They did try to use Dahlin in that role in the last couple as well but he clearly wasn’t ready for that. Again I’m not trying to over sell Risto. But to me he’s a quality top 4 RH dman….his game has warts, but he also bring some nice attributes as well. Guys have him run out of town after two games.
- landros 2

I would have went in a diff direction seeing what they were wiling to give up for Risto.

I don't know that he is a quality top 4 dman. Buff was such a poop show and he was part of that poop show. I don't think anyone is running him out of town. In fact seems the opposite to me.

:-) I am not giving up on RR, in fact in my heart I desperately want him to succeed because that will make the Flyers a very formidable team if he does. However I am objective as well, and RR needs to play better. What I don't want to see is plays like that bad line change against Boston. Tim Saunders said it best about RR, he has a tremendous skill set but he is very raw for a player that has been in the league as long as he has. Hopefully, good coaching and a solid team structure will accelerate RR this year, otherwise this will be a tough one to take.


- jd250

Tim Saunders was being polite in using the word raw. What he really has shown and not just with that play is that he is a player that severely lacks hockey sense. He has not shown that he is capable of reading and anticipating plays. He also has multiple times already taken himself out of the play to try and make a big hit. Including one time almost taking out Konecny. I'm also hoping. Hoping that he is not 100% yet and not in top game shape. Otherwise he has shown to be exactly what he was advertised to be. I'm still keeping an open mind and have no closed the door. I need to see at least half a season before I make a definitive opinion with any finality.

Regarding 1st round picks, I define hitting as finding an impact player at the NHL level, for example Farabee or Laughton. It does not have to be top pairing D or top 6 forward (though that is the expectation if you are drafting in the top 10) but someone that becomes reliably good player for you regardless of where they are in the lineup.
- jd250

I asked you define what hitting on first round picks consistently is. Not what hitting on a pick is. I also asked you about other teams percentages on hitting is.

They have $14mil in cap space as of right now. So if they prioritize a move over resigning G and Risto they have space to make it. Not saying they will just saying they can if an opportunity presents itself.
- mickel25

Well if we look at it that way, hell we could trade Couturier and Konecny and have a boat load of cap space.

Tim Saunders was being polite in using the word raw. What he really has shown and not just with that play is that he is a player that severely lacks hockey sense. He has not shown that he is capable of reading and anticipating plays. He also has multiple times already taken himself out of the play to try and make a big hit. Including one time almost taking out Konecny. I'm also hoping. Hoping that he is not 100% yet and not in top game shape. Otherwise he has shown to be exactly what he was advertised to be. I'm still keeping an open mind and have no closed the door. I need to see at least half a season before I make a definitive opinion with any finality.
- MJL

Say this is true, what on Earth where the Flyers scouts looking at then? Or could this be the case where CF just fell in love with a player and love, as they say, is blind? I agree, we need to give him a few months here and see how it plays out.

Well if we look at it that way, hell we could trade Couturier and Konecny and have a boat load of cap space.
- MJL

You could. It is not a lock they resign G or Risto though. Highly probably for sure but not 100%. Until those two resign the Flyers have $14mil in cap space going into next offseason. So they have money if an opportunity presents itself. That's all I am saying.

No it doesn't suggest his hockey smarts are fine. How many of those 40 on the PP? We will see if his D lapses are overblown.

Analytically Risto has been one of the worst dman in the league for a while now.
- hello it's me 2050

Who cares how he got his points….it wasn’t a one off season either…he’s a good NHL D man…This guy has a very nice skill set.
When looking at his metrics while in Buffalo how were The teams metrics over all ? Dreadful. I mean they were no worse then Sanheims last year. I believe he in a new environment he will prove to be a solid addition on the backend. I’m not here “dying on the hill” over Risto and his future, but after watching that group last year I’m glad they made that trade.

Say this is true, what on Earth where the Flyers scouts looking at then? Or could this be the case where CF just fell in love with a player and love, as they say, is blind? I agree, we need to give him a few months here and see how it plays out.
- jd250

Yes the 6-7 teams that apparently made offers on him were all wrong.

I would have went in a diff direction seeing what they were wiling to give up for Risto.

I don't know that he is a quality top 4 dman. Buff was such a poop show and he was part of that poop show. I don't think anyone is running him out of town. In fact seems the opposite to me.
- hello it's me 2050

Maybe a different direction, but I guess we’ll never know what else if anything was considered. Hopefully Risto has a solid season.

Who cares how he got his points….it wasn’t a one off season either…he’s a good NHL D man…This guy has a very nice skill set.
When looking at his metrics while in Buffalo how were The teams metrics over all ? Dreadful. I mean they were no worse then Sanheims last year. I believe he in a new environment he will prove to be a solid addition on the backend. I’m not here “dying on the hill” over Risto and his future, but after watching that group last year I’m glad they made that trade.
- landros 2

Well your equating his hockey smarts to points. So how he got the majority of them matters. He has not proven to be a good NHL Dman. Skills and no brain are not a good combo.

Sanheim is a better dman than Risto. IMO not even close.

Who cares how he got his points….it wasn’t a one off season either…he’s a good NHL D man…This guy has a very nice skill set.
When looking at his metrics while in Buffalo how were The teams metrics over all ? Dreadful. I mean they were no worse then Sanheims last year. I believe he in a new environment he will prove to be a solid addition on the backend. I’m not here “dying on the hill” over Risto and his future, but after watching that group last year I’m glad they made that trade.
- landros 2

https://theathletic.com/2...t-gm-chuck-fletcher-paid/


Some highlights....

Ristolainen may have been used like a top-pair defenseman in Buffalo, but he didn’t perform like one. Even in his better seasons, basically all of his tangible value came from his power-play prowess and a knack for avoiding penalties in spite of heavy minutes. At five-on-five/even strength, on the other hand, Ristolainen wasn’t merely bad; he was one of hockey’s worst defensemen.

That’s not an overstatement. To highlight the scope of his even-strength struggles, consider the following: Ristolainen has never once delivered a season in which his team outshot, outchanced (per Evolving-Hockey’s expected goals metric) or outscored the opposition while he was on the ice at five-on-five. Not once.

At even strength, it’s basically impossible to find a public measurement that grades Ristolainen as anything other than one of the worst even-strength defensemen in hockey over the past five seasons, and that’s even after using Evolving-Hockey’s RAPM model to estimate his direct impact on those differentials, controlling for factors like quality of teammates, competition and zone starts.

And to your point about Buffalo...

1. Ristolainen’s numbers were only poor because of how bad Buffalo was

It’s true that for the entirety of Ristolainen’s time in Buffalo, the team performed quite poorly. They didn’t make the playoffs once during his tenure, and the most wins they produced in a single season was 35 (against 47 losses). Along the way, Ristolainen played with a lot of very underwhelming teammates.

But if this argument holds water, why did Ristolainen’s objectively good teammates all play better away from him than with him?
When talented players in Buffalo skated with Ristolainen at five-on-five, they ended up getting outshot, outchanced and outscored by the opposition. Yet when they took shifts away from Ristolainen — in the same environment, on the same team — they helped the awful Sabres to outshoot, outchance and outscore opponents.

Now, this type of with-or-without-you analysis isn’t perfect. But it sure seems to hint that it’s not that his teammates dragged him down but instead that he dragged them down.

Well your equating his hockey smarts to points. So how he got the majority of them matters. He has not proven to be a good NHL Dman. Skills and no brain are not a good combo.

Sanheim is a better dman than Risto. IMO not even close.
- hello it's me 2050

You need to have hockey IQ to score points.

I disagree that Sanheim is a better d man then Risto. Sorry…what exactly has Sanheim done ?

https://theathletic.com/2...t-gm-chuck-fletcher-paid/


Some highlights....




And to your point about Buffalo...
- MBFlyerfan

So I’m trusting a guy at the athletic over the 6-7 GMs that made offers…gotcha.

So I’m trusting a guy at the athletic over the 6-7 GMs that made offers…gotcha.

- landros 2

Im trusting stats. And what my eyes see when he is on the ice.

Im trusting stats. And what my eyes see when he is on the ice.
- MBFlyerfan

So am I . Yes his metrics sucked on a bad team….yes he played heavy minutes. But you can’t over look the players positives and just focus on the negatives. For every bad stat for the player there is a solid stat. Again I think he proved not to be a top d man or even a top pairing d man in Buffalo, but as a decent 2nd pairing RH guy I think it’s a solid add.

So I’m trusting a guy at the athletic over the 6-7 GMs that made offers…gotcha.

- landros 2

GM's and coaches are not infallible are they?

You need to have hockey IQ to score points.

I disagree that Sanheim is a better d man then Risto. Sorry…what exactly has Sanheim done ?
- landros 2

again how many points of those 40 were on the pp? Playing on the PP is easier as you have one objective really. He lacks hockey smarts. You disagree.

What Sanheim has done is shown he is a better dmn.

GM's and coaches are not infallible are they?
- hello it's me 2050

Of course they are….is the guy at the Athletic?

Of course they are….is the guy at the Athletic?
- landros 2

Unless I am mistaken the guy at the athletic is using factual data. How can you argue with the data assuming it is correct?

again how many points of those 40 were on the pp? Playing on the PP is easier as you have one objective really. He lacks hockey smarts. You disagree.

What Sanheim has done is shown he is a better dmn.
- hello it's me 2050

If your a stupid hockey player and don’t have a good hockey IQ…in other words you don’t make quality decisions, you would not sniff PP time on any NHL blue line. Let alone get time every year.
I think Sanheim has proven to be an average (at best) NHL d man. I’ll take Risto over a mistake prone, soft d man with little offensive production that has shown to have his own issues throughout his entire career in his own end…I guess we’ll just have to disagree.

Unless I am mistaken the guy at the athletic is using factual data. How can you argue with the data assuming it is correct?
- hello it's me 2050

Goals and assists don’t count? Hits ? Blocked shots? Where was those included?

So am I . Yes his metrics sucked on a bad team….yes he played heavy minutes. But you can’t over look the players positives and just focus on the negatives. For every bad stat for the player there is a solid stat. Again I think he proved not to be a top d man or even a top pairing d man in Buffalo, but as a decent 2nd pairing RH guy I think it’s a solid add.
- landros 2

My point was to demonstrate that the numbers were markedly better without him. Even on a bad team. So much so that they were not such a bad team when he wasn't on the ice.

I certainly hope less usage and better situations help to improve his play, but his career shows that it doesn't matter who he plays with, he is the reason they are dragged down, and not the other way around.

Say this is true, what on Earth where the Flyers scouts looking at then? Or could this be the case where CF just fell in love with a player and love, as they say, is blind? I agree, we need to give him a few months here and see how it plays out.
- jd250

The question I have is not what on earth the Flyers scouts were looking at but what on earth were you looking at?

You could. It is not a lock they resign G or Risto though. Highly probably for sure but not 100%. Until those two resign the Flyers have $14mil in cap space going into next offseason. So they have money if an opportunity presents itself. That's all I am saying.
- mickel25

When looking at any teams cap situation, it involves speculation in looking forward. When you do that and look at the teams situation, you see that they don't have much flexibility. We can hope that they can move JVR without taking money back and that will give them some space to do something with.

My point was to demonstrate that the numbers were markedly better without him. Even on a bad team. So much so that they were not such a bad team when he wasn't on the ice.

I certainly hope less usage and better situations help to improve his play, but his career shows that it doesn't matter who he plays with, he is the reason they are dragged down, and not the other way around.
- MBFlyerfan

The author does not account for the fact that no doubt when those teammates weren't playing with Ristolainen, they were playing against weaker competition. That is part of it. All of that can't be blamed on just Ristolainen. There are many factors to that.

My point was to demonstrate that the numbers were markedly better without him. Even on a bad team. So much so that they were not such a bad team when he wasn't on the ice.

I certainly hope less usage and better situations help to improve his play, but his career shows that it doesn't matter who he plays with, he is the reason they are dragged down, and not the other way around.
- MBFlyerfan

I would think less of a role and a better more stable supporting cast is what the Flyers were banking on. I agree 100% he’s not a top tier d man. But I do think he has a lot a very good attributes that will help the Flyers. I guess we’ll see.