Sam Bennett is good, but has an incomplete skill set. He's got a decent shot and is great at jamming pucks home. His board play is good too. He lacks vision, the ability to gain the zone, and elite stick handling.
In Florida he's found the perfect situation with Huberdeau, who game is a perfect compliment. Huberdeau is one of the best players in the league. He drives the net hard and creates space for Bennett, who basically just has to keep up and have his stick down. Huberdeau does all the things Bennett can't.
If Bennett had been given the best opportunities in Calgary he would have been a 50-60 point player, which would have left him considerably lower than the Flames top line players. Bennett didn't have the two way play to displace Backlund. That's why he never made the top six here.
It sucks losing Bennett, but he was given lots of time to develop here, and his play is what it is. I did not see a lack of development being the problem. Bennett had plenty of time on the the pp and top line, but never consistently took advantage.
The only issue I see with the organization was a lack of depth, which left Bennett with poor bottom six linemates. The organization does appear to be attempting to address this, but it comes from poor scouting 3-5 years before Bennett was drafted.
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