If the intention is to make the playoffs then Studnicka doesn’t sniff a minute at center. Maybe give him 20-25 games at RW see what he does with it
Goals: Playoffs
Is it better to squeeze into the playoffs with a team that's realistically not going to do much damage. Take an honest look at this team. I don't think they are a favorite of anything right now. Solid team, but on the downward trend. They make it to the playoffs, they are 1 or 2 series team to me at this point. Maybe they can convince others of more, but the 2 glaring holes on this team are still there at the top.
Goal: Building a strong longer term team.
This involves drafting and developing better. Is Studnicka part of that? I don't know. But we really need to see what we have. We did it with our D last year, and honestly, many of those guys looked solid until injuries really hurt our team, and kids were playing above their heads at that point. Forwards, we haven't quite had the chance to see it. We've basically filled the bottom half of the roster at this point. So where do the kids fit in, and how do we see what we have? And in doing that, shouldn't we also put them in the best place to succeed? If they can't succeed when given a chance to succeed, then yes, maybe it's time to move on. But we won't know if Studnicka can handle it yet, because there hasn't been a chance. With Krejci's departure, I fully believe in the best man gets the job. But that also means giving different players a chance there.
Will Coyle step his game up?
Is Haula an underrated signing?
Will Studnicka step up and take the reigns?
As an organization, I'd see what we have. I don't think giving a kid a half dozen games in the spot is going to hurt our chances. And if playing Studnicka 6 games at C really hurts our playoff chances, maybe we aren't really a playoff team to begin with.