Not sure about this jetsfareast.
I would prefer to forgo the extra 10 to 15 points a season Nik may get by cheating on his D assignments to have him play a tidy two way game. With his speed and skill he can still be a game breaker for us. Our team generates enough offense and there are never enough "scoring" 200 foot players on a team. Give me 65 to 70 points in a season from a two way player vs 80 points from a Kessel type any day. Once a star starts cheating to get his points and his money its like cancer. Now who knows maybe he will be talented enough to generate a PPG during his prime while doing his job in all three zones.
Edit: to GermanJetsFan point he will always be a guy we lean on for offense and PMo will allow room for that "within the system" I'm sure........yea but not like his WJC style of play. For the record I think he needed to play that way on that team and it was probably by design.
I agree with you on this one PS. Ehlers will need to learn to be responsible defensively to be an effective NHLer. Doesn't mean he won't have a ton of offensive opportunities, but you can't cheat on your defensive responsibilities looking for them. We can't lose site that Ehlers won't just jump into the NHL and immediately be a point per game player. Hopefully he gets there but along the way Maurice will need to trust him not to be a liability. We don't want a Yakapov on your hands where a ton of talent is/was wasted by not developing the structure to be effective in the NHL. I'd prefer that Ehlers become a P.Kane proto-type. A guy with the offensive talent to be a perennial 90-100 point guy, but instead plays a team game and gets 70-80 points most seasons. And along the way was a big contributor to a couple cups. Now compare that to a Kessel who cheats for a few more points but is a disaster in his own end and in the room.