My point is that he isn't good enough.
What is Jake McCabe really going to do to help this team with the cup?
This is a good offseason trade, but not what you want to see at the deadline for a team supposed to be "all-in".
Let's face it, at best he is Justin Hill's replacement.
That's not good enough.
Your powers of prediction are unproven, yet you seem to be making a lot of apparently biased assumptions about how McCabe will perform in scenarios that no one has ever seen him in before.
McCabe was on a lousy team, yet the majority of hockey analysts named McCabe as the best, underrated Defender available on the Market. I was bearish on him as well, but I will absolutely take their assessments over yours and mine, and already I am seeing they were right.
You are also failing to factor in the blender of Defence partners that Keefe has been having McCabe play with since his arrival. He is on a new team, with a new coach, new system, and had a revolving door of partners not just game by game, but also shift by shift, and he's acquitting himself quite well thus far.
Finally, you are making assumptions on what he can do, with no one ever having seen him play in the playoffs, and seeing if he has a "next gear", as many players have shown to have. People point out to Muzzin and Rielly ratcheting it up in the playoffs, but it doesn't seem to factor into your thinking at all, which makes it seem like you don't think it's possible. Again, I will watch what McCabe does or doesn't do in the playoffs before I make an assessment.
I think McCabe will be an excellent 2LHD for us, at great value, and already far more valuable than Holl. I am also interested to see if he does find another gear in the playoffs. Seeing how hard he works, along with his play style, and the apetite he must have for play-off hockey, I think he will bring another level and it will show how biased and weak-sauce your assessments are.
So for your assessment of McCabe, I think it's fitting to finish it with your assessment of McCabe: not good enough.
Go Leafs Go!