Strome is such an interesting player.
The are times you want to throw objects through your tv, and yet there he is again pacing at a full-schedule 60 point pace.
Yeah, and I think what we need to understand is that we are not paying Strome to be the guy who carries us to victory every game. Strome cap hit is 64th among centers. Now, that's not adjusted for age, RFA vs UFA etc. It's just a basic ranking. But 64th highest cap hit among centers is 3rd line money.
Yet he is producing like a 2nd line center. And yes, the debates we have had over and over again but Strome put up a career high in goals (albeit with that high shooting percentage) with his most common linemates being Jesper Fast and Vlad Namestnikov.
The following year Panarin had a career high in goals and assists in just 69 games playing with Strome. Now, the case has been made that Strome benefitted from Panarin but let's be real here: Panarin putting up career highs in both goals and assists in just 69 games has to be at least be in part contributed to the chemistry he has with Strome.
Then this season Kreider starts off slow and has 9 goals in 6 games after being paired with Strome. Small sample size, I know. But it's another example of a player producing with Strome.
I think if you look at each of these in a vacuum, the "excuses" make sense but when you combine these 3 and look at that as a whole over a 2.5 year period then I can't help but be happy with what he brought to the team especially when you add in that low cap hit.