Beau Bennett: The Forgotten Man

[eXile59]

Are we really looking at pictures of his legs to determine how good he will be this year?

Come on October, just get here already.

 

[plaidchuck]

Yeah I don't buy this four scoring lines bit. Sounds great on paper or in the west until all of these soft speedy guys are getting pummeled by big teams in the east.

 

[mpp9]

Yeah I don't buy this four scoring lines bit. Sounds great on paper or in the west until all of these soft speedy guys are getting pummeled by big teams in the east.

Getzlaf and Perry were skating in mud compared to Chicago at times this past postseason.

And we always play well against the West.

 

[Valarukar]

It not like Bennett is some monstrosity defensively like some people are making him out to be.

 

[plaidchuck]

Getzlaf and Perry were skating in mud compared to Chicago at times this past postseason.

And we always play well against the West.

Sure, you have to get there first though.

 

[mpp9]

Sure, you have to get there first though.

There are no big and bad teams in the East. Isles, Rangers and Tampa are fast. Caps lost Ward, Brouwer and Fehr.

Boston is a bubble team and that's being generous. LA and Anaheim are really the only teams that have had recent playoff success that fit the description of being a big and tough team.

 

[plaidchuck]

Yeah I'm just pretty pessimistic in general as well. Seems everything this team has done since 09 has backfired even when it was a good move.

 

[SEALBound]

Bennett has no one to blame for his current status but himself. Sometimes success in professional sports is tied to luck. He has none. None at all. That's, unfortunately, a factor.

He needs to be a good LW. Yes, he's a good RW...but he doesn't have the luxury of ONLY being a RW. He needs to be a good LW too if he's going to get a chance. Period.

He needs to put up points, by any means necessary. Sure, he looked decent next to Geno at times but at the end of the day, he just does not produce the points. Certainly not enough to be a reliable top 6 winger. 3rd/4th line, sure, but not a Top 6. He needs to put up the points, he needs to get on the scoresheet, he needs to be productive. Good play is not enough. Enough with just the good play. Put up the points Beau.

Stop getting hurt. Last year he went out and played hard, awesome, then got hurt...after that, he shied away from the dirty areas. It was noticeable. He needs to figure out how to play an NHL game and not get hurt. Simple as that.

With all that, he needs to really turn heads in camp, the pre-season, and the first 20 games this season REGARDLESS of which line he's on and who he plays with. We've really loaded up the roster...he's not going to get the premium chances. He "got" those so to speak, wasted them, and hasn't earned them since. If all he turns out to be is a throw in - for a trade...that's all he's earned. I don't buy that he's been given the Despres treatment.

I really want him to succeed...I really do...but I'm not going to sit back and make excuses like the only reason he hasn't succeeded is because of this or that (any reason that isn't on him). If he wants to stay here, he needs to make it happen. This "glue him to Sid or Geno's hip for 40 games to "see what we have"" horse **** needs to stop. That's ridiculous. That's an embarrassing stance for posters to take. That shows a complete inability to objectively judge players. That needs to stop.

So let's go Beau Beau! Get in shape, turn heads, have a good season. Your future as a Penguin depends on it!

 

[AjaxTelamon]

I want to see 4 lines built with speed and skill. If Bennett can't develop playing with Bonino or Fehr, he's not really any good.

Absolutely. And it's important BB play on a line that lets him face low QoC. He's going to get pushed around by top 4 D men, the matchup for him, like Kunitz, is as important as who his linemates are.

We have four wnigs, maybe 5, who seem like they can match up physically and skill-wise against tough opposition and still do well, PH, Phil, Perron, Plots, and Dupuis in a pinch if played opposite Phil as a defensive specialist and fore-checker. Kunitz, BB and Bonino need to face lower quality opposition to be effective. Let a line something like Cullen/Fehr/Duper handle defensive matchups. Cullen will be great with those guys. Just look at that mug. What a freaking yinzer.

 

[Darth Vitale]

A squat rack fell on top of him and bent him like an accordian.

You laugh but no one is more likely to get Straka'd than Beau Bennett.

All: As for his build a lot of good hockey players have skinny lower legs, but he does seem to be focusing on the curls for the girls.

 

[Don'tcry4mejanhrdina]

Are we really looking at pictures of his legs to determine how good he will be this year?

Come on October, just get here already.

It's a little disconcerting when a professional hockey player's legs are dwarfed by a 10 year old girl. But hey, it works for Simmonds so who knows? Could help explain why he's such a weak skater though. Maybe he just can't add bulk to his legs. His arms are bigger than his legs, that's not good for this sport any way you slice it.

 

[steveg]

It's a little disconcerting when a professional hockey player's legs are dwarfed by a 10 year old girl. But hey, it works for Simmonds so who knows? Could help explain why he's such a weak skater though. Maybe he just can't add bulk to his legs. His arms are bigger than his legs, that's not good for this sport any way you slice it.

First off, I don't think he's a "weak skater." Secondly, lower legs shouldn't matter much; it's the quads, for power skating...

 

[Shady Machine]

Guy is crazy cut right now, but his legs look as skinny as ever.

I think there was a random video of him running around in a girl's thong or something too. But I'm not gonna search for it, because it feels creepy.



If it were up to me, I wouldn't be running 2 third lines, as I'd still want Sid and Geno to play 18 mins a game, but I think I might possibly be okay with playing Geno less in the regular season as he seems to have an issue staying healthy for a full season. There'd be a shutdown bottom 6 line and a scoring bottom 6 line, as much as running 2 third lines sounds nice, the shutdown line would be getting more minutes simply because if possible, I'd still run Sid or Geno's lines against weak competition vs. giving the 4th line more minutes.

If those are our bottom 6 forwards, I'd run:
Kunitz-Fehr- Dupuis
Bonino-Cullen-Bennett

Personally, I'd run Bennett in the top 6 to start on Geno's LW, and drive his value up enough to trade him - since I'm assuming he's gone anyway and we'd find out he's a locker room cancer somehow . Keeping him in the bottom 6 and trading him later only limits his trade value.

I understand that. By 2 3rd lines, I guess I meant more in terms of quality. Both lines with good players but there roles are different. One line is a shutdown line and one is an offensive line. That's what you illustrated there. Prior to the signing of Cullen I wanted this:

Sundqvist-Fehr-Dupuis
Kunitz-Bonino-Bennett

Now I'm not so sure. I like the idea of separating Kunitz and Dupuis so I'd probably go with:

Bonino-Fehr-Dupuis
Kunitz-Cullen-Bennett

Since Fehr will be out the start of the year, I would suspect they would go with Bonino in the 3C spot and Kunitz probably up on the 3rd line as you have above. I really want Sundqvist to make the team to start with Cullen and Bennett. That could be a really interesting line.

 

[Shady Machine]

Yeah I don't buy this four scoring lines bit. Sounds great on paper or in the west until all of these soft speedy guys are getting pummeled by big teams in the east.

Okay dude. Who is going to pummel them and who are all these tough teams in the East? Columbus and Washington (who lost Fehr and Ward). The Pacific division has tougher teams than the East.

 

[Shady Machine]

There are no big and bad teams in the East. Isles, Rangers and Tampa are fast. Caps lost Ward, Brouwer and Fehr.

Boston is a bubble team and that's being generous. LA and Anaheim are really the only teams that have had recent playoff success that fit the description of being a big and tough team.

Boston's not even that tough anymore. They are in this weird hybrid zone where they don't know what they want to be.

 

[Shady Machine]

Yeah I'm just pretty pessimistic in general as well. Seems everything this team has done since 09 has backfired even when it was a good move.

You may end up being right but the moves this summer weren't typical Shero Penguin moves. Neal was a great sniper, but he doesn't come close to the overall offensive talent of Phil Kessel. Bonino and Fehr are really good depth players. Cullen is kind of a Shero move, but he still has wheels and he could just be a spare part when healthy. If Shero were still here, we would have re-signed Paul Martin or paid out the ass for some other top 4 dman and signed some reclamation project for the top 6.

This is a different path than the post Cup Penguins. It may not pan out, but it's going to be exciting to watch them try.

 

[plaidchuck]

Okay dude. Who is going to pummel them and who are all these tough teams in the East? Columbus and Washington (who lost Fehr and Ward). The Pacific division has tougher teams than the East.

Well the team got bullied all year by the rest of the metro, so it's not a stretch.

 

[Shady Machine]

Well the team got bullied all year by the rest of the metro, so it's not a stretch.

Define bullied. They got skated around by the Islanders and Rangers. The only team that really "bullied" them was the Caps and possibly the Jackets (although they had injuries to a lot of their team).

I don't think physicality is going to be a major issue up front. The defense is soft, but the forwards as a group are decent in the size and grit components. Not ideal, but not a major issue if they build the lines the right way.

 

[robopigeon]

You may end up being right but the moves this summer weren't typical Shero Penguin moves. Neal was a great sniper, but he doesn't come close to the overall offensive talent of Phil Kessel. Bonino and Fehr are really good depth players. Cullen is kind of a Shero move, but he still has wheels and he could just be a spare part when healthy. If Shero were still here, we would have re-signed Paul Martin or paid out the ass for some other top 4 dman and signed some reclamation project for the top 6.

This is a different path than the post Cup Penguins. It may not pan out, but it's going to be exciting to watch them try.

Ultimate Shero move: Sign Comeau to a multi-year deal as Malkin's winger.

 

[#66]

Define bullied. They got skated around by the Islanders and Rangers. The only team that really "bullied" them was the Caps and possibly the Jackets (although they had injuries to a lot of their team).

I don't think physicality is going to be a major issue up front. The defense is soft, but the forwards as a group are decent in the size and grit components. Not ideal, but not a major issue if they build the lines the right way.

Maybe he mean being puck heavy and teams playing puck heavy against the Pens. That's going to happen when you have the likes of Martin and Sutter playing major mins.

Its been addressed and I'm hoping structure will take care of defensive woes.

 

[Don'tcry4mejanhrdina]

First off, I don't think he's a "weak skater." Secondly, lower legs shouldn't matter much; it's the quads, for power skating...

He's not especially strong on his skates and he has average at best speed. Look at all of the great skaters in the game, they all have strong lower bodies with legs like tree trunks. It's no secret. Not saying he can't be a good hockey player because of his chicken legs but let's face it, he's one of those guys who has obviously skipped leg day.

 

[tom_servo]

I think there was a random video of him running around in a girl's thong or something too. But I'm not gonna search for it, because it feels creepy.

Yeah, I'm not having any luck.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

 

[tom_servo]

Just isolate that torso and then imagine it belongs to one of the greatest athletes in modern history.

 

[Rocket of Russia]

Okay dude. Who is going to pummel them and who are all these tough teams in the East? Columbus and Washington (who lost Fehr and Ward). The Pacific division has tougher teams than the East.

They have and will continue to get physically bullied by the Islanders. Martin flies around and pounds anything that moves to set the tone.

Watch last year's Isles/Flyers match-up to see Martin shot out of a cannon, challenged by Ryan White, and proceeds to have his nose punched. At the very least the broken nose blocked air passages, but Martin crawled into a shell after that.

The 2015-2016 Penguins have the weapons to respond by scoring goals, but the likes of Martin will absolutely physically impose against them. It's not that other teams aren't "big" or "tough" it's that now the Penguins have a skilled identity and their goal is clearly to beat you on the scoresheet. The roster is put in place to be skilled; they need to keep their heads to execute the strategy though.