Brown is a fine player.
He has the motor of a 3rd liner and some of the offensive instincts of a top six guy, particularly as a playmaker and cycle producer.
If he could actually score more on his many high quality opportunities, he'd easily be a top six player. His odd-man rushes and breakaways are produced via diligent defensive effort.
But he doesn't, and it can lead to frustration at times, where he leaves you expecting more offensively.
I really like the guy - if he's playing on your 3rd line, you're in really good shape as a team. If he's playing in your top six, it could be a bit of a Hyman type situation where his work ethic and hustle complement the skill player fairly well.
But I still think he ends up leaving you wanting more from an offensive point of view. I had been expecting big things from him this year after leading the World Championships in points, famously setting up the Gold Medal winning OT goal on a 2 on 1 with fellow Sen (at the time) Nick Paul.
He would play within a stronger top six, with options like Stutzle to play with on a regular basis. I don't think he produced as much as I liked given the opportunity.
I still think Giroux can do more, particularly on the PP where Brown is not the stationary stickhandling skill guy and is better in transition and in the general run of play. It's a bit of a weakness in his "top six skill set", and a big reason why I think he doesn't score enough points and is more of a tweener.
Over the past three years with Ottawa, Connor Brown has 4 of his 47 goals on the PP, 13 of his 117 points on a modest but not insignificant 1:43 per game.
Giroux may be old but he was competing for the Art Ross not all that long ago. People have been sleeping on Patrick Kane for years and he keeps plugging along.
I'm expecting decent 2nd line numbers from him (55+ points) but hopefully also serve as a mentor for Tim Stutzle who could be poised for big things.