I'd really like to see our forward group with a competent defense before I completely write them all off. I don't think that a lot of people realize how a bad breakout can follow you all the way up the ice.
The forwards aren't just in the clear once the puck gets out of our zone. They've already been forced to play incredibly deep, and never exit the zone with any speed because they've all had to stop and bail out our defense. This makes it very easy for the other team to get back in good defensive position in time.
So by the time our forwards are in the neutral zone - they're exhausted, just beginning to move their legs, and the other team is right on them. When was the last time you saw our team hit the opposing blue line with any speed? Or with numbers?
All I'm saying is that there would be a lot more room for our forwards to work with if we had a better defense.