Harley vs. Sanderson

[Akrapovince]

Who do you take going forward?

Harley is an absolute animal and has turned into pretty much a #1 defensemen. A little bit disappointing considering he was taken one spot above Lassi Thomson. Great value drafting again by the Stars.

Sanderson has had rough stretches being stapled to Hamonic at times but looked pretty good in the playoffs. Maybe not as dynamic offensively but I think the potential to be a decent PP1 quarter back is there.

 

[wetcoast]

Harley and this shouldn't be close.

Sanderson is a very good Damn but Harley is entering his elite years.

 

[Sun God Nika]

Harley and this shouldn't be close.

Sanderson is a very good Damn but Harley is entering his elite years.

Sanderson is a stud entering his elite years

 

[Miro4Norris]

Sanderson any day. Harley is a good #2 but doesnt just have enough skill to be a true #1. He is playing it very safe, which is not only a good thing for top d. Lacks of great passing game and doesnt skate like Sanderson. As I said, still a very good player. Devon Toews is probably a decent comparison when he peaks

 

[Akrapovince]

Sanderson any day. Harley is a good #2 but doesnt just have enough skill to be a true #1. He is playing it very safe, which is not only a good thing for top d. Lacks of great passing game and doesnt skate like Sanderson. As I said, still a very good player. Devon Toews is probably a decent comparison when he peaks

Am I out of pocket for thinking Harley is miles ahead offensively than Miro?

Stars power play looks way better with him quarterbacking it.

 

[Emerica]

Harley and this shouldn't be close.

Sanderson is a very good Damn but Harley is entering his elite years.

lol

 

[Coffee]

lol

Elmo lookin ahh

 

[Klockis]

Am I out of pocket for thinking Harley is miles ahead offensively than Miro?

Stars power play looks way better with him quarterbacking it.

I wouldn't say he's miles ahead offensively of Miro but he's been the better PP qb this season for sure

 

[Emerica]

Elmo lookin ahh

no you

 

[Golden_Jet]

Harley and this shouldn't be close.

Sanderson is a very good Damn but Harley is entering his elite years.

Harley is one year older, it’s a wash on their “elite” years.

 

[wetcoast]

Harley is one year older, it’s a wash on their “elite” years.

I just think Harley is slightly but significantly better.

 

[Snap]

Maybe it's recency bias seeing Sanderson do so well in the playoffs against the Leafs but I slightly lean towards him. Harley has been on a tear since the four nations though. Im jealous the Stars have 2 absolute studs on the back end

 

[BKarchitect]

I think they are pretty neck and neck now. Maybe even a slight edge for me for Harley because it's hard to ignore what Harley has been doing for a Miro-less Stars team that is every bit in the frame for the Cup, even if at times he's perhaps a bit over-extended playing 25-26 minutes and doing everything every night in the playoffs. I'm also not sure I agree with Harley's upside being a "#2" - I mean, I get the Toews comp - but I would have, by any measure, Toews as a top 15 defenseman in the league so at some point the idea of "#1 or #2" becomes irrelevant. And to that point, Harley has been great as the lead dog with Heiskinen out. I think his offensive skillset is extremely impressive - he's a great passer and very high-end goal scorer for a defenseman. If anything, I think putting in Herculean minutes makes him prone to defensive gaffes now and then.

Long-term, I favor Sanderson by an equally slight edge. I think he made a significant progress this past year as a true #1 type and I think his combination of skating and size gives him a bit more room to "freelance" as a real game QB in the style another poster was maybe insinuating that Harley may not have. He's the one stylistically that I think of as a sized-up and supercharged Toews because of his IQ and effortless movement.

But to me, like the Suzuki/Hischier/Thomas poll, I think "same general tier".

 

[GIN ANTONIC]

This is a tough one. They are both awesome and I don't think you could fault anyone for picking one or the other.

 

[dirtydanglez]

i like harley but give me sanderson.

 

[Sun God Nika]

Maybe it's recency bias seeing Sanderson do so well in the playoffs against the Leafs but I slightly lean towards him. Harley has been on a tear since the four nations though. Im jealous the Stars have 2 absolute studs on the back end

It’s not recency bias it’s your first time really watching him

 

[Xspyrit]

Who do you take going forward?

Harley is an absolute animal and has turned into pretty much a #1 defensemen. A little bit disappointing considering he was taken one spot above Lassi Thomson. Great value drafting again by the Stars.

Sanderson has had rough stretches being stapled to Hamonic at times but looked pretty good in the playoffs. Maybe not as dynamic offensively but I think the potential to be a decent PP1 quarter back is there.

What do you mean? He was 2nd in PP pts among D-men this season (and 16th among all skaters), 5 pts behind Cale Makar. And he was not feeding guys like MacKinnon and Rantanen.

Sanderson is already a beast in all facets of the game, his game is affected when paired with Travis Hamonic but who wouldn't?

This poll is close cause Harley is also a beast but he is also 1 year older.