Wolf Stansson Jr (WSJ) Profile [1/2]

[Cornholio 182]

 

 

Name: Wolf Stansson Jr. 

Position: D

Height: 6'8 (78 in.)

Weight: 250 lbs.

Age: 16

Nationality: Iceland 

 

Wolf Stansson, Jr (WSJ) is the son of well-known former NHL player and Iceland's Junior Goodwill Games Head Coach Wolf "The Dentist" Stansson. WSJ is routinely recognized as the biggest fella on the ice rink and it comes as a no surprise that his speciality falls on defense. Taking a page out of revered European NHL player Zdeno Chara's book, WSJ is a menace to get around if you can even get to that point. WSJ played a significant role on his father's National Team on the first defensive pairing and all power plays/penalty killing units. But then again - when you think about it, the level of competition in Iceland is very different compared to the VHL where the best of the best play and those big fishes in small ponds become small fishes in big ponds. WSJ recently announced his signing with the Minnesota Storm of the VHLM to play out the remainder of this season (and hopefully the postseason as well) -- not only that but WSJ appears to be scheduled for the S68 VHL Draft. In order to better familiarize us with WSJ, here is a brief rookie profile which will detail his strengths and weaknesses as WSJ continues to groom himself in preparation for the big leagues. 

 

Pros

1.) Size

This one is practically self-explanatory. 6'8, 250 lbs... jesus, who would want to get a full borne check from this guy? WSJ is blessed with very good genetics and a strong training/diet regimen conducted by his father seems to have paid dividends. There are speculations that WSJ may have also benefitted from questionable substances, but the testing in Iceland is very minuscule compared to America. But WSJ has been adamant that he is clean and a blessing from the Gods. This size is really nice especially on defense where WSJ's natural reach and stick size covers a lot more grounds compared to the typical average-sized defenseman. 

 

2.) Defense

Unlike his father, who was a proficient shooter and a notorious fighter, WSJ's game focuses more so on playing fundamentally sound hockey and seizing possessions away from opposing teams, whether it be though checks, blocking shots or snuffing out scoring opportunities before they even arise to become threats. WSJ isn't too big of a fan of flashy, quantitative-statistics-based hockey and prefers to do his own thing -- which is working behind the scenes to set up success and opportunities for others on his team - it's all about the team W's, right? 

 

3.) Hockey IQ

Some people are naturally gifted hockey players. WSJ is a little bit of that, but what really makes him valuable to his teams - his remarkably high hockey IQ, especially for a 16-years old kid. Those kind of hockey players who really make all of those little plays that you probably wouldn't think of, but those kind of actions ends up connecting to a positive win for the team. Intangibles... the kind you just cannot really measure by the numbers that appears on the box score, but you'd die to have those kind of players on your team because you know that they're going to make winning plays. 

 

Cons

1.) Puck Handling

WSJ isn't the most savviest handler of the puck and shouldn't really be counted on to hold on the puck for very long. 5 seconds maximum really. He can steal the puck, kick it out, clear it out, receive passes, go around the goal posts, set up the attack. No problem. You want him to weave through traffic? Good luck with that, odds are WSJ is going to cough it up or lose track of the puck. That's one of the pitfalls of being 6'8 tall and a higher center of gravity. 

 

2.) Scoring

WSJ packs plenty of power and punch in his slap shot - which can be really deadly in the power play situation when he is given a wide-open look. But WSJ's accuracy isn't quite there yet. He's prone to slapping the puck completely off-target (there was a situation in Iceland where WSJ knocked the front four teeth out of a poor bystander who was sitting in the upper deck) - this technique of WSJ is something that definitely needs to be rectified and polished. 

 

3.) Attitude

While relatively young, WSJ seems to have caught some of the nasty streak traits from his father -- WSJ is smug, arrogant, and condensing to others whom he feels is not on his level in terms of playing ice hockey. This doesn't mean that WSJ is a coach-killer, but WSJ will give you a hard time if he feels that you don't really quite know what you're doing. WSJ has a documented history as a sore loser, which means he isn't quite the most approachable person in the locker room especially after losses - if placed on a losing team, this could be detrimental to the team's chemistry and long-term picture. 

 

It will be interesting to see WSJ develop through his tenure in the VHLM. He already seems to be at a disadvantage compared to one of his other S68 VHL Draft Classmates in terms of TPE/practice hours - but WSJ is ready to go and his VHL journey will start in Minnesota.  

[HenrikZoiderberg 469]

Review:

 

Nice picture! Maybe crop it so there's no confusion if your player is the coach or the kid.

 

Formatting and word count look good. Both a summary and conclusion in there which I like.

 

On 6/11/2019 at 2:09 PM, Cornholio said:

Wolf Stansson, Jr (WSJ) is the son of well-known former NHL player and Iceland's Junior Goodwill Games Head Coach Wolf "The Dentist" Stansson.

 

Never mind, you've clarified it here.

 

On 6/11/2019 at 2:09 PM, Cornholio said:

WSJ

 

I keep seeing this acronym in my mind as "Warsong Julch"

 

No comments on the pros and cons. Word count works. Good profile. +1