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Originally Posted by GioforPM
No one wanted him at Selke level - just better. Most great players are pretty good two way guys. There are very few top level players who are crap defensively. Crosby is decent, Ovie is (when he wants to be), even Kane improved his d-zone play. Gaudreau has become pretty decent in his own end and at least tries hard. One dimensional players become Hall or Eberle or Kessell. To be effective in the NHL, you'd better develop some defensive awareness and effort.
Sven may not be Drouin, but your argument is exactly what Sven supporters were saying, right down to the ".5 PPG = top line".
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The main difference is that the argument didn't apply to Sven. Sven was nowhere near the talent level of Drouin offensively. Drouin is also better than Sven ever was defensively. Drouin is stronger on the puck, backchecks, and is capable of driving the play through the defence.
Drouin had also spent 1.5 years "learning the two way game" before he got fed up. It was also a process that none of the other high end draft picks in 2013 had to go through. Even all the way up to the #15 pick, the players were largely just given high end spots and opportunities.
It could be a function of Tampa going from being a low end to a high end team so quickly and having so many stars emerge.