Monahan continues to be incredibly underrated. He isn't flashy. That's it.
He carries the puck fine. I love how he sometimes takes charge, skates with the puck, looks for an open man, makes a perfect pass and then goes into position to get a rebound. He has done this a bunch of times.
He isn't that dynamic, beat 3 guys to the net by dipsy-doodling, nor is he elite defensively like Kopitar and Bergeron. What is he? He is a bona fide #1 center capable of putting 30+ pucks in the net in any given season, making difficult passes under pressure, being good in all three zones (he is NOT bad defensively - if you think so, you haven't been paying attention), with very little holes in his game.
Monahan is getting better and better. He used to be rather weak along the boards and in front of the net. Not any longer. His playmaking is incredibly under-appreciated. He just isn't flashy, but he knows what to do almost always. I have long stated that Monahan can carry his own line and that Gaudreau should have been moved down to Bennett's line. I think Monahan is a better center when he is carrying the puck. He makes sweet dishes and sees the ice incredibly well. He then goes right to an open space.
People argue that Monahan feeds off of Gaudreau. I argue that what you see is actually synergy. Nobody else on the team finds a hole like Monahan does. Nobody else can shoot that puck as quickly, accurately and deceptively as Monahan does. Nobody can make as quick of a pass somewhere else if he doesn't have a shot. I rarely see Monahan turning the puck over, even when pressured.
Monahan by any metric imaginable is a #1 center, and he is good enough as a #1 center for a team to win a cup with. What this team needs is to play more to their strengths - play at a faster pace, stop the constant D-to-D passing with a constant emphasis on moving as a 5 man unit. All it does is remove our D from the offence as much, and make this team slower. By the time this team starts their transition, the other team is lined up ready to defend, and even their high scoring chances are contested chances. That's why this team hasn't been scoring enough.
Maybe I am right, maybe I am wrong. What I know for sure is that this team's woes has nothing to do with the fact that Monahan isn't Crosby.
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