Sure, but they've had 6 straight top 10 drafts... We've had 3, and quite arguably we've got a better and deeper pool of U24 talent (as that article suggests).
It's not an indictment of our drafting & development process that we currently have roster holes & U24 players that haven't yet solidified them... That critique should be towards the ~20M tied up in 4 vet forwards that are bottom 6 contributors. Could have easily found a 2C & top 4 RD with that cap room if not for bargain bin's legacy...
It'll be another 3-5yrs before we can definitively speak to the success of the 2022-23-24 draft classes...
But so far, so great with 2 of the top 10 players (& perhaps the top 2 before it's all said and done) from 2022 in Slaf/Hudson
5 players that look to be locks to become NHL regulars (Demidov, Beck, RB, Fowler, Hage)
And another 3-5 with very promising early trajectories towards NHL status given their play in pro leagues (Engstrom, Mesar, FloX, Rohrer, Kony, Davidson)
If even 1/2 of those 12 actually pan out as NHL regulars, as their early post draft trajectory suggests, that's a damn impressive draft success.
