I think some people complain about SoS because he isn’t flashy like Getzlaf, Kopitar, or 99% of the players on your list. He does his work quietly and seemingly without breaking a sweat sometimes. He is a rock. There are no question marks with SoS – and on a team with players like Wolski, Svatos and a million unproven young players, the team NEEDS somebody they can rely on (and not have to worry about). I gave him an A+ on his mid season report card and I stand by that.

Honestly, this is just a financial argument for what I have been saying. He is not a 9 million dollar player like Crosby. He is worth 6.6. I think with consistent linemates for the rest of the season, he’ll finish above 1.00 points per game.

For what they are paying him I think he should be putting up a PPG or a little more. I can understand that he’s getting the best D Pairing against him and I think with the emergence of Duchene as a pretty good 2nd center his PPG’s will be going up for the second half of the season.

SOS = 107
Kopitar = 146
Crosby = 188
Horton 125
Getzlaf = 105 (-4 games compared to SOS)
Koivu = 157
Malkin = 181

He is being outshot by a pretty big margin. I understand his role is a play maker, but sometimes the play is getting the shot off yourself. This is the only area I wish SOS would improve upon.

My main issue with him is…I’d like to see him put the puck in the net more.

I never used to think SoS was overrated, but looking at the stats actually make me feel like he’s quite expensive!

Very well done, Mike.

When you are taking the 3rd most defensive zone faceoffs of all forwards in the NHL and still put up good PPG numbers and +/- (yes its a basic stat, but Stastny has no right to be as good as he is in this regard), you have a two-way stud basically.

Look at the names above him, Richard Park and Marcel Goc. The next player that makes your list of comparisons as far as defensive zone draws is Weiss, who number of draws is 11% less than Stastny’s.

I like stastny, I just got a smurfish #26 jersey….but…He’s 27th in scoring right now, tied with a defenseman. I don’t think it’s too much to ask that he be in the top 10. When you consider how well he shoots (when he does) and how well he passes. The difference is about 10 points (put him at about 53-56 points). So I think my arguement it that Stastny is only earning about 90% of his money. Which when compaired to some of the stiffs out there is still pretty damn good.

I think part of it is that Staz isn’t flashy as some of his better-promoted contemporaries, and his contract was signed during a time when no one really saw the salary cap ever staying the same or going down.

The Stastny contract was market value (with the expectation that he may take over Sakic’s role during the life of the contract) when it was signed. Despite some marginally-popular opinion, we’re getting great value from Paul’s play, especially defensively.

What I think comes into play mentally for a lot of people, is that when they see a cap hit over $6 million, they immediately have visions of flashy star players and high-scoring wingers. If his contract was $5.9 million, I bet you’d never hear a single complaint about Stastny.

This is not to say that I think he’s overpaid (as noted above), just that his salary puts people in a certain mindset.

Is a total slouch. Look at those crappy numbers. We should trade for him just to help the Penguins avoid the embarrassment. He’s sooo overpaid.

But seriously, the thing that has most people up in arms about Stastny is that he seems to have hit his plateau. He’s not going to grow into a dynamic player that will fill the highlight reels. He’s a solid, play-making, two-way player who will anchor a solid scoring line for the next 12 years. If I had to compare what I expect his production to be to a past player, it would have to be Doug Gilmour, minus Sakic’s fist in his face. We can expect solid points every season, with the likelihood of a breakout season here or there, plus hopefully a strong playoff presence.

However, that point production could all change if we add Kovy to his line. Not hoping, just saying.

Do the SBN overlords choose what ads come up? Because if they do, having a goal-setting advertisement is pretty amusing.

6 Tops. I still think SoS is a bit overpaid.

Another intangible—he has no excitement around him. He won’t put butts in the seats. Maybe in a few seasons, but he’s just…boring. Don’t get me wrong, I love him, and I wouldn’t want him to leave the Avs, but he’s boring. It’s important to have that guy on your team that is a celebrity. Someone that generates a buzz. Nobody is going to talk about the Avalanche, and sellouts are going to continue to be scarce until one of their players transcends the team and generates buzz.

1 goal for the Flames.

Is it possible for folks to wait at least until the season-that-shall-not-be-named and the night-we-dare-not-admit-to-happening to be at least a bit behind us before we do the whole tar and feather routine on SoS? I mean, last season was atrocious and Joe just retired; don’t you think Stastny had a learning curve here just like the rookies did? Tne numbers will come; of that I have absolutely no doubt.

If he keeps making plays like he did tonight he’ll be worth every penny.