By Taylor Landau
If you’ve followed my Twitter account for any amount of time this season, I’m sure you’ve noticed that I’m a fan of Winnipeg Jets forward Vladislav Namestnikov. He’s had a bit of a strange journey around the NHL having played on seven different teams in roughly ten years. Around the trade deadline, social media began buzzing with discussions about Namestnikov as a player, and most were seemingly unfavorable. Fans around the league voiced their opinion on whether the Russian-born player is a valuable asset to an NHL team or if he should’ve been sacked years ago. Let’s take a look at his regular-season stats from this year and see what the numbers have to say.
Vladislav Namestnikov with the 2022-2023 Tampa Bay Lightning
Namestnikov was drafted in the first round in 2011 by the Tampa Bay Lightning before eventually being traded to the New York Rangers in 2018 in the deal that brought Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller to Tampa. (Fun fact: Namestnikov actually spent more than 300 of his 630 career NHL games with the Lightning.) After going from team to team the following years, he signed with his original draft team in 2022 on a one-year, $2.5m deal. The reception of his return was relatively positive with fans hoping he could play a bigger role on the team in the absence of key pieces like Ondrej Palat.
Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case. Namestnikov notched 6 goals, 10 assists, and 16 points in 57 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning and averaged around 9 to 12 minutes of game time while playing in the top nine. After Anthony Cirelli returned from his injury in December, Namestnikov was downgraded to the 4th line and played a majority of the season with Pierre-Eduoard Bellemare and Corey Perry, which just didn't seem to be working for any of them offensively. He occasionally got a chance to play on the 3rd line with Ross Colton and Nick Paul, but he didn’t start getting going offensively until the road trip before the deadline where he scored 2 goals and 2 assists.
Tides Turning with the Winnipeg Jets
Since getting traded to the Winnipeg Jets, Namestnikov’s luck seems to have turned around. In his first four games post-trade deadline, Namestnikov scored 2 goals and got 3 assists while alternating between all four lines in the absence of key players like Pierre Luc Dubois, Sam Gagner, and Cole Perfetti. Since then, he’s averaged around 15 minutes of ice time, notched another 4 assists, and has established himself on the second powerplay unit, which wasn’t even a thought for him in Tampa. He finished the regular season with 8 goals, 17 assists, 25 points, and a +5.
Not only have his stats improved, but the general attitude surrounding him and his gameplay has increased significantly. Jets head coach Rick Bowness, who coached Namestnikov in Tampa and Dallas, seems to only have good things to say about him. More often than not, Bowness compliments Namestnikov's high hockey IQ, versatility, and character as both a person and a teammate. “Nothing bothers him,” Bowness said. “He's a great person and a great teammate, and it's his versatility that is what we're all seeing.”
His teammates have similar sentiments. According to forward Kyle Connor, Namestnikov “does a lot of good things really well, a lot of small details that get unnoticed through maybe the general public that us players notice a lot.” Many of his teammates have come out and said they enjoy playing with Namestnikov, too. Bowness also spoke to his team's testaments, stating that “everybody likes playing with Vladdy because he's so smart. And he's calm. And he skates so well."
What changed after the deadline?
With all that being said, why did Namestnikov have a better year with the Jets in such a short amount of time than he did with the Bolts? It could be due to several things. For starters, he's playing with different linemates that he seems to have much more chemistry with. Before Namestnikov was traded, his linemates were generally struggling to put up offensive numbers. Bellemare only managed 9 points (4 goals, 5 assists), and Perry had 24 points (12 goals and 12 assists) prior to the deadline with most of them coming from the power play. Their line averaged around 9 to 13 minutes of playing time a night, and they never really got going until immediately before the deadline when Namestnikov and Perry suddenly seemed to click.
Namestnikov may also be having a better time in Winnipeg since he’s being utilized more by the coaching staff. He’s getting more playing time on the ice, typically registering around 14 to 17 minutes of playing time, and he’s been put on the second powerplay unit. With the Lightning, if Namestnikov was ever part of a special teams unit, it was typically on the back end of the penalty kill.
In general with the Jets, Namestnikov has bounced between the second and third lines, which is already an upgrade from his time with the Lightning. In Namestnikov’s first game as Jet, both of his linemates (Adam Lowry and Morgan Barron) scored, Namestnikov notched an assist, and the team won 7-5 over the Edmonton Oilers after having lost to them the night before. In that same vein, Lowry hadn’t scored a goal in over 30 games until Namestnikov showed up. During that game, he was also tasked with covering Connor McDavid, whom he (and his teammates) managed to keep from scoring.
As of late, Namestnikov has been thriving centering a line with Nikolaj Ehlers and Blake Wheeler. The second line has been outscoring their opponents 6-0, and the chemistry created among the three forwards has been astounding. Wheeler, in particular, was on a 21-game goal drought that was snapped once the new line got going, and since becoming a line on March 31st, all three players have combined for 4 goals and 9 assists while generating multiple offensive chances while on the ice together. They started working well together at the right time of year and contributed to the Jets ultimately securing the final wildcard spot in the playoffs.
Lots of Lightning fans theorized that Namestnikov was bolstered by Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos during his first run with the team as an explanation for why his stats were so high. If that's true, can't the same be said the other way around? If Namestnikov’s teammates aren't playing well and generating offensive chances, wouldn’t that also decrease his own output? There’s only so much one player can do to get an entire line moving in the right direction, and if there isn't chemistry working on the line for extended periods of time, then I think it’s fair to say that that line’s statistics are going to suffer. When Namestnikov began playing on lines with players that have similar stat lines and playing styles to his own, in general, all three members of the line saw an uptick in their offensive output. All of this being said, it's possible that Namestnikov simply has better chemistry with his new teammates as compared to his old ones.
Fan Reception
When it was clear Namestnikov wasn’t on pace for 20+ goals this season, his favor with Lightning fans turned sour quickly. As early as December, tweets calling for Namestnikov to get traded circulated social media, and some fans touted him as the biggest bust for the Lightning in the last several years. Fans frequently called for him to be placed on waivers in favor of players like Rudy Balcers, whom the Lightning picked up off of waivers from the Florida Panthers before getting hurt in his third game with the team. One fan even made a comparison saying that long-time Syracuse Crunch forward Alex Barré-Boulet was a better player than Namestnikov.
Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets fans and media were already calling for Namestnikov to be extended after only 5 games, and many of them were charmed by the news that he waived his no-trade clause to join the team. In general, the reception around Namestnikov joining the Winnipeg Jets has been overwhelmingly positive despite the team itself struggling to stay afloat. Most fans are still hoping Namestnikov, who will be a UFA at the end of the season, will re-sign next year. Lots of media outlets have praised the team's general manager, Kevin Cheveldayoff, for acquiring both Namestnikov and Nino Niederreiter who have arguably been two of the most effective players since the deadline.
The Lightning's two newest forwards, Tanner Jeannot and Mikey Eyssimont (whom Namestnikov was traded for), have already won over the favor of Lightning fans despite putting up fewer numbers even prior to joining the team. Since being traded, Jeannot has 1 goal, 3 assists, 4 points, and averages around 12 minutes of playing time. Eyssimont averages about 10 minutes on ice when he's not scratched, and he recently scored his first goal and notched his first assist. Still, it's interesting to see how much Lightning fans piled on the criticism for Namestnikov all season when the two newest additions aren't doing a ton to produce, especially during one of the most important times of the season. Similarly, Nick Paul, who hasn't scored since February 21st against the Anaheim Ducks, hasn't received nearly as much criticism as Namestnikov did for his offensive output. This isn't to say that any of these three are bad players, they all bring something to the team, but it is interesting to see how little they were criticized despite their statistics and gameplay as of late.
So, is Namestnikov a good player?
Vladislav Namestnikov playing for the Lightning (photo via Last Word on Sports).
In short, yes, or at least his current teammates seem to think so. To me, Namestnikov has been in a weird spot during nearly his entire NHL career where he's valuable enough that several teams will want him, but not valuable enough to incorporate him into the core. Namestnikov is a playmaker who gets things going and sees the game really well, but if he isn't putting up points or being utilized in a way where he'll thrive, teams will send him packing. He's not Alex Ovechkin or Sidney Crosby (so few players are), but he's deserving of his spot in the NHL in his own right. His versatility is what makes him valuable, and he can be something of a human jumper cable to get other players going. To summarize, yes, Namestnikov is a strong, smart player who deserves to be on an NHL team that will utilize him in ways where he thrives, which is seemingly what the Winnipeg Jets have been doing thus far.
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