He would have that production if he had #1PP time. Even strength, he has been a 1st line player for like a year now.
Only morons think Yzerman is one of the worst GMs lolThe reality is that if there was no salary cap then NYR, TOR etc. would have a massive advantage and small market teams like Florida would complain that it’s not fair.
Since there is a salary cap, we unfortunately have to listen to Panthers fans pretend like Zito is an amazing GM that can get players to sign below market value.
I suppose they must think it’s a huge coincidence that Yzerman went from being one of the best GMs in Tampa to one of the worst GMs in Detroit
Lafreniere, but both. Cuylle making it a not crazy question shows how much he’s improved.
For all the "Lafreniere isn't great at anything talk", he's still twice as good in those areas as Cuylle. They are not the same type of player. With top 6 actual talent, playing like a top 6, you have to take Lafreniere based on skill. If you're talking about culture, work ethic, or if you already have a dominate top 6, then maybe your team takes what's best for the team. Right now it's too early to tell if Cuylle will be a top 6 player for years to come. He started out playing pretty good last season and then cuylled off. He's important to the team but it's too early to tell if you have a middle 6 player, or permanent top 6 player for the future. My projection would be middle 6, but anything can happen.
I think I would’ve said I don’t even believe Cuylle will be middle six last season (good bottom 6 was my default), but even if some of his offensive numbers come back down to earth a little I think the improvements he’s shown with actual hockey skills suggest top 6 is looking likely. The pass to Kakko for the winner on Saturday was the type of play people would’ve doubted he could make a year ago and questioned for if he can be middle six or top 6 (not enough shot assists, too much of a complimentary player on a line). The pass to Trocheck on Friday for a goal was another like that. It looks like a clear skill improvement. Not just a few lucky secondary assists.
