Quote:
Originally Posted by CliffFletcher
Personally, I'm downplaying expectations because I thought all the talk in the summer about a franchise, stud defenceman were overblown in the first place. Despite his size, Hamilton has never played with an edge. And while he'll almost certainly get better defensively, it isn't inevitable that he develops into an elite 2-way guy. To be honest, I see Hamilton as a very good #3 who can move the puck and put up a lot of points on the powerplay, but who you won't want to rely on to shut down top opposing forwards.
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I agree with all of this, and I also believe it's "enough" to justify the cap hit. Right now though, he needs to be better on those rudimentary plays - stronger on the man in front of the net, identifying who to defend on the rush. Hamilton should be much better than Wideman once he settles into his role, and that's all we need out of him, not a 6'5" Shea Weber.