Yeah indeed, I'm pretty sure that for the past three quarters of the CHL season he has led the whole league (nation wide I mean) in points per game with the obvious exception maybe of someone with a few games like 5 pts in 2 games or whatnot.
I'll have to copy/paste another e-mail I sent my father not long ago referencing some numbers and discussing the depth of the team... The depth over their 4 offensive lines is just mind-boggling... I really hope that come Memorial Cup time they are still in it so I can drive to Saskatoon to watch the games.
Anyway - I like that you ask that - about Giroux. When I mentioned him in terms of Giroux's last QMJHL playoff performance I was only talking in terms of productivity not play style, however I do think Drouin is very similar to Giroux as a player too.
For those that don't know:
Claude Giroux
007-2008 Gatineau Olympiques-QMJHL GP 19 G 17 A 34 PTS 51 +/- 33
It really was a sight to see... I almost didn't mind watching my life long favourite team getting swept in that series because of how incredible he was playing and how fun he was to watch.
I may be off base but from my obsersvations Drouin has very powerful legs. He isn't a large guy, and unlike MacKinnon he doesn't have as powerful of a center of gravity. He can toss his weight around a little but not a lot and at the NHL level it will definitely not be a strength. However, similar to Giroux his ability to protect in the offensive zone and maintain possession while players change, or players catch up into the zone, etc. is phenomenal despite lacking the big physical edge or board play.
The benefit of his strong legs is that he is a very explosive skater. That skating ability combed with his beautiful hands and high confidence allows him a good amount of breakaway opportunities. Or for example when breaking out of his zone he has the ability sometimes to skate around a defender towards the boards and cut back into the middle alone with the goalie. When he is there, his hands do the rest and he has a high likelihood of scoring.
I think the other big thing that really stands out about him is his release. He has a VERY quick shot release. He isn't exactly like Giroux but I think that would be one of the closest professional comparisons. The fact that he is a natural winger could also help him as I think there are more teams looking for quality wingers than teams looking for quality centers.
It's always so hard to tell but I have a feeling at the NHL level his team mates will be fairly important, or line-mates. If he were to play with poor line-mates I think he could put up respectable numbers but he would never be like a Nash or Kovalchuk who can play with nobodies and still amass points. He isn't a selfish player and like Giroux can score more than he does if he were to shoot more often instead of passing - not necessarily a bad thing mind you. Either way I expect he will fall into more of an offensive/play-maker forward role. He plays responsible defensively at the QMJHL level but he is on quite likely the best team in the CHL with a deep-line-up filled with players who are pretty well rounded. I don't expect him to be a defensive liability but I don't think he will excel in that area in the NHL either.
He seems to be a clutch player and step-up later in the season or as the games get more important. If anyone wasn't aware, when the Mooseheads staged their come from 3-0 games behind in the playoffs against Quebec last year Drouin scored their game 7 winner. I think that will happen again this year and transition into his NHL career as well.
MacKinnon on the other hand is a very well rounded player. He actually is very similar in height/weight right now to Drouin although his strength and weight are distributed differently and MacKinnon may end up growing more than Drouin. MacKinnon has improved his only real weakness of face-offs this year. I see him as more of a two-way fwd/power fwd. He shows no real remaining weakness and because he can play the body I think this is very appealing to scouts. His release isn't as good as Drouin's, nor are his hands. He isn't quite as fast either, at least not straight out of the gate. But if he continues to develop all areas of his game he will be a more complete player and I think he will be more like the previously mentioned Kovalchuk or Nash in that he could play on a very weak team and not have it make a big impact on his productivity. Both players have high hockey IQ.
It really remains to be seen but it is likely that MacKinnon finds more NHL success. Although Giroux was never expected to amount to much either (not that he found himself projected so high - but to be fair if it weren't for MacKinnon being on Drouin's team and Fucale as well, he likely wouldn't have gotten the WJC camp invite and generally wouldn't have as much notice taken of his abilities).