Quote:
Originally Posted by _Q_
Baertschi - He's OK. Needs more time in the AHL. I know we all want to rush this guy into the NHL, but I just don't think he's good enough. Not yet anyways. He's weak, but has good vision, always seems to know where he should be and is extremely determined. Still he gets pushed around easily and has a very soft shot. Hopefully he uses the offseason to bulk up a bit.
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Agreed, this is his biggest problem right now. I don't think he plays soft, you can tell in the corners and on rushes he understands the need to be gritty and doesn't shy away from it, but its simply a matter of being too small. He'll go in tough on the rush, and then just get absolutely launched off the puck by the defender, it happens constantly.
I'm hopeful because I remember Backlund having the same problem early in his career, which he's managed to get over, but then again, Backs is bigger than Baertschi. Sven's pretty much the exact same size as Patrick Kane, if he could even get some more speed to his game it would really help him out.