Both his seasons in Ottawa have been similar. He plays great for the first part of the season. I'm talking All-star level hockey, one of the best players on the ice more often than not, and Ottawa's best forward during that stretch of time. He doesn't dominate from shift to shift, it's more like he takes over for a certain portion of the game, and that is enough to win you over since it usually results in a big hit, or some great offensive chances, or a mix of both, or sometimes even a great hustle play that has me thinking, "wow, this guy isn't lazy or passive at all, he rocks!"
In year 1, his 36 points in 42 games had me saying "he was absolutely worth what we traded for him." In year two, I was saying "he was absolutely worth re-signing to that big contract" after 49 points in the first 59 games. But then he slows down. Big time. As a fan, you get worried. You blame his lack of help, or the coach not playing him enough, and then you settle in on an injury. Year 1- the hernia. A legitimate excuse seeing as he has to miss the last bit of the season for it. Year 2- his finger. Not quite as good as the hernia, but still, an offensive player without full use of his hand, that had to be the reason for the decline in play, right?!
The reality is, he's given Ottawa around 90 games of great play, and 60 games where he wasn't good enough. I look at Ryan and I see a slower player. Not someone who doesn't give a crap, he's always looked engaged to me. As the season goes on you're going to have play through pain, so those injuries, plus the fatigue factor, and his lack of speed make for a player that hasn't been good enough. He needs to work on this. Get in better shape, work on his skating, and hopefully avoid injuries. If he does this, he's shown himself to be great. If not, it'll be more of the same.
