People have been calling for a PK specialist and defensively responsible Dman all season. Now there's the prospect of a guy coming here who plays that role and has the ability to put up 30-40 points on a season, and no one wants him.
I'm not sure if I said this already, but if Holland is going after J-Bo, he's doing so in order to get the most out of his roster for this year and next, while Datsyuk is still around.
As a point of reference, Bouwmeester's quality of competition ranking is 5th among defenseman that have played 10+ games, and 3rd among defenseman that have played 15+ games. He eats big minutes against the best of the best night-in and night-out, plays a ton on the PK, and is on pace for 40 points despite getting 2nd unit PP time.
Look, if we didn;t have the kind of defense we have, I'd love Bouwmeester.
Bouwmeester is worth his cap hit. I like him.
But he's soft. He's a lefty.
Is he an upgrade on any of our defense? Pretty much. But by how much? And by what cost?
It seems like when Ken Holland is going out to dinner and ordering a mozzarella sticks for an appetizer, having pizza for dinner, and then eating cheese cake for desert.
We need a balanced defense,
I've mentioned a guy like Robidas -- who would cost less, cost less cap room - but more importantly, provide a right-handed shot, some physical play, and all around ability.
There are probably other guys out there who would also fit our needs.