing their usual bang up job....) They might have been going off of their 2008 draft notes.
I would be nice to see Plante "get it", but he looks very slow in the NHL. He panics a bit with the puck, but that is forgivable. He just doesn't seem quick enough and doesn't make his turns quick enough either.
His lunch might soon be eaten by Marincin if Tuebert hasn't eaten it already.
The thing that made Plante's cup of coffee unique compared to Chorney, Petry and even Petiot was just how out of place he looked. We don't expect much from our kids during their auditions. Hartikainen "looks like a Top 9 option". Reddox "is the penalty killer/4th liner we've been waitng for". VandeVelde can win faceoffs.
ReplyDeletePlante. Looked. Terrible.
Atrocious mobility combined with very questionable abilities to read and react.
I'd be shocked if this guy ever became a key contributor at the NHL level.
Reddox signs for 1 year in SEL...per TSN
ReplyDeleteCan't wait for LT's tribute to the little engine that could...
WG: Yeah, I don't know if I buy that the Oilers were duped on Teubert. I know the blogosphere was up in arms on that trade and that Teubert doesn't grade out based on math, but he was a player of interest to them and the "player type" was certainly of interest.
ReplyDeleteAs for the HS's, I think all AHL teams carry too many defensemen and often rotate the HS's. I'm not saying the evidence (as adopted by the blogosphere) is incorrect just that it seems as though we automatically assume worst case scenario.
With good reason (the past), but when evaluating Teubert I think it's fair to treat him as a legit prospect.
Vision: It's on the way! :-)
Man, that was a great trade:)
ReplyDeleteKT beat me to it but the funny thing about Plante is you look at his AHL numbers and you see his size and you're thinking this might be a guy to invest in just a little bit.
But then you watch him skate and make decisions and you long for the days of Scott Ferguson.
Seriously.
I haven't missed too many games since I moved back to the city in '96 and I dare say I've seen 85% of the games since I bought the CI package in March of 2000.
So I haven't missed much.
Young Plante is hands down one of the five worst kids I've ever seen in terms of being totally NHL unprepared and/or able.
I've seen guys like Swanson and could see he had the head and hands but not the legs or size. You could see a guy like Reisen and see he was just a step behind. Lacouture was willing but didn't have a lot to offer production-wise.
But early on Plante seems like the dman version of JFJ as a guy who on paper looks ready to get some time in but then he shows up and it's like he left his brain back on the plane.
Speaking of 22, I saw one of his first AHL games and his speed pound-for-pound was ultra impressive. You could imagine why the Oilers fell in love with him. I also saw JDD early on and if JR thought he once deked Roy out of his jock on a breakaway, then you could say I saw David Ling deke JDD's balls off during a SO one game at Mile One.
I also saw Eric Heffler and I'm still not over it;)
I mention all this because I look forward to hopefully the AHL coming back here.
I've said my piece on Tuebert, BTW, and we'll see how it grades out.
ReplyDeleteI hope I'm wrong but you hardly ever win one of those type trades and that probability further lessens when you take a prospect that's middle ranked on his first team.
The Oilers either didn't realize or didn't care what Penner's value was to them. And from what we saw in Oil Change the Oilers didn't exactly have a thick book on young Teubert either.
In other news, Bruce Dowbiggin can see the truth for himself and he still doesn't care.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/bruce-dowbiggin/is-cbcs-jim-hughson-a-canucks-homer/article2032188/
There are Siemens rumours?
ReplyDeleteLT: I agree about the rotating HS's at the AHL level. We've seen it with lots of first year pros and it's not like Teubert was given a one-way ticket to the catwalk. So he got sent upstairs once in awhile to watch a game. Big deal.
ReplyDeleteAs for draft notes from 2008, it's worth noting that Teubert played on Eberle's team right through 2010. Presumably the scouts who were following Eberle and taking notes on Brandon Davidson might also be following some of the already drafted guys like Teubert. So an acquisition like that is much more likely to have some sort of input from the amateur scouts. (Let's hope so.)
ReplyDeleteWith good reason (the past), but when evaluating Teubert I think it's fair to treat him as a legit prospect.
No question that Tuebert is legit.
If he can skate and think he is already past Plante.
The Oilers certainly want tall mean men on their blue line and its entirely probably that they asked for Tuebert given that he fits their favorite type.
I just think they could have done better. I'll drop my narrative for a while.
I agree with the assessment that Teubert coming on board puts him in a dead heat battle with Plante. But thats a good thing. Competition is whats needed all throughout the lineup because too many players in the past have been handed jobs because there were no other options. Sam Gagner is in his 4th year and there is no one around thats even close to usurping him.
ReplyDeleteAs for Plante. Rough and tough is his calling card and he needs to continue to bring until someone passes him or knocks his block off. Plante is looking more and more like a depth callup. Things change but his progress can be timed by sundial.
Exactly, what the hell is wrong with two guy, Teubert and Plante, fighting for one job.
ReplyDeleteOne needs competition for jobs throughout the organization.
This is a good thing for both players. Not a bad thing.
Speaking of stay-at-home defencemen, is Johan Motin all but done with the Oilers organisation?
ReplyDeleteHe apparently has one year left on his contract but says in this article that he won't give up on the dream. Yet, he finished the year in Stockton and wasn't too happy to be there. In a side-note, Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet ranked Stockton "the worst place in the US" to live.
What's your take Lowetide?
I was disappointed with how poor he was this year after he showed well in his cup of coffee in '10. Danger of small samples either way, I guess. But I'll stick by my guy until the bitter end: I always thought he'd top out at a poor man's Sheldon Souray, slow but mean with a good PP shot, if he had the opportunity to show it. Hell, Souray didn't become Souray until he got his bionic wrist at about 26. But his skating's always been an issue (he only caught up to WHL speed in his last year), and if he doesn't work the absolute shit out of it in the summer, it's gonna be real hard to justify the Oilers' continued investment in him with the prospects waiting in the wings (to say nothing of justifying giving him PP or top-pairing time over the more fleet of foot). Plus, he's already been beaned at least three times that I can think of, and that seldom gets better with age as a physical defenceman.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see him make something of an NHL career, but I'm beginning to suspect that he's gonna one of those guys who's out of the game by 28 because of injury and speed with 20 NHL GP, tops, to his name.