Quote:
Originally Posted by TheScorpion
I actually think it's the other way, Sylvanfan. Guys like Brodie who rely on their skating typically see a real fast drop-off as it deteriorates. But defensive stalwarts like Hamonic with excellent positioning generally keep that hockey sense. Still, Hamonic is a warrior perhaps to a fault -- he's prone to freak injuries because he's always in the right positions to block shots.
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Maybe I didn't phrase it right. I'd be careful about how much Hamonic is paid for intangibles on his next deal, and the term will be really important. He does turn 30 next August.
We have seen this play out several times where the Glue style defensive warrior starts to see his game erode. Rhett Warrener, Cory Sarich, and even Robyn Regehr to an extent where the Flames moved him out. The more recent example of Engelland didn't have the same NHL mileage on him when the Flames added him and ultimately although he was expensive, the 3 year term of the deal proved manageable.
I do think Hamonic is valuable for the skills he brings, and more so for the off ice intangibles. But in the past when the team put a premium and paid guys who were primarily defensive guys for those skills...there was remorse. So know what you are getting into before you do it again. If the price and term for a deal in the Summer of 2020 is more than 4.5 million a season for more than 3 years....don't bite and be willing to let him go.
Conversely Brodie is an elite skater who can produce offensively. In spite of his short comings, he does have the ability to skate the puck out of trouble, and can move it effectively at times. He also doesn't play a hard abrasive style which should have taken a big physical toll on him over the years. I'd personally put my money on Brodie still being a regular NHL player at 35 over Hamonic myself, purely due to the style of game that they play plus factoring in the way the game is trending. Less about the value of the player today, but more the long term viability. Any pending UFA always runs the risk of becoming that guy who's still a serviceable player, just "overpaid" regardless of the type of game they play.
The expansion draft of 2020 adds in the element where the Flames could lose one of Anderson, Valimaki, Hanifin if they chose to go the route of protecting 3 D and knowing that Giordano will be one of them. Otherwise the succession plan is already there for both guys to move on, and really if they did lose one of those 3 D, but still had Kylington, they could still come out of that in okay shape. But if that's the case, you want to provide opportunity so that those young guys get a chance to play this year.