jake may well be some what miscast in the role as top pair matchup guy. his instincts sometimes are questionable and he seems occasionally slow to process fluid situations- which happens sometimes in ice hockey lol. but for the most part, hes done very well. he eats minutes, coach finds him dependable and he stays out of the box plus hes been healthy. he can log a ton of ice and play both PP and PK. sounds like a top pair guy to me.
the problem is his partner. brady hasent developed and those 2 together are sometime a comedy of errors and that translates directly into ghastly goals against.
this defense continues to struggle at preventing dangerous scoring chances become they just yield too much ice and back in as though they are being taught to do just that.
its as though stepping up and getting burned is the only consideration and thus, they step back and give space.
to me they play a very passive protective system almost like there are 2 marc staals on every pair and they all play like staal plays. dont go up ice, dont get caught flat footed in no mans land and dont step- do something stupid- and create odd man chances against. they play afraid.
you listening lindy ?
I said it from the moment we acquired hm: he is the IDEAL #2 on a top-2, all situations type pair – and I am absolutely thrilled to have him in that role.
The problem, as we all know, and ODC highlights here, is that he doesn’t have a real #1 next to him on the left. Indeed, he has a guy who is probably better suited for the second pair on his left. Put a Hedman, Josi, Rielly, OEL, Makar (can you imagine?) over there and you’ve got a top, championship caliber pairing for years to come that would make everyone on this board ecstatic.
(Well... except for those who see Trouba’s contract as a reason ADA may eventually be dealt, and resent him for it).
Trouba plays an important role on this team that is very easy to under-appreciate.
Having said that, I think he’s essentially been what should’ve been expected. And that was my fear was going in - people getting a very well-equipped Camry, but expecting a Cadillac.
Ironically enough, the price doesn’t really bother me. Especially with time as other contracts adjust around him.
For me, it’s always been about expectations. However, if this team can find him the right partner, I definitely think Trouba is the type of player whose contributions can more readily be enjoyed.
I understand why you use the analogy,
@Edge, but I think you do Jake a disservice by calling him a “Camry”. A “Camry” to me would be properly-slotted as a second pair guy. I think the more accurate comparison is that we signed a solid production Mercedes and need to be careful not to expect him to be a Bentley or Bugatti.
