Noah Welch: 3GP - 1G - 3A - +2.
Pretty good stats for a terrible team that was playing teams competing for spots in the postseason.
Three games is obviously an extremely small sampling to judge a young defenseman by, but Noah Welch showed me in those three games that he will be a top defenseman on this team in years to come.
The calm and control this kid had in the big leagues really was astounding. He made a few rookie mistakes, but that's what learning is about. To be a successful defenseman in the NHL, you have to take those bumps.
The Penguins have a few Dmen that are capable and still learning for next year. Hopefully Whitney can turn it around, hopefully Gonchar reaches some type of Enlightenment, because Scuderi and Melichar have been consistant for the majority of the year, especially post olympic break.
As I said, three games is a small sample, but Noah Welch reinforced the faith I had in leaving players in WB/S for long, prolonged stretches of time. He is the real deal and will be in the NHL next year as a solid body that really forces people outside.
Letang, Bissionette, Fernholm...
This team has some bright stars for Defense down the road.