#1OA picks don’t play in the AHL. They were both clearly ready to step right in. Nico had a very solid rookie season in fact. And just a couple weeks ago we were talking about how it seemed all the pundits that said Kakko was more NHL than Hughes were wrong.
To me a whiff is passing on players like Rantanen and Barzal for a guy who can’t even stay in the lineup on a terrible team, or crack 30 points in a season.
Not taking a bonafide top 6 center who might compete for Selke trophies some day.
Would you like to through year by year and see how many times the #1OA was he absolute best player in that draft? Is Aaron Ekblad better than Leon Draisaitl? Is RNH better than Gabriel Landeskog or Mark Scheifele? Some of the best players of all time were not 1st picks.
I wish I could upvote this post more than once. I like most of the people here, including some of the one’s losing their sh!t right now, but ffs let’s please not make this place unbearable.