I wish I could say yes. Downie could still be an effective NHLer, but the refs have literally decided to kibosh his career at this point. It's not even that he doesn't get the benefit of the doubt, but rather that phantom calls are made against him in practically every game.
That is basically it in a nutshell.
I never cared much for the guy and all his antics, but the fact that he basically never gets the benefit of the doubt, ever, with officials is pretty pathetic to watch. I dont know why he doesnt give it a shot in Europe. I'm sure he's sick to death of watch his team basically get handicapped by having his name on the roster. Its pretty pathetic by the officials, even if they dont like his attitude who gives a ****? The guy has been punished for stuff he didnt do enough for one career. As someone said here, its a disgrace.
The sad thing is I liked some of what he brought last year. And he demonstrated (last year and before) that he wasnt a worthless player, skill-wise. Take out the obvious bias against officials and I felt like he only crossed the line a few times. They just made it up the other half of the time.