But the thing is, the bigger skaters the Flames drafted in 2021 are the ones who look the worst... Stromgren, Huckins, Whynot, Jordan, and Ciona all had really lacklustre D+1s (to say the least), significantly worse than Francis'. Whereas Coronato and Beck both look great.
Wouldn't be surprised if the Flames end up signing only three of their 2021 draft picks: the two small guys, and Sergeev. The others, like Francis, don't look like they're good enough. But the Flames' success rate has been much higher with smaller, skilled players.
I'm not saying Francis is a difference-maker but I think the Flames' past drafting methodology didn't need to change. The Flames were notorious for drafting big, low-upside players from ~2000–2014 and they were one of the league's worst drafting teams.
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