Recent Dale Weise Interview

[hf101]

This is a fairly good read on Dale Weise, here are some of the Q and A by Stu Cowan

 

On whether he had any talks with the Canadiens about returning to Montreal as a free agent this summer:

 

“When the negotiation period opened up, we put a call into them because we figured they’d have some interest. We didn’t talk all week long until the morning of July 1, and then they made an offer. But it wasn’t really a substantial one and that was kind of the only one they made and we said: ‘OK, that’s not going to work.’ And that was kind of the extent of it.”

What kind of offer was it?

 

“It was a three-year deal, but it was nowhere near what I was getting paid in Philly. So I said: ‘You guys are going to have to come up a lot more.’ I’m not going to take less money to play there.”

 

On reports that 10-12 NHL teams were interested in his services:

 

“We talked to quite a few teams. It was pretty crazy. It felt good … it makes you feel good when some of the top executives in the game are calling you for half an hour and trying to sell you on their team and pumping your tires. Obviously, that feels good from a player standpoint. So that was a cool experience.”

 

Why did you choose to sign with the Flyers, apart from the money?

 

“All the money was pretty much the same from everybody … it was pretty close. It was just kind of about finding what worked best for me. (Flyers GM) Ron Hextall reached out right away … he was the first team that I talked to. It kind of stood out in my mind, just the things that he said. A lot of teams were talking to me and they try to sell you on their team. But at the end of the day, I could kind of tell they were working their way down the list and it was kind of a staged act and they were saying certain things to probably about 15 guys. With Philly, it was pretty direct, it was pretty honest. They said: ‘Here’s how much money we have, we’re not trying to sign anybody else. You’re the guy we want. Here’s what we can offer, here’s where we see it.’ That was a big thing for me. And then you look at their depth chart and their lineup and I think I fit in pretty well. Anywhere on their second or third line, I think I’m going to get an opportunity to play a lot, play on the power play, play everywhere. So I’m excited.”

 

On the Flyers shipping three team sweaters to Weise after signing him: one for himself, one for 2-year-old son Hunter and one for 1-year-old daughter Jordanna:

 

“That was cool. They sent them to me right away, which is kind of cool. I can swap out the Montreal and Chicago ones I had in the closet.”

 

Who was your favourite Flyers player while growing up?

 

“Probably not a specific one. Obviously, Eric Lindros is a pretty easy one. I think everybody liked him when he was in his prime. He could do everything … he could hit, he could fight, he could score. He was so dominant when he was healthy and on his game. He would probably be my favourite Flyer.”

 

 

[RJ8812]

This could be a bad signing. Hopefully it wasn't 

[mojo1917]

1 hour ago, RJ8812 said:

This could be a bad signing. Hopefully it wasn't 

What makes you say that ?

I think he's a bigger, more skilled version of Ryan White, what's not to like ?

there isn't a red flag for me in any of what i read or the youtube piece.

[murraycraven]

32 minutes ago, mojo1917 said:

What makes you say that ?

there isn't a red flag for me in any of what i read or the youtube piece.

 

gotta say I liked this signing from the beginning.   Hexy gave him a little more than what I would've liked (which is basically every contract Hextall has given to date) but I think you get a character guy who is big, can skate and has some skill.   It will be interesting to see where he ends up in the lineup this season.   I dont view DW as a typical 4th line grinder type guy and think he does make the team better.   

 

Have to think Danny B had something to do with him coming to Philly....

[King Knut]

2 hours ago, murraycraven said:

 

gotta say I liked this signing from the beginning.   Hexy gave him a little more than what I would've liked (which is basically every contract Hextall has given to date) but I think you get a character guy who is big, can skate and has some skill.   It will be interesting to see where he ends up in the lineup this season.   I dont view DW as a typical 4th line grinder type guy and think he does make the team better.   

 

Have to think Danny B had something to do with him coming to Philly....

 

I think it's interesting that Hexy is giving a little more to the guys he wants than we'd have liked, but he's not offering ANYTHING to the guys he doesn't.

 

He overpaid for Jake and maybe a little for Weise but he could have kept Gagner for under a million and said, thanks but no thanks!  He didn't put up a fight for White even though I think most of us assumed he would.  

 

I think Weise is a good add.  He's not going to suddenly pot 50 goals or anything, but he's a stronger player than White who can be trusted in more scenarios and can therefore alleviate some responsibilities in high pressure but low yield work horse situations from the likes of Giroux and Jake and Coots.

 

I could see him more effectively stepping in to the role Matt Read was supposed to have the past two years. 

 

 

 

 

[murraycraven]

55 minutes ago, King Knut said:

 

I think it's interesting that Hexy is giving a little more to the guys he wants than we'd have liked, but he's not offering ANYTHING to the guys he doesn't.

 

He overpaid for Jake and maybe a little for Weise but he could have kept Gagner for under a million and said, thanks but no thanks!  He didn't put up a fight for White even though I think most of us assumed he would.  

 

I think Weise is a good add.  He's not going to suddenly pot 50 goals or anything, but he's a stronger player than White who can be trusted in more scenarios and can therefore alleviate some responsibilities in high pressure but low yield work horse situations from the likes of Giroux and Jake and Coots.

 

I could see him more effectively stepping in to the role Matt Read was supposed to have the past two years. 

 

 

 

 

 

great post and agree with everything.

 

it appears Hextall targeted DW and I think, if you believe in the "plan", that there is more to him than what is on the surface.  Like I said, I am sure Briere had something to do with this signing.   Seems like he is a character guy and that is always a good thing to have in the locker room.  I am actually excited to see him in the O&B.   As you said, he may have been paid a little more than most of us would like but that has been Hextall's MO so far.

 

I think it could be a really good fit for the Team.

[MaineFlyFan]

 I was just happy to see a new topic on the Forum!

 

But I agree....I see nothing wrong with this signing except perhaps the amount. Upgrade to White for sure....heck, may be an upgrade to READ!!

[LegionOfDoom]

I'm glad you brought up this topic, because I was about to put one up.

But my approach was: Dale Weise DNA:

Strands of Brayden Schenn in his hand eye coordination(dropping it and shooting it), Wayne Simmonds net presence(tap ins and redirects), and the "good" Matt Read(Sniping from the hash marks), and Ryan Whites(snarl). Will he wear 22 on the Flyers(we sure could use a Tocchet.) Here are the lab results...

 

 

[murraycraven]

10 hours ago, LegionOfDoom said:

I'm glad you brought up this topic, because I was about to put one up.

But my approach was: Dale Weise DNA:

Strands of Brayden Schenn in his hand eye coordination(dropping it and shooting it), Wayne Simmonds net presence(tap ins and redirects), and the "good" Matt Read(Sniping from the hash marks), and Ryan Whites(snarl). Will he wear 22 on the Flyers(we sure could use a Tocchet.) Here are the lab results...

 

 

 

 

Yea. I believe he is wearing 22 

[intheslot]

Can't wait for some Hockey ...

 

[OccamsRazor]

What a nice move by Flyer brass to immediately send him some mini Dale jerseys......

 

[BobbyClarkeFan16]

Weise is going to play a huge role in Philadelphia. I expect he'll play about 16 minutes a night and he's going to get special teams time. 17 to 18 goals a year should be a norm for Weise. He's also going to be a physical leader and I see why Hextall brought him in - he and Simmonds are going to keep the opposition honest. Weise will keep Tom Wilson from getting out of line.

[LegionOfDoom]

I believe he'll like it in Philly and will thrive in this new environment for himself.

He will come to grow a love for the Philly hard work mentality and the TCB role he can be a part of.

I wouldn't mind sneaking The Dutch Gretzky into the second line here and there and a few cameo appearances on the first line, just to confuse the hell out of the other coaches game plan. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Man They Call Dutch Gretzky

By NamikoH  @Freawaru2020 on Nov 14, 2015, 8:00a 13 

Francois Laplante/FreestylePhoto/Getty Images

 

Percival is an excellent example of a knight, going from backwoods-nobody to one of King Arthur's best. Montreal isn't Camelot, and Dale Weise isn't Percival, but so far, his story is about as good.

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Minutes after Dale Weise arrived in Montreal on a flight from Vancouver, he told the cameras of 24CH that if they went to his room at his parents' house in Winnipeg, they'd find it covered with Montreal Canadiens stuff.

When he arrived, no one thought he'd be much more than a gritty third- or fourth-liner, with limited scoring and moderate face-punching ability. My friend and I decided that he was a Percival type, coming to Camelot (sorry, Montreal) to join the Knights of the Round Table (the Habs of the Bell Centre) like he'd always dreamed.

 

Of course, this was because we're nerds, not because we expected him to become a local hero. Though it sure makes for a good story.

Like all proper storybook heroes, Weise was plucked from relative obscurity by the New York Rangers, who drafted him in the fourth round, 111th overall. He showed some real promise during his three years in the AHL. He didn't post earth shattering numbers, but they were very respectable.

During his years with the Hartford Wolf Pack, and later the Connecticut Whale, he earned the reputation of being a solid all-around player, and a clutch performer with a relentless work ethic. He even won a few accolades, such as the Wolf Pack's Man of the Year for 2008-09; his rookie season.

With his speed, size, willingness to play a hard-nosed game, scoring ability, and all those other sporting cliches, one would have thought his transition into a solid bottom-six NHLer would have come fairly smoothly. Only it didn't, because this story has a good old-fashioned villain, as every good story must. Okay, maybe John Tortorella isn't exactly the main villain, but he certainly was a recurring obstacle in our hero's path.

Tortorella viewed Weise as a fourth-line tough guy for the Rangers, and iced him for an average of just over six minutes per game. He only played 10 games before being claimed off waivers by the Vancouver Canucks the next season, and it seemed like he'd seen the last of Torts. Under Alain Vigneault, he played two years of tough minutes on the fourth line. Not huge minutes by any stretch, but useful ones, and he wasn't entirely terrible.

 

During the lockout of 2012-13, Weise played for the Tilburg Trappers of the Dutch Eredivisie, where he racked up an insane 22 goals and 24 assists in nineteen games. This is how he earned the "Dutch Gretzky" moniker, an homage to his prolific output, once characteristic of the Great One.

In 2013-14 the Vancouver comedy of errors began, and the Canucks fired Vigneault. In his place they hired Tortorella, who like every proper antagonist, made his return just when he was least expected.

Under Torts for the second time, Weise saw his importance as a tough-minutes player go down, even as his overall ice time stayed about the same. Furthermore, it was fairly clearthat Tortorella didn't like him, and that they disagreed on the kind of player Weise was. Tortorella wanted him to be a fighter and a fourth-line tough guy, and Weise saw himself more as a skill player. Two-and-a-half years of hindsight later — ridiculous luck or no — it seems that Weise won the debate.

In the infamous Vancouver vs. Calgary game of January 2014, Weise was one of the brawlers that Tortorella sent out to open the game. Like everyone else on the ice at the time, he was thrown out 0:02 into the contest with a fighting major and a game misconduct. That was more or less the end for Weise in Vancouver.

A little under two years later, Dale Weise was in the opening lineup against the Calgary Flames again, but oh how times had changed. Playing on the hottest line of the best team in the league, instead of being ignominiously thrown out in the first seconds of the game, he was the first star, recording his first career hat trick and playing 14:17. How much more storybook can you get?

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

A few weeks after that Calgary game in 2014, Weise was traded to the Canadiens forRaphael Diaz. It didn't take long for him to endear himself to fans. Playing at least two more minutes a night  than he ever had before, Weise was expected to be a quick and contributing fourth-liner, and was no longer required (or even expected) to drop the gloves. He flourished.

His overtime winner in Game One against the Tampa Bay Lightning made him popular. His series against the Boston Bruins made him adored. After all, who doesn't like the story of a former nobody showing up the biggest and baddest in such a decisive fashion?

 

 

All through 2014-15 he continued to show up the Bruins, and just about everyone else who doubted him. Should he have been a first-liner? Perhaps not, but Michel Therrien gave him the opportunity, and he ran with it. Even better, he hasn't showed any sign of slowing down -- even though the odds say he really should have by now.

His four goals, 10 assists in 2013-14 were a career high. In 2014-15 he set a new high of nine goals 18 assists. Less than 20 games into the 2015-16 season, he's on pace to shatterthat high, as he already has eight goals and three assists.

Weise's usage and success have varied over the years, but surprisingly, luck has always been on his side. He is currently sporting a 19.5 personal shooting percentage, after being at 10.2 last year, and 15.3 the year before. His on-ice shooting percentage is similarly high, and has been since before he came to the Habs. In fact, it's been going up every year since 2013.

Dale Weise is not a superstar. His defensive play frequently leaves much be desired, and maybe this stretch of games is the best hockey he's ever going to play. Statistics, and past examples alike suggest that it shouldn't last much longer. Then again, there are always outliers, and perhaps Dutch Gretzky is one who can defy all expectations.

Dale Weise is supremely confident, and he thrives on defying expectations. Luck (at least of the shooting kind) has always been on his side. Moreover, he's on one of the best teams in the league. Sometimes that's all you need to overcome impossible odds. More often than not, those make for the best stories.