QOTD (AHL Style): Who's more NHL ready Culkin or Wotherspoon?

[Bingo]

Wotherspoon looked great to end of last season, but had surgery, the Flames clearly had a development plan in store for him this year. Culkin comes out of nowhere and adjusts to the AHL over night.

If the Flames have to recall a defender to do more than watch from the press box (a guy like Russell or Wideman goes down), who gets the call?

[devo22]

very pleased with Culkins adjustment to the pro game, but I think Wotherspoon is further in his development and I expect him to get the call first and be close to a full time NHLer next season. But I hope they give Culkin a cup of coffee at some point this season too so that he can see what he still needs to work on.

[Pierre "Monster" McGuire]

Went with option #2.

Spoon's a steadier defender right now than Culkin. There's no question about that. His game will fit well on the big club because he's a very meat and potatoes guy. There's nothing overly complicated about the way he plays. He doesn't try rushing the puck, he doesn't wander too deep into the O zone. Everything's clockwork and calculated with Spoon.

Culkin's game, on the other hand, is what GMs want in a defender these days - a puck moving defender with good skating and size. I just think Culkin's style of game will take a little more time to perfect before he gets a cup of coffee. I'm astounded by his progression in the AHL. It's something I never saw coming. Every Flames fan should be pleasantly surprised by him.

[Roof-Daddy]

I think our D prospects are quite underrated by most fans, Flames or otherwise.

[Drury18]

Wotherspoon is the most NHL ready now. There's no two ways about it.

Culkin will probably be an NHL player in the future, but he's not NHL ready now. It's much like the Poirier situation where Culkin only has 27 games of professional experience. What he's showing this early on is promising and terrific, but it's not indicative of being NHL ready now. I have a feeling a call up at this point to play significant minutes would not end too well because of his inexperience. Finish the year in the AHL, see how he comes into Prospect and Rookie Camp and start making decisions next year about whether we want to test him in some big minute situations.

[Vulcan]

Wotherspoon and Culkin have comparable stats but unless I know how they are used, it doesn't mean a lot. I voted for the first choice as I've been impressed with Wotherspoon when I watched him in Abbotsford and in Calgary but it's a limited opinion as I haven't seen much of Culkin.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

I think our D prospects are quite underrated by most fans, Flames or otherwise.

it all changes over night if a Culkin or a Hickey becomes a 1/2 guy as a projection.

I think there are four or five solid prospects, but at this point it would be hard to call any of them as projecting higher than a 3, I think that's the biggest issue.

Sieloff, Rafikov ... 5/6
Culkin, Hickey, Wotherspoon 3/4

[Pierre "Monster" McGuire]

Originally Posted by Bingo

it all changes over night if a Culkin or a Hickey becomes a 1/2 guy as a projection.

I think there are four or five solid prospects, but at this point it would be hard to call any of them as projecting higher than a 3, I think that's the biggest issue.

Sieloff, Rafikov ... 5/6
Culkin, Hickey, Wotherspoon 3/4

Don't forget about Kulak who's doing very well in Colorado by the looks of it. I'd add him to that 3/4 category as well.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Pierre "Monster" McGuire

Don't forget about Kulak who's doing very well in Colorado by the looks of it. I'd add him to that 3/4 category as well.

I thought Ramage was going to be in that group as well, but he hasn't taken the step I thought he'd find from ECHL playoff success.

Doesn't Kulak staying in Colorado hurt his stock?

[Pierre "Monster" McGuire]

Originally Posted by Bingo

I thought Ramage was going to be in that group as well, but he hasn't taken the step I thought he'd find from ECHL playoff success.

Doesn't Kulak staying in Colorado hurt his stock?

I don't know. To me, you want the kids with the highest potential to be playing the most minutes, but at the same time have a sufficient balance between experience and youth in the AHL. That's why I think Kulak's in Colorado.

The kicker, the one thing I don't understand, is why they chose Kulak to go there rather than Culkin, Ramage or Sieloff. Why Kulak? I'm sure that's the question you're wondering as well Bingo. I wouldn't mind knowing why management made that decision.

[getbak]

I don't think there's anything negative about Kulak going to the ECHL this season. He's one of the youngest guys in the system playing North American pro hockey right now (only Monahan, Poirier, and Sieloff are younger), and he's only in the first year of his ELC.

If anything, I'd say it speaks to the team's trust in him that they knew they could send him to play in the ECHL, where he wouldn't be under constant supervision by the Flames, and know that he'd still commit to playing hard and working on his development.


I think they didn't send Ramage because he's in the final year of his ELC and they wanted to have eyes on him to know where he fits in the depth chart to determine where to go with him next year. What type of contract do they give him, how much do they pay him, and how long do they sign him for?

For Sieloff, I think it was again a case of wanting to monitor his progression this season after he missed so much time last year. Also, I think he was considered to be one of the players most likely to step up and get some time in the NHL this season, so again, he's a player you want to have close-at-hand if that time comes.

I think it came down to Kulak or Culkin, where one would stay in Adirondack and the other would get sent to Colorado. Culkin had the better start to the season, putting up a bunch of points just before Kulak was sent down.

I wouldn't be surprised if the plan was to swap Kulak and Culkin between Colorado and Adirondack during the season, but now Culkin has worked his way into the conversation for a callup and Kulak is playing well in Colorado. At this point, they'll probably just stick with what's been working.


They probably also didn't expect both Calgary and Adirondack to remain so healthy on the blueline so far this season. A couple of injuries and Kulak gets called up to the AHL pretty quickly.

[Enoch Root]

This one isn't close IMO. I chose the first option, but the second one applies as well.

Wotherspoon is an NHL defenseman waiting for the next phase of his progression.

Culkin is a good young prospect that has had a great start to his season and could turn into a real find if he can continue to progress.