Gavrikov is trending good like Chiarot did last year. Similar big boys that have mobility and play physical. Trending well in the last year of their deal heading towards the deadline on a bottom 5 team.
i think gavrikov gets mischaracterized a lot as a "physical" defenseman because of his size and his reputation as a shutdown guy. but i think that reputation would be a lot different if he played on a better team.
people equate 'physical' with 'hitting' – through that lens, i wouldn't call him physical. instead, i'd characterize him as sturdy. he doesn't hesitate to get in front of shots and he does use his size in board battles, but his defense comes from his stickwork and positioning.
the other thing that he has over guys like chiarot and savard is that he's actually very mobile (especially for his size). his footspeed is really good and he's had some nice moments jumping into the rush and pinching on the o-zone.
How about an extended Gavrikov for Bouchard + Puljujarvi
I don't think that works for the Jackets. Bouchard's skillset is going in the wrong direction w/r/t what we need.
i don't follow the oilers
super closely, but i'm surprised to see his name floated here. if he's on the table for an extended gavrikov, i'd be all over that from the cbj side.
for the jackets, the 'what we need' discussion is skewed by an overestimation of the number of current pieces that will still be here when the team is competitive again. the goal should be identifying and building a core, and bouchard is far more likely to be part of that than boqvist/peeke/blankenburg.
acquiring him would certainly complicate what's already a logjam at RHD, but he's better than the alternatives. then, long-term, they build the defense around werenski, jiricek and bouchard. if a svozil or mateychuk pans out, even better.
