Quote:
Originally Posted by Vinny01
I am fine keeping Bennett but people need to be prepared for him not being anywhere near this same player next season. He will have games and flashes where he steps up like this but it is an impossible style to play for 6 months and 82 games.
Hopefully his confidence and offensive touch can remain but no one can throw 7-8 hits a game like he is day in and day out. When he plays engaged like this and the refs tend to call less penalties he thrives and is exactly the player we thought we were getting when he was drafted. I am happy he has shifted back to the middle and it is working. At the end of the day this is currently an 8 game sample size. I think some are getting a little ahead of themselves thinking this is a monumental breakout. He has always been a playoff beast and it has never carried over to the regular season. While I certainly hope it does I have been fooled too many times in the past. I am also not a huge fan of the argument it is not his fault and all due to bad coaches and line mates.
One thing I have always thought about Bennett is he would find his game and succeed once he moved on from the Flames. Optimistically there is a chance he found his role on the Flames after all. I was convinced he would be traded this offseason but I don’t think so anymore.
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Last year he was a playoff beast and started with Jankowski and Neal - then got moved up the line-up to try and "fix" Monahan and Gaudreau. Bennett produced 5 points in 5 games.
The next season, he got put on the wing while being centre by Jankowski and with Rieder on the opposite side. Not a good line considering Rieder is a 4th line PK specialist and Jankowski isn't an NHL'er. Slap a non-NHL centre between any two players, and things are generally going to go bad.
This post-season he has played at centre with two NHL players on his wings - and he's not only producing again, but he's producing at an elite level. I'm not saying Bennett is going to produce at an elite level during the regular season, but even if you take his typical 26 point season with strong underlying numbers and slap actual NHL talent on his wings while he plays his naturalposition, he's likely producing in that 35-45 point range, or at least that's what I'm thinking. Having better linemates night in and night out will help his underlying numbers bear more fruit.