Prospect Info: 2018-19 Prospects Thread II (CHL, NCAA, Junior A, Europe)

[MarkT]

I'm fine with Bowers continuing to develop in college as long as he's not planning to go the free agency route.

 

[VikingAv]

Incoming speculation/fear that he'll stay in school and be a Free Agent.

 

[Ararana]

Incoming speculation/fear that he'll stay in school and be a Free Agent.

Nah, Bowers could probably use another year ala JT Compher. Now if Makar goes back this board will melt down.

 

[cgf]

Not too happy with that unless the situation at BU is a lot more favorable to his development next year.

 

[Spleenless Wonder21]

Not too happy with that unless the situation at BU is a lot more favorable to his development next year.

I don’t know, given Colorado’s track record for player development, maybe it’s for the best?

In fact, perhaps they should consider a soccer-esque loaning layout, wherein we can ship our prospects to Ottawa’s, Tampa’s, Nashville for our defensemen, etc, farm systems, then take them back when they’re ready to play at the NHL level. (Massive sarcasm)

 

[Spleenless Wonder21]

As for Morrison, I’m just a fan, I’ve never played organized hockey, so I have little business opining concretely on his NHL ability. If he becomes a Josh Anderson (Columbus’, not Colorado’s) level pro I’d be thrilled. Not to say their player styles are carbon copies of each other, rather that he becomes a middle 6 guy who can spot fill in the top 6, chip in 15+ goals a year, be a physical pest, & provide a Holmström-like net front presence on the PP (though, his wrist shot is good enough he can rotate to the slot & be a threat from their as well).

 

[Hasbro]

Cam was a statwhacker pick right?

 

[AllAboutAvs]

Not too happy with that unless the situation at BU is a lot more favorable to his development next year.

Agree with this. If BU is going to be weak next year I prefer he goes to the AHL. If he is going to have good support then I'm OK with it. Not sure who have committed to BU yet so undecided at this point in time.

 

[Tralfamadore]

Bowers probably wants to prove he can be a more productive player in college and go the FA route to make money right away.

 

[Hasbro]

Makar's sophomore season may have made the Avs more amenable to players spending an extra year in college.

 

[Spleenless Wonder21]

He could also enjoy college & the camaraderie among his coaches & teammates. Coming back for another run at a championship might matter to him. He’s a sophomore, correct? If he returns for his senior year I’ll panic, well, that’s too strong. I’ll become concerned.

 

[Pokecheque]

Cam was a statwhacker pick right?

Why do you say that?

 

[Pokecheque]

Eh, if he wants to stay another year that's fine, if he does really well there'll be incentive on both sides to get a deal done and have him forego his senior year. It at least helps the Avs in that they don't have to worry about contract/cap space while he's there another season, and he'll continue to develop under someone other than the less-than-stellar developmental team the Avs currently have.

 

[Tralfamadore]

Don't blame him for wanting to stay. He hasn't dominated at the college level. Similar scenario as Makar after finishing his freshman season. Worked out well for him.

 

[Hasbro]

Why do you say that?

Going off memory.

 

[Hasbro]

He could also enjoy college & the camaraderie among his coaches & teammates. Coming back for another run at a championship might matter to him. He’s a sophomore, correct? If he returns for his senior year I’ll panic, well, that’s too strong. I’ll become concerned.

The good news is, he's part of the Halifax pipeline and Colorado represents a good opportunity and a team on the rise simultaneously.

 

[Avs_19]

Hopefully things improve at BU if Bowers really does end up staying. I'm a little surprised since there were even rumours he'd leave for the Q during this past season but maybe that was just BS.

Too early to worry about him leaving as a FA IMO. Plus, I don't think MacKinnon will let his offseason training partner do that.

 

[AvsCOL]

Yeah I don't see any issue with him staying at BU. He didn't dominate this year like most figured he could, and he'll still only be 20 this time next year with a full 3 years of ELC control. He seems to be making some big strides on the defensive side of things, so hopefully the offense comes through next year. NCAA > NHL is becoming a nice transition for guys who dominate at the college level.

 

[McMetal]

It's certainly surprising that Bowers is heading back, but considering that most of us figured he was tagged for the AHL anyway it's not a big deal if he goes back for another year to try and get his offense fine tuned. That's all he would be doing in the AHL anyway.

It's definitely a loss for the Eagles though, although on the bright side it gives Shvyrev an opportunity to take on a larger role at C on that team.

 

[Pokecheque]

Going off memory.

Okay, I honestly haven't heard anything about that but that's interesting to note.

 

[agentblack]

Bummer

 

[Balthazar]

Bowers probably wants to prove he can be a more productive player in college and go the FA route to make money right away.

That'd really suck but since he's now projecting to be a bottom 6er it wouldn't be the end of the world. His stocks dropped quite a bit this year.

 

[Ararana]

Does Makar watch start on Friday? dun dun duuunnnnn

 

[ljb4]

Questionable decision because I think he would likely still need to start with the Eagles after his Junior year just like JTC.

 

[cgf]

Yeah I don't see any issue with him staying at BU. He didn't dominate this year like most figured he could, and he'll still only be 20 this time next year with a full 3 years of ELC control. He seems to be making some big strides on the defensive side of things, so hopefully the offense comes through next year. NCAA > NHL is becoming a nice transition for guys who dominate at the college level.

Don't blame him for wanting to stay. He hasn't dominated at the college level. Similar scenario as Makar after finishing his freshman season. Worked out well for him.

Bowers doesn't have that kind of skill level to absolutely dominate the NCAA level & be the main catalyst to turning a team's fortune's around. He's just a piece of the puzzle & needs to be surrounded with talent to put up big #s at that level.

Which is why I think that whether this will be good for him or not will depend a lot on BU's incoming freshmen helping put more skill around him, and the coaching staff using their talent better. If those things don't happen we probably won't see much progress in his production, in which case I'd rather he start adapting to the pro game...

...unless they just don't think he could win a legit job in the AHL & would get the Shvyryov treatment if he was an Eagle next season...

That'd really suck but since he's now projecting to be a bottom 6er it wouldn't be the end of the world. His stocks dropped quite a bit this year.

Has it really? I don't think his stock has changed much at all. We all knew his production last season was due to being part of a successful puzzle & that his #s would drop off with all of the talent leaving Boston. On the plus side he's successful polished his defensive game about as much as he can at that level now, which is going to be a big part of any success he has a middle-6er/NHLer.