Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

[OpIv37]

... the same way we view Sean Avery?

It seems like every game, someone is looking to start with Kaleta. Sooner or later, he's going to have to fight (and win the fight).

In general, I think Kaleta isn't a dirty player like Avery. Most of his hits, while hard, are clean, and he doesn't do stupid things to intentionally agitate other players (like doing jumping jacks in front of the goalie). But Kaleta certainly irritates opponents and brings out the worst in them.

[Dr. Lecter]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

He has a bit of Avery in him, but he is not as cheap (although he does leave his feet quite often to make a hit - that will haunt him at some point)

He actually is more reminscent of Barnaby, with less scoring and fewer stupid penalties. He is just annoying as hell to opponents.

[Meathead]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

seems like the only complaint anybody has against him is he leaves his feet sometimes. i dont think he does it as often as they claim but its still a valid complaint

i guess they also complain about him not fighting, which is stupid. he never has to fight if he doesnt want to, though he probably will want to when they start pulling cheap stuff in retaliation that might injure him. i used to be a great checker, especially hip checks, and when you roll a guy over your back and he slams himself on the ice he often gets up pissed and looking to spear you or something. or they could start leaving the butt end of their stick up a little and shove it in your ribs - just about impossible for the refs to see. most hockey fighting is just stupid imo, but at that point you have to respond or they will do it until they hurt you

[Meathead]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

and yeah i loved them kinda hip checks

[OpIv37]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

I thought it was a penalty to leave your feet when hitting.

[Dr. Lecter]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

I thought it was a penalty to leave your feet when hitting.

It is also a penalty for a defenseman to cut off the forward when he is trying to get the puck along the boards, even if both are 5 feet away, if neither player has had possession but Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles on skates never call that either.

[rbochan]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

I read a ton of other hockey boards and I'd say he's hated worse than Avery. Mostly because he turtles alot. There are quite a few threads out there about him. He's considered a chicken**** with very little hockey skill. He tends to leave his feet, and that pisses people off plenty.
He's a punk, but he's our punk.

I'd love to see him work on his scoring. I'd also like to see him fore go a check in lieu of keeping puck possession. There have been too many times I've seen him blow by a loose puck to go after a hit when he should have been grabbing the puck and heading towards the net.

[OpIv37]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

I read a ton of other hockey boards and I'd say he's hated worse than Avery. Mostly because he turtles alot. There are quite a few threads out there about him. He's considered a chicken**** with very little hockey skill. He tends to leave his feet, and that pisses people off plenty.
He's a punk, but he's our punk.

I'd love to see him work on his scoring. I'd also like to see him fore go a check in lieu of keeping puck possession. There have been too many times I've seen him blow by a loose puck to go after a hit when he should have been grabbing the puck and heading towards the net.

I think the second part is more to the point- it's not so much that he lacks hockey skill (he is a 4th liner) as much as the fact that he'd rather hit people than play hockey. I really don't think he'd be that bad if he concentrated on the full game.

[BlackMetalNinja]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

Agreed with what's been said. Love the energy and hitting he brings, but I've been saying since he first came up that he gets too wrapped up in that frequently and forgets to actually play the game. I can't count how many times you'll see him ignore the play to go finish a check and such, sometimes it costs us, and that makes it not worth it.

For the record, he's much, much better about such things now than when he first came up, however, it still happens.

[RockStar36]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

I have no doubt that people view him similar to Avery. I absolutely hate Avery (although that has gone down since he is in the WC now) but it was always brought to my attention that I hated him because he was on the Rangers and would love him if he was on the Sabres. In all the games I've watched this year I've told my friends flat out that I would hate Kaleta if he was on another team.

[Meathead]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

they call the leaving your feet penalty sometimes but i cant remember if they ever have on him. if he never did that then there would be nothing to complain about his hitting or turtling

[SabreEleven]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

It is also a penalty for a defenseman to cut off the forward when he is trying to get the puck along the boards, even if both are 5 feet away, if neither player has had possession but Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles on skates never call that either.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, NHL, please start making these calls, at least next year.

56.2 Minor Penalty - A minor penalty shall be imposed on a player or goalkeeper who interferes with or impedes the progress of an opponent who is not in possession of the puck.

[Crisis]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

there was a thread on the hfboards about kaleta...and apparently to the rest of the nhl kaleta is right up there with hitler and stalin

[BillsSabresB.C.T. Fan]

Re: Do other teams/fans of other teams view Kaleta....

Look, folks, I don't need to defend Kaleta. He's a big boy who is plenty capable of standing on his own two feet and facing charges that he's a troublemaker who refuses to fight. The allegations are fair enough on the surface. There's going to come a time in which, yes, he'll be forced to drop his gloves. Believe me, he knows.

But why would he start brawling now when boneheaded opponents insist on doing all the fighting for him? He had half of the AHL after him when he played in Rochester, so this is nothing new. He's the kind of player opponents despise and teammates adore. He plays with an edge and sometimes goes over the edge.

Yeah, I know, there's the unwritten code among tough guys that says players should be accountable for their actions on the ice. Here's a secret: Kaleta doesn't give a hoot about the code. The only thing he cares about is winning, and so far he has contributed more to winning.

http://www.buffalonews.com/opinions/columns/buckygleason/story/466682.html