Canes Country Exit Analysis: Joni Pitkanen

The issue for me from giving him an “A” is his anger and penchant for taking that “extra-hit” after the refs are there.

I like that he’s there and lets the other side knows he doesn’t back down, but at the same time he needs to control his anger a bit more.

This is one player who will benefit the most from the additions JR has made the last month. I expect great things from this guy in the upcoming season. I could see how Aaron Ward and Joni could be magic. 57 days, 7 hrs 48 min.

Question: He also seems to be perceived as the top D on the Canes when I read external-source stories. Is that because they use our salary chart to make that call? Is he truly our best defenseman? (goes back to the discussion of who you want on the ice in OT of a game 7….? – he and Gleason sure were a memorable pairing in NJ)

I struggled with the B- to C+ rating…

He is our best all around defenseman… and he plays well most of the time… he does not get the credit he deserves from the rest of the league… but I do not really think he plays as hard as he could/should to earn the money he makes.

Meant to add – great photo, LTD! We’re lucky to have your shots in the mix.

Thanks! I love that you all like the photos. I’m always excited to see one of them posted here. Hoping to get out to at least a day of Training Camp to get some shots of the players we don’t see very often.

Regarding Joni, this was so tough for me. I almost gave him an ‘A’ but kind of settled in with a ‘B’ which seems to be where he’s landing. I think one of the issues with Joni is that he’s so smart that sometimes he gives you the impression that he isn’t trying all that hard. For his size he’s a really effortless skater. Tuomo talked about him in his post-season interview (thanks for giving me an excuse to go back and listen to that one LOL) as being a great skater with great hockey sense. I’ll probably butcher this description, but I once read a description of him as skating like a chess player, always thinking one or two moves ahead, which is sometimes why you’d expect him to hit the opposing player but he doesn’t, because he realizes it will take him out of the next play. Anyhow, that kind of makes sense to me. As a spectator I often think he should behave one way then he does something different yet proves me wrong. Don’t know if it’s true, but I’ve also read that he has almost total recall when it comes to breaking down a game afterwards and can remember almost every detail of every shift.

I think having his Finn friends helps him fit well here, and I think he’ll shine with Aaron Ward next year. I see nothing but upside for Joni on our blueline next year.

I went with a B as well for many of the reasons Bubba outlined in the good/bad sections. The inconsistency kills me-he’s either setting up great goals or it’s like he’s not paying attention/trying at all. (Maybe I’ve been jaded by the people who sit around me at games-they’re not his biggest fans.) I personally like that he began to show a little bit of his “nasty side,” as Tripp called it, later in the season. Granted we could do without the foolish penalties that come with that, but he was one of the players that I thought didn’t use their size to their advantage at times and it was good to see that he could bring that part of the game. Like others, I’m excited to see how he’ll do with A. Ward backing him up. October 2 can’t come soon enough!

I gave Joni a B as well. This was his year to get his feet wet with the team. He seem to adjust better as the season went on. I’m expecting alot better play out of him this season. Hope he doesn’t disappoint me!

Hey – I see our “F”-troll has been by! He must be a very bitter young man. Buffalo, Boston or New Jersey, I wonder.

Maybe we should have a fan post with a poll on which fanbase we think is most likely to produce such a silly “poll-troll”.

Although I considered Joni the best defenseman on the team last season I think he still hasn’t reached his potential. I’m very optmistic about his partnership with A.Ward and expecting him to have his best NHL season in 09-10.

I gave Joni a B. He is our best all-around defenseman and he can & should continue to get better. He does frustrate me more than anyone else on this team. Whether it’s his custom bad angle shot from the left corner or the stupid late hits he’s always dishing out. To me he still seems a little uncomfortable with his own abilities. I know it doesn’t sound like it, but I do like him. He’s a good player and eats a lot of minutes for us.

I never saw him take a shift off. He plays smart. He conserves his energy. He is efficient. Please!!!!!!!!!!! People in Edmonton didn’t get it. He was a MAJOR reason for the playoff push. Like top Three on the team…………

If you rate him a B and then say he was our best defenseman, aren’t you saying that on average, our defense was a C? To get to that C average, doesn’t that imply that someone is a D or an F? Was our defense in the bottom Third in the league? Who is the D or F guy?

I gave him an A. I would mention what no one else has. He had to start his Hurricane career knowing he was traded for the local semi-God Erik Cole. What that must have been like. The Eye was stocked full of his jerseys and No One bought them. Everthing he did was uber-scrutinized as in “we traded Erik for him?”. He handled it and then some. He was the best d-man on the ice most nights. Nasty side ? Yah sure. I wish Wallin had some of that.

I gave him a B. I agree with the points above about replacing Cole and getting better as the season went along. I really think that this coming season will be very good for him — more used to the system, more used to the players around him. 40 pts and +20 should be easily attainable, and will make the Canes that much better. If I was as good at my job as JR has been at his the last couple months, I’d be watching the coming season from a suite!! :)

I was expecting a lot more negativity based on previous threads on this blog. The comment effortless skater is on point. This reminds me of Eric Dickerson back in the day, he wasn’t the fastest or strongest runner but boy was he smooth. It was said that his stride was so smooth the his shoulder pads didn’t even make a sound as he ran full speed.
It seems to me that offensive defensemen get the most criticism of any player on the ice, except the goalies. This is especially true among the Canes faithful, many of whom would be fine with dressing 6 Wesley clones every night. Pitkanen is NOT another Sandis Ozolinsh. He is an elite skater, especially considering his size, has wonderful vision, is very creative with and w/o the puck, and he makes those on the ice with him better players. Seids and Babchuck both saw their production go way up when paired with him. Like all defensemen he is prone to make a mistake in his own end, this is all the more magnified due to the close proximity to his own goal. Paired with either Ward or Gleason he will be more able to showcase his offensive ability. My biggest beef with him is that he doesn’t shoot the puck enough. Looking back over last season, I think he was our most consistent d-man and one of our most consistent players. He could easily end up as one of the top 5-6 scorers on the team next year if he stays healthy.

Well said. Yeah, the only thing he could do better is shoot more…….. He will now that AW is back there.

Just ask the so called experts in Edmonton…………..

I’d like to see him put up some more points this year, hopefully having a solid D-D-man as a line mate will help with that.