glenwo2 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-draft-prospect-kappo-kakko-impressing-at-world-championship/c-307450804 Kakko believes he can be No. 1 pick of 2019 NHL Draft KOSICE, Slovakia -- Kaapo Kakko is making his push to become the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. Kakko, a right wing with TPS in Liiga, Finland's top professional league, has six goals in four games, tied for the lead at the 2019 IIHF World Championship. Playing for Finland and against many of the same players he could be facing in the NHL next season, he also has a plus-8 rating and 20 shots on goal in four games at the tournament. "This is a big thing for me for the draft," Kakko said through a translator. "I think I can be the first (pick)." Jack Hughes, No. 1 in NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters for the 2019 Draft, and Kakko, No. 1 in Central Scouting's final ranking of International skaters, are the consensus top two picks of the draft, which will be at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on June 21-22. Hughes has 11 shots on goal and zero points in four games for the United States. "I've played well," Kakko said. "I haven't paid much attention to Jack Hughes and his game, but I'm confident I've been able to let everyone see my skills and the level of my game. It's not going to be an easy choice for the teams." The New Jersey Devils have the No. 1 pick in the 2019 Draft after winning the NHL Draft Lottery on April 9. The New York Rangers have the No. 2 selection. Kakko would be the first Finland-born player to be selected No. 1 at the NHL Draft. "Kakko is a two-way player who is dangerous around the net and knows when he has to move the puck quickly and when to be patient," NHL Director of European Scouting Goran Stubb said. "He's strong on his skates, battles well and could be NHL ready as soon as next season since he played two seasons (51 games) against men in Liiga." The 6-foot-2, 194-pound forward scored 22 goals in 45 games this season, setting a Liiga record for under-18 players; Aleksander Barkov (Florida Panthers) scored 21 goals for Tappara in 2012-13. Kakko's 38 points are third on the single-season list of Liiga players 18 and under, behind Barkov, who had 48 in 2012-13, and Mikael Granlund (Nashville Predators) who had 40 for HIFK in 2009-10. Kakko also scored the game-winning goal with 1:26 remaining in the third period of the gold-medal game of the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship to give Finland a 3-2 win against the U.S. He had five points (two goals, three assists) in seven games at the tournament. He's continued that high level of play against a higher level of competition at the World Championship. "He's really good," said Finland defenseman Henri Jokiharju (Chicago Blackhawks), who played with Kakko at the World Juniors and now at the World Championship. "He's a good hockey player. It's obvious. Everyone can tell that. It's big for the team that he can step up in huge moments and put the puck in the net. "He was already a good player in the World Juniors. You could tell. He took even more steps after that, it was a huge confidence boost for him as well. He's playing really good hockey right now. He's keeping the puck, protecting the puck and being strong with the puck. He's really good. He's dominating down low with the puck." While Hughes has been expected to be the first player picked at the draft for most of the season, at the very least Kakko is doing his best to give New Jersey reason to debate. "It's great that people are interested in me and my game, of course," Kakko said. "I'm glad I've been able to play well and execute. "There are so many great NHL players in this tournament and it's huge I've been able to play well against them. I'm hoping I could play in the NHL." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleBallofHate Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 Short little interview with Kathryn Tappen & Jack - she asks him a few random Qs (favorite cheat food? pizza with pepperoni & olives... and hot sauce) - sorry if this has already been posted elsewhere: https://www.nbcsports.com/video/general/ice-kathryn-tappen 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunninWithTheDevil Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 8 minutes ago, LittleBallofHate said: Short little interview with Kathryn Tappen & Jack - she asks him a few random Qs (favorite cheat food? pizza with pepperoni & olives... and hot sauce) - sorry if this has already been posted elsewhere: https://www.nbcsports.com/video/general/ice-kathryn-tappen if he likes pizza hes going to fvcking love living here 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenwo2 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 As I scoured the internet, I came across this interesting viewpoint in regards to Kakko's "playing against men" thing that's basically becoming a Meme right now. Now I'm not going to pretend I know anything about the Finnish League or any other league since the NHL is the only league I know but this was stated by someone *claiming* he knew so take it for what it's worth : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kakko played against "men" in the Finnish league. His results were impressive, but "men" in the Finnish league isn't as impressive as it sounds as it's not that great of a league. Obviously the NHL is better, but so is the KHL, and so is the SEL. Even the Swiss league is nipping on Liiga's heels, and the AHL is probably only behind Liiga by a bit. It's really not comparable to just say "men". --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Is this right? Is the KHL, and SEL better than Liiga? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfitz804 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 3 hours ago, RunninWithTheDevil said: if he likes pizza hes going to fvcking love living here Pepperoni, olives and hot sauce? Wtf? He needs to come here so someone can teach him the right way to eat pizza. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicomo Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 1 hour ago, glenwo2 said: As I scoured the internet, I came across this interesting viewpoint in regards to Kakko's "playing against men" thing that's basically becoming a Meme right now. Now I'm not going to pretend I know anything about the Finnish League or any other league since the NHL is the only league I know but this was stated by someone *claiming* he knew so take it for what it's worth : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kakko played against "men" in the Finnish league. His results were impressive, but "men" in the Finnish league isn't as impressive as it sounds as it's not that great of a league. Obviously the NHL is better, but so is the KHL, and so is the SEL. Even the Swiss league is nipping on Liiga's heels, and the AHL is probably only behind Liiga by a bit. It's really not comparable to just say "men". --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Is this right? Is the KHL, and SEL better than Liiga? This is exactly what I wondering a while back. There has to be a reason they’re not playing in a better league by a certain age right? What is impressive about Kakko is how well he’s played compared to some really high end NHL players that also came out of that league. But then again you can say the same for Hughes in the NTDP. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicomo Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 3 minutes ago, mfitz804 said: Pepperoni, olives and hot sauce? Wtf? He needs to come here so someone can teach him the right way to eat pizza. 3 hours ago, RunninWithTheDevil said: if he likes pizza hes going to fvcking love living here Is NJ pizza basically the same as NY? Didn’t get to try it either time I’ve been to NJ. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadDog2020 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 5 minutes ago, Nicomo said: Is NJ pizza basically the same as NY? Didn’t get to try it either time I’ve been to NJ. It’s better. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleBallofHate Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 I'm surprised Kakko needs a translator. The NYR locker room will be interesting between all the new Russians & the Finn ... Was it @jagknife that was having some fun with Hynes not liking guys that don't speak English well? I guess that settles it - Hughes it is 😁 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfitz804 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 10 minutes ago, MadDog2020 said: It’s better. Ehhh...not correct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadDog2020 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 31 minutes ago, mfitz804 said: Ehhh...not correct. It’s most certainly correct. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfitz804 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 26 minutes ago, MadDog2020 said: It’s most certainly correct. ‘Fraid not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadDog2020 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 4 minutes ago, mfitz804 said: ‘Fraid not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfitz804 Posted May 18, 2019 Share Posted May 18, 2019 35 minutes ago, MadDog2020 said: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenwo2 Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 (edited) Found this tagged on Jesper Bratt's instagram. What are we looking at here? Edited May 19, 2019 by glenwo2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunninWithTheDevil Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 2 hours ago, glenwo2 said: Found this tagged on Jesper Bratt's instagram. What are we looking at here? According to their insta, these are stats for someone's fictional NHL 19 GM mode 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenwo2 Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 (edited) 2 minutes ago, RunninWithTheDevil said: According to their insta, these are stats for someone's fictional NHL 19 GM mode Seriously? LMAO!! I feel so silly for posting that now. Edited May 19, 2019 by glenwo2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfitz804 Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 27 minutes ago, RunninWithTheDevil said: According to their insta, these are stats for someone's fictional NHL 19 GM mode 25 minutes ago, glenwo2 said: Seriously? LMAO!! I feel so silly for posting that now. That’s amazing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jagknife Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 6 hours ago, LittleBallofHate said: I'm surprised Kakko needs a translator. The NYR locker room will be interesting between all the new Russians & the Finn ... Was it @jagknife that was having some fun with Hynes not liking guys that don't speak English well? I guess that settles it - Hughes it is 😁 People remember me! I swear I read a tweet that Hynes said the language barrier between him and Yak was a problem, and I stick by that today haha 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenwo2 Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, mfitz804 said: That’s amazing. What's amazing? The stats or me posting something wacky again? I admit when I first saw that, I was like "Bratt is right up there with Hughes! What is this sorcery?" Edited May 19, 2019 by glenwo2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WaffleFries Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 (edited) Better video: https://streamable.com/x37qo?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app Edited May 19, 2019 by WaffleFries 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenwo2 Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 17 minutes ago, WaffleFries said: Better video: https://streamable.com/x37qo?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app Thanks for the "Better video". For some reason, the GIF isn't working. Nice to see the pass in real-time as well. People said not to make too big a deal as the pass was deflected.....that's not what the replay shows to me. It was a great saucer-pass to Kreider who converted. A U.S. player FINALLY CONVERTED on a Hughes pass!! PRAISE THE LORD! HALLELUJAH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfitz804 Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 9 hours ago, glenwo2 said: What's amazing? The stats or me posting something wacky again? Well the stats didn’t actually happen, so... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleBallofHate Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 (edited) Good article on Jack - it's long but some good pics and even a Langenbrunner quote: https://www.nhl.com/news/jack-hughes-gets-assist-from-family-ahead-of-2019-nhl-draft/c-307453174 ETA: Patrick Kane quote: And yet the Blackhawks forward believes Hughes can be not just a comparable NHL player, but better. "I feel like when smaller players come into the League and they have that offensive-type game, it seems to be easy to compare them to a guy like me," said Kane, who is 5-foot-10, 170 pounds, but was 5-9, 160 at the 2007 NHL Scouting Combine. "But I think he does a lot of things better than me, to be honest with you. "He's always moving, always skating, and even if he's not near the puck or the action, he's still got his speed and he's coming into the zone or coming into the action with a lot of movement and speed." Edited May 19, 2019 by LittleBallofHate 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CommonDreads Posted May 19, 2019 Share Posted May 19, 2019 18 hours ago, Nicomo said: Is NJ pizza basically the same as NY? Didn’t get to try it either time I’ve been to NJ. Both are amazing, living in upstate NY for the past couple years has sucked in that regard because the pizza up here is trash compared to back home. Not sure if anyone has been there, but Kinchley's in Ramsey is probably the best pizza I've ever had. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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