Quote:
Originally Posted by polak
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.
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I generally agree with this, but more to the bolded part it brings to mind the video that was produced by flames.tv which featured Tkachuk on draft day. In this video everyone can see that he is clearly a highly assertive, smart, confident kid who already exudes a tremendous amount of "leadership" and enormous respect among peers and also pro hockey personnel. I honestly think being "the guy" is extremely over-rated—especially so for this kid.