We need to rest Johnson almost like it's summer again. In that time, we need Stamkos to actually play like a marginally decent #1C. Then, when Johnson's actually 100%, not 95% and "ready," maybe we ship Stamkos for an actual 1b center.
I know it's weird, but even with all these injuries, I have more faith in Johnson than Stamkos to actually perform when he's healthy. Health is just obviously getting to be a pretty big issue for him.
We've been playing with fire for a long time by playing players who "can" play, but probably shouldn't. I'm thinking all the way back to MSL's broken foot. But it's really starting to bite us now. We've had something like 5-6 instances of re-aggravated injuries. I get that everybody wants to play. But Coop needs to tell these guys, "no." We're not in a heated playoff series right now. Yeah, we need wins, and we're desperate for them, but we're going to be even more desperate if we keep losing this many man games to injury. The season is a marathon.
Johnson's case is particularly frustrating because it's often so clear that he's not anywhere close to 100% out there. I don't know if he's a fragile player overall, but I know he's fragile enough that he shouldn't be anywhere near the ice when he's not at full speed.
I know it's weird, but even with all these injuries, I have more faith in Johnson than Stamkos to actually perform when he's healthy. Health is just obviously getting to be a pretty big issue for him.
We've been playing with fire for a long time by playing players who "can" play, but probably shouldn't. I'm thinking all the way back to MSL's broken foot. But it's really starting to bite us now. We've had something like 5-6 instances of re-aggravated injuries. I get that everybody wants to play. But Coop needs to tell these guys, "no." We're not in a heated playoff series right now. Yeah, we need wins, and we're desperate for them, but we're going to be even more desperate if we keep losing this many man games to injury. The season is a marathon.
Johnson's case is particularly frustrating because it's often so clear that he's not anywhere close to 100% out there. I don't know if he's a fragile player overall, but I know he's fragile enough that he shouldn't be anywhere near the ice when he's not at full speed.