Quote:
Originally Posted by gvitaly
How quickly people's perception changes. He had 7G, and 18P in 17GP in his first playoff run with the Canucks, while playing 19:22 a night as a 21 year old. I agree that he was disappointing in the last playoffs for Van, and this year is a bit of a write off.
That said, I think this has more to do with the situation he's in than his actual drive. He did win the Le Mat Trophy in SWE where he was the MVP, and had one of the best U20 seasons in the SHL. Also won the Calder trophy despite being bullied like Bedard in his first season.
Anyway, I don't buy the narrative that you don't win with player X, especially when he's only 26, and had his first bad season in the NHL.
People were taking shots at PLD in LA, Chychrun in OTT, but both found themselves a nice home in WSH. The same can be said of Reinhart in BUF.
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What I'm saying is that if you pay a guy 11.6 million, he needs to be a guy that can do everything for you. Petey is NOT that guy and his contract would be a hindrance to getting/keeping the guys that would actually do the things needed to win in the playoffs. I've watched him play enough. He wilts under pressure and tends to be a soft peripheral player who doesn't push through when the contact goes up in the playoffs. Talented as hell, but so was Kent Nilsson. He kinda reminds me of him.
I'm still not sold on PLD as he is very up and down and could very well be down again next year. Chychrun is a little different, as he was just a poor fit in Ottawa, but has played well everywhere else. I can't get fault any player in Buffalo not performing well enough because that place is a #### show, so I don't think much about Reinhart's criticisms.