Since I took the trouble of naming three overrated (don't confuse overrated with bad, these are all good players or they at one point used to be) NHL skaters, I should perhaps do the same for the underrated ones. So here it goes.
Jason Smith (Philadelphia Flyers)
I cannot stress enough how much this guy means to the Philadelphia Flyers. The way he plays the game, with heart and determination, sets a standard for the whole team to follow. He is a true leader and all heart on the ice.
Sean Avery (New York Rangers)
I think it is plain to see to everyone how much better the New York Rangers are with Avery in the line-up. He gets the opponents off balance with his gritty in-your-face playing style and also puts up numbers on the scoring board. He is definitely hard to handle, I think most NHL teams will agree.
Matt Stajan (Toronto Maple Leafs)
He has gone from the forth-line to seeing close to 19 minutes a night for the Leafs. He's very tough to knock off the puck and he is only 23 years old. This guy will only get bigger and better.
And just outside of the top-3 are...
Mike Fisher (Ottawa Senators), Mikko Koivu (Minnesota Wild), and Michal Rozsival (New York Rangers).
2 comments:
Surprised to see you name Matt Stajan. You're not wrong, the guy has upside, but it feels awkward to say the words "underrated" and "Leafs" in the same breath.
But since we're talking about the Buds, I would like to nominate Tomas Kaberle as probably the league's most underrated defender. He is, next to Sundin and Wellwood, the team's most talented skater.
I am by no means suggesting that the Maple Leafs as a team is underrated. They are among the most overrated teams in all of pro sports.
There are, however, a few players even on their roster who are not getting the credit they deserve as players. Matt Stajan is one of them, and perhaps Kaberle as well.
Before last season's playoffs I thought Samuel Pahlsson was the most underrated player in the NHL.
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