HFDevils *CURRENT* Player Rankings #5

[BenedictGomez]

The fact that people are saying he's already better than Zajac, Severson, etc blows my mind. Will he be? I sure ****ing hope so, but come on. Lets give it a little time.

That's because you havent seen him play.

If you watch this kid in game action for as few as 5 games you would say Hughes is already better than Zajac or Severson, and it's not even close.

Like, not even worthy of 4 syllables of debate close.

 

[Billdo]

That's because you havent seen him play.

If you watch this kid in game action for as few as 5 games you would say Hughes is already better than Zajac or Severson, and it's not even close.

Like, not even worthy of 4 syllables of debate close.

I have seen him play but I'll just agree to disagree on this.

 

[BenedictGomez]

I have seen him play but I'll just agree to disagree on this.

That's........ uh...... really odd then.

 

[Davegarri]

Bratt, add Simmonds

 

[Billdo]

That's........ uh...... really odd then.

It's odd to not anoint a child who has never played a single minute of a NHL game as the fourth best player on the current roster?

 

[devilsblood]

The fact that people are saying he's already better than Zajac, Severson, etc blows my mind. Will he be? I sure ****ing hope so, but come on. Lets give it a little time.

Do you just want to see him prove it? Or do you legit not think he is that good yet? And I understand there will be holes in his game as a young player, he will certainly not be the defensive center that Zajac is, but offensively I'm thinking he is significantly better then Zajac on game 1.

 

[devilsblood]

That's because you havent seen him play.

If you watch this kid in game action for as few as 5 games you would say Hughes is already better than Zajac or Severson, and it's not even close.

Like, not even worthy of 4 syllables of debate close.

It really only takes one game, like the WC game vs Russia, he's the best player on the ice, and there are All Stars and HOF'rs all over the place. Now it's smart to watch 5, just to be sure it wasn't just a one off, but at the end of 5 I know I was pretty confident in placing him 4th(I think I went 3rd actually) in this poll.

 

[Billdo]

Do you just want to see him prove it? Or do you legit not think he is that good yet? And I understand there will be holes in his game as a young player, he will certainly not be the defensive center that Zajac is, but offensively I'm thinking he is significantly better then Zajac on game 1.

I'd like to see him at least play a NHL game first. I have no doubts that by December he's probably right there but he hasn't even set foot on the ice yet. That's all.

 

[devilsblood]

I'd like to see him at least play a NHL game first. I have no doubts that by December he's probably right there but he hasn't even set foot on the ice yet. That's all.

I can see that rationale, but conversely if you think by December he'll be right there, then it shouldn't seem that crazy that people are voting him here. And that is how I approach, do I feel a little funny voting this high when he hasn't played a single game? Sure a little, but I also think by game 10 he will have proved himself. So why am I going to wait for what I think is sure to prove itself very early in the season?

 

[BenedictGomez]

It's odd to anoint a child who has never played a single minute of a NHL game as the fourth best player on the current roster?

It's not odd to, "anoint a child who has never played a single minute of a NHL game as the fourth best player on the current roster", when it's extremely obvious he's clearly one of the best players on the team.

It really only takes one game

Yes, but I was trying to be as polite & charitable as possible.

 

[My3Sons]

It's not odd to, "anoint a child who has never played a single minute of a NHL game as the fourth best player on the current roster", when it's extremely obvious he's clearly one of the best players on the team.



Yes, but I was trying to be as polite & charitable as possible.

I think in the world of opinion there are varying means of reasonable interpretation of terms like "best" and the like. In law there is a saying that "reasonable minds can differ". I understand the argument that Hughes will be a wildcard to some posters given the lack of NHL experience. We are solely evaluating a skillset that is not even fully developed yet. His future appears limitless but as always there are those that will question the translation to NHL ice until it happens. Even then, some will suggest that until a large enough sample size is reached the player is not afforded the status what he has shown to date might suggest (ex. Petterson this past year who started great and slowed down and has some detractors asking which version of the player is the real one).

All that said, it's more than fair for folks to assess players through their own lens which may not align with some others. I'm not really sure where to rank Hughes. Taking talent and projection into account he strikes me as the best player on the team. I think he will likely be better than Hall. This exercise can be tricky at times and can involve a bit of apples and oranges.

 

[None Shall Pass]

Yeah my argument against Hughes in this spot (Or this poll at all really) is that he technically hasn't made the team yet as hasn't played an NHL game yet. Of course, he will, and he'll likely live up to the vote, and will probably be higher in this poll next offseason. I'm just being extremely literal.

 

[devilsblood]

Yeah my argument against Hughes in this spot (Or this poll at all really) is that he technically hasn't made the team yet as hasn't played an NHL game yet. Of course, he will, and he'll likely live up to the vote, and will probably be higher in this poll next offseason. I'm just being extremely literal.

So then you won't vote for him at all this year?

 

[None Shall Pass]

So then you won't vote for him at all this year?

Nope. The only data we have is previous NHL seasons. Hughes has zero of them.

Also, since we're assuming that Hughes is making the team, then theoretically we should be adding Ty Smith and Boqvist to this poll too, right?

Just too much fuzzy logic.

 

[devilsblood]

Nope. The only data we have is previous NHL seasons. Hughes has zero of them.

Also, since we're assuming that Hughes is making the team, then theoretically we should be adding Ty Smith and Boqvist to this poll too, right?

Just too much fuzzy logic.

That's a good point, and I think we should include Smith and Boqvist. I'd say both guys are more likely to make the team then Bastian(who has played all of 7 NHL games) or McLeod, yet those two are on the list.

So I agree the logic is shaky but my remedy would be to include those guys as opposed to excluding them.

Edit: Smith is on the list.