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Originally Posted by pepper24
I see a fan base being blinded by its own player and holding hope because he was a 4th overall pick and highest Flames pick ever. He's young and works hard is all I can muster.
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Personally, I don't care where anyone was drafted. You do need to hit more often than average in the first three rounds but there are 25th or 60th overalls that end up being the best of their draft class.
I am holding hope because Bennett has shown high-end ability in the NHL.
Not especially. It's not elite but it's no weaker than Gaudreau, Backlund, Frolik, etc. The bigger issue is that he is never set up with open backdoor nets by his linemates, he is rarely put in position to contribute on a broken power play, and the coach has turned him into a shoot first player afraid to make the seampass and risk a turnover.
Huh? He's not MacKinnon or McDavid but he's a very fast forward.
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his skating has regressed
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If his skating has regressed so has the skating of Brodie, Backlund, Hamonic, etc. I suspect no one's "skating has regressed". Skating is a mentality and if you don't approach a game with that mentality the results aren't as impressive.
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and he's been declining since his rookie season
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The one thing that has declined for him has been shooting percentage and on-ice shooting percentages. His shot totals have risen, his two-way play has improved, and his cycle game has improved. His only "decline" has been related to confidence - the confidence to make a pass to the open man instead of shoot, the confidence to shoot intuitively instead of hesitating, the confidence to make a clean controlled entry instead of dumping the puck and hoping Garnet Hayhaway or Troy Brouwer retrieve it. You do not quit on a player when their confidence is low.
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Half way through his show me contract he had a terrible season. Took him 16-17 games to register a point.
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So he did absolutely nothing well in those 16-17 games because he didn't have a point? He didn't have a monster game against the Sens or an unfortunate game against the Canucks where he did everything to contribute offensively except hit the statsheet? There wasn't a game where he sprung Matthew Tkachuk on a breakaway with a pinpoint stretch pass only for Tkachuk to miss the net? He wasn't the best player on the ice in Nashville? He wasn't regularly assisting Matt Bartkowski defensively to the extent where Bartkowski kept getting slotted into games he had no business playing? He wasn't a part of the line that initiated our comeback huge win over Winnipeg?
Was he not our #3 center the last time this team made the playoffs - as a 20yo? Where he went toe to toe with Kesler and his line with Versteeg and Chiasson on his Flanks was arguably our best at ES? Did he not improve profoundly on faceoffs this year?
You may think he failed at center, I do not. I think his struggles have absolutely nothing - 0 - to do with center vs wing and in fact he impacts the game more at center.
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and shows no top line promise
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Agree to disagree. I see a skillset that oozes top line promise.
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Players keep passing him on depth charts.
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Who passed him on the depth chart? The only player that passed him on the depth chart has been Matthew Tkachuk, who not only grew up in a hockey family but may be a superstar talent. He certainly wasn't passed by Mark Jankowski regardless of who has the more recent 4 goal game. Ferland is a completely different player better suited to being a third wheel on a line, but when was the last time Ferland did anything when tasked to carry his line. Frolik? Frolik has had his spot on the depth chart pencilled in since before he put on a Flames Jersey.
I understand people wanting to "cut bait" on a 4th overall pick while he still has value - I just think it's stupid when as recently as November 2016 that same player was our #2 center and performing admirably before his confidence fell off the map. I think that with the success of guys like Brayden Schenn, William Karlsson, Kyle Turris, Blake Wheeler, etc later into their careers it is almost irresponsible to ignore that Bennett has the skill to be an extremely good NHLer in his prime.