Like i said it's a historical reality as players age in their later 20s there is a decline in production generally and too many of TB players and their top 2 defenders are aging.
Florida is in a slightly different and earlier situation than TB is in right now.
Every player keeps their production up at 26,27,28... Those are prime years. Peak performance is 27-29 years old in the NHL.
Not really as Florida has Lundell and none of their core forwards are even 30 yet.
Not really with their lack of upcoming players and that back end, who can step in for Hedman if he continues to slow down or misses time?
That's the problem though the lack of assets and I'm not a fan of Geekie don't know if he will develope into what some hoped..
Like I said it's the whole picture, lack of depth and assets along with an aging core their window has closed.
Not historically it isn't and scoring has gone up using adjusted stats for last couple of years is better than raw stats.
So they're not really old, still have plenty of guys in their prime, and are still capable of being a contender. Yes, aging is a real thing, but these are professional athletes who are still (mostly anyway) at their peak. Tampa may not have a bunch of assets right now, but they don't have to address major holes yet either. Their window is nearing it's end, but they are still string contenders for another 2-3 years if Brisebois makes good moves to fill in the supporting cast.
Florida's core is objectively younger that's my point.
Again Objectively younger with Jones and company and they have the same draft capital.pipeline problem as TB
Yes they are agewise.
Okay.
So they really aren't that old?
They have two members of their core over the age of 31. They have quite a.few still younger than 30 or just at 30. Most of their key guys are still very much in thelr primes, so no, they aren't old. They have used many of thelr assets to acquire key pieces, and yes, they no longer have a great pipeline. Eventually, that will be a factor, but year after year, Brisebois still makes moves, either in the offseason or at the tdl, to usually improve the team. They still have most of the pieces required to be a strong contender, and most are not considered "really old" or "aging". So, as I said, provided Brisebois addresses the depth changes that need to be made this summer, Tampa is still well positioned to contend for another couple of years.
You are skipping the Dmen but let's watch TB decline in the next 2 years as it won't be surprising.
No, I'm not skipping the dmen, as Hedman and McD are their only key pieces that any rational observer would consider "old" or "aging". Tampa should also be able to at least partially address that area over the course of this summer and next, and via trade if needed. The point remains, that they aren't some old core full of mid 30's guys, as with the exception of Hedman and now with McD back, Tampa has kept their roster relatively young by not signing certain vets to.pricier contracts once they ha e hit or approaching their mid 30's. They are still well positioned for at least two more years of being a real contender, provided they avoid serious injuries and make the smaller moves needed to address some of the bottom 6 and defensive depth.
And Vassy returns to form. Either his struggles are a sign of his game falling off or the team’s overall performance declining, but either way he needs to be better.
