I see alot of Kucherov or Pat Kane in Stenbergs game though. And his game hasn't been elite only at this tourney either, he's lighting up the SEL as well. The kid will be special I'm sure of it
Petey lit up the SHL as a rookie too. Just sayin'.....
And he is an 80-100 point player. Overpaid yes by today's standards but not in 3 years.
He's pacing for 62 points right now.
Last year he paced for 57 points.
In 4 of his first 6 years he paced for 74 (ish) points.
He was an 80-100 point player in exactly 2 of his 8 years.
75% of the time he is not an 80-100 point player.
Somewhere in NW BC trying (yet again) to trade a(nother) Swede…..
I totally get the fear with Swedes in general after some of our misfires and whatever's happened to Petey (I too am hoping to fill our new roster with more local talent). But while I get it, I don't totally agree with it. I'd hate to miss out on the next Peter Forsberg because of bias (not suggesting there's a Forsberg this year but you know what I mean). Stenberg could be a Laine or Puljujarvi... but what if he's the stud of the draft? Could shake out that way for all we know. Just hope to God our scouts get this one right and if he's the bpa whereever we're selecting, we have to go for it.
Btw, I wonder if we can call it Canadian grit anymore after getting out-gritted by euro teams the past 3 WJC's.
Gotta take BPA and then if you need changes do it by developing and trading.
There’s a big difference in what you get back after trading Quinn Hughes instead of Filip Zadina.
Not saying I know who the best player is long term, but Sternberg look good in this tourney.
“Gentlemen, you can't fight in here. This is the war room.”
- President Merkin Muffley
I see alot of Kucherov or Pat Kane in Stenbergs game though. And his game hasn't been elite only at this tourney either, he's lighting up the SEL as well. The kid will be special I'm sure of it
Petey lit up the SHL as a rookie too. Just sayin'.....
And he is an 80-100 point player. Overpaid yes by today's standards but not in 3 years.
He's pacing for 62 points right now.
Last year he paced for 57 points.
In 4 of his first 6 years he paced for 74 (ish) points.
He was an 80-100 point player in exactly 2 of his 8 years.
75% of the time he is not an 80-100 point player.
Petey is an anomaly. I can't think of a single comparable player who dropped off so significantly and suddenly. The kid had a winning pedigree and was overlooked because of his size. The early consensus was that he was a steal at 5 and for a few years, the best player in the draft (I think it was still debatable until Makar's second or third year). In the first few years, yes he was only a PPG player but he was on the rise and played well in big moments (do you guys remember how good he was in the bubble playoffs against Vegas?).
His 100 pt season felt inevitable. He was on pace to smash that total the next year at the halfway point, then out of nowhere he completely disappears the rest of the seasons and he hasn't been the same player since. I won't rehash the whole "injury" vs. "in between the ears" argument but the suddenness of his drop-off still confuses me today.
So in short, I think dominating the SHL is still really valuable and that wouldn't scare me off a prospect. I don't really know what to expect out of the top prospects though. Seems like a deep enough draft this year but lacking a clear consensus number 1. Too bad as well there it's weak at centre too.
rockalt wrote: ↑Wed Jan 07, 2026 2:10 pm
Petey is an anomaly. I can't think of a single comparable player who dropped off so significantly and suddenly. The kid had a winning pedigree and was overlooked because of his size. The early consensus was that he was a steal at 5 and for a few years, the best player in the draft (I think it was still debatable until Makar's second or third year). In the first few years, yes he was only a PPG player but he was on the rise and played well in big moments (do you guys remember how good he was in the bubble playoffs against Vegas?).
His 100 pt season felt inevitable. He was on pace to smash that total the next year at the halfway point, then out of nowhere he completely disappears the rest of the seasons and he hasn't been the same player since. I won't rehash the whole "injury" vs. "in between the ears" argument but the suddenness of his drop-off still confuses me today.
Agreed. Mëds pointed out accurately that he produced elite numbers for only a quarter of his career, but it's really only the past two calendar years, the head scratching drop off, that anyone should have a problem with. Even the years leading up to the 'elite' years he played like an elite player. In fact, I'd have no problem if we could get that guy back, a 30 goal, 70+ point player who brought it every night making 11.6 is pretty palatable imo. He's shown signs of it this year but it's the consistency with the effort and the perimeter tendencies is what's most baffling to me after what we saw the first 5/6 years.
Braeden Cootes giving praise to undrafted 19 yr. old Ethan MacKenzie in a interview with Drance today. 6'0 LD, wonder if he'll be available for Canucks 2nd rd. pick?
Drance & his guest discussing lack of C's in the top 10, felt there were lots in the 10 - 60 slots.
If Canucks draft well they could be on track for a successful 28 - 29 season.
dangler wrote: ↑Wed Jan 07, 2026 3:44 pm
Braeden Cootes giving praise to undrafted 19 yr. old Ethan MacKenzie in a interview with Drance today. 6'0 LD, wonder if he'll be available for Canucks 2nd rd. pick?
Drance & his guest discussing lack of C's in the top 10, felt there were lots in the 10 - 60 slots.
If Canucks draft well they could be on track for a successful 28 - 29 season.
If we end up picking Verhoeff, I would be totally with it if we use the latter picks on centers. If not BPA then go BCA.
Nuckertuzzi wrote: ↑Wed Jan 07, 2026 3:46 pm
This would be more notable if it wasn't the 3 (soon to be 4, if not already) best players in the world.
Hmmm...we're talking about a top paid player in the game who demanded that level of pay and a month's worth of stats compared to a half a season.
I believe it to be topical....
No, you're right, it is. It's just that as disappointed as we are in Petey, it's a little much to compare him to 4 absolute Supermen. That's a whole other tier. I don't think anybody expected that even before his drop off. Agree though, very disappointing production and overall performance, can't argue there.
dangler wrote: ↑Wed Jan 07, 2026 3:44 pm
Braeden Cootes giving praise to undrafted 19 yr. old Ethan MacKenzie in a interview with Drance today. 6'0 LD, wonder if he'll be available for Canucks 2nd rd. pick?
Drance & his guest discussing lack of C's in the top 10, felt there were lots in the 10 - 60 slots.
If Canucks draft well they could be on track for a successful 28 - 29 season.
If we end up picking Verhoeff, I would be totally with it if we use the latter picks on centers. If not BPA then go BCA.
If top 3 it's a pick'em of Verhoeff, McKenna, Stenberg. Any 1 of them would be great.
After that you need the scouting dept. to find some top 6 talent
