[News] Bennett Out 4-6 Months with Shoulder Surgery *UPDATE* Back Skating

[Poe969]

He didn't even score on the shot, BUST!!! Trade him now for some playoff help while he still has some value!! I refuse to use green text

Seeing him in practice just made me smile. Thanks again sureLoss, I need that today.

[GreenLantern2814]

Originally Posted by Badgers Nose

Could be the biggest deadline acquisition for the Flames is this guy.

If only he played D

[AcGold]

I still believe in Sven. He has the tools and the drive. He lacked maturity at 19, big surprise, he'll be top 6 someday. He's so talented it would be crazy to ive up on him now after investing millions training him.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by Fire of the Phoenix

Yep. He's also better than Stajan and Raymond IMO.

Let's let him play an NHL game before you declare him better than NHL veterans.

[Hot_Flatus]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

I think it's safe to say he would be an immediate upgrade on Raymond on the LW

I would wager that comment could possibly be the least safest thing to say I've seen in a very long time.

The simple fact that you pick out Raymond (who's basically been hurt all season) and not roster fodder like Byron or Bollig is beyond puzzling.

IF Bennett takes a few shifts with the team this year no-one should be expecting anything from the kid. Much like the Raymond injury, a shoulder is one of the toughest injuries to come back from in sports. You battle the actual recovery timetable, then strength and conditioning and finally building the confidence to engage and take hits again. The latter only comes with playing time and it can do a lot more harm than good to rush back from this kind of thing.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Hot_Flatus

I would wager that comment could possibly be the least safest thing to say I've seen in a very long time.

The simple fact that you pick out Raymond (who's basically been hurt all season) and not roster fodder like Byron or Bollig is beyond puzzling.

IF Bennett takes a few shifts with the team this year no-one should be expecting anything from the kid. Much like the Raymond injury, a shoulder is one of the toughest injuries to come back from in sports. You battle the actual recovery timetable, then strength and conditioning and finally building the confidence to engage and take hits again. The latter only comes with playing time and it can do a lot more harm than good to rush back from this kind of thing.

Byron and Bollig are 4th liners. If Bennett plays, he'll play top 9, almost certainly on the 3rd line. And LW is a very possible starting place since we are deep at C. (see: Raymond, Mason)

And if he plays, he will almost certainly be an upgrade because, if he's not, he'll be in Kingston.

[getoverit]

Bennet is not going to play NHL after coming back from surgery and play with the big boys, silly talk. Send him to junior and set him up for success. I just want to see him on skates , playing games, and coming to the potential we all believe he can be. Aweful short sightedness to have him playing with club, see how well that worked out for Draitsl and a few others

[Fire]

Originally Posted by Alberta_Beef

Let's let him play an NHL game before you declare him better than NHL veterans.

You don't have to see him in a NHL game to know he's a better player than Raymond or Stajan. Just like you didn't need to convince most people that Gaudreau was going to be one of the most skilled players on this team before the season started.

I'm not saying it's better for his development to have him play in the NHL, but he's definitely better than quite a few current Flame forwards.

[MrMastodonFarm]

Originally Posted by getoverit

Bennet is not going to play NHL after coming back from surgery and play with the big boys, silly talk. Send him to junior and set him up for success. I just want to see him on skates , playing games, and coming to the potential we all believe he can be. Aweful short sightedness to have him playing with club, see how well that worked out for Draitsl and a few others

So we should, getoverit?

[getoverit]

you came up with that all by yourself, impressive

Originally Posted by MrMastodonFarm

So we should, getoverit?

[MrMastodonFarm]

I had help.

[dammage79]

Originally Posted by getoverit

Bennet is not going to play NHL after coming back from surgery and play with the big boys, silly talk. Send him to junior and set him up for success. I just want to see him on skates , playing games, and coming to the potential we all believe he can be. Aweful short sightedness to have him playing with club, see how well that worked out for Draitsl and a few others

Can you pass out lotto numbers with that crystal ball too please?

Again, there's no reason why Bennett cannot play his nine games to see if he can stick with the big club. And again (you may not have seen my previous post) the Flames aren't going to slap Bennett into the line up without him being 100% healthy and fully cleared for contact by team doctors. Your post and many other like it are acting like (to quote Sureloss) they stitched his shoulder up with chewing gum and thread.

With the rehabilitation work outs and being in the gym constantly I'm almost certain he'll actually come back stronger than he walked into camp.

We all know Bennett is the prized prospect right now. Whether he plays in the NHL or not, the management team and Doctors won't let him play at risk.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by getoverit

Bennet is not going to play NHL

Sure. Bennett, however, might.

[getoverit]

Lets agree to disagree. Only benefit of Bennett playing would be a selfish one from the flames perspective, that's not in the best interest of Bennett. Regardless if his shoulder is 100%, he needs to physically mature some, he hasn't played a game since early fall. ludicrious and irresponsible of the flames to do at this juncture, maybe end of season if out of playoff hopes to see where he's at.

Originally Posted by dammage79

Can you pass out lotto numbers with that crystal ball too please?

Again, there's no reason why Bennett cannot play his nine games to see if he can stick with the big club. And again (you may not have seen my previous post) the Flames aren't going to slap Bennett into the line up without him being 100% healthy and fully cleared for contact by team doctors. Your post and many other like it are acting like (to quote Sureloss) they stitched his shoulder up with chewing gum and thread.

With the rehabilitation work outs and being in the gym constantly I'm almost certain he'll actually come back stronger than he walked into camp.

We all know Bennett is the prized prospect right now. Whether he plays in the NHL or not, the management team and Doctors won't let him play at risk.

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by Fire

You don't have to see him in a NHL game to know he's a better player than Raymond or Stajan. Just like you didn't need to convince most people that Gaudreau was going to be one of the most skilled players on this team before the season started.

Not a good comparison. Gaudreau was by far the best hockey player in the entire NCAA – better than anyone had seen in years. And the NCAA has a substantially higher NHL equivalency rating than the CHL. Bennett was a star in the OHL, but he wasn't in a class all by himself.

Gaudreau's two points per game in the NCAA gave him an NHL-E of 67 points in an 82-game season. (Right now he's on a pace for 62.) A Canadian junior player would have to score over 2.7 ppg to have an NHL-E that high. Bennett barely managed 1.6, which gave him an NHL-E of 39 points.

Last year, Raymond scored 45 points, and Stajan got 33 despite missing 19 games. They have both proven the ability to be better offensively than Bennett has shown so far. Of course we can expect that Bennett will be a better offensive player in two or three years than Raymond and Stajan are today, but this season is a different matter. It would be a mistake to expect him to step in at age 18 and be an impact player, especially in mid-season after not playing for four months.

[bob-loblaw]

You know someone is going to get injured and if he's healed and ready I'd play him. It sounds like the kid has been working his butt off after a major surgery so why not reward him. Sometimes youthful enthusiasm can bring along others as well.

If the team thinks they have a better chance at winning with him playing then go for it. Plus, I'd love to see him light it up just to crush Oiler fans. No pressure on him though.

[heep223]

Originally Posted by getoverit

Only benefit of Bennett playing would be a selfish one from the flames perspective, that's not in the best interest of Bennett.

How in the hell could you ever know this?

[crapshoot]

Bennett will be in great shape once he is cleared, and you can bet he's been soaking up the atmosphere on this team during the season. I don't know what I'd prefer really, junior is the safe road after all, but if they decide to play him for a bunch of games, he will certainly be ready for it.

[automaton 3]

Originally Posted by getoverit

see how well that worked out for Draitsl and a few others

Draisaitl was gifted the 2nd line center position in typical Oilers fashion.

If Bennett does show enough to stick around and play for the Flames this year, I would think it would be highly sheltered minutes, similar to how Monahan started out last year.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by getoverit

Lets agree to disagree.

No. Let's not. At least not until you have provided a salient and logical explanation for this arbitrary position you have adopted.

Originally Posted by getoverit

Only benefit of Bennett playing would be a selfish one from the flames perspective...

Please explain.

Am I correct to interpret from this that you are certain that Bennett provides no tangible upgrade to the Flames current roster? If so, based on what information/data have you arrived at this conclusion?

Originally Posted by getoverit

...that's not in the best interest of Bennett...

Why not? You know this for certain without ever seeing him healthy and in action against a NHL lineup? What about his conditioning? How is this affected negatively or positively by his placement in the OHL, AHL, or NHL?

Please explain.

Originally Posted by getoverit

Regardless if his shoulder is 100%, he needs to physically mature some, he hasn't played a game since early fall.

Please explain.

Is it impossible to play and succeed in the NHL without a certain level of "physical maturity"? Is that measure the same for every player? If so, what is it?

Please explain.

Originally Posted by getoverit

ludicrious and irresponsible of the flames to do at this juncture, maybe end of season if out of playoff hopes to see where he's at.

"Ludicrous"?! Why is it irresponsible for the Flames to "see where he's at" once he has fully recovered if they are still in a playoff race, but not irresponsible once they are out of it? Where is the rationale here?

Please explain.

I suppose we could agree to disagree in the event that you take the time to rebut the several excellent, well thought out, and clearly articulated arguments for why both Bennett and the Flames might be equally well served to not arbitrarily dispatch him to the OHL upon his recovery. The projection by a number of us is that he will get some time perhaps on a conditioning stint in the AHL, and possibly even in Flames games this season in the event that he actually looks ready to play at this level. If he really is (and the only way to know this is to have him play), then why is sending him back to Juniour a much better idea?