ASG Martin Havlat Review

This is my first player review so my apologies if I forgot something or if its not detailed enough. If you have any other questions let me know!

Havlat plays RW on my 3rd line with Kurri (91) and Datsyuk (90), and is on PP1 with Shanahan (94) and Datsyuk. Synergies active on his card are (DD, S, CG, SB, TW, T).

Stats (all Div 1): 9 GP, 3 G, 12 A, 15 PTS

Skating: 9.5/10 With both speedsters and team wheel active, Havlat has 99's in speed, agility, and acceleration, along with 96 balance. He can straight up fly for a bigger body (6'2") and plays very similar to MS Modano, although he's more agile. He doesn't feel quite as fast as Bure or Sullivan, but he's only a half-step behind.

Shooting: 8/10 All of his shooting stats are over 90, yet it hasn't translated into many goals. Given an open look in the slot it's going in, but he doesn't have the ability to overpower a goalie like the elite shooters can. His one-timer is decently hard but lacks the accuracy you'd expect out of a high-end scorer. His shot is good, although I find him to be better suited as a playmaker.

Hands: 9.5/10 This is the category where having multiple synergies activated has made the biggest difference, as every puck skill category is in the mid-90's. He's very shifty for a bigger body and is strong on the puck, routinely shaking off hits from even the big defencemen like Blake or Burns. His passing is what has really impressed me, and as somebody who uses saucer passes a lot, his seem to always connect. He hasn't misfired on many cross-crease passes and is often the guy setting up my powerplay goals. The only thing keeping him from a 10 is he isn't quite as shifty as a Datsyuk or a Gaudreau or a Kane, but is one of the best players I've used when you combine his size, balance, and agility with the puck.

Checking 8/10 I don't throw a ton of checks so I don't have a great read on his body checking abilities, although whenever I do get close enough on the forecheck to lay the body the opponent usually ends up on the ice. His stick checking is above average (especially with trap activated), yet doesn't feel as strong as his 94 stick check rating (with active synergies) suggests.

Defense: 8/10 Again, I haven't really seen a ton of evidence of his defensive play since his line usually always has the puck and he's not on the penalty kill, but his positioning seems to be very good. Of all my wingers, him and Sullivan are the two who seem to pick off the most D to D passes, and he very rarely overskates a puck that he's close enough to to pick up. There's nothing special about his defensive play, but he's not a liability either.

Closing I've always been a Havlat fan so I picked him the day he was released, and he has not disappointed. His playmaking skills have been off-the-charts, and if he didn't hit so many posts he'd probably be well over 2 points per game. Not bad for a third liner.

If you like using bigger (6'1" +), faster players (like a Carter or a Bergeron), Havlat is the player you've been waiting for. You'll be satisfied with how well he performs for his price (around 150k? maybe less? haven't looked recently). All in all, he's one of my favorite cards I've used all year, and I've used a lot of the supposed "best" performing cards out there.