Quoting: Jamiepo
Bread eater only had 17 last year. You can’t say he only scores 7. If so then why have a leach playing that high in the lineup?
Leivo is a sniper, he works hard and does all the little things well too.
I could see him on a third line with dube and Bennet in reality. But if I were making lines I would try to get him out with Johnny once in a while.
I mean I’m projecting Mangiapane in the range of 25 goals if he plays 2nd line minutes for a full season so I was more referring to the fact that he’s probably down to 15-20 if he gets bumped to line 3, I obviously don’t think he’ll get 7. I know Leivo is a sniper, but he’s not an elite level sniper. Sure an elite playmaker like Johnny could boost his numbers, but Johnny could do that for anyone. Leivo should be on the 3rd line with a 3rd line level playmaker tbh. I’d like to see a Dube-Bennett-Leivo line, I think that’d be fun, but if they keep the Lucic-Bennett-Dube line together he probably starts on the 4th with Nordstrom and Ryan, I just can’t see him bumping a high end guy like Lindholm or a guy the organization is super high on in Mangiapane out of the top 6.
Quoting: Flames22
I gotta disagree with you on Bennett, Alfie. I don't think we can honestly say that Bennett doesn't belong in the top 6 because the truth is, we've never actually seen him play there for a fair period of time. Sure, there's an argument that "he hasn't been good in a bottom-6 role so why should we let him into the top 6." But a) Bennett was not drafted to play in the bottom six; and b) he hasn't had a lot to work with while he's been there. The fact that he's been bounced around from 4th line LW to 3rd line LW to 4th line RW, and paired with guys like Jankowski, Brouwer, Lazar, etc. not only has hurt his numbers, but it has hurt his development. There's a reason that Bennett was so dominant in these last playoffs, and it wasn't just because he typically plays well during the second season: It was because he finally played centre and had some decent linemates to work with.
Now, I'm not convinced that the Lucic-Bennett-Dube line can play as well as they did for 82 games, especially in a compressed season. But Ward needs to carry the Bennett-is-a-skilled-centre mentality into the regular season. Let him run loose with Tkachuk and Lindholdm (as suggested here), or at least with Dube. Heck, even put him with Gaudreau! (although I like the lines suggested here better). It's about time that this organization put Bennett in a position to succeed, and in my estimation, failing to do so not only unfair, but it's unwise. Indeed, we will all regret it next year if/when he is a member of the Kraken.
I think the problem here isn’t whether or not Bennett would succeed in the top 6 cuz I think he would do decent there (if he learns how to shoot the puck at the god damn net once in a while anyway...) but the problem is, who do you bump out? Mangiapane has shown more potential than Bennett and Backlund is a reliable 2-way presence that you know will get you 20 goals and 45 points. Bennett’s gotta show a little more than 12 points in 52 games (20 in 62 if you’re generous and count playoffs) to justify bumping one of those guys and I just haven’t seen it yet. Maybe try him there for a bit but like, I just think he’s been passed on the depth chart here and needs to find a way to contribute in an energy role. I don’t think it’s unfair to him when others have earned their way higher in the lineup and he has not. Maybe getting Dube and/or Leivo as linemates will boost his offensive production to a level where he could challenge Backlund for 2C but ultimately it’s on him to find a way to produce and force himself to get a chance, it’s not going to be gifted to him.
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