ADAM LARSSON - Defenseman - 26 - $4.16MM Cap Hit - UFA in 2021-2022
LAST UPDATED 8/3/19
Like his teammate Mikko Koskinen, Adam Larsson is a lasting monument to former GM Peter Chiarelli's incompetence. Also like Koskinen, Larsson's reputation has been hijacked by the circumstances of his arrival in Edmonton, and his actual on-ice play aside fans and analysts alike have shown themselves to be unable to look at Larsson objectively, instead always viewing him through the lens of "he was traded straight-up for a Hart winner." If you expect performance from Larsson equal to the value Taylor Hall has as a player, you're going to be disappointed, and too many people are asked about Larsson and simply cannot say very much about his actual play, instead, they can only talk about how bad the Taylor Hall trade was. It's a real issue, because Larsson is actually a very good defenseman. He has great size, he's a strong skater, he can move the puck, shoot well, and perhaps most importantly, kill penalties. At this point in his career he can anchor a second pairing and fake top pairing minutes with limited exposure. He's a legitimate #2/3 defenseman, yet nobody can give him credit for it due to him being the return Edmonton got for Taylor Hall, a legitimate superstar. I choose to look at Larsson for what he can control, and that's his play on the ice. His status as the other side of one of the most lopsided trades in modern NHL history is irrelevant to me. New GM Ken Holland can't go back and change the past, so why would he look at Larsson as anything other than what he is on the ice: a capable minutes-eater/penalty killer. We, as fans, need to do the same.
Like his teammate Mikko Koskinen, Adam Larsson is a lasting monument to former GM Peter Chiarelli's incompetence. Also like Koskinen, Larsson's reputation has been hijacked by the circumstances of his arrival in Edmonton, and his actual on-ice play aside fans and analysts alike have shown themselves to be unable to look at Larsson objectively, instead always viewing him through the lens of "he was traded straight-up for a Hart winner." If you expect performance from Larsson equal to the value Taylor Hall has as a player, you're going to be disappointed, and too many people are asked about Larsson and simply cannot say very much about his actual play, instead, they can only talk about how bad the Taylor Hall trade was. It's a real issue, because Larsson is actually a very good defenseman. He has great size, he's a strong skater, he can move the puck, shoot well, and perhaps most importantly, kill penalties. At this point in his career he can anchor a second pairing and fake top pairing minutes with limited exposure. He's a legitimate #2/3 defenseman, yet nobody can give him credit for it due to him being the return Edmonton got for Taylor Hall, a legitimate superstar. I choose to look at Larsson for what he can control, and that's his play on the ice. His status as the other side of one of the most lopsided trades in modern NHL history is irrelevant to me. New GM Ken Holland can't go back and change the past, so why would he look at Larsson as anything other than what he is on the ice: a capable minutes-eater/penalty killer. We, as fans, need to do the same.
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