DaDucks*
Guest
The problem is that, I think, it's easy to focus on those good stretches Rakell had and overlook some of the less impressive ones. Unfortunately, what we got from him in the playoffs, when it mattered the most, was the less impressive Rakell. He's a young kid, and he's going to have ups and downs.
I think DaDucks has a bit of an agenda in his defense of Rakell, though. He was the one who seemed confident young guys like Holland and Rakell would surpass the play of Koivu, from last season. Not all of us were convinced, pointing out that experienced , and for good reason it seems.
Ultimately, I think Rakell was as expected. At least, as I expected. He showed some promise, but not with any kind of consistency. I think some were quick to suggest he had arrived this season. It was an encouraging season from him, but that's as far as I'd take it. My issue isn't with Rakell, specifically. He can't really help the fact he's a young kid who has a lot to learn, but there was no contingency. If he struggled, which he did, the Ducks had no one who could step in and take the responsibility. All that could be done is cut into his ice time, shelter him, and hope he still manages to do something... which he didn't.
My agenda more or less, was spreading awareness that we need more scoring from the bottom 6 lines in the playoffs and throughout the season. My criticism of Koivu stemmed from the 3rd lines disappearance from the score sheet in the playoffs. Yes, I stressed that any of our young centers would be an upgrade and step in the right direction from Koivu, and still stand by that. To avoid looking hypocritical, I haven't combated any criticisms of Rakell until yesterday. There might be an agenda, but I think its from the Koivu crowd. The guy had 2 goals in 26 playoff games lol.....Pure "shutdown" lines that cant score are a thing of the past, and are certainly not part of BB's game plan. I'm happy the board has come around and demanded more scoring from the bottom 6, even though if it is 3 years late
2011-2012 Ducks 6 1 6 7 -2 6 0 0 0 7 14.3
2012-2013 Ducks 7 1 2 3 -4 6 1 0 0 6 16.7
2013-2014 Ducks 13 0 1 1 -3 8 0 0 0 5 0.