(Re-Signed) Werenski in Columbus

[SeaDawg]

He was already on PP1 and playing over 24 mins per game so I am not sure we'll see much change in his numbers.

Be that as it may, Jones ate up more minutes at even strength and over 2 minutes per game of power play time (2:34 for him and 2:43 for Werenski). The league leaders in PP ice time were over 4 minutes per game and there were many players with over 3 minutes of PP time per game. I can see Werenski getting around 1 minute more of PP time per game and around 2 to 3 minutes more overall per game. That increase in ice time "could" equate to higher point totals.

[Axeman33]

Be that as it may, Jones ate up more minutes at even strength and over 2 minutes per game of power play time (2:34 for him and 2:43 for Werenski). The league leaders in PP ice time were over 4 minutes per game and there were many players with over 3 minutes of PP time per game. I can see Werenski getting around 1 minute more of PP time per game and around 2 to 3 minutes more overall per game. That increase in ice time "could" equate to higher point totals.

Sure, it's not completely out of the question. New coach could do things differently. We'll have to see how this plays out. One thing's for sure, this new contract means he's getting the ice time.

[Pengwin7]

Wow... I would've pegged Werenski more deserving of an 8x$7m deal.

[bondon]

It's pretty funny because I feel like GMs are just progressively making their jobs harder with contracts like this. Woof. I hope this doesn't impact the negotiation with Hughes.

[tweetdrivr]

Don’t forget Bean is in town and may end up better as the PP quarter back fairly quickly.

[dejeanneret]

Just to put this into perspective, Werenski is now the third-highest paid dman and I believe the 15th-highest paid player.

That's incredible and is sure to make other GMs' lives more difficult with some of their own players as they come up renewal. Man, I'm kind of floored by this actually.

[2014olympicgold]

It's weirder to think that he's a 45pt dman with heavier Ozone starts, no real accolades, not a real physical guy, not a real shutdown guy...He's just like... the most average top 4 d-man I can think of and he's getting paid in the top echelon of dmen.

[Pengwin7]

In fairness, I think terms "physical" and "shutdown" are overused to describe defenseman value.
If a defenseman can greatly help his team control "possession", then there need not be a ton of concern around how physical he can be.

For modern defensemen:
Great footwork+DecisionMaking >> great defensive-stickwork >> Body contact/physicality

Werenski is terrific skater, decision maker, passer, positionally, and he's very solid against other forwards entering zone.

I definitely would NOT call him an "average top 4 d-man".
I think that's pretty poor evaluation (almost as poor as ragging on Ekblad last off-season).
He's definitely, definitely a mid-to-high D2 (i.e. NHL 32-40ish D-man), with potential to be a mid-range (10-20) NHL D1.

[But this IS a mid-to-highend NHL D1 contract... and I'm not sure in that.]

[2014olympicgold]

It's more like he's not the best at anything he's good at, and he's getting paid like he's the best at something. He's a solid skater, not a top 3 one, he's a good defender in a shutdown role, but not an amazing one, he's a solid passer, but not an amazing top 3 one, he has a shot, but not an amazing one. He's just across the board average - very good in everything but not amazing at them. Just how I felt seeing him play was very all around solid, but nothing really pushed to the top of categories. Hope he proves me wrong with this and takes a jump. It could very well be the coaching scheme clouding my vision and Torts not letting him cook out there and using his full abilities.

With the extra pay, and Jones gone, he'll get more of that responsibility. Should be interesting how the new coach uses him and if his OZ% stays shifted.






ANNND to be fair I did say "unless something changed" for Ekblad lol. (always leave space just incase your take is wrong lol)

[SeaDawg]

No doubt he's overpaid by most measures. That said, he gave up a lot of UFA years and Columbus has had a hard time retaining players, so the signing makes sense in that regard.

Also, by the time the contract expires, Werenski will only be 30. I suspect that contract won't be nearly as bad as the contracts signed by Seth Jones (who will be 34 when his contract is up) and Hamilton (who will be 35), or previous contracts like Doughty, Josi, Karlsson, Subban, Suter, Pietrangelo, Burns, Trouba, etc. The league has a way of overpaying for dmen, especially as the contract ages. In that sense, at age 30 when the contract is up, Werenski will still likely have some good years of hockey ahead of him and probably be closer to earning the money than the others I've mentioned when their contracts are in the final years.

[hockeyrobot]

Just to put this into perspective, Werenski is now the third-highest paid dman and I believe the 15th-highest paid player.

Wawawewa.

[Pengwin7]

I will say... one other way to look at it... is that every recent Stanley Cup champion has had a bonafide #1 (top 15) NHL centerman (or uber-wing: WAS) and a bonafide #1 (top 15) NHL D1.
Those are your two key possession/play-drivers.

I think NJ is thinking the same thing these days with their new Hughes/Hamilton duo.

If a GM can secure one of those two pieces... he's gotta do it.
It's all about a Stanley Cup.

(I agree though... still too much for Werenski...)