If that is the case, why didn't the 2004 draft turn out better?
Aside from Ovechkin (and possibly Malkin), the other 2004s would have had a tough time cracking the NHL immediately. They would have headed back to their junior clubs regardless of the lockout.
The OPs thought was that 2003 picks were 19/20 year olds that could have cracked their NHL clubs in limited roles in a hypothetical 2004-05 season. Ie, the Devils signed Zach Parise late in the 2003-04 regular season but didn't dress him in any playoff games (at the time, a lot of fans were clamoring for Parise to dress as a PP specialist).
Because of the lockout, Parise played in the AHL in 2004-05. For the first half of the 2005-06 season, Parise looked lost before he switched to wing. I can only imagine how bad he would have been if he had played in the NHL in 2004-05 instead.
Guys like Eric Staal, Dustin Brown, Patrice Bergeron, and Nathan Horton got the benefit of an AHL year after making the NHL in 2003-04.
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And getting back on subject.........Jessiman had a couple of nice shifts in the Florida/New Jersey game. Would be a nice story if he could earn himself a spot for the rest of the season.