Prospect Info: Bowen Byram - D [2019: 4th Overall] Part II: Now serving a side of overconfidence!

[McMetal]

I do think Byram is a wee bit overhyped from a few folks on here who are saying he's a future superstar, but overall I feel like we as a fanbase are evaluating him correctly. I foresee a likely strong two-way #2D for a lot of years and a great yin to Makar's yang for their primes. Maybe a few career years where he approaches #1 status.

Drysdale I haven't seen much of since I haven't watched prospects nearly as much this year, but he just seems like a very different player than what I've seen from Byram. More in the vein of Chabot, which is a hell of a promising player if he can reach that level. I don't foresee Byram being a massive point generator in the NHL, but I think his defensive play will make up for it, allowing him to cover for Makar while being enough of a threat to make teams pay for ignoring him.

 

[Foppa Frossa]

Top pairing defender leading the team in ice time playing ES, PP2 and PK - or bust.

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

Top pairing defender leading the team in ice time playing ES, PP2 and PK - or bust.

I think you're really underselling him.

 

[McMetal]

Top pairing defender leading the team in ice time playing ES, PP2 and PK - or bust.

You pessimist. You make him sound like he's not even going to be as good as Lidstrom. We should expect BETTER than Lidstrom.

 

[MonsterMack]

Crazy to think we have current day Orr and Lidstrom! Three-peat here we come

 

[Foppa2118]

I feel like too big a magnifying glass is being put on any of the "overhyped" comments with Byram. They're very few and far between IMO.

The vast majority of people like his two way potential, but are in wait and see mode.

He's objectively one of the best prospects outside the NHL though, so there shouldn't be anything wrong with people being high on his potential, or talking about his strengths.

 

[Richard88]

Top pairing defender leading the team in ice time playing ES, PP2 and PK - or bust.

The thing is, even if he "just" ends up as a #3 shutdown guy who eats PK minutes, that would still be a huge asset for this team. We have Makar and Girard who can run the powerplay units, so if Byram can become dominant defensively at EV and PK that would probably help the team more than if he became an offensive juggernaut at the expense of his defense.

 

[Foppa2118]

The thing is, even if he "just" ends up as a #3 shutdown guy who eats PK minutes, that would still be a huge asset for this team. We have Makar and Girard who can run the powerplay units, so if Byram can become dominant defensively at EV and PK that would probably help the team more than if he became an offensive juggernaut at the expense of his defense.

Byram could even technically be a #3 behind Makar, and just a few seconds in ice time behind Girard, but be a huge contributor on the second pairing in multiple areas.

I don't think there will be a ton of difference in the #2 and #3 role for the Avs in the future (apart from who plays with Makar and MacKinnon), and if Timmins can carry over his offense to the NHL, there might not be a big difference between the #2-4 roles.

Bednar and Pratt don't run a traditional blueline either. They mix up their pairings constantly throughout games, and give a ton of minutes to guys who are playing well on any given night.

Makar, Girard, and Byram I'm sure will all have lots of games where they lead the team in minutes. Timmins may too in games holding a lead, if he can develop his defensive game to stud level.

 

[henchman21]

The thing is, even if he "just" ends up as a #3 shutdown guy who eats PK minutes, that would still be a huge asset for this team. We have Makar and Girard who can run the powerplay units, so if Byram can become dominant defensively at EV and PK that would probably help the team more than if he became an offensive juggernaut at the expense of his defense.

I think Byram will be solid defensively and that will end up a key part of his game, but expecting him to be a 'shutdown' guy on either a middle or top pairing, probably isn't going to happen. He's going to be a 2 way guy that likely still has some lapses defensively even if he is solid to good there. He's not going to be Pickles 2.0.

 

[Richard88]

I think Byram will be solid defensively and that will end up a key part of his game, but expecting him to be a 'shutdown' guy on either a middle or top pairing, probably isn't going to happen. He's going to be a 2 way guy that likely still has some lapses defensively even if he is solid to good there. He's not going to be Pickles 2.0.

I agree with you. But he did play pretty well as Canada's go-to shutdown guy at the WJC which might be a foreshadowing of what type of role he might play in the future. Realistically though I think he'll be a two-way guy as you say, as he simply has too much offensive skill for some of it to not translate.

 

[Foppa2118]

They don't want Byram to turn into Vlassic. They expect Byram to put up more than 25-30 points in his role.

Timmins is the guy in the lower scoring/more defensive/less flashy Vlassic role.

 

[Balthazar]

They don't want Byram to turn into Vlassic. They expect Byram to put up more than 25-30 points in his role.

Timmins is the guy in the lower scoring/more defensive/less flashy Vlassic role.

I think neither is becoming a shut down defenseman. They both really like to skate with the puck.

 

[avsfan9]

It’s awesome that we have all these great young d prospects in our system but if these guys pan out can we realistically keep everyone under the cap?

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

It’s awesome that we have all these great young d prospects in our system but if these guys pan out can we realistically keep everyone under the cap?

If they hit their potential, probably not long term.

Short term shouldn’t be an issue. I’m sure they can get both Byram and Timmins to take bridge deals, similar to what Tampa Bay does.

 

[Richard88]

If they hit their potential, probably not long term.

Short term shouldn’t be an issue. I’m sure they can get both Byram and Timmins to take bridge deals, similar to what Tampa Bay does.

Yeah after Makar (2021) gets locked in long-term it wouldn't surprise me to see Sakic adopt a "bridge" tactic similar to Tampa Bay with Timmins (2021), Bowers (2022), Byram/Kaut (2023), and Newhook (2024) in order to get the most out of our roster while we're in our prime cup contending years.

 

[Foppa2118]

I think neither is becoming a shut down defenseman. They both really like to skate with the puck.

I think that's true but that's what the 25-30 point Vlassic role is. Shutdown defenseman in todays age tend to be mobile, which means they tend to skate with the puck, in addition to being relied upon for defense.

Not that I think 25-30 points is Timmins' ceiling. He's got underrated offensive instincts.

 

[MarkT]

I think the future "shut-down" defenseman is exactly what people say Byram and Timmins are likely to be - a guy who can effectively cover their man in the defensive zone, shut down passing lanes, then carry the puck out of the zone and make good passes. That's the "shut-down" part, then how they do in the offensive zone determines if they're a 1st, 2nd or 3rd pairing defenseman. If they're big enough to clear the front of the net and lay some big hits, that's great, but I no longer think that's absolutely necessary like it used to be for a shut down guy. The main advantage of size now seems to really be wingspan and the amount of the defensive zone you can cover with your stick. But a smart defensive player can now make up for that advantage by reading the play and using their speed to break up plays.

 

[TruePowerSlave]

It’s awesome that we have all these great young d prospects in our system but if these guys pan out can we realistically keep everyone under the cap?

I wouldn't worry about the cap. If they really cannot keep all 4 it means that the Dmen and others like Newhook etc have hit their potential and the Avs are stacked.

 

[MarkT]

I wouldn't worry about the cap. If they really cannot keep all 4 it means that the Dmen and others like Newhook etc have hit their potential and the Avs are stacked.

I'd be worried if we had a GM who doesn't plan ahead and might end up making a panic trade to fit under the cap. With Sakic in charge I'm convinced if we have to move a guy because we're too stacked, he'll just end up getting assets to make the team even better long-term.

 

[Foppa Frossa]

So who can we trade him for after his horrendous camp performance?

 

[henchman21]

So who can we trade him for after his horrendous camp performance?

Svech... but Avs fans have already denied that thought!

 

[Richard88]

Svech... but Avs fans have already denied that thought!

Evgeni Svechnikov?

Unless you mean the Carolina Svech I'm just going to assume that you're joking

 

[henchman21]

Evgeni Svechnikov?

Unless you mean the Carolina Svech I'm just going to assume that you're joking

Tis a joke... but there was a ruckus last year about how people wouldn't trade Byram for Carolina BBQ Svech.

 

[Richard88]

Tis a joke... but there was a ruckus last year about how people wouldn't trade Byram for Carolina BBQ Svech.

Gotcha, thanks for clarifying.

Right now it would be pretty tough to say no to a Byram for Svech trade. What an amazing addition to the top 6 he would be... (and we have Girard/Graves/Makar/Timmins to hold it down on D). Carolina would never make that trade though as they are stacked on D as it is.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

It’s awesome that we have all these great young d prospects in our system but if these guys pan out can we realistically keep everyone under the cap?

It shouldn't be an issue.


Even if we are very possibly going to have 4 absolute stud Dmen in a couple of years... One has to remember that there's generally only 2 guys that run a PP, and for Dmen especially that is where a lot of offensive production comes from, and so most likely 2 of our guys aren't going to be all that high end on the offensive output department and thus shouldn't be getting the super huge contracts either.


Cant forget Sammy G is already signed for the next 7 years at a pretty tremendous cap hit, a cap hit low enough that it already puts us in an excellent situation to have all 4 of Girard/Makar/Byram/Timmins here for 5-6-7+ years.


There's no controlling Makar's contract at this point either. Dude is just going to be an elite, top of the league point producer and will be paid as such. Safe to assume he gets in the 8-9M neighborhood on his next deal. But I dont think Byram or Timmins will be in that 50+ point club(I wouldn't even be sure they are regular 40 point guys given Cale is here), which means even if they develop well they likely only seem money in the same neighborhood of what Girard is getting.


So basically... If all 4 guys match expectations in 3 years time, it probably costs in the neighborhood of 25M for our Top 4 Defense. If you have cheap guys for the 5/6/7 spots it is definitely manageable.