pi2000

I just don't believe the jury is still out on him. He is what he is at this point of his career... he's a career .898/3.05, with over 200 pro games played. His numbers in Rochester were not good, and his numbers in the NHL are not good. I don't understand what anybody sees in him..... I suppose in the land of the blind one-eyed man is King.

That's not what I said... read carefully... Playing 1st line on a non-playoff team like Buffalo, best case Benson could approach 60pts.... that said, he still wouldn't crack the top 6 on an established playoff team. In other words, you take the average second line winger on an established playoff team and put them on Buffalo's first line.... they easily crack 60 points, while Benson would struggle to do the same and likely wouldn't hit that mark. If a 20 year old with an NHLe of 35pts is your 3rd or 4th best option for a point producing wing role, you're not a playoff team. Do better.

Production wise, yes.... I think his ceiling is perhaps a Viktor Arvidsson, but with a decent floor of a guy like Teddy Blueger who fills an important defensive role.

Development?! He's 26! I too, want to believe in UPL... but he sucks, and the stats show that it's not because of the defense in front of him. 6th worse high danger save % 2nd worst goals saved above average and high danger goals saved above average

I disagree with your disagreement of my assessment. I forecast him as a 3rd line winger on a playoff team who fills an important role... matching up against other teams top lines, killing penalties, situational matchups (end of periods, closing out games, etc..). You absolutely need those type of players in your lineup... he's part of the solution, just not as a top 6 point producing player. That role belongs to somebody with a bit more offensive acumen.... on a playoff team at least.

* - with JJ Peterka in the top 6 and Benson getting 3rd/4th line minutes (22% of 4201 even strength minutes). Wasting?! He was a 19 year old, still learning the pro game.... you make it sound like he's an established superstar who wasted away at the bottom of the lineup because of Lindy. C'mon, do better! He's nowhere near 50-60pts, nor does his NHLe (35pts) project him to be... therefore the burden of proof is on you my friend.

I like the player, I really do... this isn't a jab at him, but he's simply not a top 6 talent on a playoff team, not will he ever be. It has nothing to do with his size. Love the work ethic and he's remarkably responsible on the defenive side of the puck for his age, which is fantastic. He just doesn't have the elite skill/awareness to consistently produce offense at the level required to plant himself in the top 6 of a playoff lineup.

I'll say this, if they deploy him on the first line and gets regular PP minutes, he could get close to 60pts.... which would be acceptable on a non-playoff team like Buffalo. That said, you want to be taken seriously as a playoff contender? Do. Better.

For a second-line winger on a typical playoff team, a point total in the range of 55-70 points is a reasonable expectation. This is an increase from the general average of about 50 points, which accounts for the fact that playoff teams generally have more depth and stronger offensive production throughout their lineup.

Here’s a breakdown of the regular-season point production for second-line wingers on NHL playoff teams from the 2022–2023 season: 🏒 2022–2023 NHL Playoff Teams: Second-Line Wingers' Regular Season Points Team Player Position GP G A PTS PPG New York Rangers Alexis Lafrenière LW 82 28 29 57 0.70 New Jersey Devils Timo Meier RW 82 40 46 86 1.05 Carolina Hurricanes Seth Jarvis RW 82 21 38 59 0.72 Toronto Maple Leafs Michael Bunting LW 82 23 26 49 0.60 Minnesota Wild Matt Boldy LW 82 31 32 63 0.77 Colorado Avalanche Artturi Lehkonen LW 82 19 29 48 0.59 Dallas Stars Mason Marchment LW 81 17 30 47 0.58 Vegas Golden Knights Jonathan Marchessault LW 82 28 36 64 0.78 Los Angeles Kings Kevin Fiala LW 82 23 28 51 0.62 Boston Bruins Jake DeBrusk LW 82 27 23 50 0.61 Tampa Bay Lightning Brandon Hagel LW 82 30 34 64 0.78 Florida Panthers Carter Verhaeghe LW 82 42 31 73 0.89 Edmonton Oilers Zach Hyman LW 82 36 34 70 0.85 Seattle Kraken Jared McCann LW 79 40 30 70 0.89 New York Islanders Anders Lee LW 82 28 23 51 0.62 Winnipeg Jets Kyle Connor LW 82 31 49 80 0 📊 Observations Point Production Range: Second-line wingers on playoff teams typically recorded between 49 and 86 points during the 2022–2023 regular season. Points Per Game (PPG): This translates to approximately 0.60 to 1.05 points per game, indicating a strong offensive contribution. Top Performers: Players like Timo Meier (86 points) and Kyle Connor (80 points) were standout contributors in their respective teams' top six. 🔍 Comparison to Your 17-Year-Old WHL Example If a 17-year-old winger in the WHL records 98 points in 68 games, that equates to approximately 1.44 points per game. Projecting this to an 82-game NHL season using a typical WHL-to-NHL translation factor of 0.30, the NHLe would be: 1.44 PPG × 0.30 × 82 games = ~35.5 points This projection is slightly below the typical production of a second-line winger on a playoff team.

You're cherry picking. If we look at all recent NHL playoff teams, a second-line winger is usually producing in the ballpark of: 55–60 points over an 82-game season. A 35-point NHLe (like Benson) projects slightly below a typical top-six winger on a playoff team.

If your first or second line winger has an NHLe of 30-40 points, you're not a playoff team. Second line wingers on playoffs teams average around 55-60 points. Do better.

He's not a top 6 winger on a playoff team and he'll never eclipse 65 points in a season.

He was an RFA without a contract, he couldn't become an UFA for 4 more years (7 seasons or 27 years old). Who cares if he wanted to be here... give him a fair offer, he can sign or sit out, don't trade him at a loss just because he doesn't want to be here. The entire point of RFA status is to protect the team that drafted and developed the player.

Unless they make another move I see them scoring 240-245 goals.... giving up 265-270. How many goals do you think JJP scores this season? Next season? The season after that? He's 23, he has a few more years before he hits his prime. Nearly 30 goals in back-to-back seasons as a 22 and 23 year old. The types of goals he's scores I don't see there being any regression... just 100% progression.

Keeping JJP and his 30 goals, while also reducing goals against were not mutually exclusive choices. The only reason we're having this discussion is because the GM wasn't creative enough to find a way to do both.... so now were trying to rationalize it... "other guys will score more", "we didn't need those goals", "he was a defensive liability"... etc etc Facts is it was a ***** trade and the team is worse because of it.

Good post! However, it's not just JJPs 27g they're losing... it's the 30-40 he'll score this season and however many he scores during his prime years... 40, 50?.... see Reinhart, Sam. GMKA is betting on Norris and Quinn to be significant contributors on offense. I believe it's possible, and I like the players, but it's certainly a gamble.

Levi and Ratzlaff in Rochester. Where does Leinonen fit in?

If he wasn't eligible for arbitration then the Sabres had even more leverage than I thought. The youngest team in the league shouldn't be dictating to the GM who gets traded. If that Dahlin rumor is true, it just shows how dysfunctional the front office really is.

If he centers Thompson and Tuch, he should easily eclipse 40points. Swap in Benson for Tuch and 40 points is probably the number. He's shown improvement every season of his pro career, I would expect that to continue.

My point is Peterka didn't have any leverage either. A competent GM would've told him "You're part of our plan moving forward, we'll give you a fair offer which you either sign, choose arbitration or sit out. We're absolutely not trading you unless we're offered a deal we can't refuse." Instead we got "Oh dear, you're not happy we haven't made the playoffs in a while? You poor thing, we'll trade you ASAP!!"

Friendly reminder, Peterka was also an RFA.

If they keep him on the 1st line he'll be somewhere around 40-50 points. One the third line, where he belongs, maybe 30-40 points. He's not a scorer, he's an undersized forechecking puck hound. He's good at it, that's his role. There is absolutely nothing tangible to suggest he'll ever be anything more than that.

ceiling McDavid floor Lafferty

A 10 goal 30 point winger on the top line? lol Put Tuch in Benson's spot on the 1st line, Zucker in Tuch's spot on line 2, and Benson on line 3 with Greenway and Kulich.