James Tanner: Why I Support Jonathan Drouin
- James_Tanner

I've always said that about you, Tanner:

You're a real athletic supporter.

There is no guarentee he would've been back. If there was a spot for him on the NHL club he wouldn't have been sent down in the waivers situation, it would've been a conditioning stint. I agree he couldve/shouldve played better but as Tumbleweed has noted, its a tough roster to crack when coaches have more faith in other players who took the team to the finals without him
- WhiteLie

If he played better and made the Lightning a better team there is a guarantee he would have been back b/c the goal of the Cooper/Yzerman is to field the best team with the best chance to win. Problem is Drouin isn't willing to admit he isn't one of those players right now.

If he had made himself invaluable to the team's success he would have never been sent down. Since he didn't he got sent down because that was the proper asset management decision by Yzerman (i.e., he could use more ice time and he doesn't have to clear waivers).

It was his play that dictated the outcome of this situation. If Tampa didn't feel he made himself invaluable then it is fully their right to do what they think is best for the organization and send him down.
- RonPielep

I am a proud socialist my good man, as are like 99% of people who say they hate socialism. But owners have been exploiting players for years.
- James_Tanner

Exploited with how many zeroes on those checks? That kind of exploited?

Oh yeah they are still free to work elsewhere where they aren't exploited

Amen, well said.
- MJL

Apparently Tanner needs to watch some more Suits...

If he played better and made the Lightning a better team there is a guarantee he would have been back b/c the goal of the Cooper/Yzerman is to field the best team with the best chance to win. Problem is Drouin isn't willing to admit he isn't one of those players right now.
- uf1910

You keep saying "play better" as if Tampa was playing really well at the beginning of the year and he was the reason Stamkos was off to a slow start. All metrics show he actually plays pretty good in his limited opportunity but Cooper is a lot like some coaches who dont give young guys a long leash to learn from their mistakes. As its been pointed out, defensively he has had some lapses but how can he get better if he isnt given opportunity to learn at the NHL level? If being sent down to a lower level meant you could learn these things, then he would've done so in Jr's. Playing in the AHL under a different coach and a different system doesnt build the trust with Cooper in the NHL, at best a trip to the AHL is conditioning (which Tampa said wasnt the situation)

Well had he played well in Cuse he would have been called back up. Had he played well in Tampa he would have never gone to Cuse in the first place. If he keeps acting like this that "payday" whether a year earlier or later won't be the payday it could have been.
- uf1910

Well if he's playing so crappy & not earning a spot on the team, why don't you guys cash in & move this "bust" of a player before his value plummets to a 5 th round pick?
If he's so "valuable" to the future of Tampa, then play the kid. Why all the mind games?

You keep saying "play better" as if Tampa was playing really well at the beginning of the year and he was the reason Stamkos was off to a slow start. All metrics show he actually plays pretty good in his limited opportunity but Cooper is a lot like some coaches who dont give young guys a long leash to learn from their mistakes. As its been pointed out, defensively he has had some lapses but how can he get better if he isnt given opportunity to learn at the NHL level? If being sent down to a lower level meant you could learn these things, then he would've done so in Jr's. Playing in the AHL under a different coach and a different system doesnt build the trust with Cooper in the NHL, at best a trip to the AHL is conditioning (which Tampa said wasnt the situation)
- WhiteLie

All that we are saying is that if Drouin had made himself invaluable to the teams success in the eyes of Cooper and Yzerman than there is no way he would have been sent down in the first place. There is nothing to argue about because he got sent down which tells us that Cooper/Yzerman didn't believe he was integral to this teams success right now.

Edit: this is under the premise that Tampa is not trying to tank this season...

It sets a precedent that players are not going to get what they want by defying their agreement and attempting to play hard-ball with management. It's beneficial to Tampa's future in dealing with similar situations and it's beneficial for the rest of the league as well. You lose integrity by letting Walsh push your organization around. This only does you a disservice in any future dealings with a player's agent.
- RonPielep

honestly, i really don't feel that strongly about yzerman does. i can see pros/cons to a few different scenarios. he needs to do what he thinks is best for the team.

my preference is that yzerman (frank)s the situation up even more and trades him to the leafs for pennies on the dollar; though my guess is drouin will eventually land with some western team and this will all be forgotten about.

honestly, i really don't feel that strongly about yzerman does. i can see pros/cons to a few different scenarios. he needs to do what he thinks is best for the team.

my preference is that (frank)s the situation up even more and trades him to the leafs for pennies on the dollar; though my guess is drouin will eventually land with some western team and this will all be forgotten about.
- Tumbleweed

Yeah my whole point of bringing that up was because someone was saying that Yzerman needs to take the best current offer and trade him.

The truth is like you said, Yzerman needs to do what's best for the organization when he thinks it's best for the organization.

You keep saying "play better" as if Tampa was playing really well at the beginning of the year and he was the reason Stamkos was off to a slow start. All metrics show he actually plays pretty good in his limited opportunity but Cooper is a lot like some coaches who dont give young guys a long leash to learn from their mistakes. As its been pointed out, defensively he has had some lapses but how can he get better if he isnt given opportunity to learn at the NHL level? If being sent down to a lower level meant you could learn these things, then he would've done so in Jr's. Playing in the AHL under a different coach and a different system doesnt build the trust with Cooper in the NHL, at best a trip to the AHL is conditioning (which Tampa said wasnt the situation)
- WhiteLie

They play same system in Cuse under Zettler as Cooper does in Tampa

The main reason they sent him down is he was outplayed by other players so rather than have him sit and serve popcorn in Tampa they sent him to Cuse to get meaningful playing time in the hopes he would play better and put himself in a position to help the Bolts win hockey games in the future. When you have a team competing for a cup right now, playing guys to have them "learn from their mistakes" goes against fielding the best team to help the team win games and maybe win a cup.

Problem is the players who replaced Drouin are also young players, just right now they are better young players than Drouin is. Talent is not equal to hockey player

Well if he's playing so crappy & not earning a spot on the team, why don't you guys cash in & move this "bust" of a player before his value plummets to a 5 th round pick?
If he's so "valuable" to the future of Tampa, then play the kid. Why all the mind games?
- Kevin R

What mind games are you talking about? He was outplayed by other players right now. Didn't say he was playing crappy, said he was outplayed which is meant to be more of a positive for the players doing the outplaying than it a slight against Drouin. Also doesn't mean he doesn't have the talent and/or desire to be as good or better than those players in the future, it just means right now Drouin isn't the better player. Cooper's job is to field the best team each night. Yzerman's job is to give Cooper the best team possible. Problem is Drouin doesn't fit in either category for the 2015/16 Tampa Bay Lightning.

"James Tanner: Why I Support Jonathan Drouin "

...because of course you do...

Exploited with how many zeroes on those checks? That kind of exploited?

Oh yeah they are still free to work elsewhere where they aren't exploited
- uf1910

NHL players are persecuted. Drouin is just another example of it. The victim of an evil hedge fund NHL owner! One of the great injustices in a world of 7.9B people.

Maybe you don't agree - you don't seem very mature. But maybe now you understand why all your previous points were irrelevant? I do not care about the law, or contracts or whatever, in the context of this situation.

The entire article is about how its disgusting that fans shame a perfectly fine 20 year old kid without knowing all the details (even I didn't know they sent him down two games before he'd be a UFA one year ealier, which makes it worse) and then suggest that a grown man essentially say "I know you are, but what am I" and ruin his career.

It makes me think society is sick. And again, you couldn't have missed my point any further if you were doing it on purpose, which, come to think of it does explain why you can spell but are so obtuse.
- James_Tanner

Stay classy James, Stay classy!

Someone! Scratch that, Almost everyone! Disagrees with you(again) And yet somehow you are once again a victim in all this?
You claim other posters to be "childish" even as you throw out insults directed at them?
In this situation not a single one of us has all the information we would need to make an informed decision. So as humans we all make a decision based on what we think we know. Which BTW James whether you like it or not is entirely up to each individual.

You forgot
- mlindsay

but that's really cold. Still a little funny.

It's always Opposite Day in your world.

I am a proud socialist my good man, as are like 99% of people who say they hate socialism. But owners have been exploiting players for years.
- James_Tanner

Rats, I have been outed as a 1%er. Keep writing James, you are entertaining and getting a lot of comments on this one.

Well there was a spot for him. However Marchessault outplayed him while Drouin was injured. The ideal spot for Drouin is alongside Stamkos, but Namestnikov outplayed Drouin and is now in that spot. Bottom line is there is only so much roster space and on this team there are other players on that roster who are "better" players than Drouin. If Drouin was playing better he would be in one of those spots b/c at the end of that day the number one goal of Yzerman and Cooper is to win hockey games and put the best roster of players on the ice which give them the best chance to accomplish that goal. Problem is Drouin isn't willing to admit that right now he isn't one of those players
- uf1910

Outplayed or not given a chance? I don't recall how many games in a row, Drouin played with Stamkos in the regular season? I don't recall it being a whole game? I don't question Yzerman as much as I have an issue with Cooper on the ice time of DRouin and his line mates.

If Tampa was offered the right offer, he'd already be dealt. The last thing TB should do is just trade him. Drouin is not being punished.
- MJL

Yes he is. He's be forced to row to boat knowing as the NHL contract structure, while slave drive yzerman whips his back.

Well he has been around all day to engage his fans.
- Leafsandbolts

Yeah engage with Drouin is top 100, people don't like Evander Kane cause he's different and the NHL is closer to slavery than the free market. All of these just got more hits. He slinks away when presented with numbers and facts disproving his rhetoric.

Well he has been around all day to engage his fans.
- Leafsandbolts

He deserves credit for that.

I'm not even sure where to begin, this blog was so mind boggling. Instead of being embarrassed for the hockey world, should be embarrassed by the blog. First comparing Drouin to the entire population of the World, which is comparing him as a hockey player to billions of people who don't even play hockey! Compare him to the 600 or so NHL players in the league, or better yet, to the 24 guys on his team! Let's not confuse talent with current level of play and ability, they're not the same thing. heaven forbid, Drouin be asked to play the game the right way! Hey, he's the 3rd overall pick in the draft, he can play like he wants! Second, bringing the owner into it and rambling on about a hedge fund owner, who owns a team as a toy. The Owner is not making the calls here on where and how much Drouin plays. Yzerman and the coaching staff is! I guarantee they don't own hedge funds!
Steve Yzerman has the personal experience of changing his game from a one way offensive player, into a top 2 way player in the league. Drouin is nott being asked to do anything any other player hasn't been asked to do. Nobody can fault Drouin for being frustrated, for even wanting a change of scenery! He's going about it in the wrong way, but he's a 20 year old kid. That why you have mentors such as an agent, who is supposed to provide guidance
I'm curious James, not one word to Drouin's culpability in all of this? All you did was agree with the sense of entitlement that Drouin thinks he has, because he's one of the best players in the world out of 7.9 billion people!
Do yourself a favor James and read Paul Stewart's blog today. He go it right
- MJL

Wreckt

The NHL - and its fans - don't respect anyone who has a different opinion about anything. I won't be arguing this with people all day long. I just suggest that people be open minded and think about why Drouin is such a bad guy, but it's OK for Yzerman to act like he's five and ruin his career until he's 26. (I saw many people suggest he should).

You don't have agree with me, but I laid out my reasons, so saying that I'm just saying this just to say it is offensive.
- James_Tanner

This has zero to do with respecting the person offering the opinion. It is simply about the opinion offered, and I think you missed this one by miles.

I think a big part of a blogger's job is to create conversation. Secondly, I don't believe you're saying it just to say it. I don't think that's how you operate.

I agree