Now I am not going to lie, when I saw the news on TSN that Toronto GM Cliff Fletcher traded a fifth-round pick for Ryan Hollweg, I thought, "What a waste of a fifth-round pick."
But you know something? I love being proven wrong.
I have only seen Hollweg in action once for the blue and white, but, if he can keep it up, we got ourselves a hockey player.
He can irritate, he can get under people's skin, and he has the ability to change the flow of a game.
- B/R Ticket Guide
Does this seem familiar?
I remember a guy back in the day trying to make a name for himself who did the exact same thing. His name was Darcy Tucker.
I will admit Tucker could put the puck in the net better, but with a whole team of players that can’t score, either, I can look past it.
The other part of this guy's game that actually surprised me is his speed. This guy’s got wheels that I think a lot of people will underestimate. Something that Tucker didn’t have.
Now, remember, it has only been two games into the preseason. I know that there is a long way to go before this comparison has consistent justification, but I love to predict and this is my prediction of Ryan Hollweg.
He will be a player who will play more than 40 games this year. He will get more points than last year and he will be one of the most popular players on the Maple Leafs this year. He will matter.
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about 1 month ago
Shane.....I hope when you wrote this article you clicked on the NEW YORK RANGERS page so that Ranger fans could read about it. I think they might save you the time of waiting for Hollweg to have a true and positive impact on games for the Leafs.
Hollweg is a true 4th line player, will never be more than that, not even on the 2008-09 Leafs which is essentially a team loaded with 3rd and 4th liners will he move up. I thought Tucker was a completely over-rated player during his time with the Leafs (as are most players than don the White and Blue) but Hollweg is nowhere near Tucker in both comparison or the ability to have impact on a game.
Shane writing an article on Hollweg is the equivalent to writing an article on Colton Orr or Riley Cote....these are players that somehow find a place on an NHL roster but in the grand scheme of things have little to no impact on the team's overall season success. In all fairness to Orr and Cote they at least have a true role as the team heavy weight. Hollweg is a B-rate version of the quality "pests" in the league.
God bless LeafNations the only hockey city that writes or reads articles on useless 4th line FILLER players. On one hand I admire it, on the other I think it's a complete waste of time.
All in all thought it was a very nicely written article.
from about 1 month ago
hahaha its funny because you wrote more in this comment then I did in my article but anyways. I am saying when it comes to being an agitator, he reminds me of Darcy Tucker. When it comes to scoring, he reminds me of Wade Belak. But I like the guy so I didn't put that in the article. I wrote it because I like the guy ok you can't hate for that. lol.
from about 1 month ago
Lol loved the comment Nelson.
about 1 month ago
Hollweg is an agititator with good speed and likes to hit, but he is known for taking stupid penaties, running around in his own end and getting the crap beat out of himself in fights
from about 1 month ago
haha in all fairness wasn't that Darcy Tucker?? lol
about 1 month ago
Cal, you just killed my argument. LOL
Shane you were right he is the second coming of Tucker. HA HA
about 1 month ago
hollweg will never score like tucker, but he could be a very good checker/agitator. Tucker was slow and defensively inept. I agree nelson - vastly over-rated.
if wilson can give hollweg some lessons in defense he could be a great pest - he's got good speed and is fearless. all he needs is less running around and smarter defensive play. a month or two under wilson and we should see some nice improvement there.
about 1 month ago
He may have the same grit and drive Tucker had, but he is not a darcy Tucker like player. I addmit that I was impressed(considering what I was expecting) with his play on monday, but he still has a long way to go before he is the next Tucker.
about 1 month ago
What an insult to Darcy Tucker, comparing him to someone that should be a healthy scratch on an ECHL team...
about 1 month ago
Give Hollweg a break here folks, he's making $525 000 this season, and he's done more than his fair share to fill that pay. He's fought and hit like a mad man, and he's an 8th Round Pick and only 25 years old.
Now he won't be like Tucker clearly, but part of him is like Tucker. Besides Tucker wasn't putting up 15 goals a year his whole career, and Hollweg hasn't been given much of a chance yet in his career. I think playing on a line with Moore and Mayers is a good fit and that's been one of my favourite lines this training camp.
from about 1 month ago
thank you Brandon. I was trying to say that he is like tucker in that he is a good agitator for the Leafs. Not with his scoring ability. Its good to know that you understand were I am coming from in this article.
about 1 month ago
get ready to be....well. not much. You wont be overwhelmed, or underwhelmed, you'll just be--welmed. I know that's not a word, but it's how Hollweg plays
about 1 month ago
hollweg cant hold darcy tuckers jock strap,why compare the 2?,why leafs gave up on tucker?to try and acquire stooges like hollweg and other stiffs fletcher picked up,LEAFS SUCK!FLETCHER SUCKS!
from about 1 month ago
Why would he want to hold his jock strap? lol.
And every team has a "stooge", and every team has an energy line. It just so happens the Leafs aren't overpaying their "stooges" ala George Laraques etc. and that makes Fletcher and the Leafs suck how? At least provide some material before saying anything too outlandish.
about 1 month ago
As a Rangers fan, I'm so happy that Ryan is going to get regular shifts with the Leafs. He was used as a scapegoat for the 2nd round loss to the Penguins, like he had anything to do with losing a 3-0 lead in game 1, which set the table for the series. He's exactly what you want a 4th line guy to be: he finishes his checks, can skate, gets under the opponents skin and sticks up for teammates.
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