Summer 2014 Prospect Ranking Poll Rd8

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Gillies. He still looks like a #1 goalie of the future.

Ortio will probably be an NHL goalie, but I just get the sense he will be a very good backup rather than a starter, and that's still pretty good.

Reinhart, Jankowski, Arnold, Sieloff, and Kulak are all in the next batch for me, but not sure who exactly to pick next.

[cral12]

Originally Posted by New Era

Jankowski here. Big skilled center with the right attitude and commitment to getting better.

Went with the Big Jankowski as well. I'm hard on goalies in general but did consider Gillies & Ortio here as well. I almost went way off the board to be the 1st & only to select Brett Kulak here. I know - I admit I'm a little insane, maybe suffer from Rink-Induced Brain Freeze Syndrome, but I have been huge on Kulak since his draft eligible year - more than any other draft/prospect service/outlet out there.
Here was my pre-2012 Draft feature on Kulak.

Kulak will likely get my vote next rnd.

[Flames Fan, Ph.D.]

Ortio again. For whatever reason, I do think it important that he edge out Gillies. Ortio has definitely shown the right trajectory, and his stint in the NHL did show us something positive. I have to respect that.

[DOOM]

Reinhart!

Also would have Ortio over Gillies in the goalie race.

[edslunch]

Originally Posted by MarkGio

Fair enough. I suppose if I were to look at the development of bonafide #1 centres across the league. Or even look at the development histories of "best players in a draft", then I would say that Janko will have to make one helluva jump in his career to start being in the discussion of those comparatives.

I think had Feaster made lighter promises, Janko wouldn't be so contentious

How about we forget about anything Feaster or Weisbrod said about the kid, forget about best player in the draft or #1C, forget about the fact that that Flames traded down to get to him, forget about who they could have drafted instead - none of that is his fault - just focus on him as a run of the mill 21st pick. If he ends up being a serviceable, big, #3C who is defensively responsible then that's a decent result. You'd like more but have no basis to expect more.

Right now he looks like that #3C to me, which is fine, but wouldn't make him a top 10 prospect. I respect those who see more in him and hope they're right, but until he really shows it he doesn't have it. Reminds me of some of the Backlund discussion - great advanced stats but until he started putting points up it didn't matter.

Looking forward to the next season to see what he does.

[edslunch]

Ortio. He a break-through season IMO

[Fire]

At least it appears the goalies will get the #9 and #10 spots if Gillies can't win this one.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by MarkGio

Jankowski isn't putting up enough offense for me to consider yet. There was defenseman on his own team putting up more points than him as the 2nd line centre.

What are you talking about?

In two years at Providence, Jankowski has never been outscored by a defenceman. Last season, Jankowski was second in goals and third in points on the team. The only players ahead of him were their first line centre and first line winger.

Also, he put up those points despite having no real offensive support from his linemates.

[Sylvanfan]

I voted Reinhart, I think his intangibles and flexibilty to be used in many different roles pretty much make him a guy who will be in the league and play 500 games as a downside.

[Erick Estrada]

Thought hard about Gillies but really we still don't know what we have in him and if he will thrive in the NHL or even AHL for that matter. Reinhart has proven that he's one of the best players in the AHL so I have to go with him because he's completed the first two steps of junior and AHL.

[getbak]

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Originally Posted by getbak

The vote is close enough that everyone should vote Gillies so we don't have to look at this anymore. ^^^

[bubbsy]

not sure why, i voted reinhart yesterday, but today went with jankowski.

reinhart seems like a more sure-bet NHL role/depth player, but Jankowski still has all the tools and time on his side to grow and develop.

Voted for the top high-risk/reward guy left on the board.

[FlamesAddiction]

I went for Ortio.

I am still not sure about Reinhart.

It's really splitting hairs at this point though.

[Split98]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

I don't think so. Sieloff understandably will drop a bit this year because of his injuries and staff infection. He is a full year behind now, and will take additional time to re-track. There is still even the chance that he won't get back in line.

Very very true. He could still surprise us at camp though... right?

[Split98]

Originally Posted by New Era

With the depth of the organization and Sieloff's lost season I don't see show he should be in the top 15. He doesn't have high end upside and will still have to show he can compete at the professional level. I actually see Sieloff slipping behind the likes of Gilmour, Kanzig and Kulak. You have to acknowledge other players taking a step forward and Sieloff losing a season. He should tumble down the list.

Behind Gilmour would be such an upset. I'm still holding out massive hope he's right in thinking he's stronger than ever. Lost season will definitely hurt his progress, but there is definitely great potential there.

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Originally Posted by New Era

With the depth of the organization and Sieloff's lost season I don't see show he should be in the top 15. He doesn't have high end upside and will still have to show he can compete at the professional level. I actually see Sieloff slipping behind the likes of Gilmour, Kanzig and Kulak. You have to acknowledge other players taking a step forward and Sieloff losing a season. He should tumble down the list.

I don't think he'll tumble that far. Him losing a season to injury isn't the same as him having a bad season. He should remain one of our top defense prospects. He doesn't have high end offensive upside but he does have high end physical play upside which is still a unique and valuable commodity in pro hockey.

Should be interesting to see how his camp goes and his first real professional season. I'm sure a lot of us are still pretty high on him.

[Pierre "Monster" McGuire]

I voted Reinhart last poll, but decided to go with Ortio this time instead. Some of you convinced me a bit last poll about his ceiling. His scoring outburst may or may not transition to the NHL and he may only become a third line center.

On the other hand, Ortio was the best rookie netminder in the league last season. When he was with the Flames, the Heat struggled immensely. I've gotta go with Ortio.

For those voting for Gillies over Ortio, I'm a little confused by that. Ortio has done more in his career so far and has shown no indication he can't be an NHL player. Oh well, it's a good problem to have either way.

[AC]

I went with Jankowski as I think he still has a good shot at developing into an impact player. However any of Gillies, Ortio, and Reinhart are tempting as well.

Ortio looked great in his callup last year, we had heard Weisbrod call Gillies our best prospect last year, and Reinhart looks like he has the work ethic, determination, and skillset to be an NHL (though in what capacity is going to be interesting).

[Stupid]

I voted Reinhart for a second time.

It's been mentioned before but when has a guy who's shown as much as he has been our 8th or higher prospect?