My feeling is Tkachuk is pretty good in his own zone. Aware and sound positionally, strong on the puck against the boards, can win puck battles. But not fast enough to be a superior back checker.
A guy like Gaudreau can be pretty effective on the back check but does little to help his team get out of the zone. That’s why so often his line gets stuck in their zone, pretty much feast or famine. A center with a 200 foot game would really help Gaudreau.
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