So, whats up with this kid?
He had one of the worst 2nd seasons for a first overall pick (at forward) we've seen in 20 years (only to be topped by Yakupov this year). Put up 4 goals in 40 games and only 24 points. It was an abysmal season offensively, but at least he was decent defensively.
So far this year his struggles have continued and seem compounded. Not only is he struggling offensively but his defensive game has been bad. Weak on the puck and making very poor reads.
Through 16 games this year he has 12 points and is -12. Last year the excuse was a bum shoulder. Well his shoulder is healthy now and he is still struggling to put up the points. He's on pace for an 20 goals and 60 points. One of the big reasons this team is struggling is that guys like Eberle, RNH and Yakupov can't put the puck in the back of the net. He hasn't scored a goal in 9 games. We can just call this a bad streak, but he couldn't buy a goal last year either. It's possible he just sucks at scoring.
Now 60 points doesn't seem terrible, but 3 years into their careers, 1st overall picks are supposed to be stars in the league. (This comparison is for forwards)
Hall: 50 points in 45 games
Tavares: 81 points in 82 games
Stamkos: 91 points in 82 games
Kane: 88 points in 82 games
Crosby: 72 points in 53 games
Ovechkin: 112 points in 82 games
Nash: 54 points in 54 games
Kovalchuk: 87 points in 81 games
Patrick Stefan: 23 points in 59 games
Lecavalier: 51 points in 68 games
Thornton: 60 points in 81 games
Daigle: 17 points in 50 games
You have to go back to Patrick Stefan for a 1st overall player who wasn't a PPG player in their 3rd season. Lecavalier and Thornton had similar offensive seasons as RNH is on pace for so there is of course some hope that he's just taking some time like these two. However, it is important I think to note that they were playing the early parts of the career during the dead puck era.
So what do we have in RNH? Is this a franchise player just waiting to bust out? Or is he trending more to be an okay 1st line center/elite 2nd line center? I'm not suggesting that he was the wrong pick, or that there was someone better, more just questioning what sort of potential he actually has. Because right now, flat out he hasn't been nearly good enough based on draft position and reasonable expectations.
It is concerning that with 3 first overall picks, Taylor Hall seems to be the only one who looks like full value, and even then, he's not really comparable to any of the guys picked in the 5-6 years before him.
He had one of the worst 2nd seasons for a first overall pick (at forward) we've seen in 20 years (only to be topped by Yakupov this year). Put up 4 goals in 40 games and only 24 points. It was an abysmal season offensively, but at least he was decent defensively.
So far this year his struggles have continued and seem compounded. Not only is he struggling offensively but his defensive game has been bad. Weak on the puck and making very poor reads.
Through 16 games this year he has 12 points and is -12. Last year the excuse was a bum shoulder. Well his shoulder is healthy now and he is still struggling to put up the points. He's on pace for an 20 goals and 60 points. One of the big reasons this team is struggling is that guys like Eberle, RNH and Yakupov can't put the puck in the back of the net. He hasn't scored a goal in 9 games. We can just call this a bad streak, but he couldn't buy a goal last year either. It's possible he just sucks at scoring.
Now 60 points doesn't seem terrible, but 3 years into their careers, 1st overall picks are supposed to be stars in the league. (This comparison is for forwards)
Hall: 50 points in 45 games
Tavares: 81 points in 82 games
Stamkos: 91 points in 82 games
Kane: 88 points in 82 games
Crosby: 72 points in 53 games
Ovechkin: 112 points in 82 games
Nash: 54 points in 54 games
Kovalchuk: 87 points in 81 games
Patrick Stefan: 23 points in 59 games
Lecavalier: 51 points in 68 games
Thornton: 60 points in 81 games
Daigle: 17 points in 50 games
You have to go back to Patrick Stefan for a 1st overall player who wasn't a PPG player in their 3rd season. Lecavalier and Thornton had similar offensive seasons as RNH is on pace for so there is of course some hope that he's just taking some time like these two. However, it is important I think to note that they were playing the early parts of the career during the dead puck era.
So what do we have in RNH? Is this a franchise player just waiting to bust out? Or is he trending more to be an okay 1st line center/elite 2nd line center? I'm not suggesting that he was the wrong pick, or that there was someone better, more just questioning what sort of potential he actually has. Because right now, flat out he hasn't been nearly good enough based on draft position and reasonable expectations.
It is concerning that with 3 first overall picks, Taylor Hall seems to be the only one who looks like full value, and even then, he's not really comparable to any of the guys picked in the 5-6 years before him.