Top Prospects hope to get into major league right away -NHL offseason Update
The National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft is always an exciting time, not only for teams and the players, but also for the spectators that anticipate a major turnaround in their favourite club with the new and talented additions.
For the prospects, there is only one major thing on their mind and that is wanting to play in the NHL right away.
While most players are forced to go back into their minor leagues and develop further until they are considered to be NHL-ready, a few lucky one get to get an early start and wow the crowd by going up against the most veteran and experienced of players.
Gabriel Landeskog was one of those player that was luckily picked up by Colorado Avalanche as their second overall and just had an outright amazing season. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the first pick of the 2011 draft by Edmonton Oilers, definitely had a good season as well but was limited in his performance with various injuries and such.
For NHL Director of Central Scouting, Dan Marr, young players should not be playing in the league right away due to the intensity of the game but he also knows that is not always the case.
"I have a basic belief that I don't know if 18-year-olds should be playing in the League," Marr told NHL.com. "But if they're ready , who's to say they can't or shouldn't?"
When a prospect is picked up by a team, it is ultimately the franchise that will decide if they want him to play right away or go back.
"That's a very individual decision the teams make if the player is ready for not," Marr said. "It's the physical maturity and the overall maturity of the player, whether or not he's capable of staying in the lineup and contributing. I think they want the player to be able to play and develop. It's no good for him to be sitting around and not playing."
This year will definitely be exciting as prospects are reported to be better than ever and will have teams scrambling to choose the best ones.
Tags: