Who here considers Phillip Danault a top6 Center in the NHL?

[CrAzYNiNe]

Habs fans on this forum have been arguing for quite some time about this. Some think that his EV strength performance warrants him the title as a top6 Center. I on the other hand feel that 40 points over a 82 game season is rather low to be a top6 Center. I also feel strongly that top6 Centers should have success on the powerplay.

I have a bunch of opinions about first line centers and top6 centers, where the NHL maybe has 15-20 #1 centers and something like 35-45 top6 centers in the NHL right now. In the end the numbers all come back to around 60 or so top6 centers.

So what do you all think?

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[Empoleon8771]

Lol no, he's not. He's a 3rd line center that put up marginal top-6 numbers with Montreal because Montreal has no one else to play in their top-6.

With the poll options, I'd say he could develop into a 2C but I wouldn't say he's one right now.

 

[MMC]

He's a capable 2C with the right linemates. You need help if he's your 1C though.

 

[Mitch nylander]

He's a great skater, that can play both ends of the ice. I say he's more of a third liner than a second but thats personal preferences. He's a player the habs are lucky to have!

All though 137 Forwards finished with more points than him.

 

[CrAzYNiNe]

He's a great skater, that can play both ends of the ice. I say he's more of a third liner than a second but thats personal preferences. He's a player the habs are lucky to have!

All though 137 Forwards finished with more points than him.

This I agree with. Great trade by Bergevin to dump a bunch of unnecessary players and in return lands this young promising player.

Like you I believe his skillset is more suited for the 3rd line to take advantage of turnovers he creates against other teams top lines.

 

[Skobel24]

Middle 6 center who can play on the top line if injuries occur. Reminds me of Matt Lombardi.

 

[Real Smart Sens Fan]

I think he will always be a middle-6 guy, like Bonino, Pageau and Jarnkrok (not a stylistic comparison). Not a top-liner but has the ability to effectively step into the top 6.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Option 3, he's a 3c with 2c potential

 

[GlitchMarner]

I think he's a good third line centre who can play in the top six on occasion.

 

[1OApick]

No I have him as a Top-7 centre in the NHL.
1. Crosby
2.Mcdavid
3.Malkin
4.Bäckström
5.Getzlaf
6.Barkov.
7.Danault

 

[Deficient Mode]

36th in the league in on-ice SCF% at 5 on 5 among all players to play 500 minutes.

19th in the league in CF% and 51st in CF%rel.

Tied for 61st in the league in total points at 5 on 5.

There are definitely not 60+ centers better than him at 5 on 5 in the league. Pretty funny how heavily people factor in PP scoring when they're talking about line planning. Danault barely gets any time there but I bet if he were on the first unit and put up 10 points a year there people would be willing to call him a second line quality center.

 

[Albatros]

I don't think he has quite proven himself yet, and maybe never will. But not much could go wrong giving him a fair chance this season, especially in the desperate situation the Habs find themselves now. At worst he's a decent 3C, so the risk is guaranteed to be lower than the potential reward of having the difficult C issues at least partly solved.

 

[Halla]

Decent #3C.
had a pretty good season with 40pts, but this is a guy who didnt even get 40pts in the AHL. 13 goals is his career high in both the NHL and AHL and just 23 in juniors.

15g and 35-45pts tops depending on ice time

 

[Halla]

No I have him as a Top-7 centre in the NHL.
1. Crosby
2.Mcdavid
3.Malkin
4.Bäckström
5.Getzlaf
6.Barkov.
7.Danault

hopefully Matthews can become as good as Danult one day

 

[Stive Morgan]

Elite 3C like Pageau.

 

[Varcus]

In my limited viewings of him. See him as an above avg 3rd line centre that can fill in part time in the top 6 as needed and not look drastically out of place. Voted option 3, As he did take a step in the right direction last year. He could become a solid top 6 player but he isn't there yet. But he could be!

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

Most teams can do better in their top 6.

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

Nah, he's not. Ideal 3C player type in my opinion.

He just doesn't have the offense to be considered top 6. Yes he had 40 pts last season (that's already very low for a top 6C) but let's not forget he played a ton with Radulov and Pacioretty. Not too many centers get the opportunity to center guys like that. Albeit he didn't get much PP time, but still. 3C's are supposed to have some offense in them as well, and i think Danault fits that description. He can surprise you at times with a good offensive play, but it's not consistent.

If you put him where he belongs which is 3C, he's probably going to score 30+ pts, work his butt off 2-way and play on the PK.

He could be a late-bloomer though. Not completely ruling out the idea of him becoming a low-end 2C. Wouldn't count on it though.

Pageau is very comparable. Both are 24 yrs old and had very similar stats in the QMJHL as well. Interesting to see where that comparison goes moving forward.

 

[tony d]

I went with Option 4.

 

[David Suzuki]

Yes he is a top 60 centre in the league

 

[LeafGrief]

If he's your 3c you've got great centre depth. If he's your 2c, you've weak down the middle, but you'll probably live if the #1c is good enough. If he's your 1c, you're in for a world of hurt.

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

Yes he is a top 60 centre in the league

Maybe if you take away all the guys who can/have played a lot of wing too, but i can find 60 better players who are either full-time centers or have played a lot of C in the past.

There were 70 other guys who had 40 or more points last season classified under C's in NHL.com, and that leaves out guys who either missed significant time or had down years like Zibanejad, Couturier, Brassard etc.

 

[sharks9]

He just had his first full season at the age of 23, I'd wait for this year to see if he can be a legit top-6 center since he'll actually be getting top-6 minutes all year.

 

[Ohashi_Jouzu*]

People can crap on the idiosyncrasies of HFBoards polls, but I can't remember the last poll that ended up a lop-sided 10% vs 90% and got it wrong. Guess we'll see where Danault goes from here.

 

[WatchfulElm]

Tricky poll designed to confirm the opinion of the OP only.

The correct answer is : Danault is a middle 6 center, which means he can play in the top 6 but is not necessarily a bona-fide top 6 center. However, I don't see this as an option, so I have to vote for an option that doesn't represent the truth. So of course the result of the poll won't be either.