I am still upset with Poirier not making it. It really is too bad that he went through what he did, and I really hope that for him, he is past it.
That was a fantastic pick by the Flames I thought, and his AHL rookie season was really, really good. I thought he was on the cusp of making the NHL, and I really couldn't figure out how high his ceiling was, but his floor was absurdly high I thought. I had him pegged at worst as a 3rd line winger chipping in offensively, physically, and being a PK phenom. Very versatile, and would add to the overall speed of the team. He scored some crazy highlight goals in Junior, but he was also a really solid defensive player. Halfway through his rookie season, I thought the Flames had something really solid to count on.
Good on Feaster for trying to move up in the draft and grab MacKinnon, but I've always wondered what it would take to move from 6th pick to the 2nd overall pick. I wonder if Florida would have bit on 6+22+28, or some combination. However, I don't think there is anything to complain about with Monahan. I am just curious as to what Florida possibly would have done there.
By the way, that's a good contract for the Red Wings. I wonder how quickly Yzerman rebuilds that team, and if he does AS good of a job as he did in Tampa. I always wonder how much of a difference a GM makes in the drafting and development of a team - or at least, how quickly he is to make an impact. Maybe Yzerman inherited some really good scouts in Tampa? Maybe he gives them direction? Maybe he is quick to identify poor scouts and replace them early? Will be interesting to see what he does there over the years.
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