All this talk of Duclair's speed makes you wonder if he might earn a bit of time with the Rangers next year if they decide he doesn't have anything more to learn in Juniors.
Yeah, and I am not saying that anyone is wrong, but I want to see it before I believe it.
Its a big jump from the Q to any other level.
To put it like this, from what I've seen from Duclair I am expecting him to be able to come in a player a good game in the AHL down the road, with hopes for him to just possibly even get into the NHL. That is good from an organizational point of view, because if you gather enough prospects like that like 10-20% actually become good NHLers. Callahan, Dawes, Grachev and Thomas are pervious players in this mold.
All those players needed a lot of time, and only one really became a good NHLer long term. Dawes made it but couldn't quite establish himself. Grachev and Thomas probably never will make it.
What we are talking about here is Duclair coming in way way way faster than any of those 4 names mentioned and doing a lot better than any of them. I've just not seen him perform in a way that makes me believe that is possible. But OTOH I've not seen that much of him.
I like Duclair better than I liked Thomas. I don't quite think Grachev got a fair shot at it, he went from playing with Duchene to playing for us under Torts "
its-forbidden-to-pass-the-puck-terror-regime", Grachev had awsome size and some talent. Was Russia's first line center in the WJC's. Before he got here, I always talked down the expectations on him. But I still believe that he ought to have potential in his body to play in the NHL in kind of a Benoit Pouliot role. So I am not quite sure on how to rank Duclair vs Grachev. Nigel Dawes was an amazing player in juniors, but its important to remember that he is a hard piece to fit into a puzzle in the NHL. A small sniper that wasn't much of a threat from a distance, that had little playmaking ability and wasn't that fast. All in all a darn fine hockey player though, awsome instincts.
What Duclair has is awsome wheels. But the overall level of shape players are in at this level can't just be compared to a junior league. That would undoubtedly stand out the minute Duclair hit the ice in the NHL. I would bet that he will need 2-3 of grate development and building up his body before he is ready to skate at this level. It would be amazing if he could come in and play a few games a early as next year, but I don't see that in the stars to be honest.
