I think it's kind of insulting to suggest Ferland has adopted a different mindset on how to play based on which line he is on. It's like saying the issues with him being productive are purely attitude related, that his ego is so big he can't bring himself to play properly if the incentive is to score goals instead of win games.
I don't get that impression from him at all. I don't see Rene Bourque levels of floating from him, where he's clearly one of the lazier players on the ice for either team more often than not.
I see it as a guy with a limited skillset who is still an NHL level player and thus has NHL level skills and can convert on NHL level setups from other NHL players. It just happens that his NHL level skillset is towards the lower end of the spectrum. I think most of the time he's playing within himself and if he doesn't score 10 goals in a season but otherwise doesn't hurt the team by taking a regular shift, that's not a bad thing or a knock against him.
Expectations for him are/were in my opinion, ludicrously high. He's a 3rd of 4th liner who can get hot occasionally and who probably plays his best hockey when the tempo and emotion are at their peak. Over an 82 game schedule, that's not going to happen much, but there are spots in the league for guys like that.
If he wants to stick with the Flames or have a long career in the league he's going to have to start excelling at being a niche player in a role other than scoring. The natural fit for his size and skill in my opinion is as a heavy minute role player and penalty killer.
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