[kirant]

He certainly made the Blackhawks team and spending on a brilliant top 6 and top 4 may play a role but I think his usage is pretty interesting.

Yes, he played his limited minutes. But he also played some of the hardest minutes for the Blackhawks (suggested by advanced stats (Relative QoC Corsi), confirmed by Bollig in an interview) and almost always started his shifts in his own end (~18% start in offensive end) unlike a 4th liner/enforcer like McGrattan who had fewer minutes against easier opponents in the offensive end of the ice. The top minutes were eaten by a talented crew (Toews, Sharp are major players, I suspect his line mate may have been Kruger in the regular season) but it speaks volumes in Quenville's trust/desperation (take your pick) when the group to mop up the mess and play their own end included Bollig.

I think the Flames have more than a part time player in him. It is starting to look like a guy who plays physical, defensive hockey, could slip into the 3rd line, and is willing to drop the gloves. The first thought for me is a Bouma type player who is comfortable in the shutdown role but might not block as many shots.