Quote:
Originally Posted by ricardodw
Backlund was a thoroughbred... He was one of the best players in Junior when he was with the Rockets as a 19 year old. 13 goals 23 pts in 19 CHL playoff games. As a 21 year old (Janko's age) he had 25 pts +4 in 73 NHL games and was being pushed off the puck way too easily.
Not even remotely close to this point in Jankowski's career compared to 21 year old Backlund.
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That's not entirely accurate. Backlund was a bit of a disappointment when he first came over and then had a pretty good playoff for the Rockets. Jamie Benn drove the Rockets to the success they had, supported by the likes of Backlund, Tyson Barrie and Tyler Myers. There were higher expectations for Backlund in junior and he never achieved them. He also had some pretty high expectations on him in the NHL and he struggled to find his way early on as well, fighting inconsistency and injuries along the way. Backlund didn't really break out until he was 24, but then had a injury plagued year to follow that up. He's turned it around again this year and looks poised to set a career high of breaking the 40 point barrier as a 26 year old. Backlund's go has not been as good as you would try and lead some to believe.