The backes signing gives claude the flexibility to roll 3 tough lines to play against. and 1 super shut down line late in games. his being able to play rw and c and taking 1 year less on his contract makes him a better snag for the team than eriksson IMO. he can play with bergy on the 2 or center the 3rd line late in games and move spoons to the wing. he plays a heavier game the eriksson and i hope jimmy hayes takes some notes..
Player Discussion David Backes
- Thread starter Fenway
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Two thoughts on Backes:
1. I think the Backes signing is a terrible mistake if they don't get a top 3 dman THIS summer. You've added another older player to a team to compete now, and your defense is absolutely awful. If you greatly improve the defense in the next few months, I'm okay with the signing.
2. I don't see Backes playing C too much. He's the exact RW who's had success with Krejci, and Pasta is the kind of RW who fits with Bergeron (see Seguin). People penciling Backes onto Bergeron's line makes no sense to me. If he's not playing with Krejci, then play him as 3C.
1. I think the Backes signing is a terrible mistake if they don't get a top 3 dman THIS summer. You've added another older player to a team to compete now, and your defense is absolutely awful. If you greatly improve the defense in the next few months, I'm okay with the signing.
2. I don't see Backes playing C too much. He's the exact RW who's had success with Krejci, and Pasta is the kind of RW who fits with Bergeron (see Seguin). People penciling Backes onto Bergeron's line makes no sense to me. If he's not playing with Krejci, then play him as 3C.
BergyWho37
Only The Strong Will Survive (Never Give Up)
I've heard many ideas how Backes can help just wanted to add, that this could also lead to dressing a 7th defensemen.
Roll 4 Lines
Pastafarian!
See also: Recchi
He'll prolly shuffle around a bit, and you may be right that he'd click with DK, but I see Marchand - Bergeron - Backes as a pretty damn good line, if it comes to that.
It's an excellent line. No doubt. But it just makes the other lines a little weaker.
In other words, Bergeron alone is enough to make a line solid defensively. Add Marchand whose respectable in his own right, and you've got your zone covered. So yeah, add Backes and it's both a scoring and shutdown line, but I think you'd get more from putting him with Krejci, whose not quite as solid defensively as Bergeron. Bergy's line can more than cover for Pasta, letting him play his game. Now you add Backes to Krejci's down-low cyclle game and you've got the RH finisher he's had so much success with who can also help him dig out pucks. Pasta just isn't that kind of player.
Oh well...time will tell.
Roll with Vatrano-DK-Backes and I see shades of lucic-dk-horton/iggy.
Sniper-Playmaker-Powerfoward
Mr. Make-Believe
The happy genius of my household
You don't remember Seguin completely ******** the bed come the playoffs that year? Jagr had to come in and zero goals the Bruins all the way to the Finals on that line JUST because he had a board presence. Connolly couldn't contribute a single stat on the sheet, but damn if that line didn't produce with him doing the heavy work on the right side.
Mark Recchi was mentioned too. Rex went from being an aging waiver wire player to contributing great things to the Bruins on the way to a Cup.
Reilly Smith. Bum. Tyler Seguin. Wets the bed. Guys who got knocked off the puck whenever someone blew their nose and the entire line suffered for it.
Backes makes ALL KINDS of sense on that line. He'll be the best player those two have ever had to work with and would be absolutely dominant.
EDIT: I see you addressed another poster's response that clears up your position on this, so a lot of what I just wrote is perhaps irrelevant.
But he fits that Bergeron line like a new pair of SAXX.
I love the player but hate the signing. Maybe a few subsequent offseason moves will help me make sense of it.
LSCII
Cup driven
I see Backes and Spooner as a C/RW tandem, Backes takes draws and plays defensive center ice, Spooner plays the center role on offense with Backes running the board/front of net play. Positions in the offensive zone are fluid most of the time anyway.
St Louis continually tried to pull Backes off center ice over the years and it never worked, he always seemed to find his way back to the middle.
Keep Backes away from Bergeron/Marchand, they don't need anyone else to be effective, plug pretty much anyone in that spot and it won't hurt them a bit.
patty59
***************
Fopppa
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- Jan 3, 2009
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That's what I've been thinking as well. Krejci has lacked that heavy winger since Looch left the house, and Vatrano, no slouch on the boards himself, should be able to get plenty of looks along those two.
ODAAT
Registered User
It was/has been one year Looch free and while I agree that Looch did alot of heavy lifting for DK, Looch also had stretches that were beyond frustrating where had I not been watching closely, I wouldn`t have known he was playing. Players who play his style can`t bring "it" for 82 games but watching Looch playing long stretches where he was irrelevant was frustrating
Mount Kramer Cameras
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Yup.
Marchand-Bergeron-Backes makes the opposition line say 'oh, for ***** sake' every single time. As good as any line in the league - power, skill, smarts, experience.
Mr. Make-Believe
The happy genius of my household
Pastrnak and Vesey? Fingers crossed.
Or perhaps something like Heinen and Vatrano?
I don't believe Krejci's wingers have shaken down yet. I do think Krejci feeding Vatrano is an exciting prospect however.
BMC
Registered User
This is why I was more than happy to see him leave. $ 6 million a year for a guy who floated at least half the season? No thank you.
Ice Nine
Registered User
I don't see a problem with Backes on the Bergeron line but for the fact that then Krejci's line is looking too weak -- it would be Vatrano (or Vesey) - Krejci - Pasta. I think that line would get pushed around. With Backes moved to that line and Pasta with Bergeron, you have a tough, rugged player protecting every line (Backes, Bergeron, Bels).
Reailly Smith aside, and no need to revive old debates, but I still maintain Seguin was incredibly unlucky those 2013 playoffs; being among the top total shooters that playoffs (up there with Kane, Toews, Hossa, etc), and those shots were coming from quality areas, but was simply incredibly unlucky not to score.
Mr. Make-Believe
The happy genius of my household
Don't want to discuss Seguin too much, other than to say that even though Jagr didn't have success with that line, it still played a HELL of a lot better after he replaced TS.
And I share your concerns about who plays with Krejci. It's an uncertainty and I really don't know how it best shakes out.
But I'd rather ambiguity with lines 2&3 than suggest a lineup that I'm fairly certain to be less effective with Pastrnak on Bergeron's right.
Perhaps Vatrano proves to be the fix there?
Marchand - Bergeron - Vatrano
Vesey/Heinen - Krejci - Backes
Beleskey - Spooner - Pastrnak
I just don't know.
It is puzzling but I dont know if vatrano will work on the rw hole that is on bergys line. Vatrano and Marchy might be too shoot first. Maybe Heinen with bergy as he is more of a playmaker supposedly. But also as a rookie can't be expected to hold the defensive responsibilty that Bergy does, Maybe in the Dzones we will see backes on that line then heinen or whatever young guy they want will take over in the o-zone and on the fly.
TMac21
Save us Sweeney
- May 21, 2003
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Would love to find a way to put Spooner and Pasta back together - lots of speed and chemistry.
Pastrnak,OK,he had 17 points with Krejci last year. I'll completely dismiss Vesey,hasn't played a single NHL game. Backes would be more in the order of Lucic,Horton and Iginla who all had some success with Krejci. Anyone playing with Bergeron and Marchand is a third wheel,I don't think it matters who plays there. Vatrano has to make me a believer as his preposterous success last year was on a 6 shot per game pace as was his last NCAA year.
This 100%.
Krejci in my opinion, is just an average defence player and would benefit from Backes. Backes brings nothing to the Bergeron line, hitting and grit are unnecessary there, Pastrnak with Bergeron makes the most sense.
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