Girard is not excellent defensively. Come on.
Wtf lol. Perhaps you’re just trolling and if so you got me but Girard is known as a defense first defenseman. He literally played all of last season as Colorado’s #1D matching up against other teams top lines and was phenomenal in shutting them down.
With the acquisition of Toews, Girard’s defensive responsibility isn’t nearly as heavy as it was a year ago but he’s still playing just as strong defensively while being able to fully step up his offensive game now as well.
These comments questioning Girard’s defensive game when that was literally exactly what he was known for until he exploded offensively is mind boggling.
Sammy Girard was arguably THE best transition defenseman in hockey the two previous season before this one, was great defensively and now this year is 8th among NHL D in points per game. He does everything at a high level.