go kim johnsson said:
probably. but Marc-Andre Fleury was the most overhyped player since Eric Lindros. Moreso than Ovechkin. Probably because of the media proclaiming him the answer to everyone's goaltender problems and the fact he was the only goalie capable going in round 1. Not only that but Pittsburgh can't afford him to begin with.
I dunno about Eric Lindros, GKJ. At the time the draft rolled, he was IMO the best prospect since Lemieux and nobody since then has matched that much surefire natural talent and upside. You don't see very often such a package of skills, size, speed and grit.
Considering how is career went, I'd say he lived up to the hype early on until maybe 24-26 when injury problems started becoming more of an issue. Up until a few years ago, he still had one of the top 5 ppg average in the NHL, I think. Above a great many people.
That's despite the fact he began his career just when defensive play became an issue and the goals per game were dropping league-wide.
Even today, if you pro-rate Lindros total numbers (including this year) you still get to 100 points per (82 games) season average for his entire NHL career.
Then you look at people getting excited when guys like Doan and Bertuzzi break out at 26-27 years old and it just confirms Lindros was a fairly special prospect who would probably dominate right now. Injuries have really destroyed what could have been a special career. In fact, I would say it was a great career early on.
Development is key but as far as raw potential at around 18 years old, nobody has touched Lindros for a long time. Not Thornton, Ovechkin, Kovalchuk, Lecavalier, Bouwmeester etc. Nobody.