Player evaluation: O’Donnell

SEAN O’DONNELL
This season: 78 games, 3 goals, 12 assists, 70 penalty minutes, 18:44 average ice time.
The good: O’Donnell is a gritty, smart, responsible stay-at-home defenseman who provides counsel to his younger teammates off the ice and protects them on the ice with some physical play when things get questionable. O’Donnell’s minutes dipped this season, and he was even made a healthy scratch at one point, but the veteran did not become a distraction.
The bad: Human nature dictates that a 38-year-old player will slow down. The mistakes that O’Donnell makes on the ice are rarely due to mental errors or poor decisions, but are usually attributable to not being able to keep up with the pace of play. O’Donnell’s game has never been about offense, so he must be a positive player in his own end.
Going forward: O’Donnell is an unrestricted free agent this summer and will turn 39 in October. He’s a beloved, paternal figure and would seem to make an excellent coach one day. O’Donnell doesn’t seem prepared to stop playing yet, but will the Kings bring him back for one year, with the understanding that it might be a part-time role? It will be interesting to see.