Finding Sutherby

A few days ago someone commented on the fact that because of a lack of offensive production, a player like Brian Sutherby is likely to be trade bait and should not be expected to stick around for more than a year or two. Whether that's true or not obviously remains to be seen, but before we completely write someone like Sutherby off I think this so-called slump merits another look.

To date, he has scored only 2 goals and has 8 assists through 39 games played. That puts him on pace for about 5 goals and probably no more than 20-30 points by the end of the season. Last year he set career marks when he scored 14 goals in 76 games and added another 16 assists. (Of course, up to that point his career had consisted of exactly 109 games with the Caps over three seasons, so career mark is definitely a relative term.)

So what's going on?

One potential problem may be the fact that he has been on a line with another struggling forward in Ben Clymer for most of the year. In fact, all three original members of the much-beloved CBS line from a season ago seem to be having difficulties in the offensive zone. It's hard to tell, between the injuries to Matt Bradley and the movement of Clymer from winger to defenseman and back again, whether the CBS line just needs to get their timing back or whether maybe their time as a line has run out.

It's very easy to look at the numbers, though, and assume that he's having an off year, that things aren't clicking. It's certainly not out of the realm of possibility to think that even with the overall success of the team so far this year, some guys are going to struggle.

The other possibility, though, is that Sutherby just may not be destined to be a goal-scorer. His job may be even tougher and less heralded by the media and fans - that of a solid, gritty checking line center who basically does the dirty work night in and night out. Every team needs these guys, the guys who go out there and bang the bodies around and get under the skin of the other team. We've seen it happen so many times that a solid shift like that can change the momentum of the game and often lead to a goal, or at the very least a scoring chance.

The real question becomes, how much does all of it matter?

The Caps currently rank 11th in scoring, have had fairly consistent offensive production from it's top two lines, and get the occasional goal and/or assist from the defensemen. Sure, it's always good to have more goal-scorers, but role players are important too and are so key to how the franchise is built. Is it too far-fetched to think that a guy like Sutherby could be just as valuable if not more so doing exactly what he's doing now, even if that means he finishes the season with just a handful of goals?

What he brings to the locker room and to the ice is leadership, which at such a young age is pretty impressive in itself. He's willing to step up with the occasional fight or just a good old-fashioned body check. He generates scoring chances. He's becoming a very good penalty-killer. His +/- is way down from last year. He's becoming a much more disciplined and even player, and has obviously matured since last season. Even without the offensive production, he's rarely had a bad game and seems to be clicking pretty well with Laich since Bradley's injury.

At this point it may be too early to tell one way or the other. I think we forget as fans that the development of players can take years. Not everyone comes out of the box ready to go, like an Ovechkin or a Crosby. Learning the intricacies and technical aspects of the game is a long process, yet we're often too quick to write someone off if they don't get it right immediately. You see it with someone like Eminger, as well, who everyone was picking on because of subpar play to start the year. But a few weeks of solid games later and one spectacular performance last night against Atlanta, and suddenly he's everyone's favorite guy.

Sutherby has only skated two full seasons with the Caps and has never played all 82 games. 2 of his 4 previous seasons consisted of 30 games or less, and he has only 5 games of playoff experience. So why are we so quick to throw him away for not scoring goals? If the Caps make some moves via the trade route, which we all know is still needed, I would rather see GMGM deal some of the prospects we've been piling up instead of someone who has built up some NHL experience and who has become a key element of the locker room.

Maybe Sutherby will pan out, maybe he won't. Maybe we'll see him at the podium in 5 years accepting a Caps jersey with a 'C' on it, and maybe in 5 years he'll be skating somewhere else.

The truth of the matter is that Sutherby, Eminger, and all the other little kiddies on the roster are still growing into their roles. Every game they learn something, every game they're becoming more of a team, and every game they're getting better.