Quote:
Originally Posted by TheScorpion
I'd be surprised. From my viewings, Ruzicka is big but slow, has poor defensive instincts, and floats. His overager OHL numbers were very unimpressive.
I'll take the established pro in Gawdin over the unconvincing OHL guy 10 times out of 10. Gawdin put up 0.6 P/GP in his first-year pro season last year at age 21. How is that not more impressive or indicative of impressive potential? That's more than what Phillips did.
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You can't just look at flashy stats. You need to look at the whole tool box and judge whether they have the ability to keep progressing. Sometimes a bigger player can't thrive in junior. When you are a man playing with kids, there is a tendency to hold back. Look at a guy like Lucic as an example. Chara is another. He looked pretty oafy in junior, probably because he didn't want to kill anyone.
Going by Stillman's assessment, it sounds like Ruzicka needs that next level to develop further. The fact the Flames signed him relatively quickly speaks volumes as well.