Bouchard is a top 5 defenseman in the league. What a player

Little to soon to be saying top 5

I know his numbers look good but its EDM would he do the same elsewhere I dont think so

He's good but top 5 overall is pushing rn

And the agitator matchups too:
Tkachuk vs Kane
Bennett vs Perry

50-goal scoring, defensively sound wingers:
Hyman vs Reinhart

D man coming into his elite self this season:
Bouchard vs Forsling

Clutch playoff sniper with name you to double check when typing:
Draisatl vs Verhaege

Viking stud two-way D man:
Ekholm vs Ekblad

Key under-the-radar contributor with hypenated last name:
Nugent-Hopkins vs Ekman-Larsson

Overpriced AHL goalie:
Campbell vs Knight

Quirky out of the box coach:
Maurice vs Knoblauch

Yeah, if the ice was only 'graded' for the offensive part/side of the game, he'd be in the top 10 DMen NHL-wise.
BUT
His on ice "D"-side of the game in reality is borderline base-NHL/AHL level currently...

That said - he's on "Team CAN for 2025 Nations Cup" LOL!!

Draisaitl and mcdavids numbers without Bouchard are a lot worse than they are with him. He’s great at both ends of the ice, elite at every aspect of the game

Guessing you didnt read McGruffs post as he broke Bouchard down perfectly

That was his opinion, anything to back up that Bouchard isn’t good defensively?

Plenty of stats out there that can be used but can see if they were presented you would just argue against em many behind paywalls unfortunately

Heck this was in an EDM reporters article from this year mentioning his defending may be okay to mediocre, he occasionally makes serious lapses now and then, but he is very good offensively.


As mentioned before McGruff's post breaks it down best and pretty much said the same thing so wont continue as this will just get to silly terriroty

No dog in this fight. But aren't you doing the same thing he's doing? Neither of you have brought anything to the argument other than opinions.

"Draistal and McDavid's number without him are worse" which numbers? Nothing to backup your statement.
"His on ice "D"-side of the game in reality is borderline base-NHL/AHL level currently" nothing to backup his argument either.

You're both just shouting your opinions into the void. 😋

I could present but I know if I do its gonna get into a full on scuffle and last thing we need is 20 pages of charts. Honestly how McGruff broke it down was pretty much on the ball and is what I highlighted 1 post be enough lul

Heck even an EDM article from this year broke it down almost the same: defending may be okay to mediocre, he occasionally makes serious lapses now and then, but he is very good offensively. If it wasnt an EDM reporter you could have said well he's trolling but this is their own teams guy. But in general having a limitation in one area does not make you a bad Dman even that guy mentioned it lul

Valid. To call out someone saying their opinion when all you're doing is voicing an opinion is hilarious
I'm just sitting here with a bucket of popcorn saying "get em" so I'm part of the problem too.

Thats fair and I also often do that lul.

But yea when top 5's thrown around for someone whose not there yet in a full on regard your gonna hear of it lul.

Like in 2-3 years Bouchard if he keeps up this up and some of the bigger names slow down/retire will be there soon

RN there be just a bit to much competition

For sure. Jacob MacDonald's goals/60 in all situations tells you everything you need to know on why he's the best dman in the league. 😋

I still remember Jfresh's tweet on that guy

Who they hell is this guy and how can I get him lul

Give me one stat lol

Edmonton media is one of the worst in hockey, they are much parody accounts

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Get Em! 😋

Why would a reporter on the Edmonton Journal make a parody account and I aint getting in a 20 page debate as the silly meter will get off the charts more so than the stats charts. Feel free to show stats and ABC but often stats are just a small part of the game lul. If we rely to much on them it ruins the game look at baseball where basically they lose all common sense. That was an issue we were seeing with Jones years ago where some called him elite others a problem. I see what the majority of Oilers fans be saying its almost always the same thing about him:

Bouchard’s in-zone defending and overall defensive coverage without the puck on his stick is his greatest weakness but PP, puck carrying, and offense are his greatest strengths. there are often plays where he can be slow to recognize danger, and can certainly be prone to getting burned on goals against at time, but this is the area where playing next to a reliable in-zone defender like Ekholm has benefitted him the most.

Again 2-3 years Bouchard if he keeps up this up and some of the bigger names slow down/retire will be in the top 5 convo soon

RN there be just a bit to much competition


And with that not furthering this any further as again no need for a 20pg silly debate or even a 2pg lul

https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning/latest-news/lightning-have-clear-target-from-maple-leafs

I like what the guy did here pure genius

So what you’re saying is the Edmonton media and fans opinions are a better indicator of Bouchards actual impact than statistics that measure his overall impact on the ice

As I mentioned there is more than just statistics that measure a players overall game and where they excel and struggle.

If we rely on them alone were as flawed as Baseball managers nowadays

There is also eye test and other things besides numbers on a piece of paper to get an assessment of a players overall game.

Did we not catch the Jones convo that was on for like 2-3 years lul

EDM fans and reporters will have a good sense of their players and know their strengths and weaknesses


But anyways now done with this as its just getting into silly territory and last thing form needs is 20pgs of silly debating on 1 guy lul.

While I thought they would be in the convo

Apparently America's team is actually the Dallas Cowboys

Im not joking

It came from some 1978 highlight film or something where they were called that


The more you learn lul

But whose the second and third team thats the real question we should be asking lul

There in reality is no such thing as America or Canada's team (unless you count sports where there's only 1 team in the country in which case the Blue Jays and Raptors are literally Canada's team because there is no other canadian based team)

Someone better tell that to Cowboy fans and their org lul

You type in America's team it just goes to the cowboys website

As for if Canada has a team thats a debate nobody will ever win

Seth jones was mediocre by the eye test and statistics. He got overrated because he played like 60 min in a 3ot game one time and the fact that he’s 6’4 , RHD and skates well