Quote:
Originally Posted by jg13
Can you explain why? He's constantly drawing the other teams top line 5 on 5 because he's playing alongside our best shutdown centre. Constantly starting in the defensive zone and doesn't have a top 6 RW to play with. And he's 21 years old lots of room to grow still.
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He has a 55% Ozone start percentage. He is not starting most of the time in his own zone. This is not last year or the year before in how he’s being deployed. The top line a lot more often than not is being deployed against the other teams top line.
As for him we’ll I’ve said this before but I don’t think he drives lines that well. Away from Backlund he’s mediocre. And Backlund has put up just as good numbers with inferior players. If he was such a good player I’d think Backlund would see a bump from playing with him as compared to his play with Bennett and Frolik before Tkachuk showed up. I don’t see a lot of projection in his game given his lack of speed. Would he get a few more points on the top line? Maybe but they’d need to find a new center. Him and Monahan is too little speed to drive play. He also plays the same position as Gaudreau and thus will never be on the top line so long as Johnny is around.
But he’s certainly a player I want to stick around. I think he is a great top 6 forward and is really important to us. I just don’t view him as franchise defining like I do Gaudreau. And I don’t love the thought of paying him 8-9 million dollars. He’s just not that good. 7 though sure I’m fine with that.