It's been an interesting year for Eiserman. He started the season on fire and had 18 goals in first 11 games. I'm not sure exactly why, but his game started to fall off around Halloween. Then he got hurt in early December. There's been plenty of 'not a great game, but finished with a goal' type of games. He's also had some rough games. The Michigan State game in particular I thought he was horrible and there were probably a lot of eyes on that game which did Eiserman no favors.
He's played most of the season with Bednarik. The coaching staff clearly disagrees, but I don't like those two together. Two good players so they'll get their points, but it always felt to me that the chemistry wasn't great. I thought that was a Bednarik problem, but then I thought Bednarik played his best hockey of the season when Eiserman was out of the lineup.. The Sioux Falls series this weekend, they went back to basics and put Hagens and Eiserman together for the first time this season (or at least for the first time in the games I've seen, which is most of them). If this continues, playing with Hagens, there should be no excuses for Eiserman.
There's plenty to nitpick in Eiserman's game. He can be turnover prone. He can have blinders on where he forces shots. Compete and hockey sense are a mixed bag. The concerning thing is that he hasn't improved in these areas from his D-1 year. But at the the end of the day, he's a gamebreaker. Just needs one chance and it's in the back of the net. The shot is elite and he has plus hands and speed.
I'm not tied to the idea that he has to be 2nd overall or has to be top 5, but if I'm passing on Eiserman, I want a projectable point per game center or a 25 minute a night defenseman. Short of that, I'm taking the winger with 50 goal upside and can live with the flaws.