Quote:
Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe
While being true over the last handful of games, it isn't true when you increase the sample size.
Players go through slumps as normal ups and downs of their seasons. Why would the Flames never throw Iginla down on the 4th line in his tenure here? Well, what would that accomplish? Probably would just add to whatever slump that player was in. Stempniak is a guy this team has to count on for now. He plays a solid 200ft game. Yes, he isn't statistically playing great, but he isn't being a pylon, and his effort is there.
You can't just demote players down to the 4th line when they hit a slump. If they are not putting in the effort, that is when a player should go into a coach's doghouse. Or when the player is not doing what is being asked of him to do, then he goes into that proverbial doghouse where his icetime gets cut, he moves down the lines or becomes a scratch.
Byron has been doing well. Byron has always been like this since the Flames acquired him. The fans in Buffalo loved him. However, he is a tweener, and you don't replace Stempniak with a tweener.
Also, from an organizational standpoint, it would hurt. You will start impacting Stempniak's trade value negatively. Let him work out his game - it isn't for a lack of effort or selfishness. Just a bit of a slump (and even then, it isn't THAT bad - he is counted on to play a tough 200ft game against heavy competition). Stempniak is playing against some tough competition out there - Byron isn't (though I am comfortable in his speed and tenacity, as well as his ability to backcheck with lots of pressure that he won't fall on his face, but Stempniak is better at that game right now).
Byron will get more icetime as he continues to do well. When Stempniak (and other UFAs) get traded, that will continue to grow as long as he is continuing to do well. The only person blocking Byron is Byron. Nobody is going to block him from being a 1st line player because he is too small. If he continually shows himself to be deserving of more and more minutes, and an enlarged role on this team, he will eventually get it.
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16 games 2 goals 4 pts. -13 Stempniak will be un-tradeable if the trend continues.
Stempniak has not shown that he is able to handle the bigger role that he is being asked to play.
Cutting his minutes is more likely to get him to break out of his slump than continuing to play him.
Stempniak was comparable to Iginla for exactly the first 18 game he played in his Phoenix were he scored 14 goals and went a ppg. Other than that brief flash there is absolutely no comparison between Stempniak and Iginla.