Quote:
Originally Posted by killer_carlson
The Flames are closing in on mis-handling the prospect because they are not putting him in a place to succeed in the role he was drafted for.
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hmm, i don't think i'd agree with that sentiment. I think bennett has been slow in figuring out the NHL game. I think we saw too much of the speed thru the blue line and try to dipsy doodle a dman or try a long range wrister ain't going to cut it at this level (i think we see a lot of young skilled players need time to figure this out in the NHL).
The good news he absolutely has the skill and toolset to play a style that could be very successful in the NHL. I am not sure how much of the time lag to this is just natural time of progression being different young player to player versus the coaching staff not putting him in a position to succeed.
I do question if he's had ample time with high skill forwards to help him grow. Though i don't know if that's a coaching fault vs the team just having few seasoned high skill players outside of gaudreau (who pairs well with monahan). i don't fault the coaches for not starting the year with a line of bennet/tkachuk given how young they'd be, and i also understand why it was never tried given the success tkachuk saw with backlund/frolik.
I think bennett needs to (and will) show ample justification for ice time, but also better line mates as early as this season. The raw skill that's there and his demeanor just make it too hard to look past.