Well it's also a matter of the fact that everyone on that list are prospects. It's an entire list judged by potential and uncertainty. I'm basing my claims purely on what he has done so far, and what he can become in comparison to the others on that list. It's not to say he's guaranteed to become a #1 defenseman, but it is to say he's just as (if not more) likely to become that type of potential than a fair number of those ranked in the top 25.
And what you said at the end is another thing. He is on NA ice for the first time. That is an added challenge that he has been able to overcome that these other guys have not had to face. They either are doing well on an ice surface they've been on their entire lives, or playing against competition far worse than Liljegren is currently facing. I always said I wanted Liljegren to be able to further develop his game defensively because it'll be a lot to handle doing that and getting used to the ice at once, but he has somehow found a way to do it.
And besides maybe Marincin, he has consistently outperformed every defenseman on the Marlies besides Dermott. I understand it is a team effort and stuff, but even talent wise the Marlies defense is one of the best in the league and being close to the best on is good at any age, never mind 18.
If you had him in the 30's or 28, vs. 25, that's nothing. There's not that much variance in that range, and really I would not be surprised if Button just picked out of a hat of certain names by that point, or went off of who had more hype.
