Who should the Flames draft in 2014?

[MonahanTheMan]

Its exactly what you just said. You said he should spend 4 years in College. Ekblad would not be a project pick like Jankowski.

Looking at that again, I did admit that four years in college is extreme. If he doesn't want to spend time in college and opts for the CHL, that's fine. Just give him the time and move him up gradually.

 

[InfinityIggy]

We all want the same thing here, which is for Ekblad to be a successful player. While I have one interpretation, others have another. The reason I draw my line the way I do is because I see no harm in allowing him to continually move up the ranks of pre-NHL level hockey and be dominant at each level, whereas I do have a problem with only giving him a single year of development. I just don't want to risk it, and I don't see how playing it safe is going to hurt us.

Again, to clarify, I am not saying he should stay in junior for six years or something, I'm just saying he should be slowly eased up the ranks until he is truly NHL-ready.

You keep saying "move up the ranks". Ekblad has already commited to the CHL route, he wont be going to college and will likely:

A) Finish his second year in the OHL (this year) and then play in the NHL (next year).

B) Finish his second year in the OHL, play another year in the OHL, then play in the AHL.

C) Finish his second year in the OHL, play another year in the OHL, then play in the NHL.

The ranks are OHL > AHL > NHL. So explain how you see him moving up those ranks for 6 years.

 

[MonahanTheMan]

You keep saying "move up the ranks". Ekblad has already commited to the CHL route, he wont be going to college and will likely:

A) Finish his second year in the OHL (this year) and then play in the NHL (next year).

B) Finish his second year in the OHL, play another year in the OHL, then play in the AHL.

C) Finish his second year in the OHL, play another year in the OHL, then play in the NHL.

The ranks are OHL > AHL > NHL. So explain how you see him moving up those ranks for 6 years.

I advocate the B strategy with a fourth year of about 75-25 between the AHL and NHL before making a full debut on the fifth year. I never said six years, and if I did, I've changed my mind.

 

[Turboed]

Just as a heads up Ekblad wouldnt be eligible to play in college since he has played in the chl. As soon as you commit to a team in the chl you lose your ncaa athletic eligibility. If im not mistaken though Ekblad would be able to jump straight into the AHL?

Per AHL By-Laws, the age limit for eligibility to compete in the American Hockey League is 18 years or over, on or before September 15 of each season of competition.
http://theahl.com/faq-p137653

And Ekblad will be 18 when drafted. A year in the ahl then up to the big club would most likely be sufficient I would think. No sense in keeping him in junior the year after he's drafted.

 

[MonahanTheMan]

Just as a heads up Ekblad wouldnt be eligible to play in college since he has played in the chl. As soon as you commit to a team in the chl you lose your ncaa athletic eligibility. If im not mistaken though Ekblad would be able to jump straight into the AHL?

Per AHL By-Laws, the age limit for eligibility to compete in the American Hockey League is 18 years or over, on or before September 15 of each season of competition.
http://theahl.com/faq-p137653

And Ekblad will be 18 when drafted. A year in the ahl then up to the big club would most likely be sufficient I would think. No sense in keeping him in junior the year after he's drafted.

I wasn't aware about the CHL vs college rules when I made my initial post, so that clarifies things. Additionally, I'd forgotten he came into the CHL younger than everyone else, so he's had more development time. In that case, given the rules we have to play within, I'd say two years in the AHL is fine, or some extra time in junior as long as it doesn't hurt.

 

[herashak]

doughty did perfectly fine. petro needed one more year in junior before he made the jump. ekblad is great defensively and physically mature if he isnt in the nhl by the 15/16 season i will be very surprised

 

[Anglesmith]

We all want the same thing here, which is for Ekblad to be a successful player. While I have one interpretation, others have another. The reason I draw my line the way I do is because I see no harm in allowing him to continually move up the ranks of pre-NHL level hockey and be dominant at each level, whereas I do have a problem with only giving him a single year of development. I just don't want to risk it, and I don't see how playing it safe is going to hurt us.

Again, to clarify, I am not saying he should stay in junior for six years or something, I'm just saying he should be slowly eased up the ranks until he is truly NHL-ready.

It's like picking fresh fruit. Sometimes, I can get extremely juicy and delicious-looking peaches, but they need to ripen on my kitchen counter for a little bit of time. If I find a large, juicy peach that seems ripe, however, leaving it for that same amount of time on the counter does not lead to the best fruit-tasting experience. Eating peaches before allowing them to ripen can be a raw deal, but conversely, taking too much time to sink your teeth into a peach can end up souring the experience altogether.

 

[MonahanTheMan]

It's like picking fresh fruit. Sometimes, I can get extremely juicy and delicious-looking peaches, but they need to ripen on my kitchen counter for a little bit of time. If I find a large, juicy peach that seems ripe, however, leaving it for that same amount of time on the counter does not lead to the best fruit-tasting experience. Eating peaches before allowing them to ripen can be a raw deal, but conversely, taking too much time to sink your teeth into a peach can end up souring the experience altogether.

Oh, great, now I'm hungry, too.

 

[Turboed]

Realistically flames management would be able to make an informed decision after he played in his 9 games. I know I know small sample size, but it should tell if he should/could stick in the nhl that year, or if he needs to wait.

 

[Turboed]

Aaron Ekblad is the obvious choice for Calgary. They have the most goals scored against them the last few years. their defence is terrible. It's great to have offence but look at Washington. they score a lot of goals but don't get anywhere in the playoffs because they can't defend. Defence wins championships. WHEN Calgary finishes last and wins the lottery they should take Ekblad. if for some reason they don't pick 1st overall, go ahead and take Reinhart... No Way the Flames get a chance at McDavid in 2015

Why do the Flames not have a chance at McDavid? While they should be improved a little in 2015 with Sven being more mature and developed what exactly is going to cause calgary to be so much better in 2015. I don't want to see them in the basement for an extended period of time but lets be realistic...

 

[InfinityIggy]

I advocate the B strategy with a fourth year of about 75-25 between the AHL and NHL before making a full debut on the fifth year. I never said six years, and if I did, I've changed my mind.

So you think he should spend 3 years in the AHL then?

1 Year OHL, 3 AHL + 25 NHL Games then NHL fulltime...

Show me 1 top pairing D who spent 3 years developing in the AHL.

 

[Anglesmith]

Why do the Flames not have a chance at McDavid? While they should be improved a little in 2015 with Sven being more mature and developed what exactly is going to cause calgary to be so much better in 2015. I don't want to see them in the basement for an extended period of time but lets be realistic...

No way, in my opinion, that they step downward between next season and the one after. Even if we trade Squids and Gio during this season, we should be able to replace those guys by the 2014/15 season, in my opinion, either from within the organization or from the outside. I also believe that there will be other teams who will rebuild harder than we do with McDavid as the motivation.

 

[Turboed]

So you think he should spend 3 years in the AHL then?

1 Year OHL, 3 AHL + 25 NHL Games then NHL fulltime...

Show me 1 top pairing D who spent 3 years developing in the AHL.

Technically Keith had 4 years development after he was drafted. 1 year ccha, 1 year in the dub, and 2 years ahl.

I think you're being a little hard on him. I understand why he's saying to develop him until we know he's ready. Look at Fowler and Myers who have arguably regressed. Phaneuf has some problems with foot speed.

His argument makes sense for most d-men, but Ekblad may be so mature by the time he's drafted he would be the exception not the rule.

 

[MonahanTheMan]

Why do the Flames not have a chance at McDavid? While they should be improved a little in 2015 with Sven being more mature and developed what exactly is going to cause calgary to be so much better in 2015. I don't want to see them in the basement for an extended period of time but lets be realistic...

Nobody has a good chance at McDavid - even the worst team in the league is only going to have a 25 percent chance at drafting first.

 

[InfinityIggy]

Technically Keith had 4 years development after he was drafted. 1 year ccha, 1 year in the dub, and 2 years ahl.

I think you're being a little hard on him. I understand why he's saying to develop him until we know he's ready. Look at Fowler and Myers who have arguably regressed. Phaneuf has some problems with foot speed.

His argument makes sense for most d-men, but Ekblad may be so mature by the time he's drafted he would be the exception not the rule.

Keith was a project pick at the time though, I am talking about a highly touted prospect, like Top 10.

No one is saying an extra year or possibly 2 is a bad idea. 5 however, is ridiculous.

 

[slappipappi]

Considering we don't know where we will be drafting, nor do we know what any players will actually do over the next year, this is a very senseless poll.

I asked my son if there could be a more senseless question that this one, and he said 'Who should the Flames draft in 2015?" I guess he is right.

The better question might have been "Who do you think will end up the better player long term?"

 

[MonahanTheMan]

So you think he should spend 3 years in the AHL then?

1 Year OHL, 3 AHL + 25 NHL Games then NHL fulltime...

Show me 1 top pairing D who spent 3 years developing in the AHL.

That's not what I said, I said two years in the OHL, two years in the AHL. If necessary, one year in the OHL, two years in the AHL. And the second year in the AHL is going to be about a quarter NHL. This is not unreasonable, I don't see why suggesting a longer-term development strategy makes me Hockey Hitler.

By all means, if he is ready, bring him in early. But I seriously, seriously doubt that nearly any defenseman is totally ready right off the bat.

 

[Anglesmith]

Considering we don't know where we will be drafting, nor do we know what any players will actually do over the next year, this is a very senseless poll.

I asked my son if there could be a more senseless question that this one, and he said 'Who should the Flames draft in 2015?" I guess he is right.

The better question might have been "Who do you think will end up the better player long term?"

Agreed. It's ridiculous thinking we can predict who's going to be around at 30th overall.

 

[Anglesmith]

That's not what I said, I said two years in the OHL, two years in the AHL. If necessary, one year in the OHL, two years in the AHL. And the second year in the AHL is going to be about a quarter NHL. This is not unreasonable, I don't see why suggesting a longer-term development strategy makes me Hockey Hitler.

By all means, if he is ready, bring him in early. But I seriously, seriously doubt that nearly any defenseman is totally ready right off the bat.

It just doesn't make sense to force this dichotomy of ready-now or ready-in-a-few-years. Just look at Monahan. He might be ready this year. He might not. He probably doesn't need 2 more years in lower leagues before the prime-time, even if he isn't ready this year.

 

[InfinityIggy]

That's not what I said, I said two years in the OHL, two years in the AHL. If necessary, one year in the OHL, two years in the AHL. And the second year in the AHL is going to be about a quarter NHL. This is not unreasonable, I don't see why suggesting a longer-term development strategy makes me Hockey Hitler.

By all means, if he is ready, bring him in early. But I seriously, seriously doubt that nearly any defenseman is totally ready right off the bat.

For a defenceman of his caliber it is unreasonable. For the millionth time NO ONE is saying he will be ready right off the bat. We're saying 4 more years in development leagues is not a good idea, as he will stagnate against his competition. He can only develop if he is challenged by the league he is playing in.

If he falters and can't play at the NHL level he will be sent to the AHL. Right off the bat saying he needs to play in the AHL until he is 22 doesn't make a lick of sense.

EDIT: Also, please don't play the victim. No one is personally attacking you. We are debating your opinion.

 

[Anglesmith]

If he falters and can't play at the NHL level he will be sent to the AHL. Right off the bat saying he needs to play in the AHL until he is 22 doesn't make a lick of sense.

I guess the OHL until he reaches AHL-eligible age.

 

[Turboed]

I guess the OHL until he reaches AHL-eligible age.

The way I read it he would be eligible as soon as he was drafted? The ahl website claims the minimum age is 18.

 

[Anglesmith]

The way I read it he would be eligible as soon as he was drafted? The ahl website claims the minimum age is 18.

How is this? I've always had the understanding that guys like Monahan would only be able to play pro in the NHL, and that the only place to send them down was back to junior.

I guess I'm about to learn something.

 

[slappipappi]

Agreed. It's ridiculous thinking we can predict who's going to be around at 30th overall.

Boom!!!!!

 

[Pirate King Luffy]

How is this? I've always had the understanding that guys like Monahan would only be able to play pro in the NHL, and that the only place to send them down was back to junior.

I guess I'm about to learn something.

You are right.