Quote:
Originally Posted by transplant99
Not playing with Jankowski and Bennett he won't, nor should that be expected with that duo.
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Bennett + Neal has actually been their best combination for him. Neal has been much more productive in his time with Bennett than he has away from Bennett.
Neal with Bennett:
TOI: 194 Minutes
CF %: 51.7%
HDCF%: 58.57%
On Ice GF/60: 2.16
Neal without Bennett:
TOI: 431 Minutes
CF%: 48.3%
HDCF%: 43.6%
On Ice GF/60: 1.25
Agree that it's still unlikely that he gets up to 0.5PPG playing on the third line and second PP with those guys but I feel like there is some upside there for sure.
I personally don't think Neal had a great offseason of training after having two long playoff runs back to back years. IMO he looked slow and out of shape to start the season and he has started look quicker and is moving a lot better on the ice over the last month and a half.
Also I heard from somebody that has had conversations with Neal that he's had a hard time adjusting to playing in Calgary. His first time playing in a Canadian market and took some time getting used to everyone knowing who you are, coming up to talk to you, and the pressure that comes with playing here hurt his confidence after the slow start.
Intrigued to see how he looks after a week off to recharge and gets a bit of a fresh start in the second half of the year.