I disagree with the notion of Laine needing a RH pointman. Left handed pointman can shot right from Laine's passes and while both have been working OK, I think LH is just better.
Buff was a really good PP player, but not for setting up Laine. Actually that was a very rare feat on the Jets PP. Almost always it was about Buff & Wheeler moving the puck back and forth in the right side and then Wheeler made an ultra long seam pass for Laine like once per game, and Laine did score with quite high probability from those. Buff was excellent for keeping the line and retrieving the puck & firing his cannon from the line, but it was quite rare for him to actually setup Laine, and I think him being right handed shot had a lot to do with that.
Yes, the point was rare pass.
Laine was a major danger in Jest PP, but Scheifele and Wheeler was a larger threat.
That also meant that the Defense could not just stand and wait for either Laine or Zack to shoot.
They would actually be more busy to cover the opposite site.
Fact is that Jets PP is just as dangerously now as when Laine was there.
My concern is if we have the players to put on the PP, to cover for the obviously weakness that Laine showed especially this season and the season two years back?
A PP where 95% of the power play can happen in the opposite side for most of the PP and still be dangerously from that site (The left site).
I am not sure.
Other team, at least this past season, did put their forechecking on Laine receiving of the puck. That was how we lost possession in far to many Power plays.
That will have to stop or any PP will be doomed.