Quote:
Originally Posted by PsYcNeT
We should definitely continue to wallow in sub-mediocrity in our bottom 6 to save a few bucks rather than throw 3.5 for 2 at a good defensive player with surprising offensive numbers.
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Again, is this true? Is Ryan a good defensive player?
He apparently gets spoon-fed offensive zone starts, and he doesn't PK. He produced well with more minutes and with having Skinner beside him, but would he produce at a decent enough clip otherwise?
Stajan was useful in the bottom lines because he became a good defensive player. Should we bring him back? Absolutely not - he needs to be upgraded. I do think that a 4th line center should also be contributing on the PK as well. If he is not a strong defensive player, what exactly will he be doing between Reaves and Brouwer?
Putting up a strong CF does not equal him being strong defensively necessarily. Again, my information is coming from a bunch of Canes fans that think he is rather useless at anything else other than putting up points. They say he is shifty and can play with talented players, but without that, he is otherwise a useless player that is both weak on the puck, and poor defensively. We can't tell what his defensive game is like from highlights, and I would love to know if what Canes fans are saying is actually true, or whether it is just bias.
One thing that stuck out for me was a couple of them agreeing that while Ryan puts up strong CF%, he apparently 'gets his head smashed in GF versus GA'.
What my concern revolves around his usage on the Flames. Yes, we need better bottom 6 guys, but if he is a guy that can't produce without playing with highly talented players, he isn't going to necessarily be an upgrade offensively in the bottom 6, and he may even become a defensive liability.
The only place I have read so far that he is strong defensively is in this thread. Are we sure he is strong defensively?