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Post by NWTHabsFan on Feb 13, 2005 0:01:45 GMT -5
Well, it looks like the free spending Siberians are interesting in Grabovsky or some of his team-mates as Ak Bars tries to get stronger for the playoffs later this season. Getting into the top twenty in scoring in the RSL as a recently turned 21 year old is getting folks' attention. -Russian Prospects Link- |
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Post by M. Beaux-Eaux on Feb 13, 2005 5:05:25 GMT -5
From the article: Grabovsky is a Montreal Canadiens prospect who leads Neftkhimik in scoring with 28 points (12G+16A), despite being periodically shuttled between various lines. Both Grabovsky and Perezhogin are producing impressively in the RSL despite less than prime time line assignments, and one assumes ice time. Puts me in mind of a young Belarussian fellow in Hamilton...but I digress (and I do that so well). From a recent Mathias Brunet article: Center Mikhail Grabovsky could be the next to come to North America. The 20 year old has amassed 21 points in 41 games with Neftekhimik, which places him among the top 25 RSL scorers. Grabovsky was drafted in the fourth round in 2004, after being ignored by NHL teams for two years.
"I will recommend that the Canadiens offer a contract to him this summer so that he can continue his development in Hamilton next year", Vakourov mentions. "I like Grabovsky very much. He has a lot of offensive talent and is super-fast. The only question mark remaining is his size. He's 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighs 185 pounds. Tomas Plekanec of the Bulldogs, is a success in the AHL and is no taller than him but has an advantage of 15 pounds. I am curious to see how Grabovsky will react to North America. He could be very good."- tinyurl.com/5bn33 |
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Post by NWTHabsFan on Feb 14, 2005 0:50:25 GMT -5
Grabovsky has kept busy during his RSL break as he played for Belarus in the Olympic Qualifying event, Group B, to decide one of the three remaining hockey qualifiers for the Turin games. Good news bad news for Mikhail, as he ended up top scorer in his group with 7 pts in 3 games and was the Group B MVP, but Belarus lost a close 5-4 decision to Latvia in the final game, which now sends Latvia to Turin. -IIHF stats-Another Hab player, Christobal Huet, was playing for France in Group C, and was named that Group MVP as well despite his team not qualifying. |
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Post by Tattac on Feb 14, 2005 3:20:13 GMT -5
I am still puzzled to why some people keep calling Ak Bars a Siberian team. Is it a joke or what?  In the RSL forth lines play much more than forth lines in the NHL. I watched the Russia-Czech republic game yesterday and they said that Grabovsky had already signed with Ak Bars. |
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Post by HabbaDasher on Feb 14, 2005 9:37:25 GMT -5
Grabovsky is starting to look like a smart pick by the Habs..
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Post by M. Beaux-Eaux on Feb 14, 2005 9:44:56 GMT -5
In the RSL forth lines play much more than forth lines in the NHL. Interesting. As you know, the standard line composition for NHL teams is as follows: 1st line - offensive 2nd line - offensive 3rd line - defensive/rookie 4th line - "energy"/intimidation/"Siberia"/injury rehabilitation/rookie How do the 4 lines compare in composition in the RSL? |
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Post by NWTHabsFan on Feb 14, 2005 15:37:24 GMT -5
I am still puzzled to why some people keep calling Ak Bars a Siberian team. Is it a joke or what? In the RSL forth lines play much more than forth lines in the NHL. I watched the Russia-Czech republic game yesterday and they said that Grabovsky had already signed with Ak Bars. Siberian reference is a joke. Kazan is well west of the Urals. The White Panthers are just getting stronger. Another note on Habs' links to the IIHF Olympic playdowns is that Mark Streit played for Switzerland in Group A. He ended up tied for top scoring for defencemen in his group with 3 pts in 3 games, and was the Player of the Game for one of his games. |
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Post by Tattac on Feb 15, 2005 6:50:08 GMT -5
It looks like they were wrong. Grabovsky is not mentioned on any transfer lists.
As far as I know, there is practically no such composition in Russian hockey (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th lines). Russian choaches don't concentrate all offensive talent of their team in the first two lines, they disperse it over all four lines. So there are four lines which are basically equal. The 4th line can be weaker because one of the rookies usually play there (there is an obligation to have two juniors on a team). One of them (under 20 y/o) usually plays on the 4th offinsive line, the other one plays in the 4th pair of defenders (like Emelin).
It short it looks as follows:
1st line=2nd line=3rd line - offensive
4th line - offensive/rookie/injury rehabilitation
As you see there are no "energy" and "intimidation" lines.
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Post by M. Beaux-Eaux on Feb 15, 2005 11:50:17 GMT -5
As far as I know, there is practically no such composition in Russian hockey (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th lines). Russian choaches don't concentrate all offensive talent of their team in the first two lines, they disperse it over all four lines. So there are four lines which are basically equal. The 4th line can be weaker because one of the rookies usually play there (there is an obligation to have two juniors on a team). One of them (under 20 y/o) usually plays on the 4th offinsive line, the other one plays in the 4th pair of defenders (like Emelin). It short it looks as follows: 1st line=2nd line=3rd line - offensive 4th line - offensive/rookie/injury rehabilitation Thanks for clearing that up Hmmm, a style of play that relies on skill throughout the lineup, there's a concept...  |
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Post by NWTHabsFan on Feb 15, 2005 19:50:39 GMT -5
As far as I know, there is practically no such composition in Russian hockey (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th lines). Russian choaches don't concentrate all offensive talent of their team in the first two lines, they disperse it over all four lines. So there are four lines which are basically equal. The 4th line can be weaker because one of the rookies usually play there (there is an obligation to have two juniors on a team). One of them (under 20 y/o) usually plays on the 4th offinsive line, the other one plays in the 4th pair of defenders (like Emelin). It short it looks as follows: 1st line=2nd line=3rd line - offensive 4th line - offensive/rookie/injury rehabilitation As you see there are no "energy" and "intimidation" lines. I have always been intrigued by the concept of requiring a team to field two "juniors" or players under a certain age. It has my vote and would require some teams to modify their approaches. Even Montreal would likely need to bring some players up a little sooner than normal, but it would level the playing field a bit and would reward teams for developing players from within the organization rather than just signing free agent vets. Montreal is clearly in the category of a team that stresses amateur player scouting, selection and development (or a team that is getting better at it than they did in the 90's). |
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