Depends on what you think my argument is I guess then. Even though he won playoff MVP, I'm saying it wasnt that impressive for me, it didnt raise question marks I still said hes a solid prospect. but he needs to do more in Hamilton to jump from a 20th overall pick to a 9th overall prospect in the entire league over some of the other guys on that list. Had he kept up his production from London and finished the season on that kind of pace you might be able to convince me.
If you think its meaningless where hes ranked, thats fine. But dont come into a thread about rankings on a discussion board. Why do you think he deserves to be the 9th overall prospect in the league?
I wasn't interpreting your argument, I was quoting it. Your conclusion was that "after a weaker finish to his season it does leave some question marks", noting you're a big fan of finishing strong, hence why you're being hard on Thomas. All I did was point out that he was the playoff MVP, which seems to directly contradict what you're saying. But perhaps I'm wrong - maybe you do believe that his initial transition from London to Hamilton is more indicative of his potential than being MVP in the playoffs and leading them to a championship. That seems to be what you're getting at, but feel free to clarify.
I read the discussion board to see informed analysis and opinions on prospects, as I have for many years. Whether Thomas is 9th or 19th on a list isn't really what matters, the specific ranking is just for fun, but the exercise does sometimes bring about interesting discussion about a player's development, or the comparison between them. I wasn't intending to pick a fight on Thomas, I just thought your point - which I bolded - seemed to ignore/forget how he actually finished the season, which is as playoffs MVP.
As for my assessment, I think Thomas has developed considerably in the past year and not only has great tools, but is more advanced in some ways than similarly toolsy centres like Glass. Thomas has outstanding hands and vision, but has also improved his shot and finishing ability, which were question marks in his draft year. He's always making plays and creating offence, he can play with pace in transition or in-zone off the cycle, and transitioned well from a supporting role in London in his draft year to leading a team in his +1, hence the MVP award.
That being said, I'm not sure he is a future first line center, and he wasn't dominant at the WJC - although again, few on this list were. But you're right, that's something we would typically expect out of an elite prospect. But I think part of that has to do with the fact it's been a light couple of years for top end forwards, especially Canadians (see: Hayton, Barrett). I'm not sold on Tolvanen or Necas as first liners either, but they're 6 and 7 on the above list. It's a bit like the question of how many first line forwards are in the NHL - is it 93? Most would agree not.
