Quoting: Rangsey
Matthews has to be number 2.
Cirelli needs to be better before he's in this conversation same goes for Jack Hughes.
For me there isn't that big a gap between Bergeron and O'Rielly. Whatever tier they're in I feel like they're both in. Splitting hairs at this point tho.
I think the convo on Bergeron really needs to be about more than production.
I know he's been a great player, but he's slowed down a lot. They basically pull him out whenever they are in the Ozone, and the limit his ever having to play a 200 foot game because he's 35 and he's not gonna keep up with some of the guys at the top of the list anymore. Now I know a lot of these guys get relatively the same same starting in 5v5 ice, There is only a 6% difference between say Matthews and Bergy, but if they had to play whole games running the ice one gets the feeling that Bergeron would be dead.
It's just a real eye soar to me that the first 9 years of his career he made his bones shutting guys down, getting 44% of his 5v5 starts in the Ozone, but now they won't ever let him play that game because he started to struggle with it. I mean he went from 44% to 54% to 60% in 3 seasons and hasn't looked back. It's smart coaching and good use of an older player and all. But I have a hard time comparing him to a lot of these guys who are at the peak of their game anymore because if you take out the zone starts and let them play a 200 foot game, I think he struggles. So a guy like O'Rielly, who's never had more than a 50% Ozone start is just hard to compare him to. O'Rielly. hasn't had to change his game. I give props to Bergy for changing his game, but guys who are at their peak and best in the league aren't changing their game.
Like no one is looking at the top 3 there and saying...oh yeah they have changed their game from x to y like Bergeron has. So he may have the production, points, wins, etc.... but he's really system dependent at this point and I don't think a lot of those top guys are. That's a huge gap.