I did show you how Soda was tops in the league for toughest competition faced in the NHL last year right? Considering we made the playoffs, and everything else regarding his year. I'm not really sure you have a leg to stand on discounting his defensive ability.
I don't think anyone is arguing that hes a defensive specialist, or a underrated Selke candidate, but "simply doesn't work." Is "simply wrong."
You can throw those at me all you want and I can show you how lousy his shot counts have been over the years, and how his stats in Boston were inflated because he was a two-way player playing soft minutes behind the best two-way forward in the league, and one of the best shutdown defenders in the league.
Bottom line, he's been the top defensive forward on a bad defensive team. In that Calgary game Bednar kept rolling out that line for defensive purposes and it got absolutely steamrolled, and that's not just because the two wingers on that line are kinda lousy right now--that happened with the Long Beach All-Star/Soda/Como line too.
And I don't mean to say he's Sandis Ozolinsh in the defensive zone. He's not useless, I just don't think they're using him properly the way they're currently using him. He IS a two-way player, but I don't think he's a shutdown guy. He needs to produce in order to be effective. I'm not even really trying to diss him here, just saying he's miscast in a Stephane Yelle-role. And since that 2nd line ain't cuttin' it, all I'm saying is, bump Carl up a line and use him as a scorer.
So to be clear, I didn't say "Use him as a 2C or scratch him" just saying if they want to get their money's worth, he needs to get 2C minutes with proper linemates.