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Most overrated players - Pacific Division |
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I discussed who my favorite players were from each team in the NHL. Now I'm going to go through and list off some of the more overrated players in the league. It isn't easy to always do this because you need a baseline to determine where the player is rated in the first place. I'm going to lean on the teams themselves to help guide this barometer. I'm also not going to have a player from every team because glancing through I didn't feel strongly about every roster having one and I don't like the idea of calling somebody overrated just for this exercise. I'm starting with the Pacific Division
Anaheim - Ryan Kesler
The idea to trade for Kesler was fine. The idea to extend him a contract that was six years in length for an AAV for 6.8M wasn't so great. He gets buried with defensive zone starts and is still showing signs of being defensively competent. However, when you are bucking up in this price range you'd like to think some offense will come along with it. His points per 60 at even-strength the last four years is pretty bad considering his cap hit (1.25, 1.32, 1.39, 1.57, 1.03). Things aren't going to get any better because his physical style of play is already causing his body to break down. He missed half the season with a hip injury last year. There is potential he may miss the entire 2018-19 season.
Edmonton - Kris Russell/Adam Larsson/Milan Lucic
Obvious is obvious. The decisions to bring in these players cost the Oilers the league MVP and Jordan Eberle. Larsson isn't a bad player, but he sure as hell isn't what the Oilers thought he was. It was a laughable trade two years ago and remains one now. Kris Russell isn't good and paying a replacement level defenseman 4M to play on the bottom pairing is ridiculous. Milan Lucic was dead on arrival. Rumor has it the Oilers are already looking to get out of that contract. Whether they do or not Hall and Eberle aren't walking through that door to help Connor McDavid anytime soon. Peter Chiarelli is the Mozart of terrible hockey decisions.
San Jose - Evander Kane
Evander Kane is not a bad player. He's also not a 7M AAV player either. The Sharks fell in love with their small sample with Kane and went all in giving him money and term. Kane's strength is his shot and his ability to create his own shot. This is both his strength and weakness. Creating shots are good, but it comes at a cost because he isn't very good at creating for others. I imagine it is frustrating to play with him when there's no shot he won't turn down when there are teammates in a better position wide open. He lacks vision on the ice. When your career shooting percentage is 9.1% and shooting is your best strength I'm not sure it is worth 7M per year.
Vancouver - Brandon Sutter
“You win with players like Brandon Sutter. I’m not comparing him to Patrice Bergeron, but when I was in Boston, Bergeron was a great two-way player for us.
“Look at Jonathan Toews (in Chicago). That’s how you win in the playoffs. When we look at Brandon Sutter and all the things he brings, he’s going to be in our next wave of core players. I believe his best hockey is still ahead of him.”
- Jim Benning
That breeze isn't from the Pacific Ocean it's from Benning absolutely swinging and missing on Sutter.
Vegas - Ryan Reaves
It's great for Reaves to be on this list because it means he is making a lot of money. I don't begrudge him for that. This is a George McPhee criticism. Reaves will make 2.775M the next two years *that's per year*. Vegas may be a little bit full of themselves after coming out of the gate with a historically awesome year. The 2.0M they are retaining for Pittsburgh on Derick Brassard is also tangled into their Ryan Reaves acquisition so that is a lot of money for a face puncher in the year 2018.
Thanks for reading!
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • 
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