BlueandYellow wrote:
Okay, if I can get anything out of that rant...
MacKinnon wasn't in the CHL. He was in Bantam AAA for 3 years, then Midget AAA. Then went to the QMJHL.
MacKinnon got hurt with an MCL injury in February. That's why Seth Jones rose in the rankings. Grigorenko was 1st too before HE had an injury that placed him in the rank we had him. It happens.
MacKinnon would develop faster than Seth Jones maybe, as D take more time to develop than forwards.
MacKinnon being in 3rd OBVIOUSLY means he's good. Being injured and being in 3rd is an accomplishment.
Seth Jones doing better than MacKinnon in 7 games means little. Using that logic, Makarov is the best goalie prospect out there (or at least one of the best).
Scouts compare him to Sidney Crosby. That's recognition for you.
He adds skill at center, something we have with only Hodgson and Ennis. Ennis isn't even a good center, he's a better winger.
Defense is easier to come by than a high scoring forward.
There. I'm not fighting, I'm merely presenting my side. If you want to fly off the handle again, whatevs.
QMJHL is the CHL. It is one of three leagues that make up the CHL. The OHL & WHL being the other two. MacKinnon played on the Mooseheads last year, and because the CHL is considered the major development pool for the NHL, I have to think more scouts had their eyes on him than on Jones, who played juniors in the US (and not under one of the CHL leagues). That is why I consider that important in their rankings coming into and going out of this season.
As far as being compared to Crosby, that's what the hockey press does. Every young player usually gets compared to an NHL player these days, and they never say "This kid looks like the next Matt Ellis", it's always some star player that they play like. Tyler Myers was supposed to be the next Chara. How's that one working out?
I just disagree on the defense vs. offense part as far as the team's needs. But even if I did agree, if there's one player who is clearly better, I think it's the right drafting philosophy, in most cases, to take that player regardless of position. I never said MacKinnon was not good, so I don't know where that's coming from. Is Jones a clear cut above? Maybe not, but I'm not going to discount what I saw in the World Juniors as easily as you. That was an important tournament with the world watching where they played against the same teams, and Jones was dominant.