Little Fury
Registered User
- Jun 21, 2006
- 17,834
- 6,807
Except this isn't true. All the wingers outside of Puljujarvi struggled mightily to score at even strength alongside these elite players so not everybody can score a bunch alongside McDavid. Even Eberle somewhat struggled alongside McDavid in his stint there many moons ago. Then there's Rattie etc. This is a narrative that isn't supported with facts.
I didn't say anyone can score with McDavid, I said McDavid can score with anyone. And that's demonstrably true.
There are two players that have produced well above their norm with McDavid and that's Maroon for one year (he turned into a pumpkin the next season) and Kassian for a small spurt. I remember Pouliot doing well in a brief stint as well when he was really engaged.
Being able to produce with skill is not something that every player can do. Being able to play alongside McDavid (who is not easy to play with) is a skill in itself. I think Hyman fits the prototype of the type of player that could succeed with McDavid. Not that I want any part of the contract that he's rumored to get but stylistically, he's a great fit for this group, better than Hall from that standpoint.
The object of the game is to score more than the other team. Given McDavid is perfectly capable of doing that with basically anyone who can skate in a straight line, why spend a bunch of cap space there when you can use it to shore up depth elsewhere?