Quoting: Buffalove
Meh
Jokiharju has been battling injuries all year & Power was pretty rough to start the season
They’ve started to grow together as partners now
I’m not saying Dumba sucks by any means
Just don’t know that he’s a big enough upgrade to break up the chemistry that’s growing- especially since we don’t know if Dumba & Power would even have any together
While their numbers are similar from a production standpoint. Dumba's usage and deployment has him pitted against teams higher lines, something Jokiharju doesn't do or is trusted enough to to.
Furthermore as the graphs clearly show Dumba is far better defensively than Jokiharju, though Jokiharju has better possession numbers.
But the entire reasoning and desire from Sabers fans of late is that they want a veteran RHD who is solid to good defensively and is a lockerroom guy who can stabilize the backend because of its overall youth.
Dumba fits that mold to a tee. He's far better defensively than people give him credit for. And he wears an A in Minnesota for a reason. He's about of a rah-rah type of guy as you can get in this league.
Obviously you have a point in regards to chemistry. It's a risk. But that's true for all players in the NHL. GM's need to stay weary of it and not disrupt it whenever making additions to the team. But say what you want about Dumba as a player, his teammates love him, he's the type to get along with everybody he plays with.
He's played primarily played with either Suter or Brodin through his career, but he's played with others and was fine. Chemistry, typically, takes time to grow as players get used to each other. He can develop that chemistry in time with the Saber's D-core too. That isn't specific to the players currently on roster. Bottom line, you can't say for certain it WON'T work either. Because they might have excellent potential together for all we know. But you'll never know unless you try.
Besides, he's the same age as Lyubushkin. One of the 3rd pairing guys could get moved to make room for those that are better options.