Quoting: Caufield
He has the talent, no doubt. But he just got the bag, and as of now, seems like he genuinely doesn't care. If he puts no effort, it doesn't matter who he plays with, he'll just drag his line down
Yeah, I'm not sure. His play style looks like that, and I always thought the same, especially after "the shift". But LA is super analytical with these acquisitions, so they saw something there.
After watching him a full season, he hasn't played like he did in Winnipeg (or even CBJ). He goes between trying to score so he looks busy and in the process makes bonehead defensive plays OR he tries to emulate Kopitar and Danault which he doesn't have the defensive smarts to pull off. Eventually, he will look really slick by guys like Kempe and Byfield but that is Kopitars line, so either they need to pull one of those guys off that line to gel with him or he needs to build chemistry with someone who is a real scoring threat because no one is scared when Laferriere (his most consistent parter with the Kings), JAD, or Grundstrom are getting passed to in a high danger situation, those guys (don't yet or maybe ever will) have the finish.
In small sample size, he looks best with Byfield and Fiala he held a 68% CF. They just need a coach who can unleash that line. But who knows, after this season, I can't exactly argue he's going to be a stud with any confidence.