This is precisely the problem with Leonard and really, the entire team. The NTDP has a highly refined process and has become extremely good at putting players in specific roles to make the most of their + talents and minimize or hide their - aspects. It's a machine that makes scouts jobs a lot more difficult.
You're basically looking for those instances and exceptions where a guy steps outside their given "role" to speculate and project what they'll do in a more traditional NHL fit.
It's the same thing with Moore. Is he just being held back offensively by his deployment as a 2nd line C and with lesser PP minutes? Or are they just maximizing his 5v5 utility and hiding his lack of real creative playmaking and offensive instincts? Perrault...is he really going to be a dynamic play driving offensive creator at the NHL level, or are they sheltering his lack of footspeed by pairing him with a Top-5 pick sort of offensive creator and floating his lack of footspeed with a really high end complementary player like Leonard?
It's murky. It relies on a lot of projection based on very small examples of stepping outside that intended realm. Picking out tiny instances where a guy did something that hints at more than their role within the highly structured NTDP context.
Yeah good point, but even in other leagues scouts encounter this problem, which is why they probably get to ask questions of the coaching staff. Moore for example, as you mentioned, at a certain point as GM/scout I wouldn't feel comfortable picking him unless I've talked to the NTDP coaching staff about the exact nature of his deployment. But the question with Leonard is much, much easier to answer than it is with Moore. IMO it's very clear that Leonard's IQ and playmaking are sufficient enough to at least reproduce his same role in the NHL to the tune of 25G, 35A, 60pts. Then you have the fact that he's a high end puck retriever and competitor. I think he's a slam dunk high end prospect
While here, with Moore I would want to hear from their staff that they coached him with at least a partial defensive/shutdown mindset and didn't exactly optimize his line for offensive production, the latter being somewhat obvious anyways
. I thought Moore looked much better with Eiserman. I also am led to believe that his tools, such as elite speed, have come on rapidly and recently, such that he hasn't had super amounts of time to put his whole game plan/mantra together in the OZ. Couple that with having linemates not conducive to high end production, and I'd be comfortable taking Moore as early as #7
