Risto Under Ralph Krueger

[MakeSabresGrr8Again]

2 hours ago, bunomatic said:

 30 scouts don’t just miraculously appear at most games. They did last night. They are showcasing him. Brian Burke and Elliot Freidman said as much.

I think they would with any team that has turned it around as we have (so far). It's an opportunity to see what we are doing to make that change  and still see what they might want to "pluck" off the roster that could be available.

[matter2003]

32 minutes ago, WildCard said:

Odd considering we outshot our opponents in 2/3 games, easily I might as well 

I think the Columbus game really skewed things IMHO, because the Sabres team CF% is only 48.2% even though they outshot their opponents in 3 of the 4 games.  They were so badly outshot/outchanced in that game that we haven't had enough of a sample size yet to make up for it when we moderately outshot/outchanced the opposition in the other 3 games.

Edited October 10, 2019 by matter2003

[pi2000]

He looks like Risto, nothing has changed IMO.    Some good plays and big hits mixed in with some much too frequent "what the hell was that!?" plays.

[Captain Caveman]

3 hours ago, SwampD said:

Can Risto play right tackle?

That's where that 30th scout came from...

[Zamboni]

If there were more than three games last night, 30 scouts wouldn’t have been there ... The other two had 20-30 scouts too.

Edited October 10, 2019 by Zamboni

[Scottysabres]

50 minutes ago, Zamboni said:

If there were more than three games last night, 30 scouts wouldn’t have been there ... The other two had 20-20 scouts too.

from what I understand, there was a large contingent from both Winnipeg, Dallas and Anaheim last night. But you are probably correct, with Toronto being home to quite a few scouts, a drive down the QEW to catch a game on a slow night, take some notes, could be a part of the increased numbers.

[triumph_communes]

ANA trades us Montour just to turn around and acquire Risto?  Ehhhhh

 

If we don’t get a bonafide top line winger, it’s a huge loss. Jokiharju has been playing ok, especially considering he’s been with Scandella, but that’s a big risk. 

[Pimlach]

Risto - I want to love the big guy, then he goes and pulls a Risto.  

 

I think he has played well so far,  a big gaffe here and there, he is Risto after all. 

[PerreaultForever]

On 10/10/2019 at 6:50 AM, That Aud Smell said:

He seems to be playing more within himself than in the past. I don't notice nearly as many (and sometimes no) low hockey IQ gaffes. The proverbial "he was trying to do too much" may apply.

I think this is the goal. I also think his minutes will go down if Dahlin's D play improves sooner than later. Right now Miller is the guy who has really made our D better. It will be interesting to see what Kreuger does with Montour as he seems to favor a more defensive minded game and from what I saw last year that isn't Montour. 

My own view is that Risto will get better and better as his role is reinforced and developed by Kreuger. It's not going to all change instantly, but I see movement in that direction. Unless he proves uncoachable (as that old rumor had it) by the end of the year  he will be a solid defensive force.

[SwampD]

On 10/10/2019 at 9:10 AM, SwampD said:

4-0-1

 

See. 

Told ya!

[Thorner]

On 10/10/2019 at 9:24 AM, dudacek said:

This. I’ve been fine with both his game and how he’s been used. 

Looks like Ralph has told him to not worry about making plays with the puck so much, and concentrate on taking the body and playing safer defence and he’s listening.

He’s getting similar deployment in defensive situations as before, but just lost some in offensive situations.

His +/- is going to improve without the 10 empty-netters against as a result.

It’s still too many minutes. The book on Risto is he gets worse as the season goes on. He’s looked fine, totally agree, but he has early on in the past, too. They’ll need to cut his minutes. 

[Thorner]

On 10/10/2019 at 10:24 AM, Randall Flagg said:

I think he looks a lot like early-season Risto of past years. His late-winters usually make people forget, but the Risto of the Toronto game last December, or the Washington/Oilers games of 16-17, and others, is an incredible hockey player. He has it in him to be pretty good all the time. He just falls apart physically and mentally playing 26 hard minutes for bad teams for 82 straight games. I think, if Ralph is going to be a positive influence on Risto, we won't see anything appreciably different until it's time for Risto to start declining, and he doesn't. 

He did play a LOT last night. Didn't see the ice time. 

To me it’s about lightening his usage so he doesn’t actually reach that time-of-decline. 

He’s still getting those same minutes and difficult situations, no? With less PP time, his minutes may have been even harder.

Edit: Yup, his ES + SH ice time is actually slightly up this year since last. More worrying still is the trend this year, where it keeps going up seemingly game by game. 

Edited October 12, 2019 by Thorny

[Weave]

7 hours ago, Thorny said:

It’s still too many minutes. The book on Risto is he gets worse as the season goes on. He’s looked fine, totally agree, but he has early on in the past, too. They’ll need to cut his minutes. 

I seriously wonder if his decline in performance is due more to the futility of the season than it is due to fatigue. 

[Ross Rhea]

9 hours ago, Thorny said:

It’s still too many minutes. The book on Risto is he gets worse as the season goes on. He’s looked fine, totally agree, but he has early on in the past, too. They’ll need to cut his minutes. 

I think he gets worse as the season goes on simply because he seen the prior coaches as a joke and the team wasn't going anywhere so he was the first guy to check out and go rogue and not give a damn. Hopefully RKs coaching is good and Risto stays mentally involved all year.

[Randall Flagg]

3 hours ago, Weave said:

I seriously wonder if his decline in performance is due more to the futility of the season than it is due to fatigue. 

It's possible. it happened in 16-17 though, and started before the most hopeful points of the entire season. 

[Pimlach]

2 hours ago, Ross Rhea said:

I think he gets worse as the season goes on simply because he seen the prior coaches as a joke and the team wasn't going anywhere so he was the first guy to check out and go rogue and not give a damn. Hopefully RKs coaching is good and Risto stays mentally involved all year.

Not a good trait if true.  

I do think it’s mental fatigue.  Constant Losing, getting pummeled at times, and playing 25 of 60 minutes is asking a lot.  He is physically tough, mentally I’m not so sure about him.  Especially being so young with no mentor, and no one to cover for him.  Thinking of Tyler Myers without Talinder.  

Shoeny went to a Sabres team on the rise and had the highly respected Tim Horton show him the ropes.  Risto started with a team in decline, that got worse and hit rock bottom twice, he had has played for many questionable coaches and with very little veteran help.   

[Weave]

5 hours ago, Pimlach said:

Not a good trait if true.  

I do think it’s mental fatigue.  Constant Losing, getting pummeled at times, and playing 25 of 60 minutes is asking a lot.  He is physically tough, mentally I’m not so sure about him.  Especially being so young with no mentor, and no one to cover for him.  Thinking of Tyler Myers without Talinder.  

Shoeny went to a Sabres team on the rise and had the highly respected Tim Horton show him the ropes.  Risto started with a team in decline, that got worse and hit rock bottom twice, he had has played for many questionable coaches and with very little veteran help.   

The lack of real mentors all this time has been a big drag on every player. 

[MakeSabresGrr8Again]

1 hour ago, Weave said:

The lack of real mentors all this time has been a big drag on every player. 

Including the mentors that they have brought in....Bergy and Pommers to start with.

[pi2000]

Menatl fatigue?  Mentors?   

This is hockey not medical school.

[MakeSabresGrr8Again]

58 minutes ago, pi2000 said:

Menatl fatigue?  Mentors?   

This is hockey not medical school.

It's not a spelling bee either.

[Doohicksie]

This ain't no party.

This ain't no disco.

This ain't no foolin' around.

 

[Tondas]

2 hours ago, pi2000 said:

Menatl fatigue?  Mentors?   

This is hockey not medical school.

[Eleven]

On 10/10/2019 at 9:06 AM, WildCard said:

Well, it's early but how has he looked?

 

So far, the whole 'cut his minutes' has gone nowhere as Ristolainen is averaging 24:14 minutes/night, tops on the team by 3 minutes over McCabe

I said it in another thread, but this is now four coaches who have given him heavy minutes, and I'm coming around to thinking that they must know something we don't.

[pi2000]

21 hours ago, Eleven said:

I said it in another thread, but this is now four coaches who have given him heavy minutes, and I'm coming around to thinking that they must know something we don't.

Doesn't mean they're all right.

[Ross Rhea]

25 minutes ago, pi2000 said:

Doesn't mean they're all right.

Bet their more right than you or me or anyone else on this board.