You have to wonder if we had Bratt, Gibbons and Grabner in all series instead of the sloths.
Kid played very well, I trusted him with the puck more than most.
You have to wonder if we had Bratt, Gibbons and Grabner in all series instead of the sloths.
He was one of our better players in game 5.
Just for reference here, Bratt ended the season with 1 goal in his last 30 games, Gibbons 1 goal in his last 36 games, and Grabner 2 goals in his last 21 games.
So, while their speed may have helped, I doubt the outcome would have changed.
I'm just glad we can be back to being excited about his future rather than arguing about whether he deserves to be in the lineup or not. He gained a ton of experience and has an offseason to get stronger. A Bratt, Palmieri, Anderson, Noesen right side could be fun.I think the bottom line is he hit the rookie wall. The week or two off helped him and he came back better for game 5. It just seems that he probably should have been given the rest a few weeks earlier. He was kept out a game here and there but nothing extended to allow him to recharge his batteries both physically and mentally. It got to the point where he lost confidence and was looking to pass when he had good shooting opportunities. That's probably when he needed to sit for a while (although injuries to our other wings may have prevented that).
I'm just glad we can be back to being excited about his future rather than arguing about whether he deserves to be in the lineup or not. He gained a ton of experience and has an offseason to get stronger. A Bratt, Palmieri, Anderson, Noesen right side could be fun.
Bratt showed flashes of his early season magic in game 5. Man is this kid slippery as ****
He's been invisible for 2 months and people think he'll just flip a switch for the playoffs
Well, what makes REALLY makes him more valuable is his youth and that he has room to improve. The guy was... what... 19 when he started the season? He's cost controlled for quite a few years and has a higher scoring ceiling than either of them. Grabner's and Gibbons are in their primes now and most likely only go downhill from here.He did hit the rookie wall as @Nubmer6 correctly pointed out(also doesn't help that he was not used to the 82 game grind as opposed to the 40+ he played overseas) but his value to the team is much greater than Gibbons or Grabner, imo.