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I didn't even bother reading the FN article but from what we have seen and heard of the prospects, it hasn't been as good a year as last.

Sven - well we all know the struggles he's had this year. Maybe we were expecting too much of him?

Gaudreau - had a great WJC and solidified his spot as a top NHL prospect, but even he has had some struggles this year, especially of late. Maybe he's getting bored?

Jankowski - I think most expected the production he has so far. He's a long term project. It'd be nice if he started to produce more in the last half of his season ala Gaudreau. At this point, Jankowski is still a question mark.

Wotherspoon and Gillies - are probably the two guys who have shown the greatest improvement in their stock. Wotherspoon looks like a legit top prospect along the Scott Harrington mode. I'd argue if he was with any other team, he'd be getting more press and play but since he's a Flames prospect, he's ignored. What can you say about Gillies, the numbers speak for themselves.

Granlund - Numbers wise, his production has dropped, but that was to be expected with his brother moving along. I'm more encouraged by his WJC performance and the fact that he is now playing centre. Flames need to get him over to the AHL to see if he's a legit prospect.

Culkin and Kulak - Tough to gauge looking purely at stats. Brodie didn't really open eyes until his second training camp. Their numbers are generally on par with Brodie. I have watched Kulak a few times and I don't think he's a great prospect. He has size and average skating, but I don't think he's particularly good defensively and lacks hockey sense. Culkin was getting rave reviews early in the year, but his whole team has struggled.

Arnold - I think is a legit NHL prospect. He's not going to be a big scorer and will probably be a solid 3rd liner who puts up 15 goals/30 points consistently while being solid in his own end. The type of guy who could spend another year at BC and might be able to step into the NHL.

I think the prospects are doing okay this year but compared to last it looks bad because last year we had a lot of big numbers from guys like Sven, Johnny, Reinhart, Ferland, Granlund, etc. 3 of those guys turned pro (Ferland went back though) so it's reasonable to expect their numbers to drop.

At this point last year, I thought Sven was ready to jump in to the NHL and produce regularly and challenge for a Calder and I also thought Reinhart and Ferland would be good contributors in the AHL. Maybe I'll have to temper my expectations and be surprised next year.