Backlund is such an interesting case for me. I'm not in love with him as our 2nd line centre. However, when I think of him as our 3rd line centre when Bennett takes over the 2nd full time, it fits him perfectly. You don't expect tons of scoring out of a 3rd line centre, nor tons of faceoff wins. You expect puck possession, great 2-way play and back-check.
This is Backlund in a nut shell, the perfect 3rd line centre. Pay him as such, 3 years in the 2.9-3.3M range is correct for all parties.
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