I wonder if things with this core are just simply stale. Backlund, Frolik, Giordano, Gaudreau, Monahan and Brodie still get the lions share of the ice time, they are the locker room leaders, and yet this unrelenting mediocrity persists. I just don't see the sustained effort game to game that is the hallmark of a contending team.
I still think we are weak down the middle. I've never been convinced by Backlund, though I know the analytics seem to back him up, or at least they used to. Monahan has a wonderful shot, and does a pretty good job up the middle but I see him as a lower tier number one centre. Also it's been about 7 games now since he has scored a goal, he needs to be more consistent.
Still a lot of time for this team to figure things out.
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