I have every confidence in baertschi... I think he'll have a great year. Watching the game tonight, it was obvious that the coaches were playing the guys that are on the bubble in more situations than guys that have spots locked. Knight and street and Monahan got more time on the powerplays than glencross, baertschi, stajan, and stempniak. O'brian and butler were playing the penalty kill more than giordano.
They've been playing baertschi with guys like knight and bouma instead of guys like backlund and stempniak. While I don't agree with it, i think its to see if those guys have enough skill to keep up with other skilled players. I imagine the thinking is that if they put knight, bouma, and street all on the same line and the line struggled, it's harder to tell who is struggling on the line with all 3 of them being rookies. Instead, they mix them in with skilled guys like baertschi and backlund to see if they can keep up.
I would rather the preseason be used to develop line chemistry but I know it's a rebuild year so players need to be evaluated. People shouldn't worry about baertschi... He creates offense even on nights like tonight... He just needs to play with guys who can finish off those chances. That's why I hope he plays with backlund and either cammalleri or hudler.
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