David Clarkson

[Heroic Shrimp]

Lazy skating, clueless in the defensive zone and pretty much a non-factor in terms of creating a physical presence.

He was most definitely a factor by creating a physical presence right in front of Reimer.

His screen of Reimer was sensational in the 2nd period.  He completely quit on keeping up with his defender and just coasted directly in front of the net taking absolutely noone.

So I think if we can get Clarkson screening the right goalie and Phaneuf hitting the right players we'll be good.

 

[mc]

Lazy skating, clueless in the defensive zone and pretty much a non-factor in terms of creating a physical presence.

He was most definitely a factor by creating a physical presence right in front of Reimer.

His screen of Reimer was sensational in the 2nd period.  He completely quit on keeping up with his defender and just coasted directly in front of the net taking absolutely noone.

So I think if we can get Clarkson screening the right goalie and Phaneuf hitting the right players we'll be good.

I can screen Reimer for say 900K a year. Heck I'll do it for minimum salary.

 

[Optimus Reimer]

Even though I believe Nonis overpaid for Clarkson I still want to see what he can do during the playoffs.  If he wil be the type of player that will help the Leafs during the playoffs then that would make up for what he did not do for the Leafs during the regular season.  If he is the same player during the playoffs as in the regular season then the signing was a complete bust (IMHO) and Nonis should be thinking about waiving him or do something to keep him out of the lineup next season.

 

[Zee]

Even though I believe Nonis overpaid for Clarkson I still want to see what he can do during the playoffs.  If he wil be the type of player that will help the Leafs during the playoffs then that would make up for what he did not do for the Leafs during the regular season.  If he is the same player during the playoffs as in the regular season then the signing was a complete bust (IMHO) and Nonis should be thinking about waiving him or do something to keep him out of the lineup next season.

At this point he'll have to have a 1993 Wendel Clark like playoff performance to make up for this season.

 

[Jalili]

So what's up? Why was Clarkson named as such a sought after FA this off-season? I think the answer lies in what is sort of an old bugaboo with me in terms of how players are evaluated where guys who do something that fits a certain archetype of a player are then assumed to have other qualities that are related to that. So, for instance, a defenseman who is a big guy and throws big hits gets more credit for his "tough, physical" play and his actual defensive liabilities get overlooked(say, like Dion Phaneuf) or, in Clarkson's case, a forward who will fight will be assumed to be the sort of gritty, forechecking sort even if that doesn't really conform to the facts.

This is a really good point. Defensemen that provide physicality are often mistakenly presumed by fans to be good defensively. The reverse happens for D-men that are more cerebral and rely on stickwork & positioning; it takes way longer for them to receive credit for being good defensively.

As for Clarkson, one thing I've heard Devils fans remark about him - that might clear up our misconceptions about him - is that the way he played when he first broke into the league was very different from the sort of player he became in his latter days as a Devil.

When Clarkson's goal scoring increased he changed a lot as a player and lost a lot of the qualities that made him valuable.

Sort of like if Komarov scored 10-15 goals for the Leafs as a banner year, and decides he'd rather be a more offensive-minded player and abandons the style that made him effective. You're no longer getting the player you thought you were getting even if, superficially, the guy still fighting once in a while and logging a few hits.

 

[wnc096]

Sort of like if Komarov scored 10-15 goals for the Leafs as a banner year, and decides he'd rather be a more offensive-minded player and abandons the style that made him effective. You're no longer getting the player you thought you were getting even if, superficially, the guy still fighting once in a while and logging a few hits.

It's like that year Tie Domi scored like 15 goals....he legitimately believed he was a scoring second-line player

 

[freer]

Sort of like if Komarov scored 10-15 goals for the Leafs as a banner year, and decides he'd rather be a more offensive-minded player and abandons the style that made him effective. You're no longer getting the player you thought you were getting even if, superficially, the guy still fighting once in a while and logging a few hits.

It's like that year Tie Domi scored like 15 goals....he legitimately believed he was a scoring second-line player

I can remember a Sundin quote "where he stated he thought Tie could be a 20 goal scored" unquote. 

 

[mc]

Darcy Tucker in his later years believed he was a first line winger and played that way. Still getting paid for it.

 

[Chev-boyar-sky]

Let me join both sides in this. I've been totally unimpressed with him this year. A complete failure so far at any salary IMO.

I've also been unimpressed with his fights. I could've sworn I remember him going toe-to-toe with Orr or Rosehill and Schenn a few years ago and looking like a legitimate fighter. I think he won both fights or at the worst ended up with a pretty solid draw. This year? It's all been grab on and wrestle type "fights" where he ends up underneath the guy he's fighting from what I've seen. I've also been unimpressed with his hitting ability/using his body. The one thing that's impressed me that he hasn't done enough of (or his line isn't suited to that style of play), is controlling the puck along the boards in the offensive zone.

All that said, I do believe he can turn it around to an extent. I think 15 goals is reasonable, but the contract will never be a good one.

 

[Jalili]

Yeah Clarkson actually fought Phaneuf in Dion's first shift as a Maple Leaf (IIRC he tried to level Parise and Clarkson stood up for him as he was the Devils franchise player)...

 

[Kin]

Even though I believe Nonis overpaid for Clarkson I still want to see what he can do during the playoffs.  If he wil be the type of player that will help the Leafs during the playoffs then that would make up for what he did not do for the Leafs during the regular season.

I don't really get this line of thinking. Has there ever been a player you can recall who was as bad as Clarkson was this season but who was then good in the playoffs? He's got terrible playoff numbers in his career so where's the idea that he's a playoff warrior coming from? I get the veteran guy with physical play can be a positive guy to have in the playoffs but those guys tend to be pretty good regular season players too.

 

[Rebel_1812]

The new jersey coach, Deboer thinks thinks snowballed on clarkson and that he will play better next year.

 

[TML fan]

Even though I believe Nonis overpaid for Clarkson I still want to see what he can do during the playoffs.  If he wil be the type of player that will help the Leafs during the playoffs then that would make up for what he did not do for the Leafs during the regular season.

I don't really get this line of thinking. Has there ever been a player you can recall who was as bad as Clarkson was this season but who was then good in the playoffs? He's got terrible playoff numbers in his career so where's the idea that he's a playoff warrior coming from? I get the veteran guy with physical play can be a positive guy to have in the playoffs but those guys tend to be pretty good regular season players too.

Lonny Bohonos in '99 comes to mind. He couldn't crack the roster that year but was a PPG player in the playoffs. It's not quite the same thing but evidence that a player can catch lightning in a bottle. Best we can hope for at this point with Clarkson.

 

[Kin]

Lonny Bohonos in '99 comes to mind. He couldn't crack the roster that year but was a PPG player in the playoffs. It's not quite the same thing but evidence that a player can catch lightning in a bottle. Best we can hope for at this point with Clarkson.

Except Bohonos only "couldn't crack the roster" by virtue of being a scoring forward without much to add to the bottom 6. He had a very good AHL season and produced in his time with the big club. Getting thrust into a different role is very different from going from a liability every night to an asset.

 

[IJustLurkHere]

Even though I believe Nonis overpaid for Clarkson I still want to see what he can do during the playoffs.  If he wil be the type of player that will help the Leafs during the playoffs then that would make up for what he did not do for the Leafs during the regular season.

I don't really get this line of thinking. Has there ever been a player you can recall who was as bad as Clarkson was this season but who was then good in the playoffs? He's got terrible playoff numbers in his career so where's the idea that he's a playoff warrior coming from? I get the veteran guy with physical play can be a positive guy to have in the playoffs but those guys tend to be pretty good regular season players too.

Shayne Corson?

Would have been around 2001, was useless in the regular season, then went out and blanketed Yashin in the playoffs, from where he became a moderately useful shutdown guy.

 

[Kin]

Shayne Corson?

Would have been around 2001, was useless in the regular season, then went out and blanketed Yashin in the playoffs, from where he became a moderately useful shutdown guy.

My recollection, and take it for what it's worth, is that Corson was always a pretty effective penalty killer/physical presence on the third line that year and the perception of him as useless mainly came from it being his first year with the team and people expecting more offense from him.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I don't even get how Nonis could even make an argument for the contract Clarkson received.  It's like they literally didn't scout him and gave him the deal based on that 30 goal season and with an assumption that he was a physical goal scorer.  He creates nothing at all for himself or anyone else, it's pretty remarkable.

 

[Kin]

I don't even get how Nonis could even make an argument for the contract Clarkson received.  It's like they literally didn't scout him and gave him the deal based on that 30 goal season and with an assumption that he was a physical goal scorer.

I mean, the idea that Clarkson was the most attractive free agent on the market wasn't a Nonis creation. Both TSN and Sportsnet labeled him as such. There was an oversight there but it seemed to hit the entire hockey world.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

I don't even get how Nonis could even make an argument for the contract Clarkson received.  It's like they literally didn't scout him and gave him the deal based on that 30 goal season and with an assumption that he was a physical goal scorer.  He creates nothing at all for himself or anyone else, it's pretty remarkable.

But Nonis said they don't expect him to score 30 goals!

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I don't even get how Nonis could even make an argument for the contract Clarkson received.  It's like they literally didn't scout him and gave him the deal based on that 30 goal season and with an assumption that he was a physical goal scorer.

I mean, the idea that Clarkson was the most attractive free agent on the market wasn't a Nonis creation. Both TSN and Sportsnet labeled him as such. There was an oversight there but it seemed to hit the entire hockey world.

Well the UFA class wasn't very good so that's not really saying much.  Even with that, I'd still say the same as above.  There was plenty of non-TSN/Sportsnet criticism of the idea of signing Clarkson to the deal he was expected to get and criticism of the deal he did get.  But I would assume that Nonis makes this move independent of what the media/hockey world thinks and based off him and his pro scouts' opinions.