Jack Hughes or Alexis Lafreniere?

[IComeInPeace]

Jack is going to end up being every bit as good as he was expected to be when drafted, unless injuries prevent it.

It’s not a race. Disappointing rookie season. It seems like the Hughes kids have a great head on their shoulders to go along with the skills. I wouldn’t worry about him at all.

...although I’d love to see NJ panic and trade him to the Canucks.

 

[OKR]

Same problem as the greatest no.2 pick of all time it seems

That greateast no.2 pick of all time ain’t beating or being close to beating prospects superior to him in polls is he tho?

 

[goonybird]

That greateast no.2 pick of all time ain’t beating or being close to beating prospects superior to him in polls is he tho?

neither is this one

 

[Igor Shestyorkin]

I’ve always liked Jack Hughes as an elite prospect but Lafreniere has an argument as the best prospect since McDavid. Not saying he’ll be the best NHLer but best prospect? Probably right there with Matthews or Dahlin.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

I don't know, It may be garbage but at least they have more hardware then the jealous people across the river.

Really relevant these days as the Devils have basically become Sabres south.

 

[Xirik]

Really relevant these days as the Devils have basically become Sabres south.

Really? Having a great goalie but disappointing him each time in the playoffs cause everyone else sucks. Sounds like the Rangers are more Sabre-ish then the Devils.

At least Hasek was smart enough to be traded to a good team. Unlike a certain Queen of New York.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Really? Having a great goalie but disappointing him each time in the playoffs cause everyone else sucks. Sounds like the Rangers are more Sabre-ish then the Devils.

At least Hasek was smart enough to be traded to a good team. Unlike a certain Queen of New York.

Lol your team has won 1 playoff game in 8 years. That will hold true 2 years from now which will make it a solid decade.

Thats as Sabre esque as you can get. Hell you even hired their old coach!

 

[Crease]

Really? Having a great goalie but disappointing him each time in the playoffs cause everyone else sucks. Sounds like the Rangers are more Sabre-ish then the Devils.

At least Hasek was smart enough to be traded to a good team. Unlike a certain Queen of New York.

What's wrong with being a queen?

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

Really? Having a great goalie but disappointing him each time in the playoffs cause everyone else sucks. Sounds like the Rangers are more Sabre-ish then the Devils.

At least Hasek was smart enough to be traded to a good team. Unlike a certain Queen of New York.

QUEEN! I see what you did there! Oh! Oh! Do tell us how you come up with that comedy gold? QUEEN! I'm still laughing...you gotta warn us before unleashing the full fury of your humor. Whew. Queen. Hee hee hee! What a gift you have.

 

[goonybird]

He's not a king or queen because he has no rings to kiss

 

[STHLM]

He's not a king or queen because he has no rings to kiss

He can kiss his olympic and WHC gold medals though

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

A real NHL coach, and 3 1st round picks in a (supposedly) very good draft is a good start.

What is a real NHL coach? Ruff was awful as a defensive assistant, and somehow got a promotion to being a head coach. If you wanted a guy whose coached a lot of NHL games, he's done that, but a real NHL coach is someone who I would think would've earned his promotion.

Edit: I see someone already mentioned it. I guess we'll see how it goes for Ruff. I don't particularly think he's qualified to be an NHL head coach in 2020.

 

[CaptTennille]

Seeing as this thread was doomed to devolve into a NYR - NJD pissing contest from the start, I'll get the olive branch out and say that I think they will both be very good players.

I could easily see Hughes becoming a more important piece to the Devils overall with his skating and ability to drive transition at a high level, but I could also see Lafrenier becoming a guy who is able to do more damage when other teams are playing stingy post-season hockey with his ability to work in small spaces and his vision.

I don't see a situation in which one is head and shoulders superior to the other that makes either team lament their player.

 

[Nicomo Cosca]

He can kiss his olympic and WHC gold medals though

 

[2014nyr]

i don't see how...as an assessment of them as prospects, not a career projection, this isn't open and shut for lafreniere. the single most significant evaluation measure for me, especially for the high end draft eligible guys that participate..and i'd think most would say similar... is the world juniors. its the best of the best in the world for their age bracket, easily the biggest spotlight they'll be under to date, and also the only apples to apples comparison. middling performance doesn't indicate bust by any means, but its a pretty good indicator where they're at developmentally at the very least, and can reveal some red flags about overall ability to translate game to higher levels - not that i'd put jack in this group. hughes performance was just that...middling - 4 assists in 4. Not to say he didn't look good, able to control play and create at times, showed flashes of elite skill, but far from dominant while getting a big role on a loaded team. lafreniere on the other hand was the hands down best player on the best team and it wasn't close. he was physically dominant and certainly appeared to be a leader, if not the leader, of the team. offensively he was a machine. 10 pts in 5 games and it coulda been 20, he was in control of everything with the puck on his stick. the vision, puckhandling, playmaking, and shot were on display shift after shift. i don't see how its even in question he's the best prospect since mcdavid and the mix of that level of skill coupled with the aggression is rare...only current player that comes to mind is mackinnon - not a direct comparison in how they create, just in the context of having skill on that level while being that physical. thats really not because it looks like he'll be a ranger, no matter where he was going or what team hughes is on i don't know how you can question who's a better prospect. there's a million ways their careers can go and who knows what they look like in 10 years...but if the question is as a draft prospect who has the better resume and would be viewed as having the higher probability of becoming the more valuable player i'd be shocked if any team in the league wouldn't say laf in a heartbeat.

 

[Favin]

i don't see how...as an assessment of them as prospects, not a career projection, this isn't open and shut for lafreniere. the single most significant evaluation measure for me, especially for the high end draft eligible guys that participate..and i'd think most would say similar... is the world juniors. its the best of the best in the world for their age bracket, easily the biggest spotlight they'll be under to date, and also the only apples to apples comparison. middling performance doesn't indicate bust by any means, but its a pretty good indicator where they're at developmentally at the very least, and can reveal some red flags about overall ability to translate game to higher levels - not that i'd put jack in this group. hughes performance was just that...middling - 4 assists in 4. Not to say he didn't look good, able to control play and create at times, showed flashes of elite skill, but far from dominant while getting a big role on a loaded team. lafreniere on the other hand was the hands down best player on the best team and it wasn't close. he was physically dominant and certainly appeared to be a leader, if not the leader, of the team. offensively he was a machine. 10 pts in 5 games and it coulda been 20, he was in control of everything with the puck on his stick. the vision, puckhandling, playmaking, and shot were on display shift after shift. i don't see how its even in question he's the best prospect since mcdavid and the mix of that level of skill coupled with the aggression is rare...only current player that comes to mind is mackinnon - not a direct comparison in how they create, just in the context of having skill on that level while being that physical. thats really not because it looks like he'll be a ranger, no matter where he was going or what team hughes is on i don't know how you can question who's a better prospect. there's a million ways their careers can go and who knows what they look like in 10 years...but if the question is as a draft prospect who has the better resume and would be viewed as having the higher probability of becoming the more valuable player i'd be shocked if any team in the league wouldn't say laf in a heartbeat.

That is some cherry-picking. Take a look how they really match-up:

(1) At the 2017 World Hockey Challenge, Lafreniere scored 6 pts in 6 games as a 16-year old (1.0 ppg). Hughes, also a 16-year old, scored 15 points in same amount of games (2.5 ppg).

(2) At the 2018 World U18, as a 16-year old, Lafreniere, scored 6 points. Also as a 16-year old, Hughes doubled Lafreniere's point total with 12 and won tournament MVP

(3) At 2019 World Juniors, Hughes was hurt...played in only half the games (and not at full strength). Yet he still put up a point-per-game as a 17-year old. Lafreniere put up 1 assist in five games (0.2 ppg) as a 17-year old in same tournament.

(4) At the 2019 World Championship, Hughes scored 3 assists in 7 games as a 17-year old (and was player of game against Russian team whose youngest player was Mikhail Sergachev, who already had two full NHL seasons under his belt). Lafreniere was not selected for Canadian team.

(5) At 2020 World Juniors, Lafreniere's play as 18-year was dominant with 2.0 ppg and MVP honors. Hughes didn't appear because he was playing in the NHL.

There is no way any professional talent evaluator would take PLAYER A at his best international tournament and PLAYER B at his worst international tournament and make that judgment.

If Lafreniere were born a few weeks earlier and was included in the 2019 draft, Hughes still would have been #1. And the conversation would be Lafreniere vs Kakko at #2.

 

[abo9]

Jack is going to end up being every bit as good as he was expected to be when drafted, unless injuries prevent it.

It’s not a race. Disappointing rookie season. It seems like the Hughes kids have a great head on their shoulders to go along with the skills. I wouldn’t worry about him at all.

...although I’d love to see NJ panic and trade him to the Canucks.

It's not a race but I feel bad for Devils fans. They got 1st OA in the Hischier (2017) and Hughes (2019) draft, seeing teams pick Matthews (2016) and Dahlin (2018) so close to them, with Lafreniere potentially coming as a key piece for the Rangers (we will see how he does first though!).

No doubt Hughes can improve, and he might well become a star one day, but it must be frustrating/disapointing when comparing to other years. Heck, let's not even go into who got picked just a little after Hischier in that 2017 draft...

 

[Favin]

It's not a race but I feel bad for Devils fans. They got 1st OA in the Hischier (2017) and Hughes (2019) draft, seeing teams pick Matthews (2016) and Dahlin (2018) so close to them, with Lafreniere potentially coming as a key piece for the Rangers (we will see how he does first though!).

No doubt Hughes can improve, and he might well become a star one day, but it must be frustrating/disapointing when comparing to other years. Heck, let's not even go into who got picked just a little after Hischier in that 2017 draft...

Can't imagine NJD fans are disappointed in Hischier...the other considered option at the time was Nolan Patrick. Time will tell on Hughes and where we stacks up in his draft...only he, Kakko and Dach really played this year. So early to tell on any of these recent drafts.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Really outside of skating, I don't think Hughes has an edge on Lafreniere anywhere else skill wise.

That is some cherry-picking. Take a look how they really match-up:

(1) At the 2017 World Hockey Challenge, Lafreniere scored 6 pts in 6 games as a 16-year old (1.0 ppg). Hughes, also a 16-year old, scored 15 points in same amount of games (2.5 ppg).

(2) At the 2018 World U18, as a 16-year old, Lafreniere, scored 6 points. Also as a 16-year old, Hughes doubled Lafreniere's point total with 12 and won tournament MVP

(3) At 2019 World Juniors, Hughes was hurt...played in only half the games (and not at full strength). Yet he still put up a point-per-game as a 17-year old. Lafreniere put up 1 assist in five games (0.2 ppg) as a 17-year old in same tournament.

(4) At the 2019 World Championship, Hughes scored 3 assists in 7 games as a 17-year old (and was player of game against Russian team whose youngest player was Mikhail Sergachev, who already had two full NHL seasons under his belt). Lafreniere was not selected for Canadian team.

(5) At 2020 World Juniors, Lafreniere's play as 18-year was dominant with 2.0 ppg and MVP honors. Hughes didn't appear because he was playing in the NHL.

There is no way any professional talent evaluator would take PLAYER A at his best international tournament and PLAYER B at his worst international tournament and make that judgment.

If Lafreniere were born a few weeks earlier and was included in the 2019 draft, Hughes still would have been #1. And the conversation would be Lafreniere vs Kakko at #2.

This is a poor argument when you don't take into account who the players were playing with, what their respective roles were, ice time, etc.

Not that the guy you were responding to had a good one either.

 

[Rangerfan4life90]

That is some cherry-picking. Take a look how they really match-up:

(1) At the 2017 World Hockey Challenge, Lafreniere scored 6 pts in 6 games as a 16-year old (1.0 ppg). Hughes, also a 16-year old, scored 15 points in same amount of games (2.5 ppg).

(2) At the 2018 World U18, as a 16-year old, Lafreniere, scored 6 points. Also as a 16-year old, Hughes doubled Lafreniere's point total with 12 and won tournament MVP

(3) At 2019 World Juniors, Hughes was hurt...played in only half the games (and not at full strength). Yet he still put up a point-per-game as a 17-year old. Lafreniere put up 1 assist in five games (0.2 ppg) as a 17-year old in same tournament.

(4) At the 2019 World Championship, Hughes scored 3 assists in 7 games as a 17-year old (and was player of game against Russian team whose youngest player was Mikhail Sergachev, who already had two full NHL seasons under his belt). Lafreniere was not selected for Canadian team.

(5) At 2020 World Juniors, Lafreniere's play as 18-year was dominant with 2.0 ppg and MVP honors. Hughes didn't appear because he was playing in the NHL.

There is no way any professional talent evaluator would take PLAYER A at his best international tournament and PLAYER B at his worst international tournament and make that judgment.

If Lafreniere were born a few weeks earlier and was included in the 2019 draft, Hughes still would have been #1. And the conversation would be Lafreniere vs Kakko at #2.

I've heard otherwise that Laf would have been #1 pick over Hughes and Kakko last year and this year.

 

[abo9]

Can't imagine NJD fans are disappointed in Hischier...the other considered option at the time was Nolan Patrick. Time will tell on Hughes and where we stacks up in his draft...only he, Kakko and Dach really played this year. So early to tell on any of these recent drafts.

I know at the time it was a "Hischier vs Patrick" draft, but that was a shitty draft to get a top 2 pick *in hindsight* with the next 3 picks being superstars already and the two 1st OA in 2016 and 2018 being elite talents.

Hischier is a good player, and still very young, but he's not Matthews nor Dahlin good

As for Laf vs Hughes, I think it's Laf because in 2019 people made polls and he was already ahead of Hughes had he been elligible. Obviously he has not proven anything at the NHL level yet but he trended great this season again while Hughes looked like he was put in the NHL too fast.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

It's not a race but I feel bad for Devils fans. They got 1st OA in the Hischier (2017) and Hughes (2019) draft, seeing teams pick Matthews (2016) and Dahlin (2018) so close to them, with Lafreniere potentially coming as a key piece for the Rangers (we will see how he does first though!).

No doubt Hughes can improve, and he might well become a star one day, but it must be frustrating/disapointing when comparing to other years. Heck, let's not even go into who got picked just a little after Hischier in that 2017 draft...

While you are right that there weren't consensus elite players available in those drafts, I don't know why anyone would feel bad. There are many teams who don't win a draft lottery while rebuilding, let alone two of them. They also weren't required to take Hischier or Hughes. Hischier is a very good player, but they picked wrong in 2017. Thats on their scouts and management. Maybe Hughes will end up the best player in the 2019 draft, but they didn't have to take him #1 either.

 

[Favin]

As for Laf vs Hughes, I think it's Laf because in 2019 people made polls and he was already ahead of Hughes

I am not convinced that "people made polls"... are the best talent evaluators.

This is a poor argument when you don't take into account who the players were playing with, what their respective roles were, ice time, etc.

Not that the guy you were responding to had a good one either.

I agree! Its a poor argument...that is why I said no one uses single int'l tournament to judge a player....and if they did, they would get to a different conclusion. Hughes' int'l resume dwarfs Lafreniere's. But that doesn't guarantee he will be better NHL player. They will both be studs.

 

[golgoXIII]

Not close... Lafreniere by a mile 100% of NHL GM will take him before Hughes ... He is bigger, stronger, more clutch, playing a abrasive style of game winning championship probably a PPG player a 19 years old ... sorry Hughes lover but they are not in same category Hughes is more of a Ryan Hopkins 1b or elite 2nd line center

 

[Anthony5967]

I'm still searching for the perfect player comp for Lafreniere.