seanlinden
Registered User
- Apr 28, 2009
- 25,007
- 1,488
I disagree with a few things here. For one, JvR and Bozak as a combination made Babcock move more towards a clear top six than he has since the glory days of Datsyuk and Zetterberg. He basically used them in the second half of the season like a line he considered a liability. I also would like to point out that 40 points is not bad regardless of linemates, and I definitely think Johnsson could be a 20/20 guy next season depending on usage.
Not really.... he may have been a bit selective as to who he put out, but that's what a line-matching coach does. Ultimately, down the stretch, he was able to use Kadri as a matchup centre, and Bozak/JvR as a secondary scoring line. That secondary scoring line is all but gone now.
40 points isn't bad in isolation -- but this is a case where you can't just look at the numbers and say "Great!". Hyman is not an offensive contributor at all to that line. He is, at the end of the day, a 25-point 3rd line grinding winger, who happens to fit really well with Auston Matthews. If taken off that line, he's not going to go and be able to drive a line offensively. He's an accessory piece -- that's it.
Johnsson could potentially be a 20/20 guy next year, that would probably be his ceiling. But we're talking about going from a guy who, in 4 of the last 6 seasons, has had a minimum production of 27 goals and 54 points, and of those other 2 seasons; one was a lockout where he paced at 31 goals and 54 points, and the other he spent half the season injured, but still paced at 28 goals and 60 points. You can't replace a guy that has that type of production, with a guy who's long term cieling might be a 20/20 player, and expect the same result. It's a hope.