Philippe Danault was NOT a superstar at the junior level. In fact, his scoring abilities were pretty much limited. He was known for his hard work and intelligent positioning, that's how he accumulated points, but not for his offensive prowess. No one expected Philippe Danault to become the player he did. In fact, some would say that after his draft year, there was disappointment in his developpement. Thus the reason the Hawks traded him. To them, he was nothing more than a fringe NHLer, 4th line at best.
Poehling has that going for him better than Danault : he played against men; he played at the world juniors and shone; and he's a much better skater than Danault.
It's tough to measure the ceiling of a NCAA player, TBH. Just look at the guy Ottawa drafted last year. He was a miserable NCAA goal scorer, and guess what : he's up to 20 already in the best league in the world.
The disappointing part in all of this is the fact that him and his team folded like a cheap tent two years in a row against a puny adversary. Was it because of a lack of leadership on the ice or a lack of strategic coaching?
