Player Preview: Patrick Maroon

April 13, 2014; Anaheim, CA, USA; Anaheim Ducks left wing Patrick Maroon (62) moves the puck against Colorado Avalanche defenseman Nick Holden (2) during the second period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Weaknesses:

He’s not slow by NHL standards, but Patrick Maroon won’t be deemed anything more than average in terms of skating and speed. He’s also not a great puck-handler: while he can be effective at creating plays, Maroon’s point totals will always be limited by the fact that he isn’t as effective when he is skating with the puck on his stick. Maroon also is not a great defender. He needs to find more consistency at the NHL level: Maroon can fall into major scoring slumps and string together a stretch of unproductive games. The consistency is the major factor that is keeping him from being a mainstay on the top-six: Maroon can physically dominate opponents with his size and strength, but he has stretches where he can be practically invisible on the ice. He has been a big point producer at lower levels, but that production has not followed him yet to the NHL.