Whitesnake
If you rebuild, they will come.
- Jan 5, 2003
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I try and do full-spectrum evaluation of people rather than only seeing the results that are beyond their control.
There's really only one thing that Timmins could have done differently. He could have drafted more Europeans like Lehkonen, and thus bypassed the Lefebvre development issue. It may be fair to blame him for that.
In general the picks were good. Louis Leblanc was the consensus pick at his position, and was an outstanding third line rookie in 2012. He then busted once new management got a hold of him.
Galchenyuk was rated as the top prospect in the entire NHL, was widely lauded for his two-way play and hockey IQ, and was being compared to Hossa and Toews. He had a rookie season on par with those of Tavares and Stamos. He then busted.
The list goes on.
In general, Lefebvre (also Therrien) was an unmitigated disaster. His greatest success story is Gregory Pateryn, and the Habs didn't even realize that he was a decent player. Regardless, it's a terrible result after six years.
Anyway, science gives a way out. If you're right and I'm wrong, then Fleury, Brook, Evans, Poehling, etc will all bust. However, if they do well, then that will vindicate the view that the drafting was fine.
Scouting is a job that are usually beyond their control. Every team of scouts have to give their guys to a Junior coach, to their team own development coordinator, to their AHL coaching team.....to its, Pro coaching team.....Yet, somehow, away from Montreal, eveyrbody is still accountable for their scouting. But in Montreal, we have to do a ful spectrum evaluation of people?
What do you mean by in general the picks were good? For you, the picks are not good ONLY if they are chosen in a position where the consensus didn't tell them to pick that player? And as far as consensus pick....well no. He was the consensus pick because the draft was in Montreal but while he was a 1st rounder....you could have taken somebody else in the 1st round that would have been better. Do the scouts of a team go with consensus? What's the point in having a scouting team if going with the consensus makes it, as you just said, the best pick possible? Galchenyuk? No problem with his pick. Galchenyuk busted? Still having the most points in his draft. And I have NO IDEA why you say that the only way I'm right and you're wrong is if Fleury and Co bust. First, makes on sense to talk about Evans busting. He was a 7th round pick. If he doesn't succeed, he is not busting. He's using the regular path that 7th rounder do. But again, what you are saying makes no sense.
I will repeat this paragraph as it seemed to have been lost in translation and I would really hope that if you have to answer only one thing, it's that one.....Back in the days that Timmins picks were awesome...from 03-07.....when Lefebvre was NOT there, here's what happened:
04-05:
Andrei Kostitsyn played in the farm. Did fine...but was he still the best choice we could have made? Of course not. Development or not.
Cory Urquhart? Wasn't Lefebvre's fault was he? So...bad pick? Bad devleopment?
Max Lapierre? Well could have been a development success....but we are still taking about bottom 6 player
O'Byrne? Well he saw the NHL. But was really dime a dozen....development didn't do nothing for him.
Locke, Stewart?.....Locke was great in the AHL, couldn't pull his weight in the NHL. So you could tell me he was developed so well in the farm and yet...nothing to show for in the NHL. Are we going to remember Corey Locke as a great Timmins pick cause of his AHL success?
05
Nobody is a product of the AHL except....Price. Because of his playoffs success. One of his greatest achievement. But who else? Will people tell me D'Ago and Skost were well develop players? For such a small NHL career? So are you counting both guys as great picks? Did Aubin developed well?
06
How about Carle and Maxwell? Were they f***ed up by Lefebvre? Of course not....so great picks? Or bad development?
07
So how about that superb year? Well 3 guys here are always talked about....McDo, Patch and Subban. Well McDo saw 38 games of farm, Patch saw the farm for 70ish games so yeah, his game might have been a product of the farm and same with Subban. But probably moreso Subban 'cause if I use the way you are seeing things, Pacioreetty was a consensus 1st rounder, but Subban wasn't a consensus 2nd rounder. But Fortier never developed. Yanick Weber was also probably a dev. project..but we are talking about bottom 6. But that year is probably the best draft/development year of our recent history.