Nylander signs ELC

[Bullfrog]

The truth of the matter is, if he was as good as he believes he is, he wouldn't have to talk so damn much.

That's assuming that his talent and his personality have anything to do with each other; and I don't think they're that closely related. Basically, he doesn't have to talk so much; it's his choice.

 

[bustaheims]

The truth of the matter is, if he was as good as he believes he is, he wouldn't have to talk so damn much.

Yes, because, there's never been a good player in any sport that has ever run their mouth off about being good. Never.

The phrase "I am the greatest" was never uttered publicly by one of the greatest in a sport.

 

[Tigger]

Worked for Ali.

I kind of hope he goes back to Sweden, good development league and the Leafs would save a year on his ELC.

 

[TML fan]

The truth of the matter is, if he was as good as he believes he is, he wouldn't have to talk so damn much.

Yes, because, there's never been a good player in any sport that has ever run their mouth off about being good. Never.

The phrase "I am the greatest" was never uttered publicly by one of the greatest in a sport.

I'm trying to find a point, but there's just way too much sarcasm to wade through...

 

[TML fan]

The truth of the matter is, if he was as good as he believes he is, he wouldn't have to talk so damn much.

That's assuming that his talent and his personality have anything to do with each other; and I don't think they're that closely related. Basically, he doesn't have to talk so much; it's his choice.

He's doing it to get noticed. "There's no such thing as bad publicity".

 

[Kin]

Something that I often wonder about the people who seem so put out by the sorts of comments that Ho-Sang made is whether the issue is that Ho-Sang is arrogant and self-aggrandizing or is it that he's arrogant and self-aggrandizing in public.

Would it make Ho-Sang more likely to be liked by his teammates if he was fundamentally the same person but when a reporter stuck a camera in his face he said "I'm just going to go into camp and compete hard on the ice every game and do what it takes to help the team win" or some other pre-approved amalgam of good ol' Canadian intermission cliches?

I think that something people are going to have to get used to is that as the talent pool for the game broadens there's going to be more personalities in the league than just your handful of variations on Gordie from Moose Jaw.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

I kind of hope he goes back to Sweden, good development league and the Leafs would save a year on his ELC.

If he plays in the AHL his contract would still slide as long as he doesn't play 10 or more games with the Leafs. So he could possibly be playing professional hockey in NA for 4 (or maybe even 5) years on his ELC.

 

[Frank E]

I think it's a fair worry, and if it's costing him a spot on the team then he should learn to challenge his superiors with a little more tact. I don't think a semi-tirade to the media is going to win him any support.

I'm guessing he would bristle at the idea that the guys at Hockey Canada are his "superiors" and rightfully so. They're guys who are supposed to be putting the best team together in the national interests and good national programs can deal with players who think highly of themselves. If they're not putting him on the team because he's publicly challenging them to explain why then it's more of a mark of a lack of professionalism on their part, in my opinion.

And we're back discussing that there's more to making a decision of adding a player to your team than just the way he individually produces on the ice?

Putting together a team that is a cohesive unit to ensure better results is part of their job.  Perhaps they feel that Ho-Sang would take away from this, or maybe they just see a better alternative for the position that Ho-Sang feels entitled to.

I don't have a problem with him sounding off to the media about anything he wants...I probably wouldn't do that, but it's certainly none of my business that he does.

 

[Kin]

And we're back discussing that there's more to making a decision of adding a player to your team than just the way he individually produces on the ice?

Putting together a team that is a cohesive unit to ensure better results is part of their job.  Perhaps they feel that Ho-Sang would take away from this, or maybe they just see a better alternative for the position that Ho-Sang feels entitled to.

All of which is fine but that's not what I said. If the people putting the team together genuinely think the team is better without him then that's one thing but what I said is that if he's being left off the team for things he's saying about them then there's a distinct lack of professionalism on their part.

 

[Frank E]

And we're back discussing that there's more to making a decision of adding a player to your team than just the way he individually produces on the ice?

Putting together a team that is a cohesive unit to ensure better results is part of their job.  Perhaps they feel that Ho-Sang would take away from this, or maybe they just see a better alternative for the position that Ho-Sang feels entitled to.

All of which is fine but that's not what I said. If the people putting the team together genuinely think the team is better without him then that's one thing but what I said is that if he's being left off the team for things he's saying about them then there's a distinct lack of professionalism on their part.

Fair enough, you're right, you didn't say that.

But I'd argue that what Ho-Sang is saying about them can certainly lead them to question his suitability to adhering to what the coach wants out of his team...I mean if he has trouble being respectful to the General Management of the team then I'd question his likelyhood to be preperly cooperative with the other members of team management.  I don't think that that is being unprofessional, I think it's being analytical and logical.

 

[Bender]

And we're back discussing that there's more to making a decision of adding a player to your team than just the way he individually produces on the ice?

Putting together a team that is a cohesive unit to ensure better results is part of their job.  Perhaps they feel that Ho-Sang would take away from this, or maybe they just see a better alternative for the position that Ho-Sang feels entitled to.

All of which is fine but that's not what I said. If the people putting the team together genuinely think the team is better without him then that's one thing but what I said is that if he's being left off the team for things he's saying about them then there's a distinct lack of professionalism on their part.

Fair enough, you're right, you didn't say that.

But I'd argue that what Ho-Sang is saying about them can certainly lead them to question his suitability to adhering to what the coach wants out of his team...I mean if he has trouble being respectful to the General Management of the team then I'd question his likelyhood to be preperly cooperative with the other members of team management.  I don't think that that is being unprofessional, I think it's being analytical and logical.

I agree here. I mean, he's not the hottest commodity in the sport and he's not endearing himself to anyone. Who would go up to bat for this kid?

Unless you're number one and can back it up by being one of the best players around then I think it's best to shut your mouth and grind it out until you meet your goals.

Even if it is unprofessional for Team Canada to leave out Ho-Sang due to his comments I would argue it's not all that relevant. If you're a pragmatic person you wouldn't piss off anyone who has a strong amount of influence on where and if you play.

 

[Kin]

Fair enough, you're right, you didn't say that.

But I'd argue that what Ho-Sang is saying about them can certainly lead them to question his suitability to adhering to what the coach wants out of his team...I mean if he has trouble being respectful to the General Management of the team then I'd question his likelyhood to be preperly cooperative with the other members of team management.  I don't think that that is being unprofessional, I think it's being analytical and logical.

I'm not trying to repeat myself here but if they think his "ability to be properly cooperative with the other members of team management" is so impaired by his attitude that it would actually result in a worse team performance then that's not the same thing as them not taking him because he's rubbing them the wrong way or that they think he's violated some sort of rule of conduct.

I'm not enough of a junior hockey expert to nitpick individual selections to international teams but from what I know of senior tournaments it strikes me that Canada typically does better when they just take the best possible hockey players and less well when they take guys like Rob Zamuner and Kris Draper. Of course, I haven't had the stellar recent success that the guys putting together the junior teams have had of late.

 

[Kin]

Even if it is unprofessional for Team Canada to leave out Ho-Sang due to his comments I would argue it's not all that relevant. If you're a pragmatic person you wouldn't piss off anyone who has a strong amount of influence on where and if you play.

It's relevant to me as a Canada fan. I actually want Canada to win international tournaments and treating selection camps like the guest list on My Super Sweet 16 probably hurts them in that regard.

 

[Bender]

Even if it is unprofessional for Team Canada to leave out Ho-Sang due to his comments I would argue it's not all that relevant. If you're a pragmatic person you wouldn't piss off anyone who has a strong amount of influence on where and if you play.

It's relevant to me as a Canada fan. I actually want Canada to win international tournaments and treating selection camps like the guest list on My Super Sweet 16 probably hurts them in that regard.

But how much is that the case though? (I haven't looked too heavily at who they selected at camp) but if he isn't the best suited for the roles they have in mind or if he's equal to someone else that's on their selection list already then I think the choice is clear.

 

[Kin]

But how much is that the case though? (I haven't looked too heavily at who they selected at camp) but if he isn't the best suited for the roles they have in mind or if he's equal to someone else that's on their selection list already then I think the choice is clear.

But isn't that the whole purpose of camps? To see how a player meshes with his teammates on and off the ice? I have to think it's pretty unusual that a guy who was a 1st round choice in the previous year's draft doesn't even get a look at a summer development camp. This year's camp has multiple guys picked after Ho-Sang in this year's draft and guys from the 6th and 7th round from last year's draft.

No matter what you think of Ho-Sang he's 18 years old. I don't think any adult coach should be afraid of at least trying to deal with even the most difficult 18 year old(and being cocky doesn't make Ho-Sang that). If someone that age saying the things Ho-Sang has said would make any coach not want to work them then that coach should probably think twice about being involved in junior hockey.

 

[Tigger]

I kind of hope he goes back to Sweden, good development league and the Leafs would save a year on his ELC.

If he plays in the AHL his contract would still slide as long as he doesn't play 10 or more games with the Leafs. So he could possibly be playing professional hockey in NA for 4 (or maybe even 5) years on his ELC.

Fair enough, though add that on to another year of development in Sweden and I'm pretty ok with it.

 

[Redleaf]

I kind of hope he goes back to Sweden, good development league and the Leafs would save a year on his ELC.

If he plays in the AHL his contract would still slide as long as he doesn't play 10 or more games with the Leafs. So he could possibly be playing professional hockey in NA for 4 (or maybe even 5) years on his ELC.

Fair enough, though add that on to another year of development in Sweden and I'm pretty ok with it.

I'm guessing the Leafs want him on the Marlie's next season, so they can keep close tabs on his development. It would be fun to catch a Marlies game with him in the lineup next season, so soon after he was drafted by the Leafs.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I kind of hope he goes back to Sweden, good development league and the Leafs would save a year on his ELC.

If he plays in the AHL his contract would still slide as long as he doesn't play 10 or more games with the Leafs. So he could possibly be playing professional hockey in NA for 4 (or maybe even 5) years on his ELC.

Fair enough, though add that on to another year of development in Sweden and I'm pretty ok with it.

Is there a reason you would want him in Sweden over the AHL?

 

[freer]

I kind of hope he goes back to Sweden, good development league and the Leafs would save a year on his ELC.

If he plays in the AHL his contract would still slide as long as he doesn't play 10 or more games with the Leafs. So he could possibly be playing professional hockey in NA for 4 (or maybe even 5) years on his ELC.

Fair enough, though add that on to another year of development in Sweden and I'm pretty ok with it.

Is there a reason you would want him in Sweden over the AHL?

If he plays in Sweden he gets paid more correct? If so it is better for him.

 

[Chev-boyar-sky]

I kind of hope he goes back to Sweden, good development league and the Leafs would save a year on his ELC.

If he plays in the AHL his contract would still slide as long as he doesn't play 10 or more games with the Leafs. So he could possibly be playing professional hockey in NA for 4 (or maybe even 5) years on his ELC.

Fair enough, though add that on to another year of development in Sweden and I'm pretty ok with it.

Is there a reason you would want him in Sweden over the AHL?

If he plays in Sweden he gets paid more correct? If so it is better for him.

Right.......but he plays on the big ice no? I would've thought his getting used to the North American game would be a bigger priority than him getting paid more. Unless you're being funny.