Mishin's opinion on components based on Jin

qwertyskates said:

I think Nationals are somewhat more generous to their skaters to give them a boost (look at Jin's Chinese nationals scores!), so Jason's national scores are on the higher side. However, I think at international events, these scores won't matter as much and judges will decide based on the circumstances of the competition. The US Nationals did help to boost Jason over the other American skaters though, I thought Adam Rippon skated better at both SP and FS. It could be because Jason is a more consistent athlete and connects better with the audience.

Jason's PCS is higher than his TES due to his weakness in jumps, in particular the more difficult quads and 3A. This doesn't detract from the quality of his skating, but without a great jump/combo, he won't be able to compete with skaters like Shoma who are bringing both to the table, not to mention Patrick, Denis, Javier and Yuzuru.

Personally, I like watching different skaters bringing their different "game" to the table, it makes it far more enjoyable. I think Jason is mentioned here as the other side of the coin to Jin's high TES and dismal PCS, both skaters appear to lie at the extremes of the TES-PCS spectrum, both face the same challenges of having to develop their respective weaknesses in order to have a shot at the podium.

My only concern with Jason is that he needs to find a better balance in his expressiveness, perhaps less cuteness and more sophistication. I was wowed by his "Prince" SP, I watched that over and over, that showed off much more of his skills and unique skating talent than his more recent forays.

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Mrs. P said:

FWIW, Jason doesn't have the huge score differential that Jin does -- namely cause I don't think the judges freely (at the international level) gives PCS as they can with TES to skaters that lack a certain amount of technical content.

Free Skate- (TES/PCS) - rounded difference
Skate America 2015 (75.47/85.36) - 9
Ondrej Nepala 2014 (79.69/82.70) - 3
World Team Trophy 2015 (87.55/89.14) - 1.5
Worlds 2015 (79.37/84.60) - 7
4CC 2015 (84.23/83.12) - (-1)
Rostelecom Cup 2014 (80.26/78.98) (-1.5)
Skate America 2014 (74.06/81.36) -7
Nebelhorn Trophy 2014 (67.74/85.84) - 18

So the only "Jin-like" score differential for Jason in the last season and a half, was at Nebelhorn Trophy more than a year ago. Generally 7-9, but if he does pretty well on the TES side the differential is much lower, and even above his PCS in certain cases.

As for the choreography in the SP, I don't think it's that bad, but I do like some of his programs better. My favorite short program from him is actually the one he did to electronic tango music he did when he was still a junior in 2012.

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qwertyskates said:

It's due to the fact that skaters, especially those who are relatively new to the Seniors circuit, usually score lower PCS compared to their TES, from 10+ to 20+ points lower, it's only Patrick, now Yuzuru and Javier who are scoring almost at parity for TES/PCS, so Jason is an outlier in that sense that his TES/PCS relationship is inverse.

I do wish Jason well, I like that he and his team are different from the others, I like that there's variety, from Jason's impeccable musicality to Jin's impeccable 4lz-3t, it makes the sport more exciting.

I'll check out the electric tango, it does sound like a more sophisticated SP. Look at Shoma, he's not hopping or grinning, he's skating "older" than his age, it makes it easier to justify his high PCS, as if he has truly turned senior.

I'm also glad that Mishin was supportive and not critical, there's something lost in translation, maybe the Russians like to be ironic "What's the ISU going to do about it?"

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