The Lightning Blog

[Money99]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bolts_26

Thanks..Iv'e been enjoying this so far

Yes Bolts_26, this is a great blog. Good job.

I want to ask you something because you've obviously watched more Lightning games than I have.
But do you feel Lecavailer is a bit overrated? He's only scored 50 goals once and topped 100 points one time as well.
He has so much talent but it seems like he takes nights off.
For a guy that's twice the size of St.Louis, he should outscore that little buy every year. And yet, hasn't St.Louis outscored Vinny in total points since the two have been on the same team?

What's your assessment?

[Bolts_26]

Quote: Originally Posted by Money99

Yes Bolts_26, this is a great blog. Good job. I want to ask you something because you've obviously watched more Lightning games than I have. But do you feel Lecavailer is a bit overrated? He's only scored 50 goals once and topped 100 points one time as well. He has so much talent but it seems like he takes nights off. For a guy that's twice the size of St.Louis, he should outscore that little buy every year. And yet, hasn't St.Louis outscored Vinny in total points since the two have been on the same team? What's your assessment?

First off, Thank you very much. I enjoy this and love too see that others are enjoying it too!

To be honest with you, Marty is better then Vinny. You can argue this all day long but at the end of the day Marty has that "Fire".

Watch St.louis closely in a game,(Since that he is my hero I do this a lot) You will see this guy is like the Energizer Bunny, He does not give up. He skates like theirs no tomorrow, he passes, he believes his team can do it more then anyone, and he's a leader that people can follow.

Did you know that Martin St.louis demanded that he got the full tape from Game 81 Vs. the Washington Capitals? He wanted to go over it with Steven Stamkos and others and find his and their mistakes too better there play.

Vinny's great, but I really think Marty's heart,passion, and dedication is what brings him to be a better player then Vinny.

To answer your question and not just rant about my love for St.louis: Yes, Vinny is very overrated and he does have lots of "off" nights because I feels he does not have a passion as strong as Marty's.

[Bolts_26]

Also I'm having a big draft update/thoughts very soon so please stay tuned.

[Bolts_26]

Before I start it tommorow, would anyone like to leave a word about the Lightnings Draftee's? If so, PM and I'll put it on...

[Money99]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bolts_26

First off, Thank you very much. I enjoy this and love too see that others are enjoying it too! To be honest with you, Marty is better then Vinny. You can argue this all day long but at the end of the day Marty has that "Fire". Watch St.louis closely in a game,(Since that he is my hero I do this a lot) You will see this guy is like the Energizer Bunny, He does not give up. He skates like theirs no tomorrow, he passes, he believes his team can do it more then anyone, and he's a leader that people can follow. Did you know that Martin St.louis demanded that he got the full tape from Game 81 Vs. the Washington Capitals? He wanted to go over it with Steven Stamkos and others and find his and their mistakes too better there play. Vinny's great, but I really think Marty's heart,passion, and dedication is what brings him to be a better player then Vinny. To answer your question and not just rant about my love for St.louis: Yes, Vinny is very overrated and he does have lots of "off" nights because I feels he does not have a passion as strong as Marty's.

Thanks Bolts!
I think Vinny has an immense skill set and is probably in the top 5 offensively gifted players on the planet. It just seemed like everytime I would watch the Bolts on TSN or Center Ice that he would be different from one shift, or one game, to the next.

If this guy tried as hard as Marty, Ovechkin or Crosby shift-in, shift-out, I think he'd top 100 points easily every season.

Thanks again for the reply!

[Ridgeberg]

Quote: Originally Posted by Money99

Thanks Bolts! I think Vinny has an immense skill set and is probably in the top 5 offensively gifted players on the planet. It just seemed like everytime I would watch the Bolts on TSN or Center Ice that he would be different from one shift, or one game, to the next. If this guy tried as hard as Marty, Ovechkin or Crosby shift-in, shift-out, I think he'd top 100 points easily every season. Thanks again for the reply!

As a big Lightning supporter, I will admit bias towards the team and Lecavalier. That said, I believe he is a top 10 forward in the NHL, but with the emergence of the young stars, he probably falls in the latter half. As hockey fans, we are fortunate to have the emergence of all of these young players. You'd have to rank Crosby/Malkin/Ovechkin 1-3 in some order. Then there are players like Datsyuk and Zetterberg.

I disagree with Bolts_26 that St. Louis is the Lightning's best player. It is Lecavalier. If he is on, he can control a game. Marty is exciting because of his speed, size and work ethic. Marty is also a better leader. I do not think Lecavalier has leadership skills. The "C" experiment blew up in the Lightning's face the first time he was named captain, then Tortorella stripped it from him, he was almost traded and had his best years wearing the "A" to Andreychuck's and Taylor's "C". That is a long-winded explanation to why I think St. Louis (or even Halpern) should be the captain. I think the responsibilty weighs heavy on Lecavalier and his production decreased (drastically) this season.

He was also coming off major shoulder surgery (probably came back a little too soon), played with an injured wrist all season (had surgery to fix that over this past offseason), had to have been distracted by the trade rumors, management blunders and new 11 year contract. Vinny has publicly stated that he is going to work as hard as he can during the offseason to come back to his expected productivity levels. Vinny Prospal (usually his linemate) is due for a big season (because for some strange reason, he doubles production every other year..seriously...02-03: 79pts, 03-04: 54pts, 04-05: Lockout, 05-06: 80pts, 06-07: 55pts, 07-08: 71pts, 08-09: 52pts.) These are all excuses to why he had a poor year, but I think they are all valid. I am glad he was not traded at the draft because I think it would be a big mistake. As idiotic as it might sound, I do not think the Lightning are that far from competing for a playoff spot.

[mkharsh33]

...but i also believe that hockey is very much a game of intensity and effort.

i'd take marty over vinny because i believe that a player with slightly less skill but a greater sense of effort/determination will make a greater impact on his team than a player with slightly more skill but who gives less effort...

vinny is the sex appeal of this team...but marty is its heartbeat.

you'd probably never get this answer, but i'd bet that stamkos has learned more about the game from marty than he has from vinny...

[Ridgeberg]

Quote: Originally Posted by mkharsh33

...but i also believe that hockey is very much a game of intensity and effort. i'd take marty over vinny because i believe that a player with slightly less skill but a greater sense of effort/determination will make a greater impact on his team than a player with slightly more skill but who gives less effort... vinny is the sex appeal of this team...but marty is its heartbeat. you'd probably never get this answer, but i'd bet that stamkos has learned more about the game from marty than he has from vinny...

What you wrote makes sense, but I think that it speaks more towards leadership style and style of play. Vinny kind of plays on the periphery which sort of resembles how he lives his life. Vinny is advantageous because of his frame, weight and geographic background whereas Marty has been discounted throughout his collegiate and professional careers because of his size; he has had to cultivate his style of play based on his experience. Lecavalier reminds me more of Forsberg. Tampa could not have won the cup without Vinny just like Colorado couldn't have won it without Forsberg. They were arguable the "most talented" players on the team at the time, but were not the leading scorer on their team. The point totals in the cup year: Sakic 118 Forsberg 89 St. Louis 94 Lecavalier 66.

The original question (that was not directed at me, but I chimed in anyway) was whether or not Vinny was overrated, not who you would rather have on your team. I don't think Vinny is overrated talent wise, he is a magician with the puck and has scored 50 goals. He is a franchise center who is 29 years old and is considered by most to be in his prime.