Quote:
Originally Posted by The Poz
The Oilers could have found an Adam Larsson on the FA market for a couple mil and keep Hall on the roster. As a Flames fan, I'm fine with this!
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That's absolutely wrong. There isn't a FA defenseman out there that comes close to him. He is easily a top 3 D man, in IMHO, top 2 on a team. First off, my favorite Devil currently is/was Adam Larsson so I will admit a biased before I start. I also fully admit that the Devils got the better of this trade, especially in the present, by a wide margin.
However, if you are just looking at Larsson and not comparing him to Hall, he is a fantastic player. He does not have the offensive stats to wow people, but he really does have the ability. He has a good shot, plays with his head up in the offensive zone, and has great break out passes. Unfortunately for him he was a rookie when the Devils had a good offense and was coming into his own on an awful Devils offense the past few years.
He was an absolute shutdown defenseman the past few years, especially last year. And he has room to grow. He is also on a fantastic 4.5 mil cap hit for years to come.
Point is, I get why people don't really appreciate him. He is been on a bad team, in NJ, without sexy numbers. Watch the kid play, especially in the defensive zone when the opponent is set up. He is cool as a cucumber and works the boards very well with his body. He is exactly what EDM needs, just not at the price he cost them.
But if you do care about those numbers, he did have a +15 on a bad team last year. I recognize my bias here, but I also recognize that I have watched him more than any non-Devil fan that has weighed in on Adam the past few days. Depends on the discussion you want to have. Is he equal to Taylor Hall or is he a really good defenseman who can actually still get better at 23 years old.