Jake DeBrusk can be a uniquely frustrating player, and that very much is a compliment.
Ever since he broke into the NHL, the young winger has proven he can be an impact player in most every area of the game. But his streakiness can make him perplexing to watch sometimes, as his low points become all the more stunning when considering what his ceiling is.
The 2019-20 season, maybe more than any other campaign, has been the most topsy-turvy of them all.
He’s gone through offensive dry spells, followed by brief hot stretches. Once a staple on riding shotgun with David Krejci on the second line, DeBrusk, especially in the weeks leading up to the pause, saw himself get moved around in the lineup.
The end result was point production well below what he’s typically used to. His rookie season he had 43 points in 70 games, followed by 42 points in 68 games last season. In 65 games this campaign he was at 35 points, though just a goal short of reaching the 20-goal mark for the second consecutive year.
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But he’s gotten away from Boston, making his way back home to Edmonton shortly before Easter. And in that time he’s taken a broad look at his season to date — at times with the help of his father, ex-NHLer Louie DeBrusk — and wishes it could have gone better.
“It’s something that I strive for, something that every player in this league strives for is consistency,” DeBrusk said Wednesday on a conference call with the media. “I have watched my games, I’ve kind of taken a step back and looked back at my whole year. Being back home with my dad, he’s been all over me about it so I’ve been thinking a little bit more harder than usual, I guess. But to be honest with you I don’t know if I had a consistent stretch this year, looking back at it I don’t know if I really necessarily put a staple of my game into this year at all.
“It’s frustrating to say,” DeBrusk continued. “It just seems like production-wise and overall game wasn’t necessarily where I wanted it to be in a sense, and I understand there are certain elements that go into it — whether it’s being too hard on myself and eating myself alive at certain times — there’s different elements that pop up throughout the year that you look back on and maybe it affected your game. But overall I think that it’s almost a blessing in a way to have this time, because I’ve taken a step back to understand what kind of player I want to be in this league, what kind of player I can be.”
In a vacuum, a 35-plus point season for many would be considered a success. But there were far too many times that DeBrusk was a ghost, meaning his potential was a ways away from being reached.
But it doesn’t sound like he needs anyone to tell him that.
