This happens to him pretty often. Probably why I end up frustrated hearing his name.

He's this era's version of Brian Holzinger. Alllllllllll the speed and hands of stone.
- HonkFortheGoose

Yup. He’s a tweener.

Not nearly enough skill for top 6, not smart enough of a player for bottom 6.

It just can’t be justified that Sobotka is dressed over him.

I think there is something behind it. Rodrigues seems to be out of favor for every coach he plays for

This happens to him pretty often. Probably why I end up frustrated hearing his name.

He's this era's version of Brian Holzinger. Alllllllllll the speed and hands of stone.
- HonkFortheGoose

Remember all the breakaways Mike Grier used to get? He had like zero moves too lol.

Yup. He’s a tweener.

Not nearly enough skill for top 6, not smart enough of a player for bottom 6.

It just can’t be justified that Sobotka is dressed over him.

I think there is something behind it. Rodrigues seems to be out of favor for every coach he plays for
- OneKaneOneCup

He starts that way.

Housley scratched him at the beginning, and by the end of the year he was getting 15 minutes a night.

The bottom 6 point is hogwash imo. The metrics show that he's a very good bottom-6 player

Yup. He’s a tweener.

Not nearly enough skill for top 6, not smart enough of a player for bottom 6.

It just can’t be justified that Sobotka is dressed over him.

I think there is something behind it. Rodrigues seems to be out of favor for every coach he plays for
- OneKaneOneCup

Ehhhhh....I get what you're saying. He was NOT good last year. But, he does have a body of work that shows he CAN be productive. Whether or not he can do it again, is yet to be seen.

I think we've all gotten an idea of what Erod brings, and while it's not terrible, it's not exactly impressive either.

We had a beagle who would go into the other room while we were eating and make that horrifying beagle yowl that sounds like they are hurt or worried. Then when you would leave the room to investigate, he would bolt passed you and grab the food off the table/plate before you could get back to it.
- Shadman306

🤣🤣🤣🤣

Remember all the breakaways Mike Grier used to get? He had like zero moves too lol.
- matty12345

yeah. Except I think it irritated me less back then because that team could basically score at will to begin with so when he missed, I was like, oh well. We'll get one somewhere anyway.

Remember all the breakaways Mike Grier used to get? He had like zero moves too lol.
- matty12345

That's exactly who came to mind for me as well.

I got Eichel in both of mine.. Dahlin in neither :*( ... too many homers reaching up several rounds to grab him.
- TheSabresTaco

He's going to have a big year.

This happens to him pretty often. Probably why I end up frustrated hearing his name.

He's this era's version of Brian Holzinger. Alllllllllll the speed and hands of stone.
- HonkFortheGoose

He's not a finisher. But he can drive possession and create offense by himself from a depth role, which is something others couldn't do last year. He'll get back in there.

Yup. He’s a tweener.

Not nearly enough skill for top 6, not smart enough of a player for bottom 6.

It just can’t be justified that Sobotka is dressed over him.

I think there is something behind it. Rodrigues seems to be out of favor for every coach he plays for
- OneKaneOneCup

It's pretty easy to justify, if you buy into the clean slate idea, but I agree that a message is being sent.

ERod was a bad player for us until about December of last year. Slow starter? I've never considered him a smart player on the ice.....maybe he's not executing the way Ralph wants. Something's up.

He's not a finisher. But he can drive possession and create offense by himself from a depth role, which is something others couldn't do last year. He'll get back in there.
- jcragcrumple

He's one of those guys that in general I couldn't care less one way or the other about. There's players like him on basically every team. He shouldn't be in a role that's making or breaking your team each year for the most part.

Based on last year, does he probably deserve to be in over Okposo or Sobotka? I would think so. But i'm not about to throw myself from the Peace Bridge over him being the odd man out and the other two being in at this point. Mostly because it's probably just a matter of time before he ends up in for one reason or another.

Okposo really needs to hang em up for his own well being. He's got a family and is one good hit away from having oatmeal for brain.

Sobotka doesn't bother me as much because after this year he'll be gone anyway.

He's not a finisher. But he can drive possession and create offense by himself from a depth role, which is something others couldn't do last year. He'll get back in there.
- jcragcrumple

He was and probably still is the only bottom six forward we have that can consistently get zone possessions off of skate ins. That is pretty significant on its own.

He was and probably still is the only bottom six forward we have that can consistently get zone possessions off of skate ins. That is pretty significant on its own.
- matty12345

D zone exits from skating as well.

Ralph will find all of this out and the speed will be unleashed

There was no way they were going to scratch Okposo for the first game. That was never going to happen, especially after stripping him of his "A."

Remember all the breakaways Mike Grier used to get? He had like zero moves too lol.
- matty12345

he didn't get those because of speed.. he just was really good positionally and had a very high hockey IQ

D zone exits from skating as well.

Ralph will find all of this out and the speed will be unleashed

There was no way they were going to scratch Okposo for the first game. That was never going to happen, especially after stripping him of his "A."
- jcragcrumple

I think he plays his best as a C, then LW, and RW is distant 3rd. That might be part of the issue right now.

He's not a finisher. But he can drive possession and create offense by himself from a depth role, which is something others couldn't do last year. He'll get back in there.
- jcragcrumple

We've seen many just like him through the years. Bailey, Baptiste, Varone, Flynn, Schaller and countless others. They get traded and people complain that they never got a fair shot here. Then they get traded a few more times and bounce back and forth between the NHL and AHL for their entire careers. People always complain about Larsson and Girgs coming back at $1.65m and $1.5m, but not Erod at $2m. I'm not one for bringing back the old guys, but we probably could have brought in Pommers, Vanek or even someone like Brian Boyle for the $2m Erod's getting. I think anyone of them would bring more to the team than he does.

I think he plays his best as a C, then LW, and RW is distant 3rd. That might be part of the issue right now.
- Lunaion

Yeah, true

he didn't get those because of speed.. he just was really good positionally and had a very high hockey IQ
- SabresFaninIndiana

I think Grier was kind of like Vanek. The way they skate makes them look slow, but they are a lot quicker than it would appear.

No he wasn't great. I think he only had 1 assist on an empty netter. He set up slopoke on the PP but 'poso whiffed on 2 chances. Likewise he hit Sheary for a nice feed in game 2 on a 2-on-1 and sheary missed.

He had a couple breakaways but didn't cash.

It's absurd Okposo is playing over him, but I can only yell about it so many times. He'll play soon
- jcragcrumple

Yeah, he'll play. I believe they like Okposo's dzone game more than Erod's. FWIW.

We've seen many just like him through the years. Bailey, Baptiste, Varone, Flynn, Schaller and countless others. They get traded and people complain that they never got a fair shot here. Then they get traded a few more times and bounce back and forth between the NHL and AHL for their entire careers. People always complain about Larsson and Girgs coming back at $1.65m and $1.5m, but not Erod at $2m. I'm not one for bringing back the old guys, but we probably could have brought in Pommers, Vanek or even someone like Brian Boyle for the $2m Erod's getting. I think anyone of them would bring more to the team than he does.
- adambuffalo

Schaller is probably the closest thing, but he doesn't create the same amount of offense. Most of those guys do not play all 3 forward positions, and the PK. 3 of em basically never made the show. If you're interested in the advanced metrics, he shows well as a depth forward in most categories. He doesn't need to be sheltered with o zone starts to create some offense from the bottom 6. He adds shorthanded potential from the PK.

He doesn't do any one thing extremely well, but he can fill literally any roster hole (almost Tobias Funke "blue myself" there) with some reasonable amount of offensive success, while providing a decently strong 2-way game.

Schaller is probably the closest thing, but he doesn't create the same amount of offense. Most of those guys do not play all 3 forward positions, and the PK. 3 of em basically never made the show. If you're interested in the advanced metrics, he shows well as a depth forward in most categories. He doesn't need to be sheltered with o zone starts to create some offense from the bottom 6. He adds shorthanded potential from the PK.

He doesn't do any one thing extremely well, but he can fill literally any roster hole (almost Tobias Funke "blue myself" there) with some reasonable amount of offensive success, while providing a decently strong 2-way game.
- jcragcrumple

I forgot the stat on guys who go to arb being back on the team the following year. ERod could easily fall into that. He'd need a solid season to justify 2m, but then we're right back into a 2m QO for an arb eligible player. I never fault a player for using arbitration, but he's in an awkward spot now.

Schaller is probably the closest thing, but he doesn't create the same amount of offense. Most of those guys do not play all 3 forward positions, and the PK. 3 of em basically never made the show. If you're interested in the advanced metrics, he shows well as a depth forward in most categories. He doesn't need to be sheltered with o zone starts to create some offense from the bottom 6. He adds shorthanded potential from the PK.


- jcragcrumple

And neither would ERod if he was in almost any other organization in the league.

He's going to have a big year.
- Aetherial

Well, as big of a year that the 7th best forward in his draft class can have.

Schaller is probably the closest thing, but he doesn't create the same amount of offense. Most of those guys do not play all 3 forward positions, and the PK. 3 of em basically never made the show. If you're interested in the advanced metrics, he shows well as a depth forward in most categories. He doesn't need to be sheltered with o zone starts to create some offense from the bottom 6. He adds shorthanded potential from the PK.

He doesn't do any one thing extremely well, but he can fill literally any roster hole (almost Tobias Funke "blue myself" there) with some reasonable amount of offensive success, while providing a decently strong 2-way game.
- jcragcrumple

Honestly, there's like half a roster of players here this year I'd have rather seen not return. But that's not realistic.

Larsson, Girgensons, Erod, Okposo, Sobotka, Scandella.....Risto for the right price. Hunwick, though he's irrelevant at this point.

Does your lab eat any food left out that remotely reachable? Mine is soooooo bad. Legit tore up my lunchbox because it smelled like food so he thought something was in there
- HonkFortheGoose

My lab has stolen pizza off the top of the fridge....