I'm not so sure about that. How many high Hockey IQ player under 5ft9 never made it to the NHL? Despise having great number in the junior?Like it was said before... hockey IQ. AINEC actually applies here.
You can be super slow but have a high hockey IQ and still be an all-star.
You can be the fastest skater but have zero IQ. You'll end up in the AHL or Europe soon enough.
To me, I've always felt that IQ is an aggregate of vision, decision making which gets lumped in with game sense (pretty general but how a player sees a play unfolding and how they choose to act to contribute), positioning, and the ability to execute difficult plays under pressure.As a forward speed will at least get you to the NHL.
As a D, size and shot blocking will get you some NHL games
If you want to be elite, it’s always hockey IQ. How you measure that, I have no idea
That doesn't do much to explain why multiple unrelated players from certain peewee teams make the NHL, but kids from the same area in different popular sports as good as never have pro careers.I once had a conversation with a guy who played one game for the Rangers. He told me that anyone who actually makes it to the NHL is uber talented, the top 0.01%, and he said he had the talent. He said the biggest difference in making it a career and only playing a game or two was killer instinct, the absolute will to want to kill it every single shift, and do absolutely anything to win. He told me it's another gear that most people, including him and most others who finally make it to the show, don't have. It's not something you can train for, it's a mental level that you are inherently born with. I thought that was very insightful.
That doesn't do much to explain why multiple unrelated players from certain peewee teams make the NHL, but kids from the same area in different popular sports as good as never have pro careers.
As a forward speed will at least get you to the NHL.
As a D, size and shot blocking will get you some NHL games
If you want to be elite, it’s always hockey IQ. How you measure that, I have no idea
Speed does not "at least get you to the NHL". I know a few people who can skate as fast as NHLers and will never come close to making the big league.
The small players that never made it in the NHL but had good numbers in juniors relied on some physical attributes (shot, skating, etc) rather than IQ. Which is why they couldn't make the jump to the NHL as they couldn't get away with it against higher competition.I'm not so sure about that. How many high Hockey IQ player under 5ft9 never made it to the NHL? Despise having great number in the junior?
The most important is being athletic and size. You can still make it in the NHL with out high hockey IQ playing in the bottom 6.