Prospect Info: Capitals Top Prospects 2023 #1

[Calicaps]

miro not winning this is so hilarious, i swear no one here actually watched leonard play, dude is a total passenger with no ability to create offense on his own. 1 primary assist playing with 2 top draft picks is pathetic. drafting in the top 10 for grit in 2023 .

 

[Langway]

miro not winning this is so hilarious, i swear no one here actually watched leonard play, dude is a total passenger with no ability to create offense on his own. 1 primary assist playing with 2 top draft picks is pathetic. drafting in the top 10 for grit in 2023 .

1 primary assist all year, folks. 94 points, 43 assists. 42 apparently secondary. Try again.

 

[HTFN]

miro not winning this is so hilarious, i swear no one here actually watched leonard play, dude is a total passenger with no ability to create offense on his own. 1 primary assist playing with 2 top draft picks is pathetic. drafting in the top 10 for grit in 2023 .

This heel turn you're doing is unhinged and stupid, especially since I'm pretty sure scouts and coaches say he drove that line, not the other way around. Did you watch him?

 

[usiel]

miro not winning this is so hilarious, i swear no one here actually watched leonard play, dude is a total passenger with no ability to create offense on his own. 1 primary assist playing with 2 top draft picks is pathetic. drafting in the top 10 for grit in 2023 .

Please watch...

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Please watch...

It will be fun with him and Wilson in the same lineup. Keep your head up

 

[Carlzner]

I don't understand how you can watch that and be more into some spreadsheet readings instead.

He plays with pace and very clearly has a knack for finding both open space and open shooting lanes... 3:15 is a pro level move.

Being a fan is supposed to be fun. The kid looks fantastic. Just be excited about it.

(Also - 3 Caps in the top 10 of some spreadsheet tracking 5v5 advantages created)

 

[Ridley Simon]

Don’t feed the troll, fellas.

 

[twabby]

The video suggests Leonard becoming a top 6 complementary winger, with a great case scenario of becoming someone like Brady Tkachuk or Andrei Svechnikov. For #8 overall in this draft that's kind of a letdown to be honest.

Zach Benson, on the other hand, is described as a top line forward and playmaker with the ability to play Selke level defense and is described as a legitimate first overall talent in many drafts.



I can't help but feel a bit underwhelmed by the Leonard pick given the massive upside and playmaking of Benson. Leonard is almost certainly not going to be a bust, but for a team that will be starving for superstar talent in a few years they played it way too safe for my liking.

 

[Ridley Simon]

Ah yes. The “Benson Blunder”, as I call it. This smaller 18yr old is *markedly better* than that larger 18yr old. Because “REASONS”.

Perhaps Benson has a better career. But I’d wager the odds are probably a little larger that Leonard has the better career.

Your Benson love has blinded you, my good sir. I understand YOU like the flavour of Benson over Leonard, but that doesn’t mean everyone else does (or even a majority)

 

[twabby]

Ah yes. The “Benson Blunder”, as I call it. This smaller 18yr old is *markedly better* than that larger 18yr old. Because “REASONS”.

Perhaps Benson has a better career. But I’d wager the odds are probably a little larger that Leonard has the better career.

Your Benson love has blinded you, my good sir. I understand YOU like the flavour of Benson over Leonard, but that doesn’t mean everyone else does (or even a majority)

I think the calculus has to go a bit further than who is more likely to have the better career. Best-case scenarios have to be weighed and I think Benson’s realistic best-case scenario is way better than Leonard’s realistic best-case scenario, even if I accept than Leonard’s average outcome is better than Benson’s average outcome (and I don’t actually accept that premise either).

 

[Langway]

A Brady Tkachuk or Svechnikov--two top five picks--is a...letdown...at 8? Huh. In this draft. But only because of one player...that went five picks later.

If Benson was that great defensively Buffalo (or Winnipeg/WHL) are fools not to play him at center for the full Crosby Effect. Otherwise it's a bit of a waste. Where I think he fell was not so much size as skating and lower body strength at the moment. It separates him a bit from being an elite prospect compared to some of the strides Bedard made. He's still better than his junior teammate Savoie IMO but it does make him a little less projectable. He'll get there but four players were selected between Leonard and Benson. I would wager that if they were going to select anyone else it would have been Dvorsky so it's probably a moot point.

Leonard's defensive upside is IMO higher than Benson due to his advanced physicality/strength and his mentality. When the game is on the line you know he's in. Maybe they left some playmaking upside on the board but he was the best goal-scorer available and likely the most polished overall in terms of pro style.

 

[twabby]

A Brady Tkachuk or Svechnikov--two top five picks--is a...letdown...at 8? Huh. In this draft. But only because of one player...that went five picks later.

If this is the best case outcome for Leonard then yes, it’d be a letdown for me. Benson’s high-end comparable that I’ve seen thrown around is Mitch Marner and I’d take Marner over those other two with no hesitation.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Leonard looks like the type of player you would want on your team for a 7 game playoff series. We all know its a different game in the playoffs. Stat padding in a 82 game regular season gets you paid but to win in the playoffs you need guys that play D, hit, go to the net and do the dirty work.

I'll call in now. Leonard will score a OT playoff goal. He seems like a big game player. And I will point out the best goal scorer in NHL history Ovie has 0 playoff OT goals.

 

[crazy8888]

Leonard looks like the type of player you would want on your team for a 7 game playoff series. We all know its a different game in the playoffs. Stat padding in a 82 game regular season gets you paid but to win in the playoffs you need guys that play D, hit, go to the net and do the dirty work.

I'll call in now. Leonard will score a OT playoff goal. He seems like a big game player. And I will point out the best goal scorer in NHL history Ovie has 0 playoff OT goals.

Man oh man i hope to see at least one Ovi playoff OT goals before he is done. Especially at home, place would explode.

But its such a trivial stat though. Some of the best players in history have very little OT goals in playoffs. And then you have somebody like Verhaeghe who seems to score an OT playoff goal every season.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

If this is the best case outcome for Leonard then yes, it’d be a letdown for me. Benson’s high-end comparable that I’ve seen thrown around is Mitch Marner and I’d take Marner over those other two with no hesitation.

Don’t believe everything you read. Watch the kid play.

Leonard looks like the type of player you would want on your team for a 7 game playoff series. We all know its a different game in the playoffs. Stat padding in a 82 game regular season gets you paid but to win in the playoffs you need guys that play D, hit, go to the net and do the dirty work.

I'll call in now. Leonard will score a OT playoff goal. He seems like a big game player. And I will point out the best goal scorer in NHL history Ovie has 0 playoff OT goals.

He’s got a great handle, he’s shifty, can carry the puck with speed, and he’s gritty as F……how every Caps fan isn’t excited for this kid I’ll never know….I just wish he was built like Wilson instead of Oshie….

 

[HTFN]

Small sample but how you can look at this and say Leonard was the passenger on his line is beyond me.

 

[Misery74]

If this is the best case outcome for Leonard then yes, it’d be a letdown for me. Benson’s high-end comparable that I’ve seen thrown around is Mitch Marner and I’d take Marner over those other two with no hesitation.

It’s not exactly Sophie’s Choice, all really good players.

 

[Calicaps]

Don’t believe everything you read. Watch the kid play.


He’s got a great handle, he’s shifty, can carry the puck with speed, and he’s gritty as F……how every Caps fan isn’t excited for this kid I’ll never know….I just wish he was built like Wilson instead of Oshie….

He's still got some time to add weight, but agreed, bigger would be better. What I loved in that vid is the vision and anticipation, finding teammates all over the place and getting to where the puck is going before it's there. So excited for this kid.

 

[um]

If this is the best case outcome for Leonard then yes, it’d be a letdown for me. Benson’s high-end comparable that I’ve seen thrown around is Mitch Marner and I’d take Marner over those other two with no hesitation.

If Caps can find a player of that quality with the #8 pick it’s a home run. Even if Benson pans out.

 

[um]

nvm.

 

[sycamore]

Leonard is a soild pick and definite piece of the post-OV Caps. But he's only one piece, the first piece, the preliminary piece. Trust me, when OV breaks that record and then then rides off into the sunset, the Caps are going into the NHL wilderness for a long, long time. They are going to need some luck, high draft picks in deep drafts. Will BMac be the GM to do it? I don't know. He's been making some strange moves lately -- the Vrana trade for Mantha being the worst. His time in DC might be up.

My point is we need to temper our enthusiasm over Leonard a little bit. He's a great pickup at #8, one we didn't see coming (thanks Arizona and thanks Montreal), not completely dissimilar to the Filip Forsberg steal years earlier, but he's only the first piece of the puzzle. The Caps are going to have to lie in wait and hope they can snare that generational talent to complement Leonard in future drafts.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Leonard is a soild pick and definite piece of the post-OV Caps. But he's only one piece, the first piece, the preliminary piece. Trust me, when OV breaks that record and then then rides off into the sunset, the Caps are going into the NHL wilderness for a long, long time. They are going to need some luck, high draft picks in deep drafts. Will BMac be the GM to do it? I don't know. He's been making some strange moves lately -- the Vrana trade for Mantha being the worst. His time in DC might be up.

My point is we need to temper our enthusiasm over Leonard a little bit. He's a great pickup at #8, one we didn't see coming (thanks Arizona and thanks Montreal), not completely dissimilar to the Filip Forsberg steal years earlier, but he's only the first piece of the puzzle. The Caps are going to have to lie in wait and hope they can snare that generational talent to complement Leonard in future drafts.

His promotion/extension would seem to prove otherwise….

 

[JayBeagleFanAccount]

A Brady Tkachuk or Svechnikov--two top five picks--is a...letdown...at 8? Huh. In this draft. But only because of one player...that went five picks later.

If Benson was that great defensively Buffalo (or Winnipeg/WHL) are fools not to play him at center for the full Crosby Effect. Otherwise it's a bit of a waste. Where I think he fell was not so much size as skating and lower body strength at the moment. It separates him a bit from being an elite prospect compared to some of the strides Bedard made. He's still better than his junior teammate Savoie IMO but it does make him a little less projectable. He'll get there but four players were selected between Leonard and Benson. I would wager that if they were going to select anyone else it would have been Dvorsky so it's probably a moot point.

Leonard's defensive upside is IMO higher than Benson due to his advanced physicality/strength and his mentality. When the game is on the line you know he's in. Maybe they left some playmaking upside on the board but he was the best goal-scorer available and likely the most polished overall in terms of pro style.

delusional lmao. benson will be a bonafide top 6 machine while leonard will eba complementary middle 6 winger with 0 playmaking ability or offense creation. Benson is a perfect modern winger and leonard is a player stuck in the past. I wouldve preferred brindley/perron/musty/moore/gulyayev/benson over leonard easily. Tom Wilson has completly ruined the minds of this fan base

Small sample but how you can look at this and say Leonard was the passenger on his line is beyond me.

View attachment 740135

weak assist numbers, doesnt play well off the puck, low xp1 involvements. Ok he shoots a lot and gets pucks off the boards, not even remotely a top 8 pick

 

[HTFN]

delusional lmao. benson will be a bonafide top 6 machine while leonard will eba complementary middle 6 winger with 0 playmaking ability or offense creation. Benson is a perfect modern winger and leonard is a player stuck in the past. I wouldve preferred brindley/perron/musty/moore/gulyayev/benson over leonard easily. Tom Wilson has completly ruined the minds of this fan base


weak assist numbers, doesnt play well off the puck, low xp1 involvements. Ok he shoots a lot and gets pucks off the boards, not even remotely a top 8 pick

So that’s just… wrong. Playing off the puck is exactly why his shots are highest on the line and why his assist numbers are low, he finds soft spots to score.

His defense is best on the line (off puck) and his transition score is why his primary assists are so low.

Go back to the lab on this one, that’s all a crock of shit.

 

[Acallabeth]

Arguining about future of 18 year olds with 0 combined games against adult competition with such conviction is admirable. You guys are true experts.