Strange as it seems,as a Blackhawks fan,making the wrong choice with the #1 could be a curse --the hockey gods devising a perverse torment/dilemma for the Hawks:
Normally--even if there was complete consensus as to the BPA --you pick the BPA based on the assessment of his pro value a few years out--sometimes the kid can stick right away as a rookie right out of the draft--but normally it takes a year or two more after a draft...HOWEVER,the Blackhawks will not have the patience to wait for this TOP pick--he must come in and play right away and provide immediate offense that they crave..So Turris will not be the pick--they cannot wait on him.
They won't take Cherepanov--even though he played against men and so would seem "NHL ready"...nor is Van Riemsdyk ready...The question is: Is Kane or Voracek ready to impact immediately? You have the size issue with Kane,and Kane is more advanced at 10 months older and has better stats --so probably Voracek is not ready...
THUS Kane with his skill set (OFFENSIVELY) -is the most NHL ready of all the potential candidates and so he must be the pick...
HOWEVER-the Hawks will have to RISK big on the size issue (Kane was not hit a lot
in London this year for some strange reason,whereas team-mate Gagner seemed to get lots more hits--why OHL teams did not "target" Kane for more hitting I do not know);when Plymouth banged him somewhat more than he was used to in their playoff series,you sawthe results--he ended up -4 and London was contained and dominated --in the NHL I guarantee Kane willbe come a hiting "target" to neutralize him as much as possible--new NHL or not -- so the questions are:
1. How will he respond to the hitting?
2. Can he take it without getting injuries/concussions?
3. Can the Hawks "protect" him?
THe second question is:
IS KANE READY DEFENSIVELY FOR THE NHL?
IT is argued that he was not asked to emphasize that aspect with London--they wanted his energies directed to the attack,so MAYBE he can learn defense (on the job with Chicago) --but MAYBE he always will be a putrid checker whenthat is required,and if that is the case he will be a big 5x5 defensivel liability...
Chicago would be foolish if they were blinded by Kane's offensive skills to the extent that they have no big concerns on the size/hitting and defensive flaw issues...
They may ignore those concerns and gamble that they don't turn out badly so as to create a bust from a bright hope -but honestly is is still a GAMBLE that the flaws do not come back to bite them.
So this #1 pick could go either way: MAYBE the hockey gods have provided Chicago with a scoring machine who will be perennially up in the scoring leaders' table of the league--or maybe he willbe just another 1-way little guy,constantly down with injuries from hits,and eventually retired early.Boom or bust?
I wish OHL teams had hit Kane a lot more this year so I could tell wheher he could project he same success into the pros--but they did not hit mim much--so I just don't know how ths will turn out.