According to the projected opening night lineup tonight, Vesey will be “rewarded” from what was a relatively dreadful preseason with a firm spot on the second line. At first blush it seems like a massive oversight, and further proof the narrative of “David Quinn is going to make this 25-year-old player something better because he was from college and Quinn was a college coach” is more than just media fodder. That said, I think there’s something a little more complex to this.
What, exactly, can you do with Vesey? You don’t want to put him with Filip Chytil (currently on the third line with Jesper Fast and Ryan Spooner) and you obviously can’t have him on the first line.