Quote:
Originally Posted by New Era
Completely different situations. Gaudreau was playing against men and racking up points in a way not seen since Kariya. Johnny Hockey was the best player in his league. Mangiapane wasn't even the best player on his team. I appreciate the enthusiasm but there should be some pumping of the breaks here, big time. The odds are pretty stacked against him, especially with Gaudreau on the team. The Flames have intentionally gone out to grab size. They want to get bigger, not smaller. Mangiapane will have to become the second coming of Marchand to have a hope. Only after proving he can do that in the AHL will he get a sniff. Again, things are stacked against the kid. Hope he proves himself quickly.
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Yet they drafted players like Mangiapane and Phillips. Interesting...
The situations are not different at all. The common statement was "Let's see Gaudreau do it against NHL defenseman". This statement holds true for small players no matter what league they came from.
I'm not saying they are the same caliber of player, but the statement is equally silly. You can judge players before they enter the AHL, regardless of their size.