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| Jason took Manhattan...that was about it. |
Stats/Season Summary: Chimera played in all but one game this year, in which he was a healthy scratch. In those 81 games, he tallied 10 goals, 16 assists, a -10 rating, and 64 penalty minutes seeing time on all four lines, but predominantly on the third unit. His form was either great or awful, as he struggled through a massive goal drought in the late winter that lasted almost two months, but also had stretches when he was producing almost a point every 2 games. Those hot stretches earned him a spot on the top line for about two weeks at one point, but Chimera never gained enough consistency to really make a huge impact on a nightly basis. He also struggled on defense, as evidenced by his poor +/- rating, the worst on the team. Grade: C
Role Play: Chimera has an excellent work ethic and is a great guy whose teammates love him, and for a third-liner, that is what you want. When George McPhee acquired him from Columbus last year, he did it to bring in some veteran experience in a player who can still score a bit, and that's what Chimera does. He uses his speed to create chances at times and can be a havoc for opposing defenses, but as I said before, he often does struggle in his own zone and can put his team behind the 8-ball defensively. For the most part, Washington needs more consistency and responsibility out of their 3rd line, however, despite his speed being an asset. Grade: C-
Playoffs: Chimera actually had a suprisingly productive playoffs for someone who was so unpredictable in the regular season. He played in all nine games, tallying two goals and two assists to go along with a -3 rating and two penalty minutes. Chimmer also scored one of the Caps' biggest goals of the playoffs, if not the biggest, when he used his speed to make Marian Gaborik panic and cashed a loose puck in double overtime in game four of the Rangers series to put DC up 3-1. He was good. Grade: B
Future Potential: Chimera is under contract next season, and there is no reason to believe that he won't be back for another kick and the can next fall. He's 32 years old, so he is moving out of his "prime" but barring some sensational camp from Cody Eakin or another prospect he should slide right back into his 3rd line role. That's fine with me, but he's not going to be a gamebreaker. Grade: C+
Here's some video of that GWG against the Rangers. Man, that was baller. Shame we had nothing left after that series, huh?
The next report card will be posted on May 23, and will feature goaltender Semyon Varlamov.
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