Quote:
Originally Posted by Matata
He still plays a style that relies on him being more physically gifted than other players, he needs to create space to make shots or plays by being either stronger or quicker than the opposition, which worked great in juniors but he never developed any of those gifts beyond average at the NHL level. Now he's already at the age where agility and reflexes start to fade and while many other NHLers are able to handle that transition by becoming stronger and smarter players,
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I think this is really true. Sam was a bull in junior because he was physically superior to most of those players and could do everything himself. He's average physically in the NHL, so he has no ability to do that (really, only McDavid can) and he either lacks the hockey sense to adapt and use his teammates, or is so programmed from his years of being a one-man show in junior that he can't turn the corner.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Matata
Sam hasn't really shown much capacity to make those improvements. He's one of the dumbest players in the entire NHL and he might be only a few seasons away from being out of the league entirely.
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Now, just hold a second there! That's just ... exactly right.
