Quote:
Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy
So does Fox qualify as "Blue Chip"?
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I think so. Remember the Justin Schultz sweepstakes? And the hype wasn't about his defensive prowess - it was his offensive game that had every team in the league excited to land him, and for good reason (5th in Dman points this year).
It wasn't until Schultz' draft+3 season that he put up the kind of offense that Adam Fox just did in his draft+1:
Justin Schultz
Draft+1 - BCHL - 49GP 15G 35A 50PTS
Draft+2 - WCHA - 43GP 6G 16A 22PTS (.51 P/G)
Draft+3 - WCHA - 41GP 18G 29A 47PTS (1.15 P/G)
Adam Fox
Draft+1 - ECAC - 32GP 5G 31A 36PTS (1.13 P/G)
And, for good measure:
Zach Werenski
Draft+1 - BIG-10 - 36GP 11A 25A 36PTS (1.00 P/G)
Fox doesn't have the size of Schultz or Werenski, but is that enough to drop him out of 'blue-chip' status? I don't think so - what Fox just accomplished this season is very special, and as far as size goes, guys like Letang, Ellis, and Krug (3yrs of NCAA, and never put up #s like Fox) are showing that sub-6' defenders can be elite in the NHL.