Quote:
Originally Posted by MarkGio
Let's put this into context, shall we. Look at all the D selected immediately before and after Wotherspoon. Only Nesterov and Jokipakka and Manson have really established themselves from that draft. And look how much AHL time some of those guys had.
It's not like Wotherspoon hasn't had a lot of good AHL minutes. The guy was given top 4 minutes for the bulk of his AHL career, before Kylington, Andersson, Kulak and those guys came in. What more can he learn in the AHL?
At least he's making more money and practicing against NHL speed. As a stay-at-home, he needs to learn to close the gap against NHLers, block NHL shots, and get physical with big bodies. Practice is giving him that, even if he's not in games. The AHL is giving him limited amounts of that.
Besides, maybe the Flames don't think he's an NHLer, so at least he's getting paid whereas other potential NHL prospects are getting game time. Given his draft and how few defenseman there are, it wouldn't surprise me
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I agree with a lot of what you have said, I personally like the kid and see him as a decent 5-6 to start. He may not become an NHLer but let's stop wasting his time and everybody else's if he isn't and let's give the call up's to players who may benefit more, if Wotherspoon isn't one.
See what happen's but this season will be the inflection point where things go one way or another, hopefully in our favor for the sake of the team and the player. My take on this organizations lack of player development still stands though, Spooner or no Spooner. This goes back many years and doesn't appear to be getting any better.