My thoughts on this pick are these:
1) He has produced over a point per game in both of his first two seasons in the Q. That's a good sign. I also like his apparent confidence and drive to succeed. As much as I like to rely on the numbers as much as possible as someone who is mostly ignorant about the prospects, I think these two characteristics are important for success in life in general.
2) He was ranked all over the map by various scouting services. Two that had him ranked 14th include Edmonton radio personality and author for the Athletic Allan Mitchell (LoweTide) and Craig Button. Allan Mitchell's rankings are based on math as well as other things. Here they are:
https://lowetide.ca/2019/06/21/here-...draft-edition/. I was encouraged to see that some people had him ranked very highly. Future Considerations also had him ranked 20th and Elite Prospects had him ranked 23rd. Cumulatively, these rankings suggest this pick was not off the board even though other opinions had him as late as 40th (Pronman) and 43rd (McKeen's).
3) I wanted Arthur Kaliyev with the pick. However, when everyone else in the whole 1st round lets someone go by, there might be a very good reason for that. The smartest man in the room syndrome is definitely something to avoid. That said, you might also be looking at Alex DeBrincat. I would still be a huge fan of a move that saw the Flames moving up in the 2nd round to get Kaliyev.