Quote:
Originally Posted by theslymonkey
I think moving Bennett to the wing is still far too short sighted. The kid is 20 years old and played well as a 3rd line center. He's drafted as a top end center, he should be played that way. Teams that are deep at center seem to do better than those who don't.
I look at Bennett like Spezza. He didn't blow up until his fourth year after his draft, he got to mature in the OHL for longer, and didn't have to compete with a Monahan for the #1C. I see Bennett hitting his stride as a #1/2 C in 2-3 years. Give the kid time.
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Issue is Jankowski seems to have similar upside to Bennett in terms of being a top two line centre. The question is how do you fit Monahan, Backlund, Jankowski and Bennett all in the top 3 lines when Bennett and Janko are ready?
Out of all 4 of those players Bennett's game seems best suited for the wing and he's had success there. Bennett likes to drive the wing and has the speed to do so, he likes to take defencemen on 1 by 1, he's very tenacious along the boards and around the net. His style suits the wing moreso than Monahan, Backlund or Janko.
If we didn't have Jankowski then I think talk of moving Bennett to the wing would be silly. But in Jankowski we have a very promising top two line centre prospect with size, skating and skill who's near NHL ready. How we will fit him in long term is a real issue for some of us.