I'm sorry but I don't see it. The guy (almost) brings nothing. He's not elite offensively, doesn't have a good shot, can't quarterback a PP, he's prone to mistakes, average to below average defensively (with the exception of last year, he's been a minus player his entire career), has a decent pass I guess. Yeah, he's only 23 but he's already played almost 400 NHL games. If he was going to be this top pairing guy, he should have become one already (or at least be close to being one).
Although, I suppose I would like to see how he would perform first under a good coach. He's had only Peters and Ward as his coaches. And they both suck ***.