Quote:
Originally Posted by Karl
James Neal can sit out for the rest of this series then he can go into the sunset afterwards.
It's crystal clear he's got nothing more left to give and that he's not an NHL level player anymore. He is just too done.
So much for 'he'll turn it up for the playoffs' thing.  |
This is going to be a fascinating off season when it comes to James Neal.
He was brought in for 5 years to provide
- veteran leadership
- playoff experience
- grit
- consistent goal scoring
The leadership part is maybe the only one we can't say assuredly that he didn't deliver on as we aren't around the team. Playoff experience is an intangible but he doesn't seem to be lending anything that resembles it.
What do they do? Obvious answer is bring him back next season and see if he regains any semblance of his former self. They gave Brouwer 2 years after all.
But does James Neal even want to come back? He never seemed happy here. He thought he'd be getting top line minutes. Even if he did his play all but guaranteed he wouldn't stay there. I'm not sure Peters is a fan of his at all.
You can't buy him out. Even with his lack of trade protection who is going to take that on? Can't imagine what Treliving is thinking right now.