Quote:
Originally Posted by blankall
Backlund only really fell off this year. Until recently he was a top defensive centre who put up 45-50 points while making players around him better. So last year the solution to the Flames problems was to give Backlund, who was on pace for 50 points, with a tire for of a team around him way less ice time?
And then what do you do with the expansion draft? We probably expose Dube instead, who looked like a sure fire soon to be second liner last year.
Can Bennett carry a line of Coleman and Mangiapane? That's about as big of a top 6 downgrade as you can get from being stapled to Huberdeau.
A lot of hindsight going on here.
|
Mangiapane was in the conversation for Team Canada...
I think we can mostly agree that Backlund slots as an okay 2nd line C (but probably not quite to the level of any 2C that has won the cup in the cap era) or a superb 3rd line C.
rank among F's EV TOI (Total TOI):
4. Coleman 13:43 (6. 15:24)
5. Backlund 13:37 (4. 17:27)
6. Mangiapane 12:53 (5. 15:58)
7. Monahan 11:52 (7. 14:42)
There would be no need to give Backlund a lot less time.
In this hindsight exercise we can also imagine one of Backlund/Monahan being moved, with a middle 6 F as part of the return - of course a lot of butterfly effects from there.