Asham, Dyment, Rodidas & Chouinard

[HabbaDasher]

Hunters and peckers look at the keys.....

[franko]

HabbaDasher said:

Hunters and peckers look at the keys.....

Are you calling the Strummer a . . . hunter . . . for using caps?

[HabbaDasher]

now, now franko, be nice.... ;D

[Montrealer]

You know it's a slow news day when a mod's spanking of a user's excessive Caps use ten days ago is brought back to the foreground.

[HabbaDasher]

Shouldn't talk about the Caps be in the non-Hab NHL section?

[rhabdo]

do'NT PUNISH sTRUMMErMAN JUST BEcaUSE HE can'T always FInD THE sHIFT kEY.

[FormerLurker]

Montrealer said:

You know it's a slow news day when a mod's spanking of a user's excessive Caps use ten days ago is brought back to the foreground.

HFLA is notorious for reviving dead threads. This one was only 10 days old when he brought it back! Nothing's too stale for our friend HFLA.

[blaise]

FormerLurker said:

HFLA is notorious for reviving dead threads. This one was only 10 days old when he brought it back! Nothing's too stale for our friend HFLA.

You mean he's a cyberghoul? Or a cybervulture?

[PTH]

Doc_Holliday said:

Out of all these guys, I'd gladly take Asham back. I'd much rather have him than Dackell or Sundstrom for a 3rd/4th line role. The rest of them I don't really care for.

Hey, don't go now and break the "AS gave up on youth" front !

(I actually tend to agree the guys we lost were not great loss though. I miss Asham though. He'd be a great fit on the current lineup. We really lack a decent 3d line RW - Ward isn't fit to play a 1st rate defensive role, and Dackell and Sundstrom are too soft....

My ideal 3d line would be :
Bulis-Dowd-Asham

But we badly lack that 3d line RW, and have 2 guys (Bégin and Bulis) who could do the 3d line LW job. *sigh*

[insomnius]

I like cheese.

[Habs_fan_in_LA]

FormerLurker said:

HFLA is notorious for reviving dead threads. This one was only 10 days old when he brought it back! Nothing's too stale for our friend HFLA.

I represent that remark!

[blny]

PTH said:

I miss Asham though. He'd be a great fit on the current lineup. We really lack a decent 3d line RW - Ward isn't fit to play a 1st rate defensive role, and Dackell and Sundstrom are too soft....

My ideal 3d line would be :
Bulis-Dowd-Asham

Ward's play prior to injury in the playoffs shows he's plenty capable IMO. I don't see Asham as an improvement. He can fight, but that's about all he can do more/better than Ward.

[PTH]

BLNY said:

Ward's play prior to injury in the playoffs shows he's plenty capable IMO. I don't see Asham as an improvement. He can fight, but that's about all he can do more/better than Ward.

I disagree, WArd has shown himself to be quite "stiff" out there; he gets the job done but really can't benefit from the offensive chances that his grit gets him Asham was more polished, tougher, faster and had more of a scoring touch. Ward, IMO, is really just a 4th liner.

[Doc Holliday]

PTH said:

I disagree, WArd has shown himself to be quite "stiff" out there; he gets the job done but really can't benefit from the offensive chances that his grit gets him Asham was more polished, tougher, faster and had more of a scoring touch. Ward, IMO, is really just a 4th liner.

I agree. I've been a fierce Ward supporter and was even routing for him to be given a shot on a top line last summer. But his awfull skating will prevent him from playing a proeminant role, even a defensive one. Decent 4th liner with tons of character, hearth and grit. Asham is a better all around player but what was bugging me with Aaron is that he takes some nights off. Not many, but some...enough to make you go..mmmm! A guy like Laperriere could be on Gainey's most wanted list next summer.

[Habs_fan_in_LA]

Doc_Holliday said:

I agree. I've been a fierce Ward supporter and was even routing for him to be given a shot on a top line last summer. But his awfull skating will prevent him from playing a proeminant role, even a defensive one. Decent 4th liner with tons of character, hearth and grit. Asham is a better all around player but what was bugging me with Aaron is that he takes some nights off. Not many, but some...enough to make you go..mmmm! A guy like Laperriere could be on Gainey's most wanted list next summer.

There is one thing I really like about players who have proven themselves in lower leagues. They have the potential to be great.
Ward lead the AHL in scoring.
Balej led the AHL in scoring.
Locke led the OHL in scoring twice.
Thinnel, Ribeiro and Milroy were scoring machines.
It doesn't always translate into success in the NHL.
Houle was a much better scorer than Perrault or his good and great friend Tardif in Jr's.
When a player has proven himself and accomplished all that can be done at his current level, they have the potential to move on and do it at the next level.
My concern with Kastitsyn is that he has all the moves and talent, but has accomplished little at every level he's played in. I rank Locke far above Kastitsyn until PROVEN otherwise.

[montreal]

Habs_fan_in_LA said:

There is one thing I really like about players who have proven themselves in lower leagues. They have the potential to be great.
Ward lead the AHL in scoring.
Balej led the AHL in scoring.
Locke led the OHL in scoring twice.
Thinnel, Ribeiro and Milroy were scoring machines.
It doesn't always translate into success in the NHL.
Houle was a much better scorer than Perrault or his good and great friend Tardif in Jr's.
When a player has proven himself and accomplished all that can be done at his current level, they have the potential to move on and do it at the next level.
My concern with Kastitsyn is that he has all the moves and talent, but has accomplished little at every level he's played in. I rank Locke far above Kastitsyn until PROVEN otherwise.

Would it be wrong for me to say your nuts? No offense intended really, but if you watch Locke and you watch Kastsitsyn, and then if you still think Locke is far above, it's time to check into the rubber room. ;D

Forget stats, cause if you don't, Locke will look like one of the best players not in the NHL. I like Locke, he reminds me of a less cocky Ribeiro, but with the weak skating, slow first step, lack of foot speed. Locke and Ribeiro can slow the play down to their speed, but as we are seeing in the playoffs that becomes much more difficult, making them less effective.

Kastsitsyn has played in the WJC's since he was 15. He was the youngest player on the National team, but to say he's proven nothing? He destroyed the U-18's last year, and had a strong U-20 this year. He racked up the goals in the russian junior league, and has been an international scoring machine, playing in more tournaments then any euro prospect we have.

It's simple. Kastsitsyn has good size, skates very well, has good speed, and acceleration, a wicked shot and an all round offensive weapon. Think Perezhogin but bigger and more skilled. Locke could only dream of having the physical aspects of Kastsitsyn.

[BadCompany]

Not sure what you mean by accomplished very little at every level he has played in as that is clearly not the case. True, he accomplished very little at the Super League level, playing in just 11 games, under Victor Tikhonov, but for comparisons sake, Nikolai Zherdev accomplished very little under Tikhonov as well (playing on a line with Kastitsyin, at times), and he bolted to the NHL, where he scored 13 goals and 34 points in 57 games.

Meanwhile, once Kastitsyin was demoted to the Upper League, he dominated, averaging close to a GOAL a game. At one point he had 25 goals in 27 games (thanks for the stats Dan, any updates?). How does that compare to Thinel’s ECHL numbers? If that isn’t accomplishing something, I don’t know what is… At the Belarussian national level, he dominated the playoffs, he dominated on the World Junior Level, and he has dominated international tournaments left and right.

[rhabdo]

Habs_fan_in_LA said:

There is one thing I really like about players who have proven themselves in lower leagues. They have the potential to be great.
Ward lead the AHL in scoring.
Balej led the AHL in scoring.
Locke led the OHL in scoring twice.
Thinnel, Ribeiro and Milroy were scoring machines.
It doesn't always translate into success in the NHL.
Houle was a much better scorer than Perrault or his good and great friend Tardif in Jr's.
When a player has proven himself and accomplished all that can be done at his current level, they have the potential to move on and do it at the next level.
My concern with Kastitsyn is that he has all the moves and talent, but has accomplished little at every level he's played in. I rank Locke far above Kastitsyn until PROVEN otherwise.

Well, Kastsitsyn was drafted #10 and Locke ... somewhat further down . So either Savard is cuckoo or you are--of course, until PROVEN in the future.

[Habs_fan_in_LA]

montreal said:

Would it be wrong for me to say your nuts? No offense intended really, but if you watch Locke and you watch Kastsitsyn, and then if you still think Locke is far above, it's time to check into the rubber room. ;D

Forget stats, cause if you don't, Locke will look like one of the best players not in the NHL. I like Locke, he reminds me of a less cocky Ribeiro, but with the weak skating, slow first step, lack of foot speed. Locke and Ribeiro can slow the play down to their speed, but as we are seeing in the playoffs that becomes much more difficult, making them less effective.

Kastsitsyn has played in the WJC's since he was 15. He was the youngest player on the National team, but to say he's proven nothing? He destroyed the U-18's last year, and had a strong U-20 this year. He racked up the goals in the russian junior league, and has been an international scoring machine, playing in more tournaments then any euro prospect we have.

It's simple. Kastsitsyn has good size, skates very well, has good speed, and acceleration, a wicked shot and an all round offensive weapon. Think Perezhogin but bigger and more skilled. Locke could only dream of having the physical aspects of Kastsitsyn.

From Hockey's Future:

Kastitsyn

Stats


Year Team League GP G A Pts PIM
2000 Belarus U-18 6 0 0 0 4
2001 Belarus U-20 6 0 0 0 2
2001 Belarus U-20 d.1 5 7 7 14 8
2002 Belarus U-18 8 7 3 10 18
2002 Belarus U-20 6 3 0 3 2
2002-03 CSKA Super Lg. 6 0 0 0 2
2002-03 CSKA High Lg. 2 1 1 2 2
2002-03 CSKA-2 First Lg. 3 2 2 4 25
2003 Belarus V. Cup 3 1 1 2 4
2003 Belarus V. Cup2 3 2 0 2 4
2003 Belarus U-18 VEHL 3 3 8 11 12
2003 Belarus U-20 6 2 1 3 0
2003 Belarus U-18 6 6 9 15 28

Locke:

Year Club GP G A P +/- Pim
2001-02 Ottawa 55 18 25 43 +3 18
*Ottawa 13 6 6 12 E 10
2002-03 Ottawa 66 63 88 151 +47 83
*Ottawa 23 23 19 38 +14 30

Locke led the league in scoring two years in a row. It shows me that despite his lack of size and lack of speed, he finds ways to get the puck in the net. He's played a lot of games for the same team and coach and come through for them.
I don't mind being called nuts. In fact I hope I'm proven wrong and Kastitsyn outpoints Kovalchouk leading the Hab's to 10 consecutive Stanley Cups.
There is an intangible that winners have and potential superstars do not. There is a confidence that comes from success and accomplishment. The world is full of Wickenheiser examples that carried can't miss potential out of the NHL and never lived up to their hype. Players like Dagenais, Ribeiro, Locke, and Koivu had to overcome inherant flaws in their repertoire to gain success. Luc Robitaille, John Ferguson, Yvon Lambert, Terry Harper all had successful careers despite obvious flaws in their skating. Gretzky didn't have Lemieux's size and neither does Crosby. Some players overcome adversity and are better players because of it. One Hossa brother makes it immediately and his near twin hasn't yet (and maybe never will). Asham overachieved for his talents and Chouinard underachieved. Gainey and Savard are better judges of talent than I am and they both have much more exposure to the talent, but from where I sit, Locke is a lock and Kastitsyn is unproven. Sorry, but I won't call you nuts.

[legaspesien]

Habs_fan_in_LA said:

Locke led the league in scoring two years in a row. It shows me that despite his lack of size and lack of speed, he finds ways to get the puck in the net. He's played a lot of games for the same team and coach and come through for them.

Same was writhen about Ribs not to long ago

EDIT: and I miss Dyment

[Skilly]

I know Kastisyn is Belarussian, but could we not compare the stats of a Belarus league to the stats of a North American league?

I mean Kastisyn played for the Belarus team as a 15 yr old for a reason. Because there are not many elite players from Belarus! We could sit here all day and name maybe 3 from that country that made it to the NHL. (maybe an exageration) And just look at that countries national team, who else is going to play? Me? You Guys? I mean we'd probabaly make the cut!

Now I am not taking anything away from Kastisyn. He has the potential, and could be a keeper. But it isn't IMO a good starter to an arguement when someone says he dominated the Belarussian playoffs, and had 25 goals in the equivalent of our Junior tier II league because I would expect that from an NHL quality player.

[habwest]

Nobody major was involved, it's all history, time to move on. Yawn.

[montreal]

Habs_fan_in_LA said:

Locke led the league in scoring two years in a row. It shows me that despite his lack of size and lack of speed, he finds ways to get the puck in the net. He's played a lot of games for the same team and coach and come through for them.
I don't mind being called nuts. In fact I hope I'm proven wrong and Kastitsyn outpoints Kovalchouk leading the Hab's to 10 consecutive Stanley Cups.
There is an intangible that winners have and potential superstars do not. There is a confidence that comes from success and accomplishment. The world is full of Wickenheiser examples that carried can't miss potential out of the NHL and never lived up to their hype. Players like Dagenais, Ribeiro, Locke, and Koivu had to overcome inherant flaws in their repertoire to gain success. Luc Robitaille, John Ferguson, Yvon Lambert, Terry Harper all had successful careers despite obvious flaws in their skating. Gretzky didn't have Lemieux's size and neither does Crosby. Some players overcome adversity and are better players because of it. One Hossa brother makes it immediately and his near twin hasn't yet (and maybe never will). Asham overachieved for his talents and Chouinard underachieved. Gainey and Savard are better judges of talent than I am and they both have much more exposure to the talent, but from where I sit, Locke is a lock and Kastitsyn is unproven. Sorry, but I won't call you nuts.

But what Locke doesn't have Kastsitsyn does. Size, speed, skating, heavy shot. He may not work as hard, but Kastsitsyn has all the tools you want to see in an offensive player. Locke has done a great job against 16-19 year olds, and his skating/speed get by in the OHL, but the question is if he can do in against professionals. Not many 5'9 players make it, but even less make it when they aren't fast or great skaters. Locke can overcome a lot of these, but I can't see how someone could watch both of them and say Locke is in the same ballpark.

I like Locke, he's highly skilled, but also has several holes in his game that must be addressed. Will he address them, I think he will. But Kastsitsyn already has these parts of his game, he's just miles behind on the defenisve side of it. Kastsitsyn may be the best prospect I've seen in the Habs organization for a long time.

No one can say who will be better, it's all just opinions, but the only thing I can say is watch them both play.


Kastsitsyn as far as I know is done for the season, no more hockey till hopefully rookie camp. ;D

[montreal]

Skilly said:

I know Kastisyn is Belarussian, but could we not compare the stats of a Belarus league to the stats of a North American league?

I mean Kastisyn played for the Belarus team as a 15 yr old for a reason. Because there are not many elite players from Belarus! We could sit here all day and name maybe 3 from that country that made it to the NHL. (maybe an exageration) And just look at that countries national team, who else is going to play? Me? You Guys? I mean we'd probabaly make the cut!

Now I am not taking anything away from Kastisyn. He has the potential, and could be a keeper. But it isn't IMO a good starter to an arguement when someone says he dominated the Belarussian playoffs, and had 25 goals in the equivalent of our Junior tier II league because I would expect that from an NHL quality player.

So even though Belarus was part of Russia, their league is crap? Belarus has played against the top hockey countries in the world, so they must be doing something right. In the recent WC, Kastsitsyn was one of 2 junior aged players on his team that had 2 NHLers on it, yet was one of the top scorers on his team.

As for him racking up 25 goals in 27 games for CSKA-2, that's impressive cause it shows consistency. Kovalchuk never played a game in the RSL, and they have a somewhat similar style (minus the size advantage).

I would take Kastsitsyn over any player in the junior B leagues anyday of the week. I don't see how the first league compares to junior B at all.

[Habs_fan_in_LA]

Habs_fan_in_LA said:

There is one thing I really like about players who have proven themselves in lower leagues. They have the potential to be great.
Ward lead the AHL in scoring.
Balej led the AHL in scoring.
Locke led the OHL in scoring twice.
Thinnel, Ribeiro and Milroy were scoring machines.
It doesn't always translate into success in the NHL.
Houle was a much better scorer than Perrault or his good and great friend Tardif in Jr's.
When a player has proven himself and accomplished all that can be done at his current level, they have the potential to move on and do it at the next level.
My concern with Kastitsyn is that he has all the moves and talent, but has accomplished little at every level he's played in. I rank Locke far above Kastitsyn until PROVEN otherwise.

I didn't make the above comment to denegrate Kastitsyn. As far as I'm concerned he is a ton of talent waiting to sprout.
I am simply saying that players who have obvious flaws in their games and have overcome their limitations to produce show a certain strength of character and work ethic.
Locke is really special. He is great on faceoffs, drives himself to be #1, shows leadership and captaincy, makes the most of good teamates and suceeds with mediocre teamates. He has soft hands and doesn't let his size stop him from getting into traffic. He slips through traffic rather than knocking players down.
Reminds me very much of Ribeiro but with better attitude.
You really have to watch Locke to appreciate his creativity. You have to look beyond his size and footspeed.

[Skilly]

montreal said:

So even though Belarus was part of Russia, their league is crap? Belarus has played against the top hockey countries in the world, so they must be doing something right. In the recent WC, Kastsitsyn was one of 2 junior aged players on his team that had 2 NHLers on it, yet was one of the top scorers on his team.

As for him racking up 25 goals in 27 games for CSKA-2, that's impressive cause it shows consistency. Kovalchuk never played a game in the RSL, and they have a somewhat similar style (minus the size advantage).

I would take Kastsitsyn over any player in the junior B leagues anyday of the week. I don't see how the first league compares to junior B at all.

I never said Kastsitsyn was a bad player, just he hasn't played against any "good" competition. I also never said that Kastsitsyn wasn't the best Belarussian player (In fact he probably is the best Belarussian player ever), but Belarus is a very weak sister on the international hockey scene.

Latvia, Austria, Ukraine, Denmark, Kazakastan, and France are all reanked higher in the wrold rankings than Belarus.

Belarus just won the WSIA grouping and Slovenia just won the WSIB grouping so they will be promoted to the WS division next year with Canada et al, after tthe two teams from WS get relagated. So next year we will see how Kastsitsyn performs against "better quality" players (I say better because the best NHLers don't go due to playoffs, but good ones do). I sincerely hope that he is in the NHl or AHL next year and not in Belarus, but odds are he will be in the WS tourney. And I fear the country may keep him there and not let him come over just for that tourney, because they won't want to be relagated and if Montreal/Hamilton make the playoffs he may not be able to play for his country.

Now Belarus played in the WSIB under 20 tourney. That is the second tier and won with Kastsitsyn on the roster. So they are promoted there as well to the top tier. Belarus is making a name for itself slowly but surley but the competition he is playing against is not very good. (In the under 20 tourney he played against the hockey powerhouses of Estonia, France, Norway, Italy and Japan)

And in the WC tourney he played against Norway, Netherlands, Great Britain, Belgium, and Hungary. Again from those countries we probably can only name a few NHLers. (Epsen Knutsen, Byron Dafoe, Owen Nolan and that's it. And only Knutsen plays for his home country.)

I will wait to see how he does against better competition before I pass judgement on him, but to compare those tourneys to the OHL, WHL QMJHL ..... well there is no comparison in my opinion.

[Montrealer]

Skilly said:

I will wait to see how he does against better competition before I pass judgement on him, but to compare those tourneys to the OHL, WHL QMJHL ..... well there is no comparison in my opinion.

Good point, but comparing CSKA-2 to the CHL leagues is absolutely fine by me.

[montreal]

Skilly said:

I never said Kastsitsyn was a bad player, just he hasn't played against any "good" competition. I also never said that Kastsitsyn wasn't the best Belarussian player (In fact he probably is the best Belarussian player ever), but Belarus is a very weak sister on the international hockey scene.

Latvia, Austria, Ukraine, Denmark, Kazakastan, and France are all reanked higher in the wrold rankings than Belarus.

Belarus just won the WSIA grouping and Slovenia just won the WSIB grouping so they will be promoted to the WS division next year with Canada et al, after tthe two teams from WS get relagated. So next year we will see how Kastsitsyn performs against "better quality" players (I say better because the best NHLers don't go due to playoffs, but good ones do). I sincerely hope that he is in the NHl or AHL next year and not in Belarus, but odds are he will be in the WS tourney. And I fear the country may keep him there and not let him come over just for that tourney, because they won't want to be relagated and if Montreal/Hamilton make the playoffs he may not be able to play for his country.

Now Belarus played in the WSIB under 20 tourney. That is the second tier and won with Kastsitsyn on the roster. So they are promoted there as well to the top tier. Belarus is making a name for itself slowly but surley but the competition he is playing against is not very good. (In the under 20 tourney he played against the hockey powerhouses of Estonia, France, Norway, Italy and Japan)

And in the WC tourney he played against Norway, Netherlands, Great Britain, Belgium, and Hungary. Again from those countries we probably can only name a few NHLers. (Epsen Knutsen, Byron Dafoe, Owen Nolan and that's it. And only Knutsen plays for his home country.)

I will wait to see how he does against better competition before I pass judgement on him, but to compare those tourneys to the OHL, WHL QMJHL ..... well there is no comparison in my opinion.

But, Belarus played against the top countries just 2 years ago, then got regulated, where they won their division, and will go back to playing the top teams. Kastsitsyn has played against Canada, USA, Finland, etc... so he has played against tough competititon. Just cause it wasn't this year, he has in the past. Kastsitsyn has also played 17 games in the RSL, which is way above the CHL, so he's faced higher competition there, although he has only 1 point to show for it, but he was also on the 4th line. Still he's faced good players at different levels, not always playing Denmark, GB, Italy, Norway etc..


And I heard that Tiknhov has resigned from CSKA, but no offical word, just hearsay.

[montreal]

Habs_fan_in_LA said:

You really have to watch Locke to appreciate his creativity. You have to look beyond his size and footspeed.

I've got 5 or 6 games of Locke, and you cann't look past his size and speed cause it jumps out. He gets away with it in the OHL, and maybe in the AHL, but we'll have to see, hopefully next year.

I have spoken with the head scout of ISS several times about Locke and his lack of size/skating. I felt that his skating and speed aren't as bad as others make it out to be, but he's going to have to get a lot better to create room for himself. He does remind me of Ribeiro but not as cocky and better in his own end and a harder worker and better shot.

[BadCompany]

Skilly said:

I never said Kastsitsyn was a bad player, just he hasn't played against any "good" competition. I also never said that Kastsitsyn wasn't the best Belarussian player (In fact he probably is the best Belarussian player ever), but Belarus is a very weak sister on the international hockey scene.

Well, he did play in the Super League, which is Russia’s highest league, and then he totally dominated his Super League’s farm club with, as mentioned, 25 goals in 27 games, at one point. Certainly you would agree that Russian Super League Farm Clubs have some pretty good talent in them?

Skilly said:

Latvia, Austria, Ukraine, Denmark, Kazakastan, and France are all reanked higher in the wrold rankings than Belarus.

Where did you see these rankings?

Belarus played at the Junior World Championships in Halifax last year, and finished last, which is why they got relegated to Division B (or II, or whatever it is). Kastitsyin, by all accounts, played great in that tournament, against teams like Canada, Russia, the US, and so on.

This year, in Division B (II, whatever) Belarus – and Kastitsyin – romped, finished first, and will be back with the big boys next year. Teams like Latvia and Denmark never came close to playing in Division 1, let alone twice in 3 years (or 3 in 4 years, what have you).

Belarus was also ranked sufficiently high enough to have earned a berth to the Salt Lake City Olympics. Or have you forgotten the infamous Tommy Salo goal? Kastitsyin wasn’t on that team, but his country was good enough to be there, indicating a pretty high level of talent throughout the state. France, Ukraine, Latvia and all weren’t there, nor were they close.

Skilly said:

Belarus just won the WSIA grouping and Slovenia just won the WSIB grouping so they will be promoted to the WS division next year with Canada et al, after tthe two teams from WS get relagated. So next year we will see how Kastsitsyn performs against "better quality" players (I say better because the best NHLers don't go due to playoffs, but good ones do). I sincerely hope that he is in the NHl or AHL next year and not in Belarus, but odds are he will be in the WS tourney. And I fear the country may keep him there and not let him come over just for that tourney, because they won't want to be relagated and if Montreal/Hamilton make the playoffs he may not be able to play for his country.

Kastitsyin has already played against this “better” competition you keep talking about.

And whether or not Kastitsyin comes over to North America won’t be determined by his country, Belarus, but by his Russian Super League team, CSKA, to whom he is under contract. If they let him go, then he will be here. If they insist that he honor his contract, then he will not. The agreement the NHL has with the Russian Hockey Federation has expired, and it expired with some bad blood between the two associations. The Russians fought long and hard to keep Nikolai Zherdev in Russia, and only an international court judgment allowed him to play for Columbus. I don’t think they will be in a forgiving move with regards to Kat.

Skilly said:

Now Belarus played in the WSIB under 20 tourney. That is the second tier and won with Kastsitsyn on the roster. So they are promoted there as well to the top tier. Belarus is making a name for itself slowly but surley but the competition he is playing against is not very good. (In the under 20 tourney he played against the hockey powerhouses of Estonia, France, Norway, Italy and Japan)

Not slowly but surely – they’ve already been there. If anything, they took a step backwards.

From the NHL’s summary of the World Junior Championships, in Halifax:

Andrei Kastsitsyn, Belarus: He could be sleeper of the upcoming draft. With very little in the way of supporting players around him, he dominated each and every shift he took at the World Junior Championship, despite taking a constant mugging. If Belarus had more players like him, or more who tried as hard as he did, then the country would have not gone winless and been relegated to the world B Pool.

www.nhl.com/intheslot/read/juniors/wjc/top10_010503.html

(Here is what they had said about him before the tournament started:

One player of note is Andrei Kastsitsyn. He scored three goals when Belarus beat Canada 5-3 at the World U18 championships in April. Since then he has moved to Moscow where he plays for Viktor Tikhonov's Red Army team. He's a shifty and gifted scorer who can burn you with his hands or his speed. )

From RedLine Report, reviewing the same tournament:

Our choice for biggest gainer on the charts is Andrei Kastsitsyn, the Belarussian winger who generally arrives at the net with all the speed and subtlety of a freight train. He was already high on our list, but after his valiant effort for a brutally undermanned squad, there's no way we can keep him out of our top 10, so he enters at #6.

www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/columnist/woodlief/2003-01-27-woodlief_x.htm

Red Line, by the way, ranked him as the best player in the draft (ahead of Zherdev, Staal, Horton etc.) and said that if it weren’t for his epilepsy he would have been ranked much higher.

Skilly said:

I will wait to see how he does against better competition before I pass judgement on him, but to compare those tourneys to the OHL, WHL QMJHL ..... well there is no comparison in my opinion.

As you can see, he HAS played against stiff competition, and he played extremely well. His name was made playing against the Big Boys of international hockey, not against the Denmarks and Frances… As Montreal said, surely you would agree that the farm clubs of the best teams in Russia provide very good competition?