It would make zero sense to trade Bennett for Simmonds right now (and I love Simmonds).
Are the Flames going to be contending for the cup in the next 2 years with Simmonds in the lineup? I don't think so - at the very least, it is doubtful that the Flames would be looked upon as legitimate contenders in the next two seasons.
Bennett is cost controlled and has a pretty decent ceiling. This team needs to be focused not on this season or the next, but 2+ years down the line when they should be a better team and hopefully contending.
I would love to find another way to get Simmonds on the team, however, but I think it would be probably easier to acquire Landeskog than Simmonds.
Also, Bennett reminded us all of something important yesterday. Gaudreau and Monahan are very important pieces for this team moving forward, but one has to be protected, and the other is relatively 'soft' (he goes to the hard areas, but is not truculent - that is what I mean before anyone gets upset here). Bennett can not only drop them, but he is good at it. RyJo is not a fighter, but he is a lot bigger than Bennett (probably out-weighs him by 20lbs, and at his age has more 'man-strength'). Laughton in Juniors was known as a guy that could handle himself well, and outweighed Bennett and was also 2 years older (which is huge at that age). Bennett beat him up.
I do think that Bennett will become a very important piece for the Flames - I think he will become the most important forward on this team, actually. He will be able to produce and he will be able to muck it up and be very hard to play against. That's valuable. Why is Simmonds so wanted on this board and around the league? Because he can produce and is very difficult to play against.
Keep the 20 year old kid and let's see what he turns into.
|