Heaton
Moderator
No, please tell me what RNH does “so much better” than Mantha besides for pointing at his output. There’s nothing that points to him being a plus defender, nothing that points to him being a plus offensive player, nothing that points to him being a plus center. You’re being baited into a player who will sign a long term $8M contract for a top six winger being classified as a center because he takes a lot of face offs.
It's basically the eye test for me, I see a lot more to like overall from RNH than I do from Mantha. Mantha definitely has those Franzen vibes (without reaching Franzen level status). Plays unbelievable for stretches, but is completely useless for even longer stretches. Mantha seems to be catching on lately and especially down the stretch and recently in international play. But it's always a worry for me that he's going to reach a level of salary that only pays off for a low % of the season.