Ok, I feel a tangent coming on, just know it isn't directed at anyone in particular if it gets heated.
I just generally hate the idea of handing roster spots to kids. For one thing, it isn't good hockey management and development. They need to be challenged and not have things given to them. As Torts always says, "learn to respect the league."
The other thing is, I am and will always be on the side of the players. I remember when I was a young nerd who'd never played sports back in 2005 at the lockout, I took the bait hook line and sinker. "These spoiled athletes getting paid millions of dollars to play the game they love, and they're whining for more money". f*** that.
I grew up and learned about how the world works, and tried learning some athletic skills myself. Now I have a tremendous amount of respect for athletes and the amount of training and dedication that goes into it, and on the other hand, I realize that the people making the real money, whether in film, music or sports, are the billionaires behind the scenes.
The way the CBA is set up now, it is designed to force veteran depth players out of the league younger than ever, to be replaced by young players on ELCs. I don't know what the solution to this is, but I think considering essentially all GMs and coaches are former players, as much as they want to win first, they would agree with me on giving veterans every opportunity to keep their spots over kids. One of the reasons I had such tremendous respect for Boucher playing the Pyatts and Thompsons of the world.
This narrative I keep seeing that this or that player outright sucks, it's a f***ing joke. No NHL player sucks at hockey. There's a reason they're in the best league in the world. Reframe your language and mindset. Maybe they're hampered by a career of injuries, maybe they've lost a step in their skating, maybe they're overpaid, misused, over-utilized. Then say that. Have some respect for the game you love. People might start to think you're a decent person and that you know what you're talking about. Only other juvenile buffoons appreciate when one juvenile buffoon calls a player "human garbage".
It takes the vast majority of young players a long time to learn the tricks and trade of the veterans in the best league in the world. I like how Torts always puts it, "players need to learn to respect the league, because those top-end players are so smart and they think and see the game so subtly, that when a skilled young player comes in, they know exactly how to bait him into thinking he has a play, only to make him look foolish". Look at some in-depth analytics, particularly on special teams, and you'll clearly see the differences between young players and even mediocre veterans. Look into RelPPGF/60 and RelSHGA/60. It's pretty glaring.
Some may argue that it doesn't matter because we're trying to tank anyway so giving spots to young players makes us worse and they also get more development time, all the better. Ask an Oiler fan how this works out. Development is a fine balance between giving players as much as they can handle to force them to develop, while not putting them in over their heads and risk destroying their confidence and mentality.
