Quote:
Originally Posted by dammage79
The point to acquiring lindholm is he can help the team almost anywhere in your forward ranks. all 4 center spots, all 4 RW spots. His versatility is a big key to all of this talk.
I get the Ferland love even though I am no fan. But he is not better than Lindholm, full stop. Lets just put that to bed right now.
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I think comparing Ferland to Lindholm really depends on the metrics you're evaluating them by.
I don't think it's unthinkable to watch a CGY vs. CAR game and come away thinking Ferland was the better player in that game. They both bring a different set of skills, and I don't think Lindholm has produced at a level that puts him above Ferland when he's playing heavy.
If you leave Lindholm room in front of the net, he'll be able to corral rebounds and find dangerous areas very well. But, he can be shut down if the target is on him. Ferland is difficult to contain and makes his own room pretty effectively. He can draw a lot of attention and give Johnny room to move, and we saw this resulted in Monahan having a lot of clear shots from very dangerous chances. Lindholm relies on having a bit more open room, and with 2 other players looking for the same they would be relying on winning a lot of 1-on-1 battles to make room.
As an example, Lindholm will be effective against teams like the Oilers where stretch passes erode their D on entry, and a good cycle play is pretty easy to establish. Playing against Nashville would be a different story. You would want a guy like Ferland (...or Stone) who can fight for himself and force the play down-low.