Certainly possible.
Other than Toropchenko, Neighbors is likely our most NHL ready prospect. And there’s a spot waiting for him (or someone) to grab in camp. My guess is he makes the team and is just fine for it.
That said, I’d likely list him as our 2nd best prospect, maybe even 3rd. Neighbors has solid all-around attributes but he doesn’t really stand out a ton in Jrs with his skill. I’d project him as a 3rd line winger. Bolduc projects as more of a 2nd line winger. And Snuggerud has 2nd - 3rd line potential. The main thing Neighbors has going for him is that he’s solid all-around and a bit older than the other two and thus is further along in his development and thus closer to NHL ready. But if I had to guess, by the time all of their careers are over, I’d guess Bolduc and Snuggerud end up as slightly better/more valuable players.
I don’t disagree with anything here too much.
I do think Neighbours will make the team. He will be one of the Blues best options. For this season it makes sense to have him on the roster as we look to flesh out the best lineup possible. However, I think he as an individual player/asset would be better off marinating a bit longer. If he makes the team and stays there, I have little doubt he will be an NHLer. I just think bringing him in this fast will curb his offensive potential at least in the mid-term, if not the long-term.
He seems to have good positioning, a decent shot and pass. His vision is almost there due to his positioning and drive/motor. I do think his positioning hides some deficiencies in his vision though. He just is a half step behind on connecting on all three areas IMO. The technical can be fairly easily learned during before/after practice sessions or those with skills coaches. The vision is something the player pretty much solely owns in comparison (yes, video and coaching can help…just not as much as the technical skills and positioning aspects). It’s the visioning that I think is better suited for growth in the minors. You have to be able to learn how to connect on tough plays to execute good vision. Players can tend to feel too far off on some to many of those plays when making the jump from junior/college to the NHL to the point where they quit trying them because the get picked off or miss their intended target, causing a turnover. You cannot afford to make those mistakes in the NHL because of the competition, because your line mates think and execute faster and because it’s not a development league/too much is on the line for competing clubs. These make honing those skills more difficult in the NHL. The difference between making those plays and not making them is quite a bit less in the AHL than juniors/college. Going the AHL route also means you are making a smaller jump in speed and quality of play, therefore making smaller evolutions in your game, which are easier to achieve.
I could see Neighbours having a similar usage and progression as Barbashev at the NHL level. Barbashev has floated all over the lineup because he has more skill than the average 4th liner and eventually produced more to the point where he was at 3rd line level. It took years to get there. The only difference is Barby had the benefit of AHL seasoning, which Neighbours may end up getting. I could also see Neighbours having a career year/peak similar to how I projected Barbashev (+/-50pts) .
*Barbashev really surpassed expectations/projections this year, but it feels like an anomaly to me. I will be interested if he can come close to repeating.
I generally agree with you assessments of the three prospects. I would have them evaluated similarly. Bolduc has the highest ceiling and lowest floor. I could see him as a low end 1st line trigger man if every single thing went right, but a more realistic ceiling is 2nd line upside. I think he has to be a top 9 player or he won’t be in the NHL. The 4th line doesn’t make sense for his game as it stands today.
Snuggy and Neighbours have similar floors and ceilings to me. It’s a bit harder projecting Snugs since I haven’t seen him as much. But, based on highlights and other viewings, they seem fairly similar as players.
