Quote:
Originally Posted by belsarius
I think you hit the nail on the head as there really isn't any way to ever determine what is the right thing to do. Joe Thornton turned out just fine despite playing his rookie year on the fourth line of Boston getting 8 minutes a game. And there is no way to quantifiably say if he would be better or worse because of it. Just like there really isn't any way to blame rushing players on "rushing" them. It could be they just never had the ability to make the jump in the first place and would have spent their career in the AHL anyways.
It's great debate but it is the hardest part I think for GMs, there is no way to ever know if you made the right decision.
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Exactly.
That's why it's my opinion that if the player can play, you let them play. I wouldn't have a problem if Tkachuk looked too slow, too weak, and always behind the play, but he's not. If you don't think he's NHL ready, then unfortunately we have 3-4 veteran guys who also aren't, I guess.
You can't teach a player better than you can in the NHL. He's not going down to London and sitting after a bad penalty, or watching games from above to see how things develop. These are teaching moments, and their incredibly valuable. The sooner he learns to play the NHL game, the sooner the Flames are a step closer to contending.