AD1066
Registered User
- Sep 30, 2011
- 7,597
- 3,865
Ever since his 2013 leg injury, Stamkos has been something of a what-if. He was coming off a 60-goal season and pacing for close to 50. My memory at the time is of him as a top-10 player in the world, playing the best hockey of his life.
Today, after a few more injuries and at the ripe old age of 31, he's invisible for long stretches at even-strength. Although he has a respectable 18 points in 22 games, 12 of them have come on the powerplay. And last year his team demonstrated that he may be superfluous, winning the Cup with less than 3 minutes of postseason ice time from him.
Now I like him as a player and this thread isn't to bash him, but I can't recall a similar situation in which a former 1st overall pick, only a few years removed from his prime and making >$8M, seems largely extraneous to his team's overwhelming success. Contrasting his position to other 1st OAs who are by and large expected to be "the guy", you could argue Stamkos is the 6th (or worse) most important player on his team.
So for the sake of discussion:
Today, after a few more injuries and at the ripe old age of 31, he's invisible for long stretches at even-strength. Although he has a respectable 18 points in 22 games, 12 of them have come on the powerplay. And last year his team demonstrated that he may be superfluous, winning the Cup with less than 3 minutes of postseason ice time from him.
Now I like him as a player and this thread isn't to bash him, but I can't recall a similar situation in which a former 1st overall pick, only a few years removed from his prime and making >$8M, seems largely extraneous to his team's overwhelming success. Contrasting his position to other 1st OAs who are by and large expected to be "the guy", you could argue Stamkos is the 6th (or worse) most important player on his team.
So for the sake of discussion:
- Does last year's Cup or this year's (probable) Cup have any impact on his legacy in your eyes?
- Is he overpaid for what he brings to the table?
- Where does he rank on his own team?
- Should Tampa consider moving on from him after his contract? Or what is a fair value for a future contract?