AJgoal Posted June 29, 2015 Share Posted June 29, 2015 Good lord, WTH happened to Cody Hodgson? http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/sabres-place-cody-hodgson-on-waivers--buyout-coming-164959799.html;_ylt=A0LEVzBshpFVeCcANElXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTByMjB0aG5zBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzYw-- Since this has become its own post, let me expand on this exclamatory thought a bit. Two years ago, Hodgson put up 44 points, including 20 goals. the two seasons before he'd put up 33 and 34 points. Then last season it falls to 6 goals, 7 assists, on the way to a buyout. 25 years old - I know he doesn't have a good reputation for defensive play, and Buffalo was bad last season, but THAT bad? what happened here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radoran Posted June 29, 2015 Share Posted June 29, 2015 It's the legacy of Darcy Reigier. They brought in Hodgson as the "#1 C" that Vanek "always needed" and then forced him into the role, gave him a long term deal, soured on him quickly, traded Vanek and now are working to buy him out. It was almost immediately after signing him as a "piece for the future" that it was decided to blow the whole damn thing up. The only problem was they had Hodgson on a six year deal. Another cautionary tale. “This is by far the worst years just I’ve had in my whole life, not just in just in a National Hockey League year. “I can’t explain what happened or what happened in more than one instance. It wasn’t just one time. It was consistently, whatever is was, missing opportunities, saves, bad luck – whatever you want to call it. I’ll be much better next year.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted June 29, 2015 Share Posted June 29, 2015 Without actually living inside the guy's head, I would venture to guess that maybe the 'culture of losing' in Buffalo was so bad, that it honestly affected his play. You look at the team, and as woeful as it is, if this guy had ANY chance to improve on anything he had done previously, it was sabotaged at every turn by how terrible the team played top to bottom. Sure, a really good player / leader can rise above that a bit and at least put up respectable numbers, but maybe THAT'S part of the problem: Hodgeson is a good, though NOT elite player, and he is more a "follower" (nothing really wrong with that...lots of those guys in pro sports...you just don't hang your hat on guys like that), who relies on the leadership of others to bring out the best in him. Given his age and his current "show me" situation, I am sure, as the article suggested, that there are more than a few GM's out there willing to offer Hodgeson a reasonable 2 or 3 "prove it" deal....and if he does well, he could parlay that into a much better contract. A situation best for him would have to be one where there are already established go-to guys and all he would need to do is blend in, make some contributions, then go from there.If he is put into another situation where he has to be "the guy" or the rest of the team is putrid once again, then he and the GM signing him will probably just be spinning their wheels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJgoal Posted June 29, 2015 Author Share Posted June 29, 2015 Thanks for filling in the blanks in the OP, rad. Giving him six years, especially that early, definitely not that bright. If he could keep up around 40 points, it would make the 4.25 million not atrocious. But 13? yikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radoran Posted June 29, 2015 Share Posted June 29, 2015 Giving him six years, especially that early, definitely not that bright. They gave him a contract for the player they wanted him to be, not the player he actually was. Sound familiar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJgoal Posted June 29, 2015 Author Share Posted June 29, 2015 Sound familiar? His father is his agent. THAT sounds familiar... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yave1964 Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Hodgson is an offensive player and indifferent in the defensive zone. Nolan as the coach made this kid his whipping boy, cutting his ice time in the offensive zone and on the power play for his indifferent defensive play, in essence letting the rest of the team know what would happen to them if they didn't hustle non stop. Hodgson never managed to get out of Nolan's dog house and his career went off the track. I think he can still play. Someone is going to sign a third line center or wing who can score a little but has defensive deficiencies. Properly used there is absolutely no reason he cannot get his career back on track. a 40 point guy from the third line with holes in his games, hell most teams would take that in a heartbeat. The big problem in Buffalo is their forwards were so godawful that he was being forced to play other teams top lines and didn't acquit himself well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J0e Th0rnton Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Hodgson is an offensive player and indifferent in the defensive zone. Nolan as the coach made this kid his whipping boy, cutting his ice time in the offensive zone and on the power play for his indifferent defensive play, in essence letting the rest of the team know what would happen to them if they didn't hustle non stop. Hodgson never managed to get out of Nolan's dog house and his career went off the track. I think he can still play. Someone is going to sign a third line center or wing who can score a little but has defensive deficiencies. Properly used there is absolutely no reason he cannot get his career back on track. a 40 point guy from the third line with holes in his games, hell most teams would take that in a heartbeat. The big problem in Buffalo is their forwards were so godawful that he was being forced to play other teams top lines and didn't acquit himself well.hehehehe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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