- Rat Westwick is a marvelous pick. From what I gathered from last draft, he won't give you a lot offensively, but he was one hell of a competitor and a great PK'er. Anyone who put Rat Westwick on his 4th line will have a competitive edge. Why would I take Al Secord at 421 or John Ferguson at 427 when I can get Rat Westwick at 527?
Westwick should be able to contribute offensively. He was 2nd, 3rd, 3rd, 4th, 7th, and 8th in his league over the years. And this was before the days of "splinter leagues" - most of the top talent was in the AHAC, CAHL, FAHL, and ECAHA where he played. Some of the best were randomly scattered elsewhere, like Tommy Phillips.
As for his physicality, I think he's getting a lot of mileage out of the "rat" nickname as it makes you think of other players who were called that over the years. Ultimate Hockey calls him a fierce competitor but I have read the entire history of the Ottawa Organziation and they never wrote of him like that, saving those words for guys like Pulford, Smith, and McGee. I see him as a slippery, shifty scoring forward with some defensive ability.
Hossa's a terrific pick. Could somebody please explain to me how Mr. Inconsistency/Mr. Apathy/Mr. Non-factor (Kovalev) gets picked ahead of a guy like Hossa, who not only brings great offensive instincts, but takes good care of his own zone, and plays a good, but not overwhelming, physical game?
Victoria selects D Art Duncan
Superb pick.
Hossa's a classic example of what happens when a smart, gifted player is willing to work hard. Excerpts of his 1997 bio in THN's Draft Preview referred to him as a one-dimensional player who shied away from physical contact. In fact, scouts claimed they saw him deliberately avoid getting hit. Many said they wouldn't pick him. Following the 97 draft, the Ottawa Sun blasted the Sens for picking the soft Hossa over local product Matt Zultek, who had the size and speed that makes scouts drool, but lacked the other important pieces of his game.
Within three years, Ottawa fans knew that what they had in Hossa was a budding two-way star who wasn't afraid of physical contact at all.
There are still a couple scoring RWs out there better than Hossa. But he's good enough for a third scoring line, or even a two-way line or a moderately physical presence on the fourth line.
You said it. Hossa van do a little of everything in the ATD. He's physical; jsut not punishing.
Westwick was as tough as Secord and Ferguson. Secord was a better offensive player, Ferguson was the better fighter, but Westwick was the better competitor and beat both of them easily in term of playoffs prowess. When big games are on the line, I'll take Westwick over those two in any situation. Sorry to dish on your pick (I'll assume you selected Secord), they were just example I could of named 5-6 players in the same mold. It's not that Secord/Ferguson are bad picks, is that Westwick is an excellent selection and a stellar 4th liner.
I understand, but in my opinion, the difference between John Ferguson and Rat Westwick is like comparing Chris Chelios and Scott Stevens. Stevens might have been the more punishing hitter but that's beside the point: there's no situation or reason to select Scott Stevens ahead of Chris Chelios. That's my humble opinion.
You are right. These two always get selected far too close to eachother. this draft and the last are a nice change from the usual.
My biggest concern with Ferguson and Secord would be their skating, and whether they would have the hockey sense to overcome that. I'm not saying you need to be a great skater to succeed in the ATD. George Armstrong would be, at best, a below average skater in an ATD. But his top-notch hockey sense, instincts and anticipation, combined with his size and work ethic, more than overcome his skating deficiencies. (I have Chief Armstrong at No. 2 on my list for two-way line RWs).
But Secord and Ferguson's skating was, well, plodding, and their hockey sense wasn't great, either. Ferguson doesn't do it for me. I want all my forwards to be able to contribute offensively, and Ferguson just isn't capable of that. Decent skills. But outside of one year playing alongside Beliveau after expansion, there's nothing to give me reason to think that Ferguson could score at this level. As for Secord, love the combination of goal-scoring ability and toughness, but will he be able to keep up in his own zone with, say, Rocket Richard? Secord might be best served as a space-opener on a second or third scoring line.
I remember saying last draft that Ferguson is, in this context, a one-dimensional goon, the equivalent of a Boogaard in today's NHL. And yeah, everything you're saying about him is true. But, I should point out that he did have some goalscoring ability - he actually made the top-20 twice. You are right that a top-20 season alone isn't anything special (and it's not but as I said it can sure point out differences between players who otherwise look similar, remember Lanny and Markus?) but there were hundreds of players who played against Fergie who never placed that high, and thousands in history who didn't (Ron Francis, Trevor Linden, Kirk Muller, Slava Kozlov, Bobby Holik, Dale Hunter, Wayne Cashman, Keith Primeau, Alex Steen, Stan Smyl to name a few big names). This obviously also had a lot to do with his linemates, but he was must have been burying some chances.
You're still right about questioning Ferguson; I just wanted to correct what I said last draft.