After spending half the summer trumpeting Matt Duchene and willing to give up Carlo++ for him - and then watching him flounder in Ottawa, I should probably have some kind of moratorium placed on me.
I didn't want Duchene but I will cut you a break... the kid is obviously talented
but the whole Duchene thing illustrates a greater point that ive been arguing on for the past 10-15 years here... and that's where guys can get broken by their situations... guys can become losers if exposed to losing for too long... if they become conditioned to accepting losing, they more likely than not, will be losers wherever they go imo
its interesting that when I look at rnh... I feel I see signs that he hasn't been damaged beyond repair yet in Edmonton. I might be wrong about that. I try to hear what guys say in their little interviews... I try to watch patterns of their play on the ice... its no exact science to be sure and I have been wrong about guys I thought would never become winners.
phil kessel might not fit my example perfectly since he started in a winning enviorment in boston... but he seams to be more of a team player now that he was earlier in his career... I might have to give him props.
I do think character of the player is far more important than the analytics people will say. the analytics people might argue a guy like Duchene is so fast... and he excels in some particular statistical category... but to me, I just really saw some major character concerns with him. it isn't at all surprising to me that he hasn't caught on in Ottawa.
at the same time... he Is very talented. if he suddenly puts up 20 points in the next 20 games tht wouldn't terribly surprise me either
I just don't think that he has the X factor to be a leader to a winning situation in Ottawa or anywhere else