I think it's pretty clear the pieces here might not have a chance to work.
Agreed.
Too many people being shoehorned into positions they aren't suited for.
Agreed.
Why the hell Staal keeps getting the minutes he does is beyond me.
Eh. Who else deserves it? Honestly, Staal is about the only guy on the team playing his role well right now. He is what he is. This is a down year for him offensively, but he's a big, goofy oaf on skates. He hits, he cycles, he defends, he wins faceoffs.
My problem is with Haula, Dzingel, Gardiner and Nino bringing *none* of that to the table. Necas looks like a hot mess when he's not scoring. Aho has been off all year. Thank heaven he's scoring goals from out front or he'd be a total disaster. TT is great, but can disappear when the team needs him most. Williams is still getting his legs back, but he's 38. Edmundson, TvR and Fleury are all overrated third-pairing guys.
Literally *nobody* has stepped up for us this season (well, maybe Svech but we knew that was coming). And don't even get me started with the toughness. I'd like to see some guys get a mean streak in this third period, but I'm not holding my breath.
These are the guys I feel that we can count on for 100 percent effort and GAF factor every night: Foegele, Svech, Staal, Martinook, Slavin, Pesce. End of list.