That's definitely another aspect of Kassian the team never took advantage of. He brought real intimidation out there. I've seen people point out that Dorsett fought a lot more, but they usually ignore that he fights so much because anyone and his dog is willing to scrap with him.
Yeah,
nobody in the league is scared of Dorsett. I like the guy as a 4th liner, although he's overused and overpaid now, but he's fine. He certainly isn't a deterrent though. Do you think Shea Weber wont repeatedly crosscheck Henrik in the back now because Dorsett is watching? Please.
Fighting is the most overrated thing in hockey. It's sure fun to watch, but it doesn't mean that much IMO. With the instigator rule, Sbisa could elbow someone in the head and he could just refuse to fight if he really wanted to. Or take a few punches and that's that. Did fighting ever stop Cooke from playing like Cooke? No, and he even answered the bell unlike some other players like him.
Kassian on the other hand is another story. Maybe other players think he could snap at any second, but I very rarely see players avoid fights and scrums like they do with Kassian, until the referees get in. Kassian still isn't a deterrent for anything, everyone knows that the referees will get involved if you just refuse to fight, but still. I think Kassian does more for this team in a playoff series or in scrums in the regular season or whenever than Derek Dorsett. Aside from the locker room, Kassian is a better player than Derek Dorsett
in every aspect. Skill, toughness, offensive play, defensive play. Derek Dorsett could be a better fighter, but is much smaller than Kassian and size is important in fighting. Dorsett also probably hits more, but they aren't usually big hits. Also, Dorsett may be better in the locker room, but I think that's largely due to his age and experience more than who he is.
I'm probably going to try to follow Montreal this year, just because I think Kassian has the potential to be one of the most exciting players in the league if he puts it together. Even if he doesn't, he's still an exciting 2nd line player to watch. I just know that I'll get so ****ing bitter watching him put up 45+ points this season in a Habs uniform while Prust sucks in ours.