Quote:
Originally Posted by Red John
Problem with Bouwmeester is the things that he does do well, he isn't even doing well right now.
Everyone gets upset that he plays soft, etc. but keep in mind Nicklas Lidstrom rarely engaged himself physically also.
Here's the issue. Bouwmeester's strength is skating and positional awareness, and he still gets beat wide regularly and gets caught shadowing the wrong guy at times. When you're one-dimensional you need to be REALLY good at that dimension and that's not the case right now.
And when it comes to either blocking a shot or getting out of the way, he does neither.
The guy's confidence is shot and he's a shadow of the d-man he used to be. Was hopeful that things might be different under Hartley but perhaps it'd be best for him to get a fresh start elsewhere.
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I think that's a myth often used to excuse Blouw's shortcomings.
I remember reading interview with Jagr (who is a pretty good authority on the subject matter) where he was asked which defenseman is the hardest to play against and he picked Lidstrom and interestingly enough he mentioned that Lidstrom is probably the best defenseman to use total body strength to his advantage.
Not just to gather speed and crush people with your shoulderpads, but Lidstrom was extremely strong in leaning into players streaking down the wing or pushing them out of the paint without taking a penalty. Blouw can do none of that.
Non-physical Lidstrom is a myth.