Radulov forecast (if he comes back !!!)

[Doug Glatt]

http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/re...s-for-2016-17/

If he has declined a long-term deal from CSKA Moscow, as this article reports, then I think the chances he is coming back to NA are pretty high. Sure, maybe he doesnt get a deal to his liking from a team to his liking. I dont see that happening. This is his last shot to get a solid salary/term deal in the NHL and he is not yet 30 years old so if he is going to make the jump, it is happening this year or not at all.

I dont know what his stat projection should be, we dont even know what team he will be with, and that has a great amount of effect on what his stats would look like. I just picked him up in my dynasty league, doesnt cost anything and some joker in my league might want to trade for him, so its like getting a free draft pick off the wire.

[VincentVega]

I think it's much more likely that a team signs him to 1 or 2-year deal on a bonus-heavy contract. I don't see a wise GM committing long-term to Radulov at this time.

[Doug Glatt]

I think it's much more likely that a team signs him to 1 or 2-year deal on a bonus-heavy contract. I don't see a wise GM committing long-term to Radulov at this time.

This would be the wise move. Make Radulov show he has grown up since his last stint before committing. Definitely going to be an interesting storyline for the offseason.

[vandalay]

The names listed were simply mentioned to illustrate that talented NHLers, no matter their age or situation have a hard time hitting 60+ points in today's game. For a guy like Radulov to return to the league and get that many points in his first year back is farfetched. I guess a guy like Panarin does show that it is possible but he is an exception IMO.

Radulov has 65pts in 53gms...
Because of that, he is a shoe-in for 60+ points in the NHL?
How many points would guys like Bochenski, Dawes and Omark get in the NHL if they came back because they all 3 of them have over or slightly under a point per game production at 61pts/60gms, 53pts/55gms and 57pts/60gms respectively??! Sergei Mozyakin, at 35 years old, is at 67pts in 57gms this year; should NHL teams want to bring him across for a shot at 55+ next year??

I'm not denying that Radulov has talent, but to say that he could come back to the NHL and be part of the top 30 scorers is absurd to me. With only a couple of games left to play in 2016, only 35 players currently have 60+ points. Patches, Kessel, Perry, Johansen, Toews, Ryan and Neal all have less than 60 points this year and have played in almost every game!! Being the best player outside of the NHL does not mean that Radulov is automatically qualified to be a great player in the NHL... 60+ point predictions would hint to that though. For that reason, I'm not buying into the hype.

To be fair, at no point did Hoopo say that Radulov is a shoe-in for 60+ points in the NHL. He made an argument that Radulov could put up 60+ in the right situation and if he can keep his attitude in check, which is quite different. And to me, I find it hard to argue with that. You can point to the recognizable players that don't have 60 points yet but you can also point to guys like Hoffman and Jussi freaking Jokinen, with 58 points each. Don't tell me that those guys are on a different level than Radulov. I mean, Radulov put up 58 points in his his draft+4 season with Nashville. Anyone that saw Radulov play in his NHL stints and internationally for Russia knows that he is a huge talent. No question he COULD put up 60+ points, but he's a headcase so all bets are off. It's all about how he fits in with the new team.

[Bass56]

To be fair, at no point did Hoopo say that Radulov is a shoe-in for 60+ points in the NHL. He made an argument that Radulov could put up 60+ in the right situation and if he can keep his attitude in check, which is quite different. And to me, I find it hard to argue with that. You can point to the recognizable players that don't have 60 points yet but you can also point to guys like Hoffman and Jussi freaking Jokinen, with 58 points each. Don't tell me that those guys are on a different level than Radulov. I mean, Radulov put up 58 points in his his draft+4 season with Nashville. Anyone that saw Radulov play in his NHL stints and internationally for Russia knows that he is a huge talent. No question he COULD put up 60+ points, but he's a headcase so all bets are off. It's all about how he fits in with the new team.

To be fair these were his words: ''In the right situation I could easily see 60+ if he manages to keep his attitude in check, which is a big question mark, admittedly. Among the names you mentioned, I think on paper he's currently better than a lot of them at putting up points (you've offered a good mix of players with pretty variable skill sets and experience).''

When you say ''easily 60+ if he keeps his attitude in check'', it means that he has the skillset to pull off the feat and only his ''attitude'' is what is preventing him from doing so. The players I listed, both in the NHL and the KHL are counter examples that show that it's not as ''easy'' as it used to be to break 60 points in today's NHL; even if you are a top scorer in the KHL and your attitude is in check.

Totally agree though for the Hoffman and Jokinen examples. They do not have the skillset that other stars below them have but find a way to put up points.

Guess time will tell if he does cross over and how he will fare...

[deantime419]

You can project a 50pt season and give valid reasons for it but IMO you also can't deny the upside for so much more and that's what makes him so tempting to grab.
Seeing what Panarin did with Kane, maybe Radulov could do something similar if he got a chance to play with JT or Ovi?

[VincentVega]

I think there is a decent chance Radulov does what Panarin did this year playing with Kane. In pure vacuum, Radulov is as talented as Panarin. All he needs is the right environment.

[Hoopo]

Are you talking about his 6 points in 8 games in 2012?

Yes?

The names listed were simply mentioned to illustrate that talented NHLers, no matter their age or situation have a hard time hitting 60+ points in today's game. For a guy like Radulov to return to the league and get that many points in his first year back is farfetched....

Radulov has 65pts in 53gms...
Because of that, he is a shoe-in for 60+ points in the NHL?
How many points would guys like Bochenski, Dawes and Omark get in the NHL if they came back because they all 3 of them have over or slightly under a point per game production at 61pts/60gms, 53pts/55gms and 57pts/60gms respectively??! Sergei Mozyakin, at 35 years old, is at 67pts in 57gms this year; should NHL teams want to bring him across for a shot at 55+ next year??

There's a lot here to respond to

regarding 60+ or top-30 being far-fetched, I disagree. This is a guy that scored 26 goals and 58 points in his second NHL season. The guy was a bona-fide NHL scoring threat. He HAS made the transition, and he did it pretty well. Then he bolted, and came back. Did decent when he came back too, despite the fact he appeared to be phoning it in so he could burn off a year of his ELC. That's the difference between him and the other guys you named like Bochenski, Dawes, and Omark. They never had what it took to succeed in the NHL game. Radulov does, and we have seen it.

Regarding top-30, that list is pretty well open to a lot of names from year to year. If you're in the top-6 and belong there, you probably have a decent shot at being in the top-30 in a good year. Foligno and Hudler. Kunitz and Staal. Ribeiro, Kadri, Moulson, Pominville, Lupul, Parenteau, Purcell, Semin, 42-year-old Jagr, 44-year-old Jagr, Turris, Palat, Stone...these guys have all been in or near the top-30 in the last 5 years. Even Filpula came close once. I think Radulov can hang with and even surpass a lot of these guys in any given year.

[Bass56]

Yes?



There's a lot here to respond to

regarding 60+ or top-30 being far-fetched, I disagree. This is a guy that scored 26 goals and 58 points in his second NHL season. The guy was a bona-fide NHL scoring threat. He HAS made the transition, and he did it pretty well. Then he bolted, and came back. Did decent when he came back too, despite the fact he appeared to be phoning it in so he could burn off a year of his ELC. That's the difference between him and the other guys you named like Bochenski, Dawes, and Omark. They never had what it took to succeed in the NHL game. Radulov does, and we have seen it.

Regarding top-30, that list is pretty well open to a lot of names from year to year. If you're in the top-6 and belong there, you probably have a decent shot at being in the top-30 in a good year. Foligno and Hudler. Kunitz and Staal. Ribeiro, Kadri, Moulson, Pominville, Lupul, Parenteau, Purcell, Semin, 42-year-old Jagr, 44-year-old Jagr, Turris, Palat, Stone...these guys have all been in or near the top-30 in the last 5 years. Even Filpula came close once. I think Radulov can hang with and even surpass a lot of these guys in any given year.

Totally agree with you Hoopo with ''non-star'' guys like Foligno, Moulson and Purcell just to name a few making it in the top-30/60+pts. It's not impossible but it's very hard to predict and odds are that they can't repeat that. What I was arguing here is that given Radulov's great talent, he is not a shoe-in to hit those numbers, especially in today's NHL, no matter who you play with not to mention at 30 years of age. A perfect example to that is T.J. Oshie. He's 29 like Radulov, compiled 87 pts in 133 games (first 2 seasons = 65.4ppg) vs Radulov's 95 in 145 games (first 2 seasons = 65.5ppg). Furthermore, Oshie has a ppg ratio of 66.4 in his first 182 games (3 seasons) vs Radulov's 66.2 in his 3 NHL seasons (or parts of, with a total of 154 games).

Oshie has played with superstars and is an amazing player himself as he has awesome puck handling, great vision and a knack for the net yet he has never surpassed 60 pts in a given season. He is just 1 example, I agree, but at 29 years of age (and 30 come next year), I'm not so sure that his and Radulov's best hockey is in front of them. Guys like Ryan (29 y/o) and Stastny (30 y/o) had great starts to their careers and had trouble hitting 60 later on. On the other hand, Wheeler and Krejci have found ways to do so as they have been able to maintain their pace (and even improve) over the years so I guess anything is possible. No one will truly know until he makes his way back to the NHL and suits up with a given team. I just won't be jumping the gun on Radulov come draft time