Article: Declan Chisholm Is the Calen Addison Replacement

[Justin Hein]

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[mnfaninnc]

Quote

We didn’t appreciate Declan Chisholm’s arrival enough.

I don't know that I agree with this sentiment. None of us have seen him play at all. His arrival was delayed because of a US work visa. His claim came on the heels of 10 days off. We still haven't seen him take the ice.

How are we supposed to appreciate him under these circumstances? I'd love to see his slapper, and what he can bring (especially some speed). But, if I were on a 4 game winning streak and nobody on defense was banged up, I might not be willing to change up the lineup either. 

So, who knows what number he's going to wear?

Also, comparing him to Calen Addison in a positive light is a little funny to me. All the things said about Addison don't really come true with the eye test. He's a -17 in San Jose (and I know SJ has probably everyone in the - category), and he's barely contributed to PP points. 

Addison was never a very good defenseman. That is why Bogosian was brought in, and for a guy who was supposed to be where offense goes into a black hole, he has outscored Addison during that time period. Addison has been healthy scratched for San Jose too, as they don't like his defense either.

From the attributes, it seems like the comparison we should really be looking at is a young Matt Dumba before the injuries. Hopefully, he won't have the same gaffes that both Dumba and Addison had in our own end. I can only imagine that Chisholm's speed is greater than that of both Goligoski and Merrill, and for that, we are likely going to see an upgrade. 

[Justin Hein]

12 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

I don't know that I agree with this sentiment. None of us have seen him play at all. His arrival was delayed because of a US work visa. His claim came on the heels of 10 days off. We still haven't seen him take the ice.

How are we supposed to appreciate him under these circumstances? I'd love to see his slapper, and what he can bring (especially some speed). But, if I were on a 4 game winning streak and nobody on defense was banged up, I might not be willing to change up the lineup either. 

So, who knows what number he's going to wear?

Also, comparing him to Calen Addison in a positive light is a little funny to me. All the things said about Addison don't really come true with the eye test. He's a -17 in San Jose (and I know SJ has probably everyone in the - category), and he's barely contributed to PP points. 

Addison was never a very good defenseman. That is why Bogosian was brought in, and for a guy who was supposed to be where offense goes into a black hole, he has outscored Addison during that time period. Addison has been healthy scratched for San Jose too, as they don't like his defense either.

From the attributes, it seems like the comparison we should really be looking at is a young Matt Dumba before the injuries. Hopefully, he won't have the same gaffes that both Dumba and Addison had in our own end. I can only imagine that Chisholm's speed is greater than that of both Goligoski and Merrill, and for that, we are likely going to see an upgrade. 

Fair point -- I meant this more as "the media have undersold his arrival" more than that fans aren't excited enough. 

The comparison is mostly about his offensive and PP abilities, which hopefully Chisholm can help replace. I agree that Hunt or Dumba is a closer stylistic comp, but Addison makes for a more clickbaity headline lol. 

As for Addison, I'm betting that Chisholm will be a better defender in his own zone (low bar). Addison's abilities on the PP elevated everybody around him in a way that's not going to translate on a team like SJS. In comparison, Chisholm will get on the end of shots and won't mess up, but he won't be the facilitator that Addison was. 

[FredJohnson]

I had high hopes for Addison. ☹️

[Imyourhuckleberry]

Quote

Addison was great at seeing and completing long passes from deep in the defensive zone to the other side of the ice.

That might have been true, but Addison has 18 even strength assists across nearly 1,500 even strength minutes in 125 career NHL games. He didn't drive offense outside of the power play, and was terrible defensively.

For comparison, Faber wasn't known for offense and has recorded 21 even strength assists in less than 1,100 career minutes even strength. Addison's even strength offense is not special at all.

Addison being on the ice increased scoring for both teams, but it increased scoring for opposing teams more than the Wild.

While Chisholm may not be quite as good on the PP(and Addison is overrated there, in my opinion), it won't matter if Chisholm can hold up defensively to strengthen the 3rd line. He may also garner some 2nd power play minutes with his skating and passing once he's up to speed on conditioning and the Wild's system of play.

[Will D. Ness]

Addison was so horrible though I think we all need to go through some sort of therapy when we see his name.

[Will D. Ness]

I agree though, let's get Chisholm some ice time.

[mnfaninnc]

10 minutes ago, Justin Hein said:

As for Addison, I'm betting that Chisholm will be a better defender in his own zone (low bar). Addison's abilities on the PP elevated everybody around him in a way that's not going to translate on a team like SJS. In comparison, Chisholm will get on the end of shots and won't mess up, but he won't be the facilitator that Addison was. 

Would you then say that Faber has more than adequately replaced whatever Addison brought to the PP? My eye test says he may not be as good of a distributor, but he is a better overall QB back there. And it's not nearly as scary suddenly having a shorty chance coming back the other way.

Plus, we may also get Spurgeon back, though I doubt in full capacity. If Faber can handle PP1, then a PP2 QB is what is needed, and I wasn't happy with the way Hunt looked in that role. 

Edited February 16 by mnfaninnc

[Imyourhuckleberry]

I agree with the premise that Chisholm could be what Guerin was hoping to get when he traded for Addison, someone who could be effective offensively and develop into a sound defensive player, rather than the actual Addison.

That idea makes sense to me. Having a player from the 3rd pairing that can QB the powerplay and add some offense even strength could be quite nice if they aren't struggling defensively. Chisholm has better size than Addison, so maybe he can be a solid 3rd pairing defenseman for the Wild. I would be more inclined to call him the Goligoski replacement, however.

[Justin Hein]

1 hour ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

That might have been true, but Addison has 18 even strength assists across nearly 1,500 even strength minutes in 125 career NHL games. He didn't drive offense outside of the power play, and was terrible defensively.

For comparison, Faber wasn't known for offense and has recorded 21 even strength assists in less than 1,100 career minutes even strength. Addison's even strength offense is not special at all.

Addison being on the ice increased scoring for both teams, but it increased scoring for opposing teams more than the Wild.

While Chisholm may not be quite as good on the PP(and Addison is overrated there, in my opinion), it won't matter if Chisholm can hold up defensively to strengthen the 3rd line. He may also garner some 2nd power play minutes with his skating and passing once he's up to speed on conditioning and the Wild's system of play.

Totally agree with everything here. Addison had the skills to do things that were a higher degree of difficulty, but for whatever reason that didn't translate to a truly elite offensive output. 

[Justin Hein]

1 hour ago, mnfaninnc said:

Would you then say that Faber has more than adequately replaced whatever Addison brought to the PP? My eye test says he may not be as good of a distributor, but he is a better overall QB back there. And it's not nearly as scary suddenly having a shorty chance coming back the other way.

Plus, we may also get Spurgeon back, though I doubt in full capacity. If Faber can handle PP1, then a PP2 QB is what is needed, and I wasn't happy with the way Hunt looked in that role. 

I don't think Faber is as good of a PP QB as Addison, but he's very capable back there. Addison's edgework allowed him to setup passing and shooting lanes for himself or teammates, and that fit great with his desire to make the perfect play. 

I don't love Spurgeon as a PP QB either but he's capable. I'd prefer him in a one-timer role. Sounds like Chisholm is running unit 2 today, so that will be interesting to see! 

[TCMooch]

Here coming the streaking Wild!

Just in time to shoot up the rankings, miss the playoffs by a point or two and draft in the middle of the first round!!!

[Skolwild]

17 minutes ago, TCMooch said:

Here coming the streaking Wild!

Just in time to shoot up the rankings, miss the playoffs by a point or two and draft in the middle of the first round!!!

Come on, let’s be real and give them some credit.

Are you not excited to watch their next first round failure? Are you not excited for Russo to ask Guerin for the umpteenth time how they get past the first round only to hear bill say “we are trying to win the cup Mike, not the first round.”  Derp. I can’t wait for that response again! 
 

hell we can do it next year too keep the train rolling!

[Protec]

Chisholm is bigger, heavier, and longer reach. Defensively that's an advantage over Addison. He has the same name as a MN town. He's also going to add 20lbs during the off-season to reach NHL-level beefiness. He has a decent point shot and has run a PP before from the top. He's going to be harder to play against on the back end let's hope. Offensively he contributes a little more traditionally. Addison was always kinda looking for it. Appears Chisholm might be a little smaller version of Soucy. His contributions were nice but it felt natural for his role. Addison seemed like he was trying to get a square peg in a round hole. 

Hopefully Chisolm can be more like a scaled-down Soucy or young Goligoski. 

[Up North Guy]

5 hours ago, Justin Hein said:

I don't think Faber is as good of a PP QB as Addison, but he's very capable back there. Addison's edgework allowed him to setup passing and shooting lanes for himself or teammates, and that fit great with his desire to make the perfect play. 

I don't love Spurgeon as a PP QB either but he's capable. I'd prefer him in a one-timer role. Sounds like Chisholm is running unit 2 today, so that will be interesting to see! 

My memory may be poor or i may have a bias that needs adjusting. My recollection is that Addy was fairly on the PP at first but then tailed off. This year he was below average. Perhaps the other guys on the PP were worse also. My general sense is that Addy had an attitude that showed out worse this year than last.

[mnfaninnc]

17 hours ago, Protec said:

He's also going to add 20lbs during the off-season to reach NHL-level beefiness.

This sounds like he's going to MNFan's strength/weight gain camp! If he's coming in at 190, yes, to be really effective, he needs to be between 205-210 to clear the front of the net and handle the bigger forwards.

[Dango]

8 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

This sounds like he's going to MNFan's strength/weight gain camp! If he's coming in at 190, yes, to be really effective, he needs to be between 205-210 to clear the front of the net and handle the bigger forwards.

 

[Citizen Strife]

Scoring in his first game with the Wild is a positive first impression.

[Will D. Ness]

Looks like the Jets made a mistake putting this guy on waivers.

[mnfaninnc]

I thought he looked pretty good yesterday. The goal, of course was nice, but his speed looked good, and he was definitely faster than Goligoski. But, in the game thread, it looked like we were supposed to see him paired up with Goligoski, yet Merrill still played???

So, it appears that Goligoski and Heinzy are not getting along to well, and Goligoski appears to be deep into Heinzy's doghouse. What did he do or didn't do? Could it be that Heinzy also looks on the ice and sees a half-assed effort from Goligoski? Perhaps it's the 2nd helping of nachos that has him out of shape? Beckman and Chisholm got bag skated when they were in reserve. Could it be that Goligoski needs this sort of treatment to "encourage" him to waive his NMC?

We need to open up roster spots and get Hunt up here. I think a Hunt-Chisholm pairing could be a good 3rd pairing going down the stretch. It adds some speed and some youth. 

[Will D. Ness]

^ Merrill has played his best games lately.  I think Heinz goes with the hot hand and for now it's Merrill.  

Chisholm is clearly a step above in both speed and skill like Justin was saying in the piece.  It's a good pickup for us and a facepalm for the Jets.  

I know it's hard to say after only one game and this has nothing to do with the goal but the guy can skate and isn't a powder puff like Addison.  I'm stoked we got him.

[B1GKappa97]

So the Athletic article this morning suggested we might be looking into signing Bogo to an extension. I assume that Chisholm, if he keeps up the great play, will also be signed to an extension as an RFA which would give us some size on the future 3rd pairing at least. 

However, that does essentially lock Hunt into the 7th D role presuming they float Merril down to Iowa on the waiver wire next year. 

It does look like Lambos has a similar point-total to Hunt from the previous season so maybe he'll be a call-up next season at some point? 

If Chisholm keeps up his offensive prowess from the blue-line and Lambos pans out as expected when drafted in 2020, it'd be a great combo for our future 3rd line in a couple seasons. 

[B1GKappa97]

On 2/17/2024 at 10:21 PM, Will D. Ness said:

Looks like the Jets made a mistake putting this guy on waivers.

No kidding. I was just checking out his stats in the AHL and he blows away anyone we've had down there recently besides Addison, who we all know had issues with his size as a defenseman.

Granted its just one game, but given his larger frame I think its reasonable to expect Chisholm to naturally be a better defenseman in his own zone (not that Addy put it at a high bar..) 

I mean he could potentially be a top-4 defenseman in the near future and a great matchup for us on the 3rd pair. And we didn't have to give up anything for him! Crazy the Jets tried to sneak him through after he had 43 points in 59 games last year (and 4 in 5 post-season games.)

[Protec]

1 hour ago, B1GKappa97 said:

No kidding. I was just checking out his stats in the AHL and he blows away anyone we've had down there recently besides Addison, who we all know had issues with his size as a defenseman.

Granted its just one game, but given his larger frame I think its reasonable to expect Chisholm to naturally be a better defenseman in his own zone (not that Addy put it at a high bar..) 

I mean he could potentially be a top-4 defenseman in the near future and a great matchup for us on the 3rd pair. And we didn't have to give up anything for him! Crazy the Jets tried to sneak him through after he had 43 points in 59 games last year (and 4 in 5 post-season games.)

The other positive in all this is, the way a guy fits in with the defensive pairings to compliment another defender. I.e. Middleton was a good match for Spurgeon. If Chisholm can be a younger, faster upgrade on defense with Faber, the Wild would have a more appropriate transition group to play out this season and leading into next year. The size and offense are needs that potentially get taken care of if Chisolm can bring enough grit. Just cause I hated the promo video last year doesn't mean the underlying goal shouldn't be there. All around hockey players gotta have that and from the little bit I've seen, WPG eff'd up cause they are too stuck on Logan Stanley.

[B1GKappa97]

2 hours ago, Protec said:

The other positive in all this is, the way a guy fits in with the defensive pairings to compliment another defender. I.e. Middleton was a good match for Spurgeon. If Chisholm can be a younger, faster upgrade on defense with Faber, the Wild would have a more appropriate transition group to play out this season and leading into next year. The size and offense are needs that potentially get taken care of if Chisolm can bring enough grit. 

I'm not necessarily sure I'd put Faber and Chisolm together. They both are offensive defensemen, so I'd be a little nervous about asking one of them to play more of a defensive defenseman role when they're both clearly capable of adding offense. 

That kind of fits how the defensive pairs have been put together anyhow; Spurgy and Midds, Faber and Brodes, Addison and Merril/Goose/Bogo.

I think Chisholm gives us the final a solid lineup of offensive defensemen. Now we just need to get guys to pair with them who have huge shots and can score from the blue-line. Lambos allegedly has a heavy shot but I'm hoping we can draft a guy like Carter Yakemchuk in the upcoming draft also because he's supposedly got a howitzer as well.