Joel Quenneville understands that young players are not always going to be consistent in terms of their production.
But one thing he does not understand is a player who is not providing maximum effort every time he steps on the ice. When the Chicago Blackhawks coach looks at Nick Leddy, he sees a 23-year-old defenseman who is capable of taking the puck and skating with it on an end-to-end basis. His overall talent fits the Chicago scheme beautifully.
The Blackhawks want players who can get and keep possession of the puck and then create scoring opportunities. Leddy can do that, but he has not always played with the type of effort that Quenneville requires.
Leddy is a high-level skater who is capable of flying through the opposition and carrying the puck into the opponent's zone. Blackhawks center Andrew Shaw explained to Brian Hedger of NHL.com in 2013 what makes Leddy a player with special characteristics:
He's good at both ends of the rink and I don't think there's anyone in the league who can chase him from behind the net and keep up with him, ... Whenever I'm on the ice with him, I just give it to him ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Steve Silverman
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