Quote:
Originally Posted by Erick Estrada
I don't see a lot of evidence that fast tracking 18 year old players in the NHL is overly beneficial. Sure there's some elite players that were too good to play in junior but that's not the case here. We make fun of the Oilers for fast tracking every 1st round pick and I kind of feel there's really no good reason to have him in the lineup this season as just fitting in and not looking out of place on a team that's winless in three games isn't enough. Shinkaruk or Poirier would probably be better served getting that spot IMO.
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It's not fast tracking him when he fits in fine.
What is he going to learn in Junior? Going to hammer in an extra year of learning Systems, Coverage and Playing styles that are irrelevant in the NHL?
The only valid reason that has been suggested for sending him down is to have him be "the guy" in London. Is being "the guy" really that valuable of experience considering he won't be counted on to be "the guy" in the NHL for 5 years? It's not like 25 year old Tkachuk will look back on to that one year he spent in junior 5-6 years ago and remember all the "leadership" skills he learned then. He'll learn how to be a leader in the NHL by growing in a league where he is surrounded by leaders.
Add the fact that playing in the NHL will be better for his development in pretty much every facet outside of leadership exposure and I think keeping him up is no brainer unless he really starts to struggle, which he hasn't yet.