It think its interesting to compare Poirier to Markus Granlund. In the trade thread, many people concluded Granlund had "proved" he would never amount to more than a bottom line player in the NHL.
In this thread many people are preaching patience for Poirier.
Granlund is 22, about 20 months older than Poirier. But he has parts of two seasons in the NHL. If anything, he was further along in a trajectory to being an effective NHLer when he got traded. At 21, he was playing in the NHL.
I believe in patience for all these guys. Poirier needs to take a step next year for sure and at least be one of the better players on the AHL squad. Granlund may still turn into a very effective NHLer. With the Granlund trade, Flames get a little younger but are getting a prospect who is a longer shot at this point, IMO.
|