I dont really see how this could be conceived as anything but a good move for the Avs.
I like Saigeon, but he was drafted out of the 5th round as an overager, and even though he did have a great year last year, he was also 20. It's a difficult transition to go from Junior to the AHL and we have seen countless players with drafted higher and with more perceived upside than Saigeon struggle to ever make that transition successfully and ultimately fizzle out at the AHL level.
So to me this is a great way to keep the guy within the organization, give him a legit shot to play AHL hockey and prove to the Avs that he is a player worthy of an NHL contract and make him work hard to earn that potential NHL contract and a shot at an NHL career.
I think he has Bottom 6 forward upside, but there's also a very high chance he does nothing in the AHL this year and in that case this is a nice move where if things dont go well we saved ourselves some extra contract space in case we need it. And if things do go well it shouldn't be hard to get him signed to an NHL deal after this season.
I'm a little surprised Saigeon would go this route honestly but if he believes in himself and wants to stick with a potentially very strong organization to be a part of going forward(Even though our development track record is less than ideal) then it makes sense to bet on himself this way.
Saigeon was drafted right before entering his over-age season and was an Avs draft pick through the OA season between playing in Hamilton and Oshawa. Being drafted at age 20 gets brought up a fair amount among fans and media but very few understand the details as to why that was.
Coles notes:
- broke arm partway through first draft eligible season as a 17 year old.
- was mismanaged by new coach as an 18 year old for half a season often playing 3rd line wing or C, or scratched. Tore up the second half once he was managed correctly.
- before being drafted after his 19 year old season was often rotated between #1 and #2 C. Became a versatile C who had chemistry with anyone the coach paired him. Eventually was a mainstay LW beside Robert Thomas in the playoffs, and the 2 became setup guys for each other. Won OHL championship with Hamilton Bulldogs.
Longer version:
In his first draft eligible year, he was playing quite well and the development became very noticeable until he broke his arm (ulna and radius) after crashing into a goal post and was done for the season, which took over a year to fully recover. With the uncertainty of the recovery, and limited viewing as a 17 year old, he was passed on. After the draft, the Toronto Maple Leafs invited him to their development camp. For their blue vs white games, Saigeon was often used to take the faceoffs against Auston Matthews.
The next season as an 18 year old, Hamilton had a new coach who completely mis-handled Saigeon and was literally oblivious to his skill set. How that was possible is still beyond anyone’s comprehension since the coach didn’t even realize Saigeon played center. For the first half of the season Saigeon was plugged as a wing on the 3rd line (occasionally 3rd line C). The coach was oblivious to the type of center Saigeon was, or that he was a top face off guy. Saigeon was even scratched Saigeon on occasion. It wasn’t until halfway through the season, soon after the trade deadline, a media guy was having a conversation with the coach and the coach realized he had been handling Saigeon incorrectly (this was explained in better detail mid game during a home tv broadcast by the media guy). Since then, Saigeon was handled correctly and generally played second line C. This time the Edmonton Oilers invited Saigeon to their development camp after the draft.
As a 19 year old, Saigeon was often the second line C, and occasionally top C. He brought versatility because he had chemistry with any wingers he played with on a very deep team (Will Bitten, Matthew Strome, Nick Caamano, Arthur Kaliyev, Marian Studenic, Isaac Nurse, etc). When Hamilton acquired Robert Thomas, Saigeon played 2nd line C. Thomas had troubles finding chemistry and eventually Saigeon was tried as a LW with Thomas, which the 2 gained instant chemistry and were a solid pairing in the top line, and the RW was often Nurse or Strome. Hamilton then went on to win the OHL championship and a few weeks later he was drafted by Colorado.
If anyone is ever interested in looking up line combos, search Teri Pecoskie (from the Hamilton Spectator) on twitter, go to the media tab, and she posts line combos every game. It’s an excellent reference to search who he, or anyone else, was grouped with.
Just wanted to kind of clear the air since people just look at the surface and see X player was drafted later, and assume they must not be that good of a player. In many cases, there is underlying reasoning, which outside media and fans don’t realize, and the media often fails to research. All media need to do is pick up a phone and contact local media where prospects came from to get a better picture of players’ careers and development so that they can accurately report. All of this stuff about Saigeon is public knowledge as Hamilton Bulldogs fans saw it first hand until he was traded to Oshawa at the deadline last season.
