Quote:
Originally Posted by gvitaly
I think Rasmus really benefited from being paired with Gio. I think it really helps prospects develop when they get to play with and learn from stars. That's why a part of me wants Gio back as a 6th/7th D next year, so he can help bring along the next young D.
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It's very hard to project anything as far as how any junior player or college player will react. These are kids who have had a whirlwind last few years as teens and get thrown in with men and a spotlight on them when drafted.
And each comes into different situations, with different NHL teams who focus on different things, or are transitioning. Each have different coaches at the AHL and NHL level, different cultures, different depth charts, have different rosters spots to fill, different line mates, and the coaches players, scouts, fitness trainers all have different opinions in the player as to where they are currently where they could end up and how they are going to get there...and have the same thoughts on the 50 plus players in the pipeline around the various teams.
And whoever's opinion wins out in the particular situation, can set that player up for success or failure or middling. And then a 21 year old with two years in the league after lighting up junior starts to doubt himself the first time, and then gets injured, and then never is the same himself and gets a different opinion from the new coaches that didn't draft him and the organization wants to go Ina different direction...etc etc
But for every player that loses out due to bad luck, someone else gets lucky and gains, so there's that too.
Martin St Louis wouldn't have won Stanley Cups or be the coach of Montreal if the Flames weren't a terrible team and took a chance on him after all other NHL and AHL teams passed on him. He almost quit as it is, but who knows where he'd be if he was stuck in the Detroit system in those late 90s when they were winning cups?
On the other hand, I firmly believe a guy like Yakupov, if not on the "throw them into the Lions den" approach Lowe and the Oilers took to top talent, with no organizational support and a dressing from void of any veterans to show him the way to be a pro, and had a proper organization/coach/assistant coach/GM assistant GM to humble him a bit right out of junior, could still be in the league somewhere.
So talent and skill can be there in junior, but there's a lot of life that comes at these kids quick when drafted, and a lot of luck and circumstance that comes into play with where they land and then where and how they get supported to progress from there.