Grading the Islanders: Blake Comeau, new & improved 57 sauce
by Dominik on Apr 28, 2010 6:15 AM EDT
in New York Islanders Report Cards
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PrintNote: See previous threads to discuss the alleged "deep financial trouble" or the political casino madness, or the shameful cowardice of Maxim Lapierre. To discuss and/or vote on previous report cards, visit Josh Bailey's, or Sean Bergenheim's or Martin Biron's.
In 2009-10 Blake Comeau played eight more games than the previous season (seven if you consider his final game lasted two minutes), averaged a minute less of ice time, yet scored a full 10 more goals -- none of them on the powerplay -- and maybe, just maybe, figured this NHL thing out at age 23-24.
If you saw it coming -- whether you expected 11 goals in his final 18 games or not -- stand up, gloat and be counted. And do tell us, will he repeat the feat next year?
Blake Comeau
#57 / Right Wing / New York Islanders
6-1
207
Feb 18, 1986
3
1 year at $800k salary, $650k cap hit
2.9 (5-point scale)
'I sure hope we see Assertive Comeau and not Perimeter Blake.'
Go Net Young Man, Go Net
It's no secret what finally clicked this year for Comeau, who curiously talked in preseason of becoming a "true power forward" despite an average frame: He finally followed Scott Gordon and others' advice ... and shot the puck.
He had 78 shots on net in 53 games in 2008-09. In 2009-10, he registered 133 shots in 61 games. From about 1.5 per game to over 2 per game. His shooting percentage (12.8%) also bounced back to where it was two seasons ago (11.9, vs. 9.0 last year), but at a young age in a limited sampling I'm not going to read a whole lot into that.
Because I'm not a coach but like to play one on the Internet, I'll quote my random fact from last year's report card:
Random Fact: (Not exactly a fact, but...) Comeau's game is passing first, as shown by his stats, but he possesses a dangerous shot when he 1) uses it, and 2) drives to the net to get it off.
Oh, snap.
About that assertiveness, and driving to the net: I was flippant about his power forward aspirations, but his 111 credited hits were among team leaders.
'What would you say ... you do here?'
Don't know how much we'll need Comeau as a physical presence (although when he's hitting, he appears more engaged in the game), but fortunately he has multiple skills, not the least of which is the speed and hockey sense to be a reliable penalty killer. He had a hand in four shorthanded goals this season (scoring one), and he was Scott Gordon's third-most used PK forward (in TOI per game) behind Richard Park and someone named "Nate Thompson."
I'm pretty sure a contending team has someone better to bump Comeau off John Tavares' wing on the depth chart, but his flourish in that role at the end of the season was a nice sign that he can play in such company when called upon. That's big. Really, his future production (and earnings) are in his hands, with a bit of that also under the influence of the GoGo pulling the ice time strings. And I guess a bit depends on which side he's on and what if any wing additions the Isles make this summer.
Advancy-fancy: By advanced figures at Behind the Net, Comeau had the third-worst relative +/- "rating" among Isles forwards who played 40 games or more. (But Okposo and Tavares are the other two.) His quality of competition was 9th of 12, his quality of teammates 6th of 12 -- these are all 5-on-5, mind you. I don't see a whole lot to read there thanks to his evolution over the course of a season mostly spent at age 23. Check back with me next year, as he'll either continue his February-onward growth or prove to us that was a hot streak that most second-round picks are capable of.
For what it's worth, on a better team his -17 from last season improved to -2 this season. Like last season, he got hot in the February-March period. That none of his 17 goals came on the powerplay is a really nice sign about his 5-on-5 potential.
The Poem
(Per tradition of delightful cheesiness. Though this one has a Van Morrison influence.)
Oh oh, Comeau
Roll me over domino
Gone back and forth on where you'll go
Till you play 80 I don't know
Don't want to discuss it
Not time for a change
No need for argument
Just play your game
Go to the net,
Shoot; please GoGo
Then we'll be cheerin'
"Hey-ho, Comeau"
The Grade
A few injuries and early healthy scratches limited Comeau to 61 games this season, which was still a career high. Presumably next season we can hope for closer to 82. At what scoring rate? Well, that's why we watch, I suppose: It's an unwritten script.
As for the script already finished, the season just completed, please issue your grade on Comeau's 2009-10 season relative to the expectations you had for him in the preseason. Ten is as high as you can go, while 1 means he didn't meet a single expectation you had. 5 and 6 are the middle ground. You get the idea.
Thanks for playing, As always, leave any additional thoughts, quibbles, additional data or amusing tangents in comments.
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Started to show the potential I have always thought he had to be a legit top six PF before his injury.
I still remember my first good look at him, during his second call-up under Nolan when the Isles were dealing with massive injuries (of course), and my reaction was, “Wow, this kid has some hockey sense.”
Ha, then I watched that sense disappear and re-appear in random intervals, and I went back and forth on what I could ever expect from the guy. The jury’s still out, but that was a good lesson to me — once again — that most kids at that age need time. That I can’t make a firm read on someone at 21 or 22 or 23 because only special players have enough of it figured out by that age.
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Certainly surpassed expectations down the stretch, which was awesome. It’s hard to grade some of the players who flourish in the final few months, but as always it can provide positive momentum going into next season. He seems to be very similar to Trent in skill set, but might actually surpass those capabilities very soon.
I cannot wait for Rakh-tober.
It’s hard to grade some of the players who flourish in the final few months
No doubt. It was funny going back through last season’s notes: “Oh, Bergenheim picked it up late … Comeau picked it up late … Bailey…” Product of the youth curve, I hope.
Maybe next time we need 1st and 2nd semester grades. And pledge week.
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57, 5 to 7
yeah, tough tough tough to grade… maybe if there was a with and without JT on his line scale… 5 without and 7 with :-)
NY Islanders Hockey: Where MRI's are addictive
Blake Comeau-ver
Like so many Isles in their development years (I’d say 19-23 is where you grow to be what you’re going to be from 24-32) it’s been hard to get a real read on Blake.
In the past he has lacked confidence. That may be part of being an Islander. Every one of their “prospects” have been rushed to some degree. These kids are showing that they have talent, but we’ve seen the growth in the grown-up pool, rather than let it happen with the lifeguard in the kiddie pool.
They are starting to turn. Blake is starting to show the ability to find and CREATE space. He, like the other “utes”, are starting to better understand the rink as defined by professor Gordon. They are growing as a team.
The offensive side of Blake’s game is almost there, his 5-on-5 defensive side has shown flashes of responsible play (maybe it’s just being more confident and ENGAGED) and his physical side has taken some strides to be more where I expected him to be. Blake has to prove himself for 70+, and in all situations. Right now I have him neck and neck with Hunter competing for offensive minutes behind Okposo. He’ll need to keep improving to stave off “prospects” in 2011-12, but he should get a legit shot to go wire to wire next year. If he does put up 25 while playing substantial PK minutes he’ll be locked into an Islander career.
Roll me over Blake Comeau!
The Roller Coaster known as Blake Comeau,
When he skated away from Exlby, I thought he was a real…well… you know,
Then he found his shot and his talent started to show,
But still he was in and out of the doghouse, yo,
Until late this year, when he really started to go.
So here we stand, three years in and what do we know,
The kid’s got potential, and he’ll get time to grow,
If he stays on this path, he’ll make some real dough,
But that’s up to chucky, and his minion Garth Snow.
NHL 500... Let the Less Filling vs Tastes Great debate begin!
by JPinVA on Apr 28, 2010 9:58 AM EDT reply actions 1 recs
This is a tough one
There is the Pre Freddy Meyers diet Comeau and then there is the beast who showed up after the new year. Who knew that eating at Whole Foods could improve your decision making and patience. I will guess he got some special Ginko-honey roasted-acai infused-licorice and washed it down with a cold bottle of coconut water before and after every game following the past new year.
Some of those decisions he made where he held on to the puck to wait for a trailing Tavares or just stick handle through the corners looked as if he almost had a memory transplant or something. If he continues to make great decisions like he did late in the season he could easily change into a 20+ guy and possibly a fan favorite depending on how physical he gets with the division opponents. He was a real joy to watch late in the season.
Now if we could only get Tambellini on that diet…
Unproven playoff goaltenders shouldn't shoot their mouths off after game 6 and before game 7 unless they like being the other guy in the poster.
I like how everyone is rockin’ the bold today. Nice !
Unproven playoff goaltenders shouldn't shoot their mouths off after game 6 and before game 7 unless they like being the other guy in the poster.
Think I fixed it
This is the risk of writing a post on the sauce and scheduling it to go live when everyone is awake.
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You are responsible for the code?
I thought that this site was already formatted? Can you change the color of the font to orange and blue.
Unproven playoff goaltenders shouldn't shoot their mouths off after game 6 and before game 7 unless they like being the other guy in the poster.
by metalcoconut on Apr 28, 2010 1:11 PM EDT up reply actions
I know nothing
Mostly no, but the code within the body of the post is on me — or at least alterable by me. (Though not the comments … so when everything appears in italics, I can’t do anything other than completely delete the comment with the unclosed italic tag.) In this instance, an unclosed tag was in the html of the post but not in the WYSIWYG editor, so every time I fixed it in WYSIWYG, it wasn’t actually fixed in the html.
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what would you say..you do here?
hahaha classic dom, office space? Comeau looks like a potential 30-goal man next year if he plays 82 games and sees some powerplay time.
Glad you caught it — I was hoping that reference wasn’t too veiled. That’s sort of how I picture Gordon’s first encounter with Comeau, when Isles fans were riding high on Comeau and Gordon decided he needed to start 2008-09 in the AHL.
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Who was the guy who did nothing, but was randomly promoted to captain? lol
I cannot wait for Rakh-tober.
I am beginning to believe that Tambellini is Peter. It is amazing how that guy keeps such a positive attitude when they play him so little. That has to be worth something.
Unproven playoff goaltenders shouldn't shoot their mouths off after game 6 and before game 7 unless they like being the other guy in the poster.
by metalcoconut on Apr 28, 2010 5:11 PM EDT up reply actions
hard to grade
im still not sure on him, because he went hot, then cooled off again, then got hot again, but when he was hot he was incredible
he really started to blossom at the end of his season
I just hope this is what he brings next season, I hope he is the 30 goal guy we need next to JT
Blake Comeau
Since the Islanders drafted Comeau I have actually followed his career quite closely and after seeing him play in the Memorial Cup I have always felt the sky was the limit for him.Don’t forget he was also Canada’s leading scorer on one of their Gold Medal winning junior teams.The problem Comeau faces on Long Island is keeping Gordon’s faith in him.It seems to me if Gordo has doubts about someone they are not easily erased.Some of Comeau’s problems in the past have been self induced,like lazy stick infractions even though for the most part he plays a pretty up tempo game.The talent has always been there,now I am of the belief that the consistency corner has been turned.As for a grade I gave him a 6,right in the middle because the player at the end of the year ,not the player at the start of the year is kinda what I expected all along.
Good post. I gave him a 6, too, and was equally high on him towards the end as well as furios with him because of the stick infractions, etc. early on.
I don’t share your opinion about Gordon, though. I actually think he’s extremely patient with certain guys and sticks to them and tells them how to do certain things and gives them chances again. Comeau is one example there, but other guys didn’t lose his confidence despite going through tough times, such as Bergenheim, Gervais, Park, Thompson, even Witt. The only contrary example is Tambellini, but that’s a particular story anyway. And although I liked Tambellini early on, he just didn’t play well enough overall and I kind of understand why he didn’t play more down the stretch.
The talent has always been there,now I am of the belief that the consistency corner has been turned.
I hope so. He did appear to see the light at the end. While we’ve seen that kind of late surge before (from lots of kids), you may be hitting on it with the confidence and coach’s belief in him. If he’s finally doing what Gordon has been asking, hopefully faith isn’t a problem.
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Such a tease...
Really he is, had to go with 6. If he averages 10 goals in every 20 games next year I’ll give him a nine.
The Islanders went from Marty McInnis and a 2nd Overall pick to Jesse Joensuu.
the Ace
its about time Comeau is getting a little credit. look back at posts earlier this year and see how awful the majority thought he was/will be. All you have to know is #57 sharses number with a certain other NY sports figure.( trivia question?) they are both gritty ,competitive, and their best work is saved for the 2nd half of the season!
by Lakewood Islander on Apr 28, 2010 5:41 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
Hmmmm
As good as Frans is in his own end, how come he’s not getting more PK time? I’d have him and Comeau as the first shutdown unit.
Of course I'm an expert, I've seen Slap Shot eleven times!
But then what would Nate Thompson do?
/takes one more shot at departed whipping boy.
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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.
