eco's bones
Registered User
Yes. And it wasn't as if he was flat out dominating in the AHL either. He was good, but he still has room to grow even in that league.
He did really well in Hartford though. He was almost from the start their most dangerous offensive forward. He also took a few high hits last year--missed a lot of games---some of them from a concussion and sometimes because McCambridge didn't want him playing 3 in 3 nights. I'm very cautiously optimistic that there's a chance he could become a legit 1st line NHL center. IMO he and Kravtsov both have very good shots at that and my bar is a little bit higher than some others around. To me a legit 1st liner really needs to consistently get beyond the 60 point threshold. The closest thing we have to that is Zuccarello.
The other thing is it's not like he was playing with top notch linemates in Hartford either. Considering he started the season as a 17 year old he had a great year. He looks like he's bigger now and he is going to be more comfortable and more acclimated. I still think he'll be between New York and Hartford this year.