Quote:
Originally Posted by Cali Flames Fan
True, but we've been doing it all year and I think we know which guys are close and which aren't. I think Granlund and Baertschi are close to making a permanent jump, but that's about it. I wouldn't bring up another kid just to "see if he's ready" when the team is in a playoff race like this. The results are too important at this stage of the season, and like it or not, the veteran players on this team still get the job done most nights. You have to run with the experienced guys during this stretch.
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I would agree if it wasn't for a couple factors:
A) As I mentioned, I think management knows what they are getting from Sven. IF Glencross is out and they need a replacement, I'm personally not sure Sven is most suited to replace his role. Granlund is a centreman, who I'm siure can play wing just fine, but again, is not the type of player to replace Glencross.
B) We've seen a little of Ferland and none of Poirier at the NHL level. Ferland's stint was enough to make many here want to keep him, and Poirier is tearing it up in the AHL. We can't say whether or not those guys can contribute, but Trelving obviously thinks they (and possibly a couple others) can. So for you to say that Sven and Granlund are the only ones close to a permanent jump is a bit disingenious. The guys I mentioned could "Jooris" their way into the line up. The injury is what creates the opportunity, it's not just mixing guys around on a whim.
C) If we're talking about replacing Glencross specifically, Poirier and Ferland replace his attributes better than Granlund or Sven.
I think it's inevitable that Granlund goes back down, personally. Not because he's not ready, but it's a depth issue. And with Shore added with his waiver status, it kind of pushes Granlund back. Management is going to have to explain this to him since they are the ones that decided to bring up Shore.
In the (very near) future, I see Shore, Granlund, Ferland, and Poirier supplimenting Raymond, Glencross, Jones and Stajan. I personally think Sven will be traded and make his main NHL-impact in different silks. Especially if Glencross is only out 3-5 games, why not give an audition for next year? I think even Granlund and Jooris are still on their auditions. If the message to Granlund is "Look, we think you're a part of the future here, but we need to see who is going to make that jump with you, so we're going to bring up one of your buddies from Addy and get you some more icetime down there for a bit. Keep going and you'll have a permanent space sooner than later." I don't think that's a bad thing and is a big part of being a rebuilding club.