Matt Carle is probably the most underrated defenseman on the Flyers, if not the entire NHL.
No, I'm not crazy. Let's go back to my favorite thing in the world, math.
Who led NHL D-men in EV assists? Matt Carle, 37 (10 more than the nearest competitor, Brian Rafalski)
Who led NHL D-men in EV points? Matt Carle, 38, 2nd was Lubo Visnovsky at 37, but if you go by the ratio of EV points per EV 60 minutes played you see a more significant disparity
Lubo: 1.39 EV points per EV 60 minutes.
Carle: 1.51 EV points per EV 60 minutes
Even strength scoring is harder than PP scoring in that, a puck mover like Carle has a harder time finding open guys since 5-4 guarantees an open player, 5-5 does not. Now goals are a product of having a massive shot, something Carle doesn't have. He's a not a huge guy like Weber or Byfuglien or Chara or Pronger but he Carle's still solid there.
More importantly, Carle is solid defensively as well. His 157 blocked shots were good for 17th in the league, 2nd on the Flyers. Carle had 33 Takeaways, which equals Norris Trophy winning Nick Lidstrom's total in the same category. Since Carle's a finesse defender, and not a big-body hitter, it's impressive that he equals Mr. Norris-Lidstrom in the takeaway category.
Carle's inability to score on the PP was not a reflection of his lack of talent, but rather the unit he was with, the entire Flyers PP was a joke. So hopefully that changes this upcoming season with all the other moves the Flyers made. Because if it does, Carle could be an elite D-man in the league.
I have no idea why people wanted to trade him. He may have played poorly in the playoffs but no one played well.
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