Nazem Kadri

Last Season

Sixteen goals and 50 points in 77 games — 41 points in 61 games for Calgary and nine in sixteen after arriving here. The minus-30 that appears on his line is mostly not this club’s: minus-27 of it came in Calgary.

The Finesse Game

Still a genuine offensive player. He shoots a great deal — 213 attempts is a top-six volume — and he has a heavy, accurate release from the slot. The hands work in traffic and he is comfortable making a play off the wall.

The production has come down from his peak without collapsing. Fifty points at thirty-five is a useful middle-six season and would look better on a team that was not being outshot every night.

The skating has slowed a step, which shows most in transition.

The Physical Game

Six feet and 185, and he plays with a genuine edge — he finishes checks, agitates, and has a long history of supplementary discipline that has cost his teams at bad moments.

The Intangibles

A thousand games, a Cup, and a reputation as one of the more disliked opponents of his era, which he has always seemed comfortable with.

At thirty-five, in a bottom-six role on a contender, the fit is better than the raw line suggests. What he has left is a heavy, competitive, moderately productive centre — and a plus-minus that needs the explanation above every time somebody looks it up.