Quote:
Originally Posted by thefoss1957
If he is returned to Juniors, the Flames would be able to get a year for Monahan in a developmental league, while deferring the possibility of having to get into a bidding war for his 2nd contract by a year...not a cap issue, but, certainly a CASH issue.
Moreover, he is still a teenager, and a year of physical growth and maturity, while competing at a less physically demanding level, would have to be balanced against the physical and mental grind, and steep learning curve, of a full season in the World's most elite Hockey league.
I can understand how a conservative approach might benefit the Kid's long term development. But I can also understand Flame fans impatience to see the most talented possible roster possible in competition. If I was a decision maker for an NHL team, I would take a conservative approach with a 19 year old.
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Except I don't think Monahan has anything left to learn in junior.
So far, the deficient aspects of his game appear to be body positioning, faceoffs and adjusting to the speed of the game. Going back to Junior doesn't help him learn those things, playing against competent NHL'ers is where he will learn.
Toe-dragging around 17 year old defenders and roofing it on a 17 year old goalie isn't going to help him become a better player, it will just make him a flashier player. When he gets back to the NHL, he'll still have to work on those deficiencies I listed above.
Battling in the corners against the likes of Jason Garrison, Vlasic or Bryan Allen is superior experience than battling in the corners against Doug Blaisdell.
Some prospects benefit from that, but I don't think Monahan has anything left to prove in that league, he's an NHL'er
right now.