Quote:
Originally Posted by Erick Estrada
If it was only that easy every team would call up a hard nosed grinder when they ran into scoring issues. Like I said he doesn't hurt but he's not the solution to the team's woes.
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I don't disagree, he ain't gonna solve any of the depth scoring issues this team has.
I really don't think many teams in the NHL can count on their 4th line to do much scoring anyways. The problem is that good teams, perhaps most teams, can rely on being able to send out their 4th line to provide some energy, some zone time, and generally just a break for the other lines, while not losing momentum. The flames 4th line seems like it has no clue on what they should be doing, and are usually a possession and scoring chance against disaster. The reason for that in my opinion is personnel: versteeg, brouwer, stajan are not grit energy guys. Versteeg's a skill player, and brouwer/stajan are depth skill players with subpar skill/speed/etc.
By getting in a guy like Hathaway, and pairing him with guys like Lazar, i hope they can find an identity of a true 4th line (dump, hit, forecheck, cycle, line change, repeat).
It's a minor change, i minor cog to the wheel that is this team, but the 4th line remains more a liability every time they hit the ice. if this subtle change can least close the gap on that, it's a small improvement to one of the items plaguing this team.