Sam Bennett Value: Have the Flames held on TOO long? OR is he awesome?

[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by calgarywinning

Lets hope they can get him going with this change up. Nothing more is needed right now from him. When you look at his OHL stats and compare there is something mentally going on with the player which a good coach should be able to unlock.

I would agree with this.

Imagine if Peters can give Bennett focus, get more out of Brodie and Brouwer, and get Gio north of 50 points again.

There is a lot of potential that was unrealized under the last guy.

[Snuffleupagus]

Bennett under GG was playing like an angry young man with no purpose, a new coach hopefully lights his "I love the game" fire again.

[Flames1217]

Originally Posted by Snuffleupagus

Bennett under GG was playing like an angry young man with no purpose, a new coach hopefully lights his "I love the game" fire again.

Peters stated in the interview that he views Bennett as a very important key to the success of our team. He also stated that he has to figure out first whether he is a winger or center.

Bennett could really be something special, Imagine He and Tkachuk on a line where Tkachuk pisses you off and Bennett plows over everyone. Two guys that really give no $%?&?.

If Peters can make Bennett realize his potential we have a contender. I have always said that, a 55(even a 45- 50) point physical force like Bennett on this team would do more then wonders for us in the standings

[Husky]

With bennet's build and willingness to hit, would be nice if he could be refocused it a mike peca type player.

[Monahan For Mayor]

For me the main issue in my opinion has always been Bennetts hockey iq. Saying that I think they need to focus more on what he can bring to be successful. Speed and tenacity. Pair him with players that can play a similar game. I also think he needs to play on a line that focuses on scoring off the rush. Bennett has a horrible shot, but you don't need a great shot to score off the rush.

[jlh2640]

Originally Posted by Monahan For Mayor

For me the main issue in my opinion has always been Bennetts hockey iq. Saying that I think they need to focus more on what he can bring to be successful. Speed and tenacity. Pair him with players that can play a similar game. I also think he needs to play on a line that focuses on scoring off the rush. Bennett has a horrible shot, but you don't need a great shot to score off the rush.

Very good post, him and Ferland could be a pair if they figure it out.

[Monahan For Mayor]

Originally Posted by jlh2640

Very good post, him and Ferland could be a pair if they figure it out.

One player I would like Treliving to make a call about is Bryan Rust. RFA this summer and the Pens only have about 4.5M cap going into next season wth 5-6 slots to be filled. Rust is probably due for a raise to 3.5-4.5M. I'm sure the Pens would rather retain him than trade him but might as well make the call. Rust could be a great pair with Bennett or on the top line with Mony and Johnny.

[EVERLAST]

Inline with what Peter's said yesterday he mentioned keeping pairs together and finding a complimentary player to play with them .

He identified his pairs and then spoke briefly about Bennett being important. I really really hope he gets Sam to a good place fast as far as his confidence is concerned.
Fix that and we have a whole new player.

[Flames1217]

Originally Posted by EVERLAST

Inline with what Peter's said yesterday he mentioned keeping pairs together and finding a complimentary player to play with them .

He identified his pairs and then spoke briefly about Bennett being important. I really really hope he gets Sam to a good place fast as far as his confidence is concerned.
Fix that and we have a whole new player.

Gaudreau-Monny
Backlund-Frolik
Tkachuk-Bennett

Theres the important pairs. I still believe he can succeed at C if not throw him RW.

[Monahan For Mayor]

Originally Posted by Flames1217

Gaudreau-Monny
Backlund-Frolik
Tkachuk-Bennett

Theres the important pairs. I still believe he can succeed at C if not throw him RW.

Is a absolutely like to see Tkachuk and Bennet given a shot together, but I don't see them as a pair who would mesh well.

[Robbob]

Originally Posted by Flames1217

Gaudreau-Monny
Backlund-Frolik
Tkachuk-Bennett

Theres the important pairs. I still believe he can succeed at C if not throw him RW.

Gaudreau-Monahan
Backlund-Tkachuk
Jankowski-Bennett

That is how I think it should be built out.

I have said it before, it is a confidence issue with Bennett. A lot of that is him being hard on himself. I have seen enough flashes that I think he can be hell of a player. He is the quintessential playoff type player. This last December when he was rolling with confidence he put up decent amount of points that would have been around 65 point season prorated. Not bad for 3rd line minutes. He just needs to find some consistency.

[ricardodw]

How different would have been Bennett's career had he spent a year in the AHL as a PPG centre?

Would Jankowski be a NHL player today if he did not spend a full year at age 21 in the AHL?

The Flames did not write off his first year when he was injured (as seemed pretty obvious and expected) and due to their total lack of depth did not ease him into the line-up.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Monahan For Mayor

Is a absolutely like to see Tkachuk and Bennet given a shot together, but I don't see them as a pair who would mesh well.

I think they could. Tkachuk can play with anyone IMO.

BTW, add Ferland to that line and raise the temperature of the rink a few degrees.

[Monahammer]

I think that Bennett could be back at Centre if paired with Tkachuk. I don't think that him and Janko together as w-c make a dominant enough pairing to carry a line without a significant piece on the other wing.

I would still prefer us to trade for another key centre like ROR, and leave Bennett on the wing of that new line with tkachuk opposite. Bennett on the wing with some very offensively gifted players, and focusing on a hard forecheck instead of defensive responsibilities would really make that line difficult to handle. Backlund-Frolik have proven several times they can boost a younger player and it leaves a wonderful situation on our third line to bring up someone like Dube next year.

[Cactus Jack]

I go back and forth about whether Bennett and Jankowski need a scoring winger on their line or a defensive conscience and vet like Frolik to carry the defensive load. I lean to the latter, as I think Ferland can step up and still score 20 with Backlund and Tkachuk. They are all talented enough, Backlund is responisble enough and perhaps Tkachuk is feisty enough to bring out the best in Ferland more consistently.

[djsFlames]

Bennett was probably always best served with more development time than he ended up having. People in the organization bought into the 4th overall hype and 1st overall ranked scouting reports that ultimately fast tracked him a bit prematurely, when he probably should have only now just broken into the league. He had flashes like young kids do but he wasn't consistent or disciplined enough for 82 game NHL seasons, yet was put in that position anyway. So we got what was probably expected given the context. In the process confidence was definitely hindered at times, sometimes greatly. This is one instance where I think the Flames "oilered" a young player by putting him right in before he was ripe. Which is fine l because we haven't done that much.

Hopefully some good teachers behind the bench can help him fill in the gaps in his game that are keeping him from being consistent and effective enough to be a real producer. Due to the circumstance though I wouldn t read too much into his point production so far. The next couple seasons will be much more reflective of the potential of Sam Bennett and whether he has another gear in him.

[midniteowl]

Originally Posted by Monahan For Mayor

For me the main issue in my opinion has always been Bennetts hockey iq. Saying that I think they need to focus more on what he can bring to be successful. Speed and tenacity. Pair him with players that can play a similar game. I also think he needs to play on a line that focuses on scoring off the rush. Bennett has a horrible shot, but you don't need a great shot to score off the rush.

I don't understand, I thought hockey IQ was one of his strong point at the time of the draft. Or I could be dreaming.

[ComixZone]

Originally Posted by midniteowl

I don't understand, I thought hockey IQ was one of his strong point at the time of the draft. Or I could be dreaming.

I think a lot of people unfairly judge his “hockey iq” due to over handling the puck and forcing plays during the 16/17 season.

His rookie season with Backlund and Frolik was a solid one. Good players to help him develop at the NHL level...then 16/17 happened..a complete disaster of a regular season for Bennett. I blame a lot of that on the fact he was literally a one man show while playing with scrubs like Chiasson and Brouwer.

You’ve got this talented kid with a good work ethic trying to learn the centre position at the NHL level with two complete duds on his line - and he wanted to produce offensively. So he forced himself into 1 on 1 and 1 on 2 situations where it’s a slim chance of coming out with the puck, never mind a scoring chance.

Fast forward to his pairing up with Janko in 17/18, and I think you saw that part of his game fall away. After moving to Janko’s wing, I think Bennett got back on track. He got back to being a talented youngster with consistency and confidence issues - which is pretty damn normal, even for highly touted prospects. Problem is, it’s hard for people to erase the failed 16/17 season where the team set him up to fail and effectively destroyed a year of development.

I’m excited for Peters to coach Bennett, and even more excited to hopefully see Bennett and Jankowski get to play with a good player on their side (part of Tree’s summer should be acquiring a player to fill that role).

[Dajazz]

I see Bennett would be better off with a more fast paced player on his line. He is fast, aggressive and appears to thrive on pace and intuition. I'd rather break up Monahan & Gaudreau as they have proven to be very successful on their own (that people on this forum think Monahan is a passenger is outrageous....).

Tkachuk and Monahan can play a strong cycle game with strong net presence as well as handle a little tougher assignments. JG & Bennett will complement each other with speed.

At least have a look in training camp.

Gaudreau - Bennett
Tkachuk - Monahan
Frolik - Backlund

[Cactus Jack]

Tkachuk-Monahan-Acquisition could be a good possession line. Gaudreau-Backlund-Bennett could be a speed and offensive line. Frolik-Jankowski-Ferland an all around good third line.