RAFI BOMB
Registered User
- May 11, 2016
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This seems like a make-or-break year for Paul with the Senators. It might be interesting to consider what upside he still may have and what the current thoughts are on him as a player.
He came into the organization as part of a trade that sent Jason Spezza to the Dallas Stars. Spezza was traded for Alex Chiasson, Alex Guptill, Nick Paul and a 2nd round pick. So far almost none of the pieces in the trade really panned out. Chiasson struggled and was later traded for Patrick Sieloff. Guptill was traded for AHL players and the 2nd round pick was traded up to land Gabriel Gagne.
After the Senators acquired Paul he went on to have a strong season in the OHL with the North Bay Battalion where he put up 37 goals and 29 assists for 66 points in 58 games played. He also played in the WHC 20 tournament where he put up 3 goals in 7 games.
Paul looked like he had a lot of potential as a top six power forward playing either left wing or centre. He looked like he might turn into a Jamie Benn-Lite kind of player. But since then he has struggled to produce and has fallen down the depth chart.
He is still a big kid at 6'4 and 230 lbs, he still has good speed and mobility and he is fairly strong defensively. It seems like there is still some raw potential to be a top six forward but for some reason he hasn't put his tools together.
He will likely get a serious look in training camp considering he is part of the Spezza trade and he is waiver eligible this year. If he puts all of his tools together and has a great offseason what is the best we can expect from him? Does Paul still have the raw ability to be a top six forward? Could he surprise and be a quality middle six forward this year? What does he need to improve to really take that next step in his game? What does he need to improve drastically this offseason to remain relevant? Or is the best that can be expected at this point for Paul to be a big bodied 4th line winger?
He came into the organization as part of a trade that sent Jason Spezza to the Dallas Stars. Spezza was traded for Alex Chiasson, Alex Guptill, Nick Paul and a 2nd round pick. So far almost none of the pieces in the trade really panned out. Chiasson struggled and was later traded for Patrick Sieloff. Guptill was traded for AHL players and the 2nd round pick was traded up to land Gabriel Gagne.
After the Senators acquired Paul he went on to have a strong season in the OHL with the North Bay Battalion where he put up 37 goals and 29 assists for 66 points in 58 games played. He also played in the WHC 20 tournament where he put up 3 goals in 7 games.
Paul looked like he had a lot of potential as a top six power forward playing either left wing or centre. He looked like he might turn into a Jamie Benn-Lite kind of player. But since then he has struggled to produce and has fallen down the depth chart.
He is still a big kid at 6'4 and 230 lbs, he still has good speed and mobility and he is fairly strong defensively. It seems like there is still some raw potential to be a top six forward but for some reason he hasn't put his tools together.
He will likely get a serious look in training camp considering he is part of the Spezza trade and he is waiver eligible this year. If he puts all of his tools together and has a great offseason what is the best we can expect from him? Does Paul still have the raw ability to be a top six forward? Could he surprise and be a quality middle six forward this year? What does he need to improve to really take that next step in his game? What does he need to improve drastically this offseason to remain relevant? Or is the best that can be expected at this point for Paul to be a big bodied 4th line winger?