Rabid Ranger said:
What intangibles are those? Character? Work ethic? Leadership? Willingness to mow his grandmother's lawn? Since when has Schremp become the anti-Christ, or worse, Dan Cleary?
Whoa whoa whoa calm down cowboy, who said anything about Schremp's character, work ethic or anything like that? Lol, All I said was I like Ladd better. Here's a brief reason why and you'll notice it's not a slam on Schremp so much as a personal opinion.
I think Ladd does something that is seriously lacking in this years prospects, he goes to the net. I haven't seen one kid in this draft take a beating like Ladd has. I mean we all know how much of a jerk Phaneuf is in front of his net and through the season Ladd kept going right back to that net.
I was impressed with his defensive awareness, especially as a rookie. I was impressed with his ability to put the hitmen on his back when Getzlaf has been gone, and when they lost Segal.
I don't per say have anything against Schremp other then I can see him being hit or miss. I could see him turning into a solid top 6 NHL forward or I can see him just barely hanging on like Dan Cleary. The comparison comes in the sense that both have a ton of talent and exploded onto the scene as OHL Rookies only to plateau as sophmore's.
For what it's worth I like Ladd's size, awareness, and his willingness to work for his points and pay a price, something I honestly see missing in A LOT of this years kids and not just Schremp.
I'm the first to admit that there are guys with higher skill levels than Ladd, to say otherwise would be a mistake. I just think Ladd has a game that could potentially translate very nicely into the pro game. For me I think Ladd brings other things to the table that make up for him not having the skills of some of the other top talent. Though I also must admit I don't think Ladd is getting a fair shake on his talent either. He kept getting better as the year went on and his numbers were pretty dang good for a guy who "isn't on the level" of some of the other players. 30 goals, 75 points, 119 pim {a lot of em roughing and penalties he got while going to the net}.
Again for me it comes down to preference and I honestly like what Ladd brings to the table. Ladd impressed me, Schremp left me wanting to see more out of him.
Nothing to do with character issues or mind games. I just believe Ladd is going to be a very solid NHL player.