It's weird to me how many people look past Benson.
Everybody gives Carlsson and Fantilli a pass as 2/3, then sandwiches in all their favourites before they get to Benson. But how much better were those guys last year than Benson?
Does anyone seriously think Perreault's 60 points in the NCAA last year is more impressive than Benson's 30 in the NHL?
The knock on Benson pre-draft was his size. Well guess what, he's as small as he will ever be and he is already in the NHL. I guess size isn't really an issue.
One-year later redrafts are always difficult because everybody improves, and people tend to get excited about their guy's improvement and look past everyone else's.
Objectively, 4 guys made the NHL last year and Benson was one of them. That, in and of itself should not be overlooked.
Look at his peers:
All-time/historical regular season stats and leaders per season for NHL, including top goal scorers, most games played, PPG leaders and more.
www.eliteprospects.com