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Grigorenko loss is Larsson's gain |
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Apparently forward Mikhail Grigorenko was a little too casual in his approach when opportunity knocked last Friday in Ottawa. To the casual observer Grigorenko, a third-year pro, had a fairly decent game with what looked like some nerves early on and some sparks later in the game.
That's not what head coach Ted Nolan witnessed as he dropped Grigorenko to the fourth line after only two shifts. "I didn’t like his play,” the coach said, rather bluntly, “I thought his play on certain pucks was really lackadaisical. He didn’t have any energy or urgency in his game whatsoever. Hopefully, he’ll catch that one day.”
In a few brief sentences, Nolan touched on Grigorenko's uneven career to this point and while leaving the door open for future opportunity with the club, that final part about "hopefully" figuring it out does not bode well for the soon to be restricted free agent.
We all know the ridiculous situation Grigorenko was put in by the previous regime. We know emotional swings he had with the yo-yoing between three leagues over two seasons, and we know that the emotions got the best of him at times.
We also know, however, that he came into camp in tip-top shape, had a strong camp and was sent to Rochester. Although he wasn't happy, he played very well and really began developing well. But he seems to be hitting a wall up in Buffalo. And Nolan attributes it to his approach.
“In order to play at this level, especially with that much skill, he has to bring a little bit more than what he had," said Nolan. "You never want to sit back and hope for things will work. You got to make them work."
One of the reasons Grigorenko was ranked anywhere from No. 3 to No. 17 in the 2012 NHL Draft were concerns about his approach to the game and his lack of consistency. Those ranking him top-five looked at his skill in wonderment while those ranking him lower couldn't find the hunger. Now we as Sabres fans, are left to wonder where the 12th overall pick will end up.
On February 11th, Sabres GM Tim Murray put former first round pick Joel Armia (2011, 16th overall) in the package for Evander Kane. For those who watched Armia, his skills were as maddening as his disappearing acts. It was something the scouts said at the time of his draft. ""He's big and tall but surprisingly mobile for a player of his size," said Goren Stubb, Director of NHL Scouting at the time. "He has a heavy wrist shot that he gets off quickly and is always looking for the empty spots on the ice. He's a sniper with a good selection of shots. You might have to look for him during some shifts, but then, suddenly, he scores the winner."
Not to dismiss the skill side of the team-building equation, but that style of play without elite-level scoring did not make Armia "hard to play against," Murray's cornerstone with which he'll rebuild the Sabres.
And it would seem as if Grigorenko's style of play isn't getting it done either. A golden opportunity was laid out in front of him, but he blew it. “We could’ve argued and say, ‘Hey, let’s keep [Grigorenko] here,’” Nolan said. “He didn’t give us enough of that to argue for.”
Somebody who's beginning to make an argument to stick with the club, or another NHL club for that matter, is forward Johan Larsson. Today he moved up to the top line between wingers Matt Moulson and Tyler Ennis.
Larsson has had a difficult transition to the NHL after playing top-line minutes in Rochester. He was the third leading point producer on the team with 37 points in 41 games and also ranks T-3rd in goals with 14. His .902 points per game is tops in Rochester and his 13.5% shooting percentage is the best of any player with more than 15 shots.
Although he ran into a wall during his first few call-ups, the departures of roster player Drew Stafford as well as wing prospect Armia, opened up the door for him and allowed for an extended stay. He's played in all 11 games with the club since then, mostly in a fourth-line role. Until recently.
Even before the trade deadline, Larsson was leaving single-digit ice-time behind and jumping up into the 13 minute area. Since the deadline he's logged times of 16:14, 13:21 and 16:34 and in the last two games he eked out a little special teams time.
The combination of time, progress, opportunity and a full effort on a consistent basis allowed for him to play his game and eventually get noticed. "Larsson has been playing pretty consistent for the last number of games," said Nolan, "so we put him up at No. 1."
This is consistent with what Murray espoused when he said "You go down to Rochester and it's a different game (in the AHL,)" said Murray. "They play in different roles. A first or second-line player in Rochester may be a third or fourth line player [in Buffalo].
"How do they adapt? Are they an adaptable player? Can they go up and down your lineup? These are all things we are looking at and we evaluate them every game. They'll show us. I've always said the players make the decision, basically, because they show you whether or not they're ready to be a good contributor."
Phil Varone had been centering the top line and had done very well there. He's another one that was on the top line in Rochester, but when he got called up was in the bottom-six. He had a great opportunity to slide right into first-line duty and he did an excellent job. Varone's the type of player that both Murray and Nolan tend to lean towards as he's geared toward "go" when he's on the ice.
Although Nolan said he dropped Varone down due to less consistency than the coach wanted, in a way Larsson may have been rewarded for his play as of late.
Both Larsson and Varone are restricted free agents at the end of this season, as is Grigorenko. Two players, neither of which were first round picks, are locked in to the opportunity that's in front of them and are giving their all during this audition period. The other is not. Yet.
Like Nolan said, "“(There are) not too many chances this early in your career and this much opportunity. Some of these guys are going to have 16 games to prove themselves, and you can’t come to the rink lackadaisical.”
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