Quote:
Originally Posted by Flash Walken
I dont think it is that cut and dried though.
Does Backlund score 25 points if given a 3rd line role on a cup contender?
He has been given solid Top 6 icetime for a couple of years now and cant produce any offence with it. With less icetime and potentially even worse linemates, does he look like the same player? I dont think so. He's not exactly sitting between two all-star linemates out there, but I can't imagine his 20-30 points per season would go up with a guy like Ryan Garbutt or Tanner Glass on his wing.
To me, Backlund looks like a less skilled but more conservative Stajan. I agree with another poster who said that if the two their positions reversed to start the year, it would be difficult to imagine Stajan would have less points than Backlund does.
I don't even feel like I have an irrational bias against the player. I don't get how he got the contract he is currently on unless the belief was "he's a younger matt Stajan, let's give him the Stajan contract." When I see him out there it is mostly just a big 'meh'.
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I think because he was one of the few 1st round picks from Darryl Sutter that actually made the team that some fans are attached to him. His skillset is so average and he can't distribute the puck as well as you would want out of an offensive center. I would feel 100% comfortable saying that if he got traded he would fade away into one of those guys that's just in the league but not noteworthy as every team has one or two guys just like him that were drafted high but didn't translate to an offensive player. It's not like he's a cancer or anything to this team but he isn't getting better and if you can include him in a trade to make your team better you have to do it. That said while I think he's more tradable than Stajan I'm not sure there are a lot of suitors for a $3 million 3rd liner. The fit would have to be a team that really likes him and thinks he just needs a change of scenery.