I have a theory on Tkachuk. Love to hear others' opinions on it.
My brother in law is a loser. Whoops i mean a Flames fan. We had this discussion years back. My theory is that Tkachuk going to Calgary was the best situation for him to shine. His game fit their mold like a glove. While I'm sure he would have had success with the Oilers, I don't think as much since his style wasn't (isn't) in line with Oilers style.
What do others think? Do I have some merit or am I F ing delusional again?!
Its an interesting thought exercise.
I personally think he would fit pretty good with McDavid. I think hes in a similar vein to the Hyman and Maroon who both have had success with McDavid. He obviously would of been a better pick than what we made.
That being said, I personally have a hard time analyzing Tkachuk. Maybe I am biased but I think hes overrated (in the fans/medias eyes).
I think hes a complimentary player albeit a pretty good one but the few times I watched Calgary games, I think Gaudreau propped up Tkachuk and Lindholm quite a bit. We seen Kane completely neutralize him in the playoffs. Outside of the one crazy year where everything went perfect for Calgary (minus the playoffs lol), his stats are fine to good.
Even in Florida, how important is he really? I dont think they won a stanley cup because of him. Barkov, Forsling, Reinhart, Verhaege, Bennett and hell even Rodrigues probably had more impact. That was a really deep team that got guys like Tarasenko for pennies because that was the only team he would go to.
I feel like hes always had a "great playoff type of player" but I dont think hes actually that great in the playoffs.