Quote:
Originally Posted by HighLifeMan
Forever? We have an impending sell off coming. There is and will be plenty of opportunity down the stretch (at least there should be).
I'd agree that it's not incredibly likely that Ruzicka turns into a consistent top six forward, but that's still a moderate risk you are taking on a 24 year old who has shown that he can produce points with a larger role. People keep saying that he squandered endless opportunities but a quick look at his game logs would tell you otherwise.
It's odd to me how everyone expects a player who has never played in a fourth line capacity at any level be able to just switch his game up completely and reinvent his skillset at the highest level. He's an offensive player, and needs those looks to be successful. He isn't an elite forechecker or banger. He doesn't compliment those types of talents either. We saw Monahan struggle immensely in the very same situation in his final few months here.
It's not a franchise altering decision (far from it) but it's still poor asset management in my mind - especially given the state of this current roster.
I hope he succeeds too, and I won't be screaming bloody murder if it happens either. It is very possible that Ruzicka went to Conroy and asked for this to happen as well. I wouldn't discount that as a possibility.
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Pelletier and Coronato are far more important guys to give any top 9 opportunities to. And it's probably a fair bet that Conroy is expecting some inbound bodies in trade - no one is more aware than him of the opportunities that are coming to the roster. So if he is cool with losing Ruzicka, so am I.
And I'll say it again - if you don't think a player fits in your plans, the best thing to do is give them an opportunity elsewhere. And if they don't have any trade value, then it isn't bad asset management to let them go.