Quoting: bgainesdm
Dobson just turned 20, so it's not like he's close to entering his prime. Takes time to earn trust. Beauvillier went through it too. And turnovers are a huge factor into whether or not you earn playing time, hence why Bellows rightfully got demoted.
Dobson is 20 and he’s already better than mayfield + boychuk. It’s been a full season already, he has done more than enough to earn a regular spot. I get that trotz doesn’t always play guys based on their play alone, which is what I have a problem with. He has a ridiculous standard for rookies and he’s always played grinders over young talent. Vrana, burakovsky , forsberg, ekholm , Schmidt ...
Bellows is flawed, but he did not deserve the demotion IMO. Bailey , komarov, kuhnhackl , Martin have all been terrible the last 2 months - komarov was the main reason why they lost to the habs - 3 of his turnovers led directly to goals. So what happened next? He gets promoted to the 2nd line the following game. There’s no accountability for vets - on any given night the islanders are icing 3-5 fringe NHLers who continue to make mistakes and not face any consequences. God forbid bellows has a bad game or two...
Trotz is a great coach, but his commitment to grinders over young talent is costing this team. Isles did not need to acquire a top 6 forward before the deadline, they needed to permanently scratch boychuk , komarov, kuhnhackl , and Martin.