Players You Thought Would Bust But Didn't?

[Plastic Joseph]

Ekblad

Bust? There was like no chance. He had every single tool to be a top 4 Dman at worst. I pretty much expected him to be what he has become, he seemed like an ultra safe #1 pick who was almost guaranteed to have a long NHL career but the true #1 upside was questionable. Super tough, strong, great size, can shoot, can make a 1st pass. I don't see how anyone thought that said bust. Maybe underwhelming for #1 but not bust material IMO.

 

[Fixed to Ruin]

Conor Garland. I watched him quite a bit in jr and i didn't think his game translated to the pros.

He found a way to prove he belongs in the NHL.

 

[Bottomshelf]

Huberdeau for me, his IQ stood out but nothing else was jumping out as “sure fire NHL top 6” when I watched him in junior.

 

[Hale The Villain]

Didn't think he'd bust completely, but I thought Pettersson's build and lack of high-end skating would prevent him from developing into a star.

Ate crow on that one.

 

[ScottyMascotty]

Owen Tippett took some time to develop into a regular NHLer, was given plenty of chances to solidify his spot on Panthers top-9, but was mostly disappointing.

 

[Royale With Cheese]

Kyle Turris

I found out today that Kyle Turris earned over $44 million playing hockey in the NHL.

 

[CharasLazyWrister]

Trent Frederic.

When he first started scoring goals, I was convinced he was just getting lucky and was a total waste of a late first rounder. There’s nothing about his game that stood out as really that good (and that’s partly still true today). Meanwhile, he just keeps putting up more points every season. Wasn’t sure he’d even hack it in the AHL for long and now he’s looking like a pretty solid middle 6 winger.

 

[1specter]

There was a sizeable group of Leaf fans who had written Nazem Kadri off by the time he was 21-22 years old and were convinced his game wouldn't translate (not me included though ) . He was also under a microscope and carried some immense pressure being the first Brian Burke draft pick and one of the few talented prospects in a very thin pool, plus all the drama around the pick as well (LA Kings taking Brayden Schenn, us stealing Kadri from Ottawa etc.).

Even after his great year in 2013, folks again thought it was a flash in the pan as he had a couple of average seasons after that, but he really cemented himself when he scored 30 goals in 2017.

 

[Strawberry Fields]

Not as extreme as others but I saw Jonas Siegenthaler numerous times in Hershey and he underwhelmed each time. I didn't think he had a chance of becoming an NHL dman.

 

[voxel]

Dylan Strome ..was never a believer.

Same. This is the first name that I thought of.

Didn't get the hype. Didn't think he'd be a NHL regular after a few years but he's carved out a nice secondary role.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Same. This is the first name that I thought of.

Didn't get the hype. Didn't think he'd be a NHL regular after a few years but he's carved out a nice secondary role.

While it's true Strome didn't "bust", I still think he's in that category of disappointment for failing to live up to what he was supposed to be at the draft, when you factor in where he was picked, who was picked around him, and what sort of player he was supposed to be at the NHL level.

 

[Dead Coyote]

I remember Moser being drafted and going "Huh?". Thought he would be nothing but a secondary piece at best and we could have gotten him way later and not wasted a 2nd.

It remains to be seen but Brad Lambert looks like he's well on his way to becoming a productive player and I was really down on him too.

 

[CanadienShark]

Didn't think all Quinn Hughes dipsy doodle fancy feet stuff would translate as well as it has at the pro level. Kind of read him to top out as a 2nd pairing PP specialist. Despite this, I still don't think Lane Hutson's dipsy doodle fancy feet stuff will translate all that well to the pro level.

I get it... But he's had two outstanding NHL games already.

After seeing his relatively poor skating in the early years, I was convinced Nuge would be better long-term…

I didn't want to trade Subban for Draisaitl+........... Oops.

 

[CanadienShark]

Brady Tkachuk and Trouba. I thought size was too big a reason they were picked high.

Trouba had a pretty short peak and didn't peak too high. He's a terrible player now.

 

[Miro4Norris]

I was very high on Hintz when he arrived to Liiga but at some point it started to feel like he is a chill guy who isnt putting enough work to become a good NHLer. Well, I was very wrong.

 

[Took a pill in Sbisa]

I vaguely remember thinking Taylor Hall was going to crash and burn due to injuries, although I can't remember exactly why.

I mean, he sorta did by age 30...

 

[SeanMoneyHands]

Kris Versteeg. He had a very good career and was a key part of the Hawks cup wins.

 

[ShootIt]

Panthers wise: Jacob Markstrom.

The hype on here was so damn high on him. Think being moved to Vancouver had something to do with his revival. Fresh start.


I was losing faith in Owen Tippett too here. Bittersweet seeing him figure it all out in Philly

 

[TheNewEra]

Mark Stone, you could tell the hockey sense was there for defensive play but i didnt think he would figure out his skating enough to be a top line forward in terms of offensive production, figured he would be a solid defensive 3rd liner at best

 

[BagHead]

Of guys the Wild took, the only 1st rounder I sort of expected to bust that didn't was Matt Dumba. I didn't like his combination of smallish size and physical game-style combination, as I'd watched Gilbert Brule fail pretty hard at doing that. Dumba proved me wrong, and would have had a really great career if not for his pectoral injury which really derailed his offense. He actually became one of my favorite players, partially because of his style of game, and partially because of his personality/charisma.

 

[MOGlLNY]

There was a sizeable group of Leaf fans who had written Nazem Kadri off by the time he was 21-22 years old and were convinced his game wouldn't translate (not me included though ) . He was also under a microscope and carried some immense pressure being the first Brian Burke draft pick and one of the few talented prospects in a very thin pool, plus all the drama around the pick as well (LA Kings taking Brayden Schenn, us stealing Kadri from Ottawa etc.).

Even after his great year in 2013, folks again thought it was a flash in the pan as he had a couple of average seasons after that, but he really cemented himself when he scored 30 goals in 2017.

“I wasn’t wrong. But everybody else was” lol

 

[1specter]

“I wasn’t wrong. But everybody else was” lol

I was a huge Kadri fan going to back to his junior days, so when he was drafted I was ecstatic and also biased, but in this scenario my bias was right (and in other times it hasn't been)

 

[Juxta Position]

yeah not necessarily his production but after watching how slow he was with the balance on his skates of Bambi his first season I didn't think he would ever be a high end top 6er.

i'm not sure what you guys are remembering about Leon, but his skating was never poor. I've watched him since he came over at 17 as I live in PA and went to most Raiders games during his 2 1/2 years here. His biggest issue was never speed, it was quickness, lateral movement and edge work. he reminded me of a big locomotive, it would take him a while to get going, but once he was at full speed he was quite fast.

He worked on his lateral movement and edgework and really improved in that area, while maintaining a high top end speed (relative to his size) and that is what really put him over the top.

But to say he was slow with poor balance, is just flat out inaccurate.

 

[lowol]

Weren't there indicators that he would be a lot better?

I'm sure no one thought he would ever score 140 points, but when he was about a 50 point player, did it seem like he was capable of being at least a PPG player or did he change his game and improve drastically?

The superstar skill was always obvious but he kept on doing extremely low percentage plays where he'd try to do everything by himself and paint himself in a corner. I thought it was a hockey IQ thing but in hindsight it was much more of a sports psychology issue (and of course a linemates issue, some of those teams were sad).

I thought O'Reilly was too slow to make it (at all, let alone as a top-sixer) and then he proved me wrong a couple months after the draft. Shows how much I know.

 

[MOGlLNY]

I was a huge Kadri fan going to back to his junior days, so when he was drafted I was ecstatic and also biased, but in this scenario my bias was right (and in other times it hasn't been)

The question was when have you been wrong, not others.