SoundwaveIsCharisma
Moderator
He played more of a perimeter game earlier in the process, so he had to develop some snarl & show that he could play in the dirtier areas before he could really rise into that range...which he did this season with aplomb. He also likely needs more time than Turcotte to be NHL ready, and he could still end up a winger if a team rushes him & plants him on the wing in the bigs without giving him enough time to develop as a center.
So there's a little more risk due to his longer timeline & there's some positional risk with him staying at C...especially given our franchise's impulse to err on the side of rushing kids rather than letting them over-ripen.
I also wouldn't be surprised if his potential doesn't get under-played a bit because Turcotte produced sexier per game #s, and a lot of folks on HF equate production as a prospect with offensive upside/skill, far too readily...see Pod v Dorofeyev discussions on HF vs on russian hockey boards.
This works both ways though. Some are going to hype up his potential because of all his highlight reel plays, meanwhile they downplay Turcotte because he is considerably less flashy. I think the truth is somewhere in the middle. I think Zegras has 1C potential, the team that drafts him will have to be patient however.