[News] With the 21st overall pick Flames select C Mark Jankowski

[Senator Clay Davis]

The Dwight Howard comparision is wrong. Yes Okafor was a a potential number one, but not because he was viewed as close to the same player, but because he was the safest pick. In terms of talent, this wasn't even close between the two of them. Everyone saw the huge upside to Howard but of course with huge upside is huge downside. Centers are much more difficult to develop in the NBA (see Olawakandi, Michael and Milicic, Darko) as opposed to other positions which only increases the risk. A franchise center in the NBA is more akin to a franchise goalie in hockey. And Howard didn't get time to develop against lesser competition, it was right to the big show day 1. Obviously no way would the Flames do this to Jankowski.

I also think this kid has a whole lot more to develop over time than Howard did. Howard has only developped a limited offensive arsenal (within 12 feet, mostly back to the basket), because he doesn't need an extensive arsenal. Being 7 feet essentially allows him to keep his game within 12 feet because he's so physically dominant compared to other centers. Defensively obviously he simply needs to hang around the paint and opponents have to respect him.

To me the better comparision here is Manu Ginobli. The Spurs drafted him late in the 2nd round, stashed him over in Europe for a few years to further develop, then brought him over when he was ready to contribute. Jankowski's development is going to take 3-5 years, so he's a long term prospect whose best chance of succeeding will be to avoid playing for the Flames until he's 21-22.

[getbak]

Todd Button used to babysit Jankowski (per Fan 960 -- EDIT: maybe it was Mark's father that Button babysat since their fathers both worked together with Central Scouting).

NEPOTISM!!!



Funny story from Button talking about his brother Craig hyping up Jankowski too much in the media and trying to throw him off the scent so other teams wouldn't start paying attention to him.

[pepper24]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

Feaster says 10 years from now Jankowsi will be known as the best player in ths draft

Feaster will have been removed from the Flames for 8 years and Jankowski will be with another team lighting it. Besides that, he'll be right.

[DropIt]

Originally Posted by getbak

Todd Button used to babysit Jankowski (per Fan 960 -- EDIT: maybe it was Mark's father that Button babysat since their fathers both worked together with Central Scouting).

NEPOTISM!!!



Funny story from Button talking about his brother Craig hyping up Jankowski too much in the media and trying to throw him off the scent so other teams wouldn't start paying attention to him.

Ryan Jankowski is who he babysat

[getbak]

Originally Posted by DropIt

Ryan Jankowski is who he babysat

Yeah, I figured that out after I posted it. Make sense because of their fathers' shared history with Central Scouting.

[TopChed]

[getbak]

Originally Posted by TopChed

Mark Jankowski ‏@Janko61

Backlund welcomes him:

Originally Posted by @mbacklund11

@Janko61 @nhlflames welcome to NHL's best organization. ‪#FutureStar‬ ‪#NHLDraft

[flames_1987]

That doesn't fit the narrative either with Backlund speaking so highly about the organization. It's hell to play for and owners are awful and just want to win now.

[goodyear]

Originally Posted by Rerun

I think you guys that feel that drafting Jankowski was a total mistake should head down to the Flames head office Monday morning and apply for a job in their scouting or management dept.

Tell them all about your qualifications for the job.

You obviously feel you can do a better job than the current employees.

Let me know how the interviews go.

AND, Don't eat ethnic food before going.

[Textcritic]

I don't profess to know anything about assessing young players and projecting their future potential, but after a lot of reading and reflection after first learning who Jankowski was when the Flames announced his name yesterday, there is an awful lot to be excited about.

Read the scouting reports. They all practically rave about his hockey sense, his skating, his vision, and his hands. The only drawbacks that I have seen in virtually every report that I have read are first, concerns about the level of competition against which he plays, and second, the fact that he is still only 170 lbs., and not very strong or physical. Again, while I don't profess to know anything about projecting NHL potential in young players, this seems all exceptionally positive: if the biggest concerns about him are things that he can readily correct, then this is very encouraging.

Also, listen to the interviews. This kid is not even 18-years-old, and I am hard pressed to recall a time when I heard such a well spoken, intelligent, affable and confident teenage hockey player. I love the fact that he knows what he is good at, and that he knows where he needs to improve. I love the fact that he believes in himself, and that he aspires to make other players better with his play.

Finally, look at how far this kid has come in two years. From everything we have been told, the only reason he was not in the OHL was because of his small stature when he qualified for their priority draft. Both the OHL and the QMJHL have been after him now that he has sprouted, but what is really compelling is that he went from a virtual unknown to a concensus high-second rounder, and a possible first-round sleeper in the short span of a single season. His upward trend this year was probably higher than any other player in the draft, and that is a fantastically positive sign. Also, I am highly encouraged by how well he acquitted himself in the Beanpot showcase in the Winter, and by some of the very high praise that he is getting from USHL and College coaches.

Like I said, it is hard not to like this pick, no matter how far off the board it seemed yesterday when it was made. This is pretty exciting.

[Matty81]

I agree that being negative for negativity's sake is kinda pointless but at the Flames fans with the have faith in the braintrust they know better than you attitude after the last 6 or 7 years the franchise has been through. Fans have every right to analyze and trumpet or criticize deals and the Flames track record in the draft and trade market, if not the worst in the league is surely bottom 5.

What makes it even more funny is that if a guy off the street had walked into the Flames office and conducted the draft from red line reports for 10 years he couldn't have done worse than the old draft team, plenty of which are still there.

I like the change in direction and new leadership so far but if you're not at least a little pessimistic about the Flames after the last stretch, PM me as I have some awesome stocks to tell you about from my portfolio. Nowhere to go but up.

[JayP]

Originally Posted by moon

He joined the Bruins in September of 2006 so did he work on the draft for them before his hiring? and he was the director of college scouting is there college players out of that draft that I should be looking at?

I'd like for one of these "In Weisbrod we trust" fools to actually respond to these questions in detail for once. I've been asking the same thing for months and have yet to get anything more than "look at his resume".

It seems that everything the Bruins have done in the last 10 years gets credited to Weisbrod, regardless of any proof of his involvement or if he's even a part of the organization itself. We've already seen him get credit for Patrice Bergeron (2003 draft) and the entire 2006 draft in this thread and he wasn't even with the organization yet.

Since Weisbrod joined the Bruins (Sept. 2006 - 2007 draft would've been his first, but only as a scout) their draft record isn't anything to write home about. Only one full-time NHLer at this point and that is Tyler Seguin - a no brainer selection. Obviously it's too early to tell for a lot of these guys, but apparently we should be enamored with his drafting resume with the Bruins and just I don't see why.

It's fine to be optimistic about the guy, but the posts concerning him are exactly the "over-the-top" sort of stuff that the voices of reason around here claim to cut down.

[sworkhard]

[QUOTE=JayP;3760014]

Originally Posted by moon

He joined the Bruins in September of 2006 so did he work on the draft for them before his hiring? and he was the director of college scouting is there college players out of that draft that I should be looking at?/quote]

I'd like for one of these "In Weisbrod we trust" fools to actually respond to these questions in detail for once. I've been asking the same thing for months and have yet to get anything more than "look at his resume".

It seems that everything the Bruins have done in the last 10 years gets credited to Weisbrod, regardless of any proof of his involvement or if he's even a part of the organization itself. We've already seen him get credit for Patrice Bergeron (2003 draft) and the entire 2006 draft in this thread and he wasn't even with the organization yet.

Since Weisbrod joined the Bruins (Sept. 2006 - 2007 draft would've been his first, but only as a scout) their draft record isn't anything to write home about. Only one full-time NHLer at this point and that is Tyler Seguin - a no brainer selection. Obviously it's too early to tell for a lot of these guys, but apparently we should be enamored with his drafting resume with the Bruins and just I don't see why.

It's fine to be optimistic about the guy, but the posts concerning him are exactly the "over-the-top" sort of stuff that the voices of reason around here claim to cut down.

From my understanding weisbrod was mostly involved in college scouting and pro scouting, but didn't make the call on who was picked. For me te best indication of his resume is the trades they made and college guys hey signed. It was a team effort in Boston and weisbrod appears to have been a real jack of all trades with college scouting being his specilty.

[Itse]

I agree that from what I've looked, Weisbrods resume isn't for the most part anything special, at least not in hockey. There are certainly people in the business who think highly of him, but most of the comments have come from people within the Flames organization so it's hard to trust those.

That said, I've had an increasingly good feeling about what has been going on in the organization for a while now, and Weisbrod is certainly a part of that equation.

It might not be all butterflys and sunshine, but I didn't expect it to be.

[Rerun]

I think most of us are starting to see hope for the future. In the past, if we are honest with ourselves, we know we tended to draft "safe" players, who most likely would make the NHL but would never be an impact player. Its tough to make a silk purse out of a sows ear.

However, with the direction that the Flames drafting is now taking, by picking a few long shot "diamonds in the rough" we now have a chance at getting that impact player. Sure, some or all may turn out to be critically flawed... but there's a chance that one or two may turn out to be a real gem.

I think thats all we Flames fans really want. We'll never get the "sure thing/ can't miss" prospect because we'll never be drafting in the top 3... at least I assume we won't based on the way management is working on their "re-build".

I'm glad the Flames are taking chances. Whats the harm? Its not like we're a contender and it certainly doesn't look like we'll be one in the near future.

I say lets reach for the stars when we get the opportunity.

[Weiser Wonder]

He was a pro scout and then director of pro and collegiate scouting for the Bruins. He also has experience team building in the AHL and IHL. So he's more of a pro guy than an amateur scout. But he has about as good of credentials as you can get for pro scouting and team building so I think Weisbrod's opinion on Jankowski is as good as anyone's.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by Alberta_Beef

I read if hockey doesn't work out he wants to be a friar, so that might be the closest he ever gets to getting tail

apparently Friars is the team name at Providence College, man I missed the boat here

[Robbob]

Size, speed, and skill in one package. sounds good to me. I wonder if size was why they weren't so high on TT. I guess we will see in a few years.

[Vinny01]

Flames traded down only 7 spots to add that 2nd and apparently they likes Jankowski at 14 even so I am berry happy. If the Flames hit a homerun with Jankowski and Gaudreau it will result in an extremely bright future up front

[oldschoolcalgary]

high school football recruiting has an interesting way of considering prospects.

They look at kids with "ceilings" and "floors", where ceiling is potential and floors are the level of competition.

A guy like Yabukov for example is a high ceiling, high floor. Great top end potential against high end competition...that leads to the expectation that the skills will translate to the next level without much loss.

Jankowski, currently, is a high ceiling, low floor.

While I think most fans appreciate the fact that this kid has a very high ceiling, it is the floor that has most at a little concerned. Will Jankowski continue to dominate and put up ridiculous numbers against other NHL prospects?

Tough to tell right now.