Adam Larsson

[Southpaw20]

Wondering what you all feel about his future at this point? To say 2013-14 was a disappointment would be a massive understatement but what do you think for next season? I picked him up at the end of the season (deep 20-team league) in hopes that he can figure things out for next season. A coaching change couldn't hurt his value I imagine.

Anyways just getting a feel for what others think about this guy

Cheers

[fungchen3]

I still like Larsson but I'm concerned with the way the Devils are handling him. Some players need to learn on the job and make mistakes and the Devils don't seem to have ANY patience with him whatsoever in that department. I wouldn't consider Larsson a "go out and get" player right now, but if you have him and can stash him away, I would. Look at how long it took E.Johnson and Hedman to arrive. I see Larsson taking a similar route.

[Dobber]

I don't blame Larsson for anything over the past year. His treatment has gone from questionable to downright insulting. If he wasn't ready, they should have left him overseas for a couple of years. Now, hindsight is 20-20, but there's no reason why they couldn't have sent him back there for last season

[Fast Tony DeNiro]

Agreed completely, the way the Devils have handled him as been very weird I've never seen a team do this before. He's a 4th overall pick, meaning he's someone you see as a future part of your team's core. But instead of developing him in any way at all, they've just scratched him for half of the games he's been here. Either leave him in Sweden, give him 20-25 minutes per night in the AHL (which he's been eligible for since they drafted him), or if you feel he's too good for those leagues and ready for the NHL, than freaking play him!

There's no reason Larsson should still be struggling so much three seasons into his career. Maybe he has sucked balls for the Devils I really don't know since I don't follow them, but he was very possibly the best player available in the 2011 draft. The fact that he is still a complete non-factor with the Devils is baffling to me.

[reeveta]

I have a theory on his handling (more like a conspirisy theory). Remember when he got signed to his entry level contract. They beat him down on bonuses which is unusual for 4th overall (the devils were in terrible cap shape). Lots of other players in that range had cap hits of around 2.5 to 3.0 million. He had a cap hit of less then 1. The agent commented that it was one of the worst ELCs he had done in terms of effort. I have wondered if one of the under the table agreements there was that he would take out the bonuses but they had to promise to keep him in the NHL and not send him to the AHL. Bad for his development but great for his wallet.

[Magicstew]

Next year Larsson you improve his numbers, it will be his 4th. so he is getting more comfortable.

[The Hockey Hitman]

He's trade bait is my guess...wouldn't be surprised to see him dealt to Tampa Bay for Brett Connolly. Wait a minute...yes I would...that would be awesome!!

[Bubba55]

Weird, poor treatment, downright insulting.....most peculiar situation. I think a change of scenery is necessary for sure if Larsson is to get on track. The question is, how likely is that? I would wait and see what happens before I would have any confidence in him becoming fantasy relevant. If you can sit on him great but right now he belongs on the farm and not on an active roster. Too bad, the kid has huge potential, hopefully his development hasn't been permanently affected.

[donpaulo]

Its a vexing situation for both the team and the player.

Changing rink size, culture and playing defense in the top league in the world are all factors in Larsson's apparent lack of development.

The best thing for Larsson is either a coaching change, an ownership change, a trade or a return to Sweden. Not everyone can make the transition and perhaps AL is one of those guys. One can only wonder how things would have turned out if he had ended up in a situation the encourages development like Detroit, Tampa, San Jose or Chicago...

If he is a blue plate special I would grab him, especially in sim leagues where you can sit on him. Playing defense in the NHL takes years of practice and Larsson is still just a kid

[fungchen3]

I drafted Larsson very high in my main league as a rookie and I watched him closely that year because I had high hopes for him. He played VERY well in preseason and then started the year good. After a little he started making a few mistakes and one of them was he seemed afraid to shoot - often passing up a nice shooting lane in order to dish the puck to a veteran teammate. Then the Devils sort of bailed on him and sent him down. IMO, a player isn't going to correct all of his mistakes in the AHL - there has to be some learning on the job without fear of benching or demotion. It's one of the reasons Erik Karlsson and Victor Hedman are as successful as they are. Their teams didn't yo-yo them when they were adapting to find their games.