Fair enough. Apologies.
Some of that applies, to varying degrees, but it would be inaccurate to say they painted a complete picture. It's not really an eye-test thing, either. I don't think it's as simple as saying "watch how good he is!" It's more the philosophy and role that Boudreau seemed to emphasize with Cam.
And I'm not going to pretend that there isn't some speculation here, because there is. None of us are in the locker room, or on the bench, and we don't know what Boudreau is asking of Fowler. It was just a constant theme in the way Fowler played, and the way Boudreau used him. Fowler would hit the red line, and he'd dump it in, and then go for a change. Sometimes shortly after a puck drop, and even if he had just recently hit the ice. Opportunities were there for him to skate into lanes, or pinch in the offensive zone, and there didn't seem to be a willingness to take those opportunities, except late in a game when the team needed goals.
On one hand, you can point to Bieksa for some of this, because would you trust him to cover your ass? I wouldn't. That's one thing that Fowler has always managed to do: Make a questionable D partner look good. Still, it isn't just that. It's hard to believe it wasn't coach mandated, because it kept happening under Boudreau. Not only did it keep happening, but Boudreau seemed happy with the results. Whatever his shot metrics were, Boudreau kept using him in those situations, and the team continued to find success. Not only did the team find success, but they won the Jennings. Boudreau just seemed to want Fowler on the ice for certain situations. Those weren't the only situations that Fowler was on the ice for at even strength, but I think there was a clear and defined role that Fowler had, that involved defensive and neutral zone face-offs, to get the team out of trouble spots, and send the puck the other way. Once the team was out of that situation, the D rotated normally. If that makes sense.
And this isn't like Girardi, who gets to lean on someone like McDonagh. Bieksa is, very clearly, not a Ryan McDonagh.
Edit: I think the best summary is that Boudreau leaned on Fowler to try to get the puck moving the other direction. He's a really good puck mover, and he has an excellent short pass. But he wasn't staying on the ice to reap the benefits. That's the most concise I can get.
