I am in the camp that believes Bennett was mismanaged. Hartley talked about the importance of letting young guys loose so they could excel with their talents even though in the beginning they would make mistakes. This is why Monahan and Johnny were given a lot of reins, this would to help them excel. The Flames gave Bennett line-mates that were often lazy and inconsistent, likely hindering his learning curve and progression. Converting him to center too soon put a lot on his plate and the added mistakes turned into on ice confidence issues. Not having skilled players contributed to him often trying to do too much himself which then just added to his on ice frustrations.
Inexperienced coaches can be added to that list.
He is what he is, and to be effective during the regular season Sam Bennett he needs to be a difference maker, and play a simple physical game. That is something he can do better than anyone else on the team. When he does that he opens up time and space. Why he is not doing it is something the coach needs to figure out.
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