So the Flames just signed him to a 5 year 21 million dollar contract. Is he really as bad as advertised, or is that just the HF reputation which caught fire. Be honest but be objective. Interested to hear from you guys.
So the Flames just signed him to a 5 year 21 million dollar contract. Is he really as bad as advertised, or is that just the HF reputation which caught fire. Be honest but be objective. Interested to hear from you guys.
So the Flames just signed him to a 5 year 21 million dollar contract. Is he really as bad as advertised, or is that just the HF reputation which caught fire. Be honest but be objective. Interested to hear from you guys.
Good shot. Not much of a skater or creative passer. The best you'll get is 'ok' defensively.
Good luck with him. He will put up points. Defensively, you're gonna want to limit his minutes. He was on the ice for a staggering percentage of our goals allowed this postseason. He's a mediocre skater and he is weak. But the man can pass and shoot with the best of them.
wideman is good enough offensively to earn those kind of salary numbers. he is erratic and limited enough defensively that his salary numbers are capped at the level you are quoting.
as long as you realize that he brings an elite game, but that the rest of his game is limited, you will be happy with him. if he was an average or above top 4 level defensive player, his offensive numbers would make him a $6m + defenseman.
I thought he was an above average PMD but Hunter paired him with Schultz and it was like pucker up when they were on the ice. Pair him with Alzner or someone responsible and you've got an ok pairing.
So the Flames just signed him to a 5 year 21 million dollar contract. Is he really as bad as advertised, or is that just the HF reputation which caught fire. Be honest but be objective. Interested to hear from you guys.
He was a life saver when he first came in. Filled in admirably for Green, played decent D (even PK), etc.
But he was awful in the second half of this season (first half was decent enough, as the all-star appointment probably tells you), and in the playoffs he was a total liability.
He's not a good enough skater to be the puck mover that you probably need him to be (other offensive skills are good though), and it leads to him getting walked around with a bit too much regularity.
I thought he was an above average PMD but Hunter paired him with Schultz and it was like pucker up when they were on the ice. Pair him with Alzner or someone responsible and you've got an ok pairing.
he played with alzner and with hamrlik as well as schultz. being paired with schultz was concluding that at even strenth he was a 3rd pair player. of course then hunter would skate him 29 minutes.
but yea, he was with schultz because he proved to be limited rather than being with schultz being the limiting factor
Don't expect a lot of nice things from Caps posters on Wideman. Average to horrible in his own end, but offensively pretty damn good when given the icetime and appropriate situational play.
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George McPhee....The Teflon GM. 15 years of failure and counting....
6 - Number of playoff series the Capitals have won since George McPhee took over as General Manager in 1997 (which makes him the third-longest-tenured GM in the League), three of which came in McPhee's first season on the job.
Schultz + Wideman was asking for trouble. Two poor skaters in a man-to-man system was never going to work unless you protected them significantly, and DH didn't seem to do that.
Don't expect a lot of nice things from Caps posters on Wideman. Average to horrible in his own end, but offensively pretty damn good when given the icetime and appropriate situational play.
I think the biggest issue is that he's not a [good enough] contributor at even strength (or wasn't this year). That really hurts, especially if PP chances keep declining.
The Good:
Great shot for a blue liner. Not super heavy, but it finds its way to the net and has good placement. He's not afraid to join the rush or sneak down into a scoring position. Is generally an above average pock possession guy, and looks his best on a team capable of playing a puck possession game that can mask his weaknesses. He's capable of playing lots of minutes.
The Bad:
His skating is not a strength, which really hurts his ability to get back on defense. He will commit boneheaded turnovers and defensive miscues. He wasn't very creative on the powerplay in Washington (but nobody was at the points last year), typically just passed the puck point to point or to tried to force a shot from the blue line. He seems to lose track of the net behind him, and it hurts his positioning. One of the worst defensemen I've ever seen in the NHL at defending an odd man rush.
Anyone here think a new change in scenery and possible paired with JBou would help his defensive shortcomings?
JBo is the right kind of Dman to play with him; someone who's a good enough skater to carry the puck for him or cover him getting back.
But I wouldn't want to give Wideman those kinds of minutes, at least not long term (there could be a honeymoon period the way there was with the Caps, might as well take advantage of it).
But does CGY have the budget to keep JBo after this? Was the talk of trimming salary just talk?
