Irving being drafted six years ago is not a huge strike against him. He was drafted the same year as Neuvirth, Varlamov, Steve Mason, Reimer, Enroth, Bachman, and Bernier. All of whom are considered to be young goalies if not essentially prospects.
From the following drafts, only these guys have played more NHL games that Irving: Allen York, Kevin Poulin, Anders Lindback, Matt Hackett, and Robin Lehner, of whom only Lindback has established himself as an NHL goalie, so it's not like there are a pile of guys younger than Irving who've blown the doors off the league.
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