Quote:
Originally Posted by GoJetsGo
That sounds all fine and dandy... but are there any 5'6 all-world-skill types in this draft? I don't think so.
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5'10" Clayton Keller's skill level is
very high, he's been described by some as a Patrick Kane pure skill type and by others as a more Brendan Gallagher type gritty guy. He's even put up some pretty impressive 17-year old numbers in USNTDP:
Auston Matthews - 1.933 PPG
Phil Kessel - 1.780 PPG
Clayton Keller - 1.726 PPG
Jack Eichel - 1.642 PPG
Patrick Kane - 1.581 PPG
Matthew Tkachuk* - 1.477 PPG
James Van Riemsdyk - 1.267 PPG
Dylan Larkin - 0.933 PPG
*Tkachuk was 16 for some of that year, he's a mid-December birthday.
Quote:
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The problem with that is we already have a wide range of undersized skill players. Andrew Mangiapane fits your description to a tee and he's already in the system.
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What separates Mangiapane from, say, Mitch Marner, is everything Mangiapane did as a 17, 18, 19-year-old, Marner was doing as a 16, 17, 18 year old, where age relative to league is often an indicator of future success. Would you not trade Mangiapane + 6th overall for Mitch Marner in a heartbeat (If PLD were gone)? I would. Well there's a chance Clayton Keller is "that" kind of talent. I'm sure the scouts know what kind of talent he is.