Quote:
Originally Posted by solo16
Subban is a great player but you guys are ignoring some obvious holes in his game. When he broke out in the playoffs a few years back he played a style of game that does not age well. He played so aggressive and skated so fast that he caught people by surprise.
Three problems with that.
First when players adjusted to his style he did not reach the potential people thought he would. I expected him to be a 50 point number 1 after that playoffs like everyone else. But once people expected him to run around super aggressive he became predictable.
Second, as he ages and gets injured he will inevitably slow down a bit and will probably be prone to losing his confidence and thus aggression. I am not sure his style will translate after a hit in speed/confidence.
Third, that style of play is very dependent on having a very solid competent defensive pair. Not to down play Subban but he needs a good solid Defensive D to cover for his aggression. IMO that hurts his worth a bit as a "Complete" defenseman. If you want to talk about a riverboat gambler Smith (and most cocky rookies can do the same thing). Eventually they risk coming back down to earth or losing that confidence.
So if you are going to call Subban a number 1 defender I would counter he is not a very good one, yet. Certainty no better than a Campbell or Boyle. He is and will be a step behind the Weber, Chara, Keith, Doughty etc. He is a flawed number 1 with tremendous upside.
Right now I am not sure I would even put him in the top 20. Lucky for you he is 22 so hopefully he puts it all together and becomes the top 5 dman he has the potential to be. You guys are way to hostile. He is a potential Franchise Dman (no more/ no less).
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I'm scratching my head at this type of commentary. The best thing about Subban is his ability to learn and develop his game, how quickly he adapts to what is thrown his way. Plus, his motor runs at that speed comfortably, in time age will catch up with him but that's true of everyone and his ability to adapt will allow him to mellow out naturally. But, his motor will always beat that little bit faster then his peers.