He’s going to take a beating in the AHL or the NHL so he might as well start somewhere. Plus, the AHL IMO isn’t anywhere close to being as physical as it used to be.
I can't tell you every thing BU has done for player development, but in the last 15 years, based on the players that have gone through Hershey and BU, they've done a better job preparing players to be top pair NHL defensemen. Iorio is 6'4" and barely played 60 minutes for the Caps last year before I questioned if Hershey coached him to protect himself.
Thats not even an apples to apples comparison. BU recruits some of the best players at their position going into college based on their track record as a prestigious college hockey school. Some of those guys would develop into solid players no matter where they went to school/juniors.
Iorio is the only prospect they currently have on the back end in Hershey. LuJo left on his own but we all know his issue was he couldn’t stay on the ice. Who else on that list should have developed into a top 4 guy? Bowey was outplayed by Djoos, a 7th rounder and then subsequently bounced around the league and is currently a KHLer (last I looked). He was also one of the dumbest hockey players I’ve watched. Classic example of not being able to read the game fast enough but being blessed with great physical attributes/genetics. Siegenthaler was dealt so Chara could continue to play. He received top 4 minutes in NJ. Fehervary only spent a full year in Hershey and then spent the majority of the COVID year on the stupid taxi squad instead of being sent down to play games. So I guess that leaves AA?
Again, there's no proof they're bad at developing -- it could be the drafting. But they also lack proof that they're good at it. This doesn't mean that they aren't good, just that there is no proof.
I'm not sure how that compares to BU defensemen drafted in the 1st or 2nd, I'm pretty sure that's more than BU in the last 15 years even if you leave off Alzner and Carlson who were with the Caps in 2010, because the Caps are trying to draft people to become NHL defenseman and BC is trying to recruit NCAA defensemen. And they are able to recruit them with the world class developmental options and facilities that he chose over other programs with similar track records of developing defenseman. Real money and knowledge go into player development at these schools.
I went back through. The Caps have drafted 22 defenseman in the last 10 drafts. 14 of those D were eligible to play professional games, the rest will be eligible in the next few years. Of those 14, only 6 have played NHL games (LuJo, Siegenthaler, AA, Iorio, Priskie, and Fehervary). The majority of those draft picks didn’t even see the ice at the AHL level. Could it be a development problem? Maybe but it’s looking more like a draft problem IMO.
This is very true. Further, with NIL rules, it's quite possible for Cole to make more money in college than he will at the AHL level. Previously, being paid was an incentive to head to the minors sooner.
I can go back through and look at some of the more comparable teams and see. The Caps haven’t really been in a position to pick a high end player over the course of those 10 years either. Vrana and Leonard were picked with their highest draft choices since Alzner went 5th in 2007
While you are looking, it might be better to look at defensemen drafted in the first three rounds (maybe first two). Those are the ones who should in theory have higher NHL potential. That list at least includes (off top of head in recent memory):
Yeah completely disregard what I wrote and just focus on the Ness part. You can’t counter any of the other arguments.
Went back through the Stanley cup representatives over the last decade from the Eastern Conference. Washington would be second behind the Bruins in terms of guys playing NHL games. Florida is a bit of an outlier since they haven’t been better until recently. The other three have been solid over the majority of the last decade.
OK, you've got Hershey in your avatar, this is personal for you. But you're seriously asking this guy to go away from receiving the best medical care in the world if he gets hurt and the level training available at a D1 program because their nutrition would be better than BUs nutrition where all they deal with is college age men, or he can call Brooks Orpik from Hershey like he couldn't call him from Boston? What great point did I ignore? It's a minor league team, I've seen the facilities, you don't have to promise him a roster spot but I don't see how you have refuted any of my points especially it's crazy to ask him to play in Hershey over BU next season. Like if this was your friend or your child, would you still ask him to play on worse ice with worse doctors worse weight room but your favorite team?
No it’s not personal. I’m a fan of both teams. You’re acting as if this is the AHL of the early 2000’s with three goons on each roster and the Caps prospects are stashed in a shithole like Binghamton, NY.
If Hutson hurts his knee or anything in Boston he can see the best doctors in the world. If he gets hurt in Coachella Valley or Hershey or Wilkes Barre, you’re telling this guy to leave school and trust the Hershey team doctor, telling his parents to trust this plan with a lower standard of doctor. Trust in Hershey who’s priority puts an elite AHL team on the ice, about whom there is talk among other teams that they value winning over value player development.
It’s disingenuous to compare minor league medical care to NHL medical care, disingenuous to imply that its absurd for being a consideration, and disingenuous to imply succeeding on the 13x time champion Hershey Bears is some kind of greater challenge or should be more meaningful to him than winning a National Championship.BU has the best medical care in the world? Do the Caps not take care of their prospects? Is there some kind of special injury one can get that can only be treated at BU?
Look, the argument here ultimately boils down to pressure. He could come back for another year on God Mode for a major NCAA program or he can go play versus men in the AHL, which isn't just about physicality. I don't think Hershey vs BU is a monumental shift in either direction. He'll be developed well either way, and our FO has every reason to prioritize the best path for him.
Caps fans mostly just want him to sign. There's no real argument for his skills languishing in Boston, but there's also no argument against the AHL giving him a more worthwhile test. If Hershey were a shit organization it'd be a no-brainer. But they're a top AHL program, and the Caps have every incentive to provide the best for him, including healthcare.
It’s very clear you know very little about what Hershey actually does. You can win AND develop. That’s been a big part of the Caps/Bears philosophy since the affiliation started. You’re acting as if Hershey is some Mickey Mouse operation and not the best franchise in the AHL. They have great medical care and Hershey Med Center is a very, very good hospital. Comparing Hershey and their operation to WBS is completely ignorant on all fronts.
I’m not saying it’s 3rd world but it’s one of the questions that would come up if you were asking a family to change the plan they had for his development, like one of the biggest advantages to college is the leverage to go straight to the pros plus make sure you’re not blocked, so you’re asking his family to give up leverage.
CMM accomplished everything he could in Hershey. He was team MVP during the Covid season and had established himself as an NHL player at that point. His development stalled under Lavi. His demotion to the AHL and the CC playoff run helped him tremendously. You can say the same thing about Protas. His skating improved a ton since his draft year. Guess Hershey gets no credit for helping with that?
