Who is a prospect you didn't expect much of but turned into a star?

[Shroud of Orrin]

Without a doubt it’s Kucherov.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

Troy Terry is another one for me. When he started getting significant ice time for the Ducks in 2018-19 and 2019-20, he looked like a decent 3rd liner but nothing more.

 

[EdJovanovski]

None, I’ve been right every time

 

[seafoam]

I wasn’t vocal about it but I wasn’t expecting Draisaitl to become as good he did because if I remember correctly there were concerns about his skating going into the draft.

Also the fact that he got drafted by the Oilers who were at the time a tire fire (still are?) and had a history of blowing top picks gave me doubts.

 

[Mitch nylander]

None, I’ve been right every time

Vitali Kravtsov

 

[19 for president]

Pavel Datsyuk is one for me. Even his first few years in the league I expected him to be more of a 3rd line, shows flashes offensively but becomes more of a complimentary/PP player. Turning into a 90 pt, selke worthy forward was not something I ever expected.

 

[Bounces R Way]

I liked Pastrnak, especially after his strong performances at the WJC, but I did not see him becoming a top 5 position player. He just seems to get better and better every year.

Quinn Hughes was one I didn't expect all his little spinorama dipsy doodling to translate that well but he's proven me very wrong. One of the best skaters in the league.

 

[Craig Ludwig]

People thought Tom Wilson was just a goon and didn't deserve to be drafted in first round (another Hugh Jessiman type pick), man I would take him on my team any day. Lucic and Marchand in Boston.

 

[Jared Dunn]

After watching Suzuki look fairly unimpressive at the world juniors I was FULLY in the camp of moving him and building centre depth around the superior 1-2 punch of Kotkaniemi-Poehling, lol

 

[Craig Ludwig]

I didn't expect Jake Sanderson to be this good. I thought he would be a capable 3D/4D with good defensive play, but he really grew at UND and has been very good for the most part in Ottawa.

I don't know if that's a huge surprise seeing he was drafted 5th overall, I would say more Brock Faber or Jaccob Slavin have far exceeded their expectations than Sanderson.

 

[nbwingsfan]

A couple weeks ago, there was a thread talking about prospects we saw a lot in that didn't pan out. Here, we talk about the opposite.

They don't necessarily have to be late-round guys, but my specific example is: 2016 was the first draft I really payed a ton of attention to, and I didn't personally see a whole hell of a lot in Jesper Bratt. His numbers in his draft year were meh, and reports of being sub-par defensively and reluctance to be physical turned me off (even for a guy who was only 5'10"). I was very, very wrong.

Not on the Wings but I never thought anything of Brad Marchand in Junior and thought he’d be an NHL player, but absolutely no more than a 4th line grinder/pest like a Hathaway.

Never in a million years would I have predicted a future HoF player and captain

 

[DougBodger]

Evan Rodrigues

Thought he rode Eichel's coattails into the NHL

Edit: Not a star obvi

 

[57special]

Kaprizov, of course- 5th rounder.

Also, am embarrassed to say that i didn't see much beyond a middle pairing at best Dman in Faber when i watched him in college. So far, in his first NHL year, he looks like a first pairing two way Dman.

 

[jfhabs]

Pacioretty, he kept getting rocked at the blue line

 

[Zarzh]

Kyrou, Faber, JT Miller, and based on recent seasons Morrissey if we're talking about draft prospects. Some players exceeded high expectations.

The draft is fairly predictable, but teams are getting better at not undervaluing other leagues. I like big defensemen with offensive profiles especially when they play with older players, and forwards who score more than they should especially as you get into the later lottery (Tarasenko and Pastrnak are easy examples) and later rounds.

 

[Cowumbus]

Devon Toews?

 

[AuraSphere]

carter verhaeghe, zach hyman

Adam Fox.

When the Rangers traded for and signed him I was hoping for a third pair PP specialist.

He quickly became one of the best defensemen in the NHL. The way he has success is so unusual, and isn't easy to replicate or predict. His college numbers were great and he had some big fans, but the consensus wasn't that he'd become this good.

Without a doubt it’s Kucherov.

Both Adam Fox and Kucherov had hype as prospects so I don't think this is very true. You can say you didnt expect them to be top 3 players in the league - but both had star calibre potential as prospects

 

[Breakers]

Jaccob Slavin

CC was franking brutal.
6-29 was their record at his sophomore year. Just the punching bag of the NCHC and the NCAA in general
No other team in the NCHC surrendered 70 or more goals in conference. CC surrendered 95 goals in 24 games.

tough to see at those pioneer games in the "gold pan" rivalry a "norris" caliber defense when you are getting slaughtered every game

His freshman year was most prospects sophomore year, so when he decided to sign he was in his d+3

 

[JimmySpaetzle]

Surprised nobody has said him yet, but Mark Stone

 

[Our Lady Peace]

JT Miller. He was a solid prospect who had good 60 point potential. Now he's a bonafide #1C capable of playing a 200 ft game.

Tage Thompson too. I thought he might've been a middle 6 scoring winger good for 30/20 a season.

 

[carjackmalone]

Ryan Kesler

 

[maroon 6]

Bo Horvat

 

[AveryStar4Eva]

I’m not going to pretend that I watch the Finish league, but Roope Hintz had some serious concerns about his effort level when playing overseas. Never stood out at the WJC, his first two NHL seasons were okay but not great. Then he just exploded and hasn’t looked back

 

[ZEBROA]

H Zetterberg 7th round 210 overall. WTF Toronto... Elite Prospects - NHL Entry Draft 1999

H Lundquist 7th round 205 overall. Boston took the wrong Swede...
Elite Prospects - NHL Entry Draft 2000

I thought they were ok , but the were more than ok.

 

[Obvious Fabertism]

Never thought Jake Guentzel would be as productive as he is at this level. Thought he was too small.

This one resonates with me a bit, I saw him a decent amount as an amateur and he always stood out as a very smart player on the ice, and was notable IMO but didn’t get much hype at all. Glad to see I wasn’t just seeing things with him. Of course I have seen 3-4 other guys with similar stand out traits at that level who went on to do nothing and most never even got a whiff of a chance.

Will Zellers in this upcoming draft is a guy that gives me vibes very similar to Guentzel, the on ice awareness being the key differentiator from their peers.