He plays majority of his minutes on the first pairing, but as the game goes along, Bednar and Pratt switch him from top pairing to bottom and back again. They're getting his feet wet instead of him being thrown into the wolves.
For the most part, I will say is that he's a work in progress since he still makes mistakes, but man has he developed compared to last year. As others have said, he was easily the best defender against the Lightning and has been putting up some points while strictly focusing on defensive-first properties. In terms of offense, already matched his last years numbers in around 17 to 18 games less. Though, he still has certain mistakes, but I think they're more reactionary than mental issues. In this case, puck watching instead of focusing on getting into a better position (which the coaches have been working with him on a lot). One area he has improved tremendously has been his defensive stick, he has all the physical tools, but now has the defensive stick to contribute them. When he goes into corners now, he isn't just looking for the hit, he's angling them off with his body size and pokechecking the puck away leaving the forward helpless.
