July 23 Practice notes

[SeanCharles]

Just play him at center.

Whether it's on the 3rd or 4th line , just do it.

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by CsInMyBlood

We have seen how ineffective Bennett has been on Backlund and Tkachuks wing. We have seen how ineffective he is on Monahan and Gaudreaus wing. Multiple times.

So...he's not good on RW...

Neither is Gaudreau. Nor is Lucic. Nor Backlund. I'd wager there aren't many players on the team that would do well at all 3 forward positions..yet Bennett gets shuffled between all 3 slots with different linemates within the same week.

I like Derek Ryan a lot, but if he's so great, why can't he be the one to help solve the RW depth problem?

[Roof-Daddy]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

So...he's not good on RW...

Neither is Gaudreau. Nor is Lucic. Nor Backlund. I'd wager there aren't many players on the team that would do well at all 3 forward positions..yet Bennett gets shuffled between all 3 slots with different linemates within the same week.

I like Derek Ryan a lot, but if he's so great, why can't he be the one to help solve the RW depth problem?

But why would you put your 3rd best C on the wing when you already have four top 6 wingers?

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

But why would you put your 3rd best C on the wing when you already have four top 6 wingers?

Never said top 6. It's just that there isn't a pure RW on the whole roster. Jury's out whether the optimal deployment of Lindholm is C or RW (on this roster it's clearly RW; I'm not sure that's the best path for the franchise though). That means at least 3 other guys have to move over from more natural positions.

This is where I would ask the question: who are the players most likely to contribute to this team's long term success, and how do I set them up to achieve it? (I'd actually ask that question before doing anything else, until I feel like the team is a legitimate contender).

Maybe the answer is now Dubé, and RW is the right place for him. Currently the team has all of their chips on Dubé and Mangi, and maybe that's okay. But it seems the idea of thinking more than 1 day ahead or setting young players up for maximum success was thrown out the window after playoff run #1.