Of course.Having 26yr olds that haven't made the nhl yet is not exactly a treasure trove.
Should be their NHL prime really. If they haven't made it yet, they're not that good.Of course.
What about a 23 or 24 year old?
I honestly don't give a hoot about how the Leafs are ranked on anyone's list. But Pronman is pretty up front about Matthews giving them a huge boost over his previous ranking (which I think he had them at 20 something).Matthews definitely brings the ranking up, but there is only one NHLer on that list. The rest are prospects. They have a solid prospect group that is only going to get better with a crazy amount of picks this year, including the highest one Dubas has had to work with as GM.
Most of them will be depth players, some overlooked Euros, and the odd late bloomer. Teams need depth and the ability to pluck the odd overlooked gem.Should be their NHL prime really. If they haven't made it yet, they're not that good.
Yet he's in the NHL and would've been in the NHLer earlier if he was Leaf property before last year. Because he's good at hockey. Unlike most 23-24 year olds who still haven't cracked an NHL roster.Mikheyev was 25 last October.
At this time last year, Mikheyev was in the pipeline but worthless according to you.Yet he's in the NHL and would've been in the NHLer earlier if he was Leaf property before last year. Because he's good at hockey. Unlike most 23-24 year olds who still haven't cracked an NHL roster.
Being stuck in Russia and just signed to an NHL contract is not the same as being cut from the same NHL team for the last 5 years like most 23-24 year olds who haven't made it yet.At this time last year, Mikheyev was in the pipeline but worthless according to you.
That too. Lehtonen in particular might be realgud. Dude is a superstar d in the second best league in the world. 4 points (3 goals!) in his first 2 games this season.They have other guys like Mikheyev in the pipeline though. Barabanov and Lehtonen.
I don't know who you are arguing with. The only person who said this bare thing around here was Pep, iirc.The point is, the leafs are stacked with young players. Unfortunately they just happen to be good enough to make the NHL so people think their "cupboards" are "bare." It's called having elite young talent instead of mediocre young talent. I'm honestly really glad they don't rank highly on the "prospect" rankings that don't include Lilly, Sandin, Matthews, Marner and Robertson because they already "made it."
I really like the way the Leafs are managing the pipeline. They're grabbing a lot of potentially overlooked/late blooming long shots and playing them in the AHL or ECHL. It provides quality for their minor teams and maybe the odd nice find, like Trevor Moore.