Grading the Islanders: Freddy Meyer IV, question mark
by Dominik on Aug 28, 2009 2:05 PM EDT
in New York Islanders Report Cards
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PrintFreddy Meyer IV will turn 29 in January and has played 202 NHL games, 84 of them in the last two seasons. Late bloomer? (It's a modest "bloom," but...). Undersized and injury-prone? Just an undrafted U.S. Development Team and BU product who keeps keeping on with dogged determination? All of the above?
Admittedly, the scope is limited, but It's tough to know what to make or what to expect of The Fourth, as his career has not followed a straight line. You can see why Philadelphia had him pegged as an offensive defenseman. You can see why he was waived twice in one season. When he delivers a surprisingly big hit with his small frame, you know why teams are intrigued. When he goes through a dry spell or gets hurt, you know why teams see him as a movable depth piece.
After the jump, more fodder and stats for you to consider when issuing your grade. In comments, consider Meyer and where he fits on the blueline. (I know we've gone over the blueline a lot recently, but now's a good time for you lurkers to say your piece, too.) If healthy, does he go right back to a pairing with Brendan Witt?
Freddy Meyer
#44 / Defenseman / New York Islanders
5-10
192
Jan 04, 1981
Call it 4 (1GP in 03-04)
1 more year at $587,500
Swear we won't waive you this time. Honest.
Random Fact: If you're into the new math, Meyer had the second-worst 5-on-5 rating on the team, behind only Brendan Witt, his most frequent partner. BUT: His quality of competition at 5-on-5 was second-highest (behind Witt again), and his quality of teammates was above only Witt and Martinek. Did he and Witt bring each other down? Chicken or egg? Or communal suckitude? Or small sample of 27 games, most of which came when the Islanders were at their collective worst?
"This is our concern, Dude" Fact: He went to Germany for the latest, most advanced form of hernia surgery going into last season. But then Jan. 5 was his last game, thanks to a groin injury. Are his injuries over? Are any Islanders' injuries over?
The Story: It's been a crazy ride for Meyer since coming over from Philly in the Zhitnik dump in December 2006. (And please don't pretend that Snow could have gotten Brayden Coburn at that time, well before Don Waddell's desperate playoff push.) He was liked, then squeezed out and claimed by Phoenix on waivers thanks to Bryan Berard's presence, then claimed back a month later in time to rear his newborn on Long Island.
Finally settled and given a two-year, near-minimum contract, the injuries promptly set in.
The Good: Last season at least, he was a strong penalty killer, with bonus occasional offensive punch.
The Bad: There is a place in an NHL lineup for Freddy Meyer, but can Freddy Meyer stay health enough to keep that place?
The Song: 'Let's Help Each Other'
We're sorry that we waived you
We really hope you understand
But this blueline, see, it's crazy
Health and talent undermanned
If you would kindly nurse your groin back
The way you did that other thing
We'll put you back in the lineup
For the mobility you bring
We don't pay much but we play you
Even put "IV" behind your name
It ain't much but it's something
A chance to play the big-league game
The Grade: Meh. It was just 27 games, but it was nearly 21 minutes per. It was also during the Islanders' worst half of the season. Part of the problem or part of the solution? Or part of the solution in a lesser role, if they would only replace other parts of the problem? You tell me.
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Disappointing year, and part of the problem, IMO. Couple his defensive ineptitude with Witt losing a step and showing some kinks in a once-stalwart defensive game, and I think that explains the ineffectiveness of that pairing. I’d put Martinek back with Witt, and let Meyer and Hillen battle it out in camp for the #6 slot.
As a reserve – a #7 guy, pushed into duty when the inevitable rash of injuries hits your roster – he’s adequate depth. As a Top-4, 21-minute-a-night defenseman… yeah, pass. He was hilariously out of place last season, most of that having to do with injuries and being counted on to eat replacement minutes. I have a hard time believing that a playoff team would have a spot in their Top-6 for FMIV – he had that breakout yr. in Philly a few years ago, but that’s looking more and more like an anomaly compared to the rest of his career.
He’s passable, though – albeit barely – especially on a team as hurting for depth/talent on the blueline as NYI. I think he’s got a little more offensive upside than he’s showing, and if you pro-rate his hits/blocked shot totals, you get about 200 hits/160 blocked shots over a full season [granted, that’s with 21 mins./gm., but it shows he has some utility at both ends of the ice. If there were more talented guys in front of him on the depth chart, I wouldn’t mind him in a limited role. Unfortunately, if you factor in depth + injuries, he is probably going to approach 20 min./night for another year… and with his defensive game, expect him to situate himself on the “minus” side of things yet again.
My expectations weren’t that high to begin with, but I can’t really ignore how ineffective he was – however much ice-time he managed to draw from Scott Gordon. I went with a “2.”
Well hell, next time I’m just farming the report card out to you: Twice the points in half the words! Nicely done, thanks for the thorough take.
You’re lower on him than I am — I still want a chance to see him perform when the team is more settled down and Gordon-ized than it was early last year — but I can’t really argue against any of your points, and I admit that it’s rosy to expect more from him. I hope he’s not doing 20 min./night again, but yeah … probably so.
Lighthouse Hockey: Side effects may include Weight gain and frequent game loss.
this is a simplistic view i guess, but we keep ending up with that half season 6th man type guy. Zhitnik, Bergeron, Davison, Meyer, Martinek to an extent. . . If it’s not injuries, it’s inconsistent play. I know your 6th and 7th blueliners are just that for a reason, but it would be nice to see less turnover and more gelling at the position. I don’t think Meyer is a horrible player, he’s got grit, but he’s more like the “utility guy” than a gamer on the blueline.
He certainly had his high points – the three pt. night vs. Ottawa comes to mind. (Come to think of it, he seems to have a few highlights against Ottawa over the past couple of years, haha.) I think he’s pretty useful, and I’d appreciate him a little more if we were a deeper club and he wasn’t playing long enough to have his weaknesses magnified.
If there were a “2.5” option, I think it’d apply here. Played out of his role, but I like the tools he brings to the table.
Oh, I’d like to see how a lot of people perform after a yr. of Gordon’s system under their belts. He seems to be the kind of d-man that SG loves, so maybe a healthy year in the line up could help his stock.
If there were a "2.5" option, I think it’d apply here.
Yeah, I should have gone with a 10-point system when I first started this, but I wasn’t sure how it would go and started small. So many of these guys are in the average range that it could probably use a little fine-tuning.
Lighthouse Hockey: Side effects may include Weight gain and frequent game loss.
It’s interesting that Meyer’s quality of competition at 5-on-5 is 2nd highest yet his quality of competition on the penalty kill is the lowest by a mile (excepting Callahan and his 18 games) at – 1.02, the next being Pock at + 0.11. Yet, interestingly he had the most PK ice time (just in front of Witt) and had a lot better relative +/- rating than Witt.
Hence, the longwinded point I’m getting to is maybe Meyer looked like he was sucking worse because of Witt (+ some communal suckitude also of course) – as it would appear that they got different results on the PK (or it could be the confounding factor of Witt playing more games).
I noticed that but wrote it off to them having such limited PK time compared to him. Not sure what to make of it, other than Gordon must’ve trusted Witt and Meyer most — and if he was right about that, then god help us.
Witt, version 2010 is going to be something to keep an eye on this year…
Lighthouse Hockey: Side effects may include Weight gain and frequent game loss.
Overall, I had to go with a 3. If I throw out the injury time, (as I have done before), then he doesn’t completely suck. Which is about what I grew to expect last year.
I fully expect next years grading to be a little tighter.
SHOOOOOOOT IT!!!! Anon
by burpchelischili on Aug 28, 2009 10:00 PM EDT reply actions
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1979-80
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May 24, 1980: Tonelli to Nystrom. At long last, the steady build of the New York Islanders from expansion doormat to surprise semifinalist to annual contender reaches the promised land: Buoyed by a late season trade for Butch Goring that gave the team the depth up the middle GM Bill Torrey had been seeking, the Islanders knock off the Philadelphia Flyers in six games.
The victory justified the faith in coach Al Arbour who guided them from their second season to their first Stanley Cup seven seasons later. The Islanders would not be the first expansion team to win the Stanley Cup, but they would be the only one capable of a dynasty.
1980-81
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May 21, 1981: This time it was much easier. After falling to "only" 91 points in the 1979-80 season, the Islanders returned to their division title tradition, piling up 110 points -- a whole 13 points over second-place Philadelphia.
Between the quarterfinals (where they beat the upstart Oilers in six games) and the finals, the Islanders reeled off eight consecutive wins -- with a four-game sweep of archrival Rangers in between. As they defeated the Minnesota North Stars in five games for their second Cup, their goal difference in the final was a combined +10.
1981-82
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May 16, 1982: Another year, another landslide title. The Islanders won the Patrick Division by a whopping 26 points over the second-place Rangers, and were seven points clear of their nearest competition for the President's Trophy, the still-not-quite-ripe Edmonton Oilers.
A first-round scare against the Pittsburgh Penguins turned in the Isles' favor thanks to John Tonelli's heroics, and a true dynasty was on its way: Past the Rangers in six games, then an eight-game sweep of the Quebec Nordiques and Vancouver Canucks to run away with the Stanley Cup.
1982-83
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May 17, 1983: Not so fast, whipper-snappers. The Edmonton Oilers' steadily rising challenge for league supremacy took them all the way to the finals for the first time, where the New York Islanders summarily dispatched them in a four-game sweep. For the Islanders, the Dynasty was secured. For the Oilers, it was a powerful lesson in where talent ends and the demands of playoff hockey begin.
Four years, four Cups, 16 consecutive playoff series wins (a record that would grow to 19 until the rematch with the Oilers the following year). Mike Bossy scored 60 goals yet again, and Wayne Gretzky became acquainted with Billy Smith's crease.
