Hronek isn’t good. We’d be paying 7+ million per year for a 4.5 million player
As a Canuck fan and i don't really care to try and create some narrative that he's better than he is he's actually really really good. Hear me out
I was pissed when we traded for him. Thought we overpaid and that he was mostly an offensive guy who's skating was just just ok and defending he would suck.
The truth is he's a great skater (quick explosive and really good 4 way mobility) he plays with intensity and pace moves pucks really well has a bomb of a shot good at walking the offensive blue line and is actually a good defender (really good in 1v1 as he's fairly strong and moves incredibly well to hold positioning.) He also hinges and transitions as good as almost anyone which is great to keep teams under pressure
He's sort of a poor man Makar in how he plays and moves around in a lot of aspects but....on the negative and the not Makar
He has some issues in zone with his decision making under pressure. His stretch pass timing and accuracy is just average. His offensive IQ is not high end as he's mostly reliant on instincts and athleticism vs having the patience and quality that a top end producer would. His shots get blocked too often and even when he gets an open look he cant hit corners he just blasts away and hopes for the best it seems.
He also has a history of weaker 2nd halves and tapered off for us even though he was still reliable as a defender transition guy he wasn't producing at the same rate. Our team insider (Dan Murphy) informed he had a shoulder injury that was effecting him so not sure what that means going forward. He definitely struggled at getting anything going in his first playoff and his shot wasn't a thing until late against the Oilers when he scored on a bomb. I would suggest inexperience also played into it and he will be better going forward healthy and knowing what to expect.
Anyway....he's easily a top pair puck mover who can log huge minutes as he has outstanding endurance and pace. He's not a quality PP1 guy but is a good PP2 option and amongst the best 20-30 RD in the NHL. He's not big and/or smart enough to be a true #1 but he's a fantastic player for the most part which is why his agent is looking for 8 million. In regards to that...he's not worth that much for the reasons explained. Somewhere between the 6.5 he's been offered and 7-7.25 is appropriate given Dunn Faulk etc and the best comps and the % they got.
He's also prime aged and going into his best 5-6yrs traditionally for skaters like him which means your getting a premium position player for a lot of years.
