Saturday, January 10, 2009

Ryan Potulny Scouting Report


When everyone is at their best Potulny is the Falcons 2nd best forward behind Rob Schremp. Everyone knows my feelings on the Schremp situation, and ironically this is my 2nd post on Saturday and the first was making a case for Schremp to get the call.

Now onto the matter at hand. Potulny has been recalled, the Falcons lone representative for the AHL allstar game, and also the teams leading goalscorer and point getter will get his first taste of Oilers hockey. Potulny has been a rock in Springfield since day 1. ES, PK, PP, he's seen it all in Falconland.

Potulny is a pretty good but not great skater, is pretty average in a number of areas including passing, strength, and size. He does a lot of things well, but only a few things really well.

What he does really well:

He gets into scoring position very well.
He goes where he needs to be to put the puck in the net.

Put the puck on net.
He looks to shoot every chance that he gets, he's never met a shot that he doesn't like.

What to expect from Potulny:

A solid but unspectacular player who can be invisible for stretches but then gets into position and pots a goal or gets a good chance.

A better current option that Brule or Reddox. It is my opinion that he has been deserving of the callup before Brule and Reddox. His game will translate better to the NHL than either of the other 2 players at the moment.

Who does he compare to on the Oilers?
2 players come to mind, Shawn Horcoff and Marc Pouliot. Like the 2 players that I'm comparing him to, he loves to get the puck on net. It is my opinion that he doesn't have as good of a shot as Horcoff, but he has a better selection of shots than Horc and isn't as limited to onetime goalscoring as Horcoff is. Unlike the 2 players that I've mentioned above, he isn't in their league in terms of passing ability.

What position has he been playing?
For most of this season he has been a center.

What position will he be playing in Edmonton?

Anything but goal would be my guess under the current coach. He should do well as a winger or center as long as he has a playmaker on his line.

Who would be his ideal Oilers linemates?

A number of players would be solid compliments to Potulny. Penner, Nilsson, Gagner, and Pouliot would be the 4 players that I would see him having the best chemistry with.

Best of luck to #17 Ryan Potulny as he gets a much deserved call from the big club.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the report, BBO. My feelings on Schremp are also well known, but all I know about Potulny is his stats line, so I appreciate the info. I'm guessing he doesn't hit much? Too bad, we'll miss Stortini in that area.

Bryanbryoil said...

He doesn't hit much, but he doesn't shy away from it either. IIRC he's knocked a few guys on their tails with big hits. Probably a better hitter than Schremp but not as good as Brule.

They might try him on the PK as he's been one of the Falcons SH TOI leaders for forwards.

Anonymous said...

Nice game from Potulny tonight. Seemed a solid player.