Volcanologist
Well-known member
another name with a lot of potential
The Official 2026 Off-Season Thread: Revenge of the Nerds
- Thread starter MindzEye
- Start date
axlsalinger
Well-known member
leafs may have drafted a fake player at 85
Preston
MBow30 alt account
Yeah but he didn't get any pp1 time so his numbers were suppressed
axlsalinger
Well-known member
EP on the G:
Juuso Ainasto wasn’t even on our watchlist when the season began, let alone known by any of our scouts.
The Jokerit U18 netminder hadn’t represented Finland at any international tournaments nor played at the U20 level before. That all changed at the end of November, when we caught our first glimpse of the 6-foot-4 netminder and were completely mesmerized by just how polished he was.
Ainasto is an impressive mover. On his feet, he’s explosive and shows quick footwork. But where he really shines is in the butterfly, keeping his form while moving, taking away ample net. Ainasto uses this to challenge shooters and create a black hole for shooters on direct shots. Side-to-side, he’s able to zip across-crease with ease and speed, beating pucks on his pushes alone, and he’s also able to recover quickly from his extensions and get back into a ready stance.
His hand placement is very strong, rarely covering his body and projected very well. He tracks pucks into his hands and directs them out. He boasts strong playreading, incorporating scans to better predict where the puck and play will meet them.
Ainasto is also a born competitor, battling for each save. His battling extends to shenanigans as well, windmilling his glove before shoving the puck in the shooter’s face, and pushing players who enter his crease. While you’d expect players with that level of bravado to struggle when things go awry, Ainasto has also shown impressive composure, looking like the same goaltender in blowouts as in lower-scoring games, maintaining his form and confidence in his play and reads.
As Ainasto favours an inactive, upright stance that disengages him completely, rather than one with his knees bent and hands at the ready, he’ll need to improve his handling of screens. This is in contrast to his default stance of playing low and wide, which also causes him trouble, as he can be beaten high above the shoulders. He also tends to predict the play a bit too much, sometimes neglecting to follow puck carriers on two-on-ones, just assuming they’ll pass, and he can also neglect his rebound control when facing significant shot pressure.
Ultimately, Ainasto is a goaltender with a lot of real promise. He’s a strong athlete, an impressive competitor, and a good skater, all while boasting a good technical base and showing strong anticipation. While his tracking will need to improve more, and he’ll need to continue interpreting his reads more effectively, Ainasto shows real promise as a tandem or starting goaltender in the NHL.
Juuso Ainasto wasn’t even on our watchlist when the season began, let alone known by any of our scouts.
The Jokerit U18 netminder hadn’t represented Finland at any international tournaments nor played at the U20 level before. That all changed at the end of November, when we caught our first glimpse of the 6-foot-4 netminder and were completely mesmerized by just how polished he was.
Ainasto is an impressive mover. On his feet, he’s explosive and shows quick footwork. But where he really shines is in the butterfly, keeping his form while moving, taking away ample net. Ainasto uses this to challenge shooters and create a black hole for shooters on direct shots. Side-to-side, he’s able to zip across-crease with ease and speed, beating pucks on his pushes alone, and he’s also able to recover quickly from his extensions and get back into a ready stance.
His hand placement is very strong, rarely covering his body and projected very well. He tracks pucks into his hands and directs them out. He boasts strong playreading, incorporating scans to better predict where the puck and play will meet them.
Ainasto is also a born competitor, battling for each save. His battling extends to shenanigans as well, windmilling his glove before shoving the puck in the shooter’s face, and pushing players who enter his crease. While you’d expect players with that level of bravado to struggle when things go awry, Ainasto has also shown impressive composure, looking like the same goaltender in blowouts as in lower-scoring games, maintaining his form and confidence in his play and reads.
As Ainasto favours an inactive, upright stance that disengages him completely, rather than one with his knees bent and hands at the ready, he’ll need to improve his handling of screens. This is in contrast to his default stance of playing low and wide, which also causes him trouble, as he can be beaten high above the shoulders. He also tends to predict the play a bit too much, sometimes neglecting to follow puck carriers on two-on-ones, just assuming they’ll pass, and he can also neglect his rebound control when facing significant shot pressure.
Ultimately, Ainasto is a goaltender with a lot of real promise. He’s a strong athlete, an impressive competitor, and a good skater, all while boasting a good technical base and showing strong anticipation. While his tracking will need to improve more, and he’ll need to continue interpreting his reads more effectively, Ainasto shows real promise as a tandem or starting goaltender in the NHL.
CH1
The Artist Formerly Known as chiggins.
Preston has become the king of mansplaining lately.
I still love him and will eternally be grateful for both his groundbreaking research on Covid and his pioneering work on credit card optimization
Also I share his enthusiasm for Norm McD
But recently being able to identify some goalies - with three home grown guys likely to play nhl games this year (though Woll not with us).
Not sure if it’s the same scouts - but I guess will trust a bit in our development abilities
MindzEye
Wayward Ditch Pig
Yeah, I saw that and took another look. That's U20 in Finland, he started the season in U18 and led the league by a lot before he moved up to U20 and struggled.
CH1
The Artist Formerly Known as chiggins.
check your data, and I trust your ego will follow
LeafGm
Well-known member
For sure. Not a bad idea at all to keep taking flyers on goalies regularly, especially in a draft where you've got four 3rd round picks. It takes these guys a long time to cook, so you want to keep a pipeline of them coming.
And I don't particularly care what nationality they are. But had to make the Vesa Toskala joke. Pretty sure that him and one of the "free wallet" UFA goalies that Burke signed that busted are the only Finns to ever play goal for the Leafs.
Pwner
Well-known member
CH1
The Artist Formerly Known as chiggins.
it's not funnier just because you repeat something endlessly...only Letterman could pull that off
