Of that 2011 group, Sproul and Ouellet were the only prospects I had a high opinion of, Kindl already gave off the vibe of "Big... anything else?", Marchenko came in as a long-shot, and Smith always struck me as an undisciplined meat head.
All of the video evidence, interviews, statistics and first-hand accounts by professional and amateur scouting makes me believe that we have way more potential, much more collective hockey IQ, and much more discipline in the current group. All in all, I think that there is a greater emphasis on drafting players who are more likely to work toward reaching their potential than drafting players with a really high ceiling but a really poor work ethic, physical or character issues (Hat-trick-Dick, Almqvist, Sheahan, Jurco, Jarnkrok, etc.). So basically, we are drafting players with a lower overall ceiling and a much higher floor (not picking guaranteed 3rd or 4th liners or scrubs, that's just unfounded cynicism.).
I look at the Vancouver Canucks drafting Elias Pettersson, for example, and I recognize that they are drafting a tremendously skilled player, but I look at his physical characteristics, I look at how he is manhandled on the ice and his lack of lower body strength, and I look at how challenging it will be for a player who is that far behind the eight ball developmentally speaking, and I would say that is a tremendous risk for a 5th overall pick, way more risky than drafting Rasmussen at 9th. We have been there before with skilled but physically limited players like Pettersson, and it has been crushing when they haven't panned out; thankfully, none of those players was drafted at the 5th overall position. Elias Pettersson could become anything from a skilled first line center to smoldering bust or anything in between, but when you factor in the comparative risks and reward for those selections, I much prefer the risk-reward ratio with Rasmussen. I feel that all of the members of the current group of prospects that you listed have the character and drive to improve themselves, are not facing a significant physical hurdle in their development, and are still very high ceiling players.
I don't think the Wings will hesitate for a moment if they are presented an opportunity to draft a franchise player i.e. Mathews, McDavid, A. Svechnikov, Dahlin, etc., but I think that nobody is more tired of drafting busts than the organization is.