Probably the one guy during some dark times where it was easy for Leaf fans to buy the hype after that 30 goal year. At his peak, he was a very good- 2-way player, strong on the puck, and a good cycle game. He played on some soft Leaf teams (much like this iteration) which didn't really encourage him to hit as much as he did- but if he was brought up in the Bruins system, for instance, I could see a slightly different career trajectory. Just like I don't think Pasta becomes the level of player he is today, if he was brought up with us. When he wanted to, he could absolutely lay out guys on the ice.
Over time, he stopped playing with that youthful flare that made him great. He also benefited from a bit of luck, as for the most part, he had stone hands But not nearly as weak on the puck, he was a tank when he was on it. He also didn't have the luxury of a guy like Hyman- i.e. playing with superstar level players who could create chances out of thin air, which IMO hurt his game/stock (inverse of Hyman)- keep in mind, he played with the run and gun Leafs which played zero defense- don't think it did any favors for his development.
In retrospect, he was probably just a great 2-way checking line type player but I don't think we saw the best of him as a hockey player.