You're missing the point.
You don't send him down because he has bad possession numbers.
you send him down because he has clear and obvious deficiencies in his game WHICH ARE REFLECTED IN his bad possession numbers.
Anyone looking at a possession chart and making roster decisions based on that is an idiot. But it's easy to get caught up in a fast and exciting guy that kills everything he sees. We have to keep perspective because that excitement masks some giant inadequacies.
I completely agree with this - except for the bolded part...
if only because - I find it hard to believe that his puck control and shot is going to improve in the AHL.
The only way he is going to adjust to the speed with which NHL players 'get on you' when in the corners is to play in the NHL.
Yeah, maybe he goes down and gets alot more time to get his shot off and that gives him confidence... and then he gets called up and that time goes away.
A summer spent with skills coaches and running drills with other NHL players 'may' lead to improvement - but I'm sure we'll always be wanting a JJ-Boosh-Wood composite rather than any of those players.
Since when is our roster littered with 'complete' players - or roster decisions need to be based upon that?
See Chorske, Tom - or Friessen, Jeff.
PS I mean, cripes. Couldn't someone have stapled Boucher to Vlad Bure for the summer so the guy could learn to skate? Zajac's improvement this year was remarkable.