Quote:
Originally Posted by Knut
I like Kadri. I think he is a good influence now on the younger players. He was came into the league with a bunch of issues that he has fixed along the way.
I think it is valuable to have a presence like that on the team to help mentor and shape the younger players. Not having that is a quick ticket to Buffalo.
Not to mention that Center in the NHL has as steep learning curve. If we are going to start bringing in some young centers you want someone that can take the hard matchups so they can be eased into the position. Lets say in 2 years Reschny is ready to play. Throwing him out against McDavid, Mckinnon etc right away would be a disaster.
|
But this isn't really accurate. I went through the game reports of some of the best players in the league and Kadri is consistently in the bottom half in EV ice for Flames skaters against Draisaitl, McDavid, Kucherov, Crosby, Eichel, Connor.
He played bigger minutes against Matthews when playing the Leafs. But Matthews played more of a checking role last year so that could be more of the match up the Leafs wanted.
1 big game against MacKinnon, but Backlund didn't play.
Kadri is getting all the easy matchups and prime ice to score. The young guys might feel it when facing the other team's best checkers and D, but if you want to keep them away from the McDavid types, you keep Backlund.