Quote:
Originally Posted by Et le But
Eller isn't Plekanec defensively right now but Plek is one of the best defensive forwards in the game, I can't say anyone would be as good as him when it comes to positioning and intercepting the puck because that is an elite ability that is at least 50% mental.
But Eller is already a good to very good defensive player (According to Boucher, Eller had the most D-zone puck recoveries per-minute of any Habs forward, not to mention has among the best numbers on 5 on 5 play), and is already a better puck carrier and more physical than Plekanec.
It's very difficult to claim someone is the next Plekanec because Plek exceeded all expectations and is such a complete and intelligent player that you can't assume his career can be replicated, but like Plekanec, Eller is more than the sum of his surface stats.
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Exactly. This was an awesome post. Just because Eller isn't as good as Pleks, doesn't mean Eller is a bust.
Its unrealistic to expect Elller to be "both" better defensively than Pleks and better offensively. Pleks is in the Selke hunt the past 3 years. He's a top 4 defensive player in the game.
For people to expect Eller to be at that level, top 4 in the game, is projecting WAY WAY WAY too much on Eller.