Quote:
Originally Posted by Lanny_McDonald
The last thing this team needs is another small player. Not really invested in anyone, but I want someone with at least NHL size. No more small to smallish players. Our minor league system is already stacked with small players and the NHL team is already too reliant on small players. We need some beef with talent and that can skate. Preferably right hand shooting beef that can skate. With that said, I fully expect the Flames to pick a 5'10 170 pound left shooting LW, because Flames.
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I agree, at least to an extent. Size and position are two things that should probably be considered. The Flames already have smaller guys like Gaudreau, Mangiapane, Phillips, Pettersen, Pelletier. The Flames deserve some credit, they're great a drafting and developing small wingers.
However, I'm pretty sure Pelletier is the only sub-5'11 player they've drafted in the first round in a very long time. He was a very late first. Guys like Gaudreau, Mangiapane, Pettersen and Phillips were all late picks. So I don't know if this part of your statement is true.
Finally, I think that with Sutter, size does matter more. I think this is especially true on the back end. Look at Tampa, small up front, huge on the back. It seems to work. Vegas is similar. I think size matters slightly more for defensemen. I'm not too concerned about drafting a smaller winger, because if they turn out to be stars, the Flames can just trade them. As long as the players are good, a surplus of high-skill wingers is a good problem to have.