Though Baertschi has underwhelmed this past season, he is far from a bust at this stage. You don't trade him for another draft pick unless some team is prepared to offer a lottery pick for him.
I think Baertschi will end up being an NHL player - maybe even a very good one - but it is just going to take more time for him to find his game at the NHL level. To trade hoping to acquire a mid 1st-round pick is completely pointless. The Flames are not a team that is prepared to challenge for the cup in the next few years, so he does have time to develop in the system. Patience must be given to every pick the Flames make.
Also, you have to look at it in terms of the 'big picture'. While Baertschi could very well have been passed by a number of prospects in the system at the moment (Granlund, Gaudreau, Reinhart), he can very well end up passing these players in the years to come. Different players have different trajectories. He may end up busting outright, or he may end up being a franchise-level winger. At this point, his ceiling as well as his floor are just predictions. Being in a 'deep' system that the Flames have (and will be adding to in the next few drafts) runs the danger of having some notable prospects passed in the depth charts, but it also allows for better development as they are surrounded by more skilled prospects while developing. This is a huge boon to long-term development of all prospects.
|