Am I the only one who sees nothing but glaring red flags about Crouse?
I don't care that he's big. I'm beyond concerned with his point totals.
45GP, 22G, 14A for a paltry total of 36 points.
Thirty six.
For reference, Chris Neil got 55 and 72 points in his final 2 OHL years.
A top 10 pick in what is billed as the best draft in years should not be used on a guy who cannot score at the junior level. Especially when those who are expected to be drafted around him are all racking up points like it's going out of style.
I can't help but think that Lawson Crouse is the next Hugh Jessiman. For those who have no damn clue who Hugh Jessiman is, look up the 1st round of the 2003 draft.
I don't think Crouse is the next Jessiman, Crouse will be an NHL player. I could see a Benoit Pouliot comparison, but Jessiman is over the top.
Those Neil numbers aren't a good comparable either, look at Neil's 17 year old season, where he scored 29 points in 65 games if you want to compare him to Crouse at that same age now. Clearly, Crouse is superior to that.
In terms of where he'll be drafted, there are too many forwards this year having shown the ability to create offense themselves, something Crouse has not done for me to have him in the top 5, and I see him closer to the 10-15 range. If Ottawa was to pick him there, I'd be fine with it.
His performance at the world juniors should be noted, what he did as 17 yr old was impressive.
Since then, he's been a better player at the OHL level too, playing at a point per game pace [20 in 20].
His goal pace is also not that bad as a goal every two games on a team that can't score is fairly solid, especially since that is supposed to be what he is going to offer offensively at the next level. Also, those 36 points put him 1 point back for the team lead, so that shows how bad his team is offensively.
I will be watching closely at how his play [hopefully] improves with Bennett back with the team, that gives him a top end playmaker that goal scoring power wingers are supposed to thrive with.
I hate this article, it's way too over the top on how good Crouse is. He is a good prospect, not flawless as it makes him seem. He hasn't racked up points as the article says 3-4 times, that's been one of his main issues, the one thing people constantly question about him [as shown by the poster above]. I like Crouse as a prospect but to make him out to be an elite prospect with elite skating, an elite shot, off the charts hockey IQ, and unreal stats with a level of play that never drops off is ridiculous. This is the closest thing I saw to a criticism: "while some say his offensive game needs refinement, his offensive abilities are there, he just tends to error on the defensive side of the puck." So it's his great two way play that's the reason for his lesser offensive numbers....
I wouldn't put too much stock into this article, there's a definite bias to it.
