Hickey was drafted way too high and then had his fair share of injuries ... plus the Kings had other young defensemen that passed him on the depth chart (Voynov, Martinez, Muzzin etc). He'll never be near as good as Alzner for example, but at least he has turned into a solid NHLer after all these years. Just another Islanders waiver reclamation project.
I wouldn't hold this pick against Futa though. The whole draft thing is such a long process, and there had already been the combine and probably a number of interviews before Futa joined. I doubt that the whole scouting department, which spends a whole year valueing draft eligible players, would change everything because of one guy who joins the team two weeks prior to the draft. I'd expect Futas knowledge and influence to really kick in for the first time in the 2008 draft.
|