Quote:
Originally Posted by TheScorpion
I just think it could happen on circumstance alone. If Frolik is shipped out with no external replacement, who is more likely to be slotted into that 2RW role?
I'd like to see Neal given a shot there. He succeeded in Vegas given good linemates and tanked on the infrequent occasion that they were taken away. He registered slightly over a hundred minutes each with Gaudreau and Tkachuk at 5v5 this year and the pairings both worked well from shot-generation and shot-prevention metric standpoints -- neither Gaudreau nor Tkachuk were significantly hurt by the pairing, either, and Tkachuk seemingly benefited. Neal dragged Ryan, Bennett, and Jankowski down substantially, though, specifically in the defensive zone -- he needs elite (or at least excellent) linemates to be successful.
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Your graph shows a drop in play for Gaudreau (and Czarnik as well for good measure) when with Neal. The only forward not dragged down was Tkachuk, and with 103 minutes (4 minutes less and he doesn't even make the chart) and barely a noticeable difference in quality, this is closer to a blip than anything else.
If anything this goes to show just how bad Neal was.