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Originally Posted by Hot_Flatus
I'm sure if you run the numbers on every high end player in the league they average 30% shooting for a few weeks here and there during a season. Crosby still scored 30 goals in the remaining 61 games he played after that run which indicate he most definitely would have been very close to 50 had he not been hurt. Kucherov is certainly capable of bettering that being one of the premiere snipers around.
There is no evidence to suggest Bennett, who is averaging at or below the league average shooting percentage over his last 100 or so games is suddenly going to buck the trend and start scoring at a rate any better than 12 goals a year. At least not until he starts consistently getting pucks on net and starts playing with self control.
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All I'm saying is taking two weeks of play and extrapolating linearly is lazy and inaccurate. Kucherov can definitely score 50, but even in his hottest start of his career he's at exactly a goal per game. As impressive as these 13 games have been, he'd have to do the same thing 3 more times to break 50 in 50.
Bennett's shooting percentage in the first ~120 games of his career was pretty much league average (8.5% or so). It only dropped off a cliff in his last 50 games or so - immediately after he stopped getting PP minutes last year. There's a much larger sample size of him shooting at league average than not.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hot_Flatus
You wouldn't be scratching him for someone who hasn't produced this year. Jagr and/or Versteeg flanking Jankowski is a far better option than Bennett at this point and time. At least they are taking far less stupid penalties and have shown they're capable of elevating their game this year.
I've watched all but one game and this is also one of the only notable offensive plays Bennett has made all year. If he played like that more often than naught he would be a huge asset to the team. Sadly, a guy who has more penalty minutes than shots or points is not a better option than some of the guys the Flames have right now.
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Jagr I agree with, but Versteeg has been hot garbage this year at 5 on 5. He's got the worst shot generation of any Flames forward, and only barely ahead of Bartkowski for worst among skaters, and his goals are only ahead of Stajan and Glass. Bennett is a much better candidate for the 3LW spot beside Jankowski and Jagr.
And for all the fuss about his penalties, his -5 differential is only marginally worse than Backlund's and Hamilton's -4, and he's one of only a handful Flames to have drawn multiple penalties.