Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperMatt18
For the last 3 seasons this team has had:
Lindholm: 5th overall
Monahan: 6th overall
Bennett: 4th overall
Hanifin: 5th overall
Tkachuk: 6th overall
Talent from the top end of the draft hasn’t been an issue for this team, and doesn’t guarantee success.
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That...
isn't the top end of the draft, though.
Lindholm and Monahan? The top end of that draft was MacKinnon, Barkov and Jones. Those two are a clear tier below.
Bennett? I love the guy but he was taken after Draisaitl and Ekblad. Even if he hits his ceiling in Florida, no one in 2014 would have said his ceiling would be on par with a Norris level defenseman or a Hart winning center.
Hanifin? In a draft with Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel? I'm not even convinced he's a better defenseman than Chabot, Provorov, or Werenski who were taken after him, never mind the actual top end of that draft.
Tkachuk? I love the guy but he was taken after Auston Matthews.
A team with Auston Matthews, Sasha Barkov, and Aaron Ekblad is far better off today, than the Calgary Flames. And that's still assuming we make the playoffs in the fluke year that was 2015.
THEN you add in all the talented other guys we've drafted, the Brodie, Gaudreau types, and you have a contender, probably.