Rick is a cool guy though. You never know. Many times you look at drafts from years ago and you re-order it and you see 7th rounders become 'top 10' from that draft.
I loved Vail before the draft, during the draft and after the draft, but as weak some believe the 2012 draft, Vail didn't deserve even an Honourable mention in the 1st round. Lacks top elite talent, everybody pencil him at best as a 3rd line centerman IF he makes it. Not what you're looking for in a 1st round.
For sure, people might come up and say that in retrospect, Vail's does have a better career than some of the 1st rounders.....forgetting to say that so will some of the 2nd rounders....and surely some of the 3rd as well.
I loved Vail before the draft, during the draft and after the draft, but as weak some believe the 2012 draft, Vail didn't deserve even an Honourable mention in the 1st round. Lacks top elite talent, everybody pencil him at best as a 3rd line centerman IF he makes it. Not what you're looking for in a 1st round.
For sure, people might come up and say that in retrospect, Vail's does have a better career than some of the 1st rounders.....forgetting to say that so will some of the 2nd rounders....and surely some of the 3rd as well.
What people dont realize about vail is he started his career late and to me I believe he is a late bloomer
What people dont realize about vail is he started his career late and to me I believe he is a late bloomer
He's also going to play the year with top minutes on Windsor which could lead to increased development as a scorer. He's easily one of the best Spits already.
I loved Vail before the draft, during the draft and after the draft, but as weak some believe the 2012 draft, Vail didn't deserve even an Honourable mention in the 1st round. Lacks top elite talent, everybody pencil him at best as a 3rd line centerman IF he makes it. Not what you're looking for in a 1st round.
For sure, people might come up and say that in retrospect, Vail's does have a better career than some of the 1st rounders.....forgetting to say that so will some of the 2nd rounders....and surely some of the 3rd as well.
I didn't say he should have gone 1st round. You didn't understand my post.
I didn't say he should have gone 1st round. You didn't understand my post.
You seemed to agree. The guy you responded to was surprised, you responded with "he's a cool guy, you never know". Well, again, nobody is right, we all have our opinions....but my opinion is that in no way was Vail supposed to be a 1st rounder. Of course, you never know.....it is a draft after all. But the reality of a 1st round is that you go with players who have elite talent. Vail didn't show anything elite, but a lot of things to be good. But then, of course, since the draft is about projecting and not just analysing what you see, "some" might project for different sorts of reasons, that he will develop into something elite. Again, yes....we will see. But if true that you pick him 1st round in solely projecting, you do take a chance to go with players like that later since not everybody might see him the way you do. Not in the 1st round.
I believe Vail has everything to be a NHL'er. I don't see him top 6 at all. But a really valuable NHL player. He understands the game really well. That always helps.
I watched the game and it was just the most recent of many games I've seen from Vail. He had some blips and bumbles last night in offensive situations where he'd force passes or zig when he should have zagged. But he plays a solid, steady, unspectacular game.
He's almost always in the right spot and in good position to recover defensively. He just needs to work a bit on what to do when space opens up. He's certainly not a flashy, dominant player out there, but more a steady, nagging presence that fits well within the team concept.
I watched the game and it was just the most recent of many games I've seen from Vail. He had some blips and bumbles last night in offensive situations where he'd force passes or zig when he should have zagged. But he plays a solid, steady, unspectacular game.
He's almost always in the right spot and in good position to recover defensively. He just needs to work a bit on what to do when space opens up. He's certainly not a flashy, dominant player out there, but more a steady, nagging presence that fits well within the team concept.
I don't know... sounds like either a Jeff Halpern or Niklas Sundstrom type of player, IMO, which would be pretty good. Is he physical ?
I don't know... sounds like either a Jeff Halpern or Niklas Sundstrom type of player, IMO, which would be pretty good. Is he physical ?
Yes. He doesn't go out of his way to lay someone out, but is very effective at tying his man up, and usually comes out of the corners with the puck. He finishes all his checks, but if the puck is easier to play than the man, then he will go for the puck. He's a very smart physical player. Reminds me of Manny Malhotra.
I watched the game and it was just the most recent of many games I've seen from Vail. He had some blips and bumbles last night in offensive situations where he'd force passes or zig when he should have zagged. But he plays a solid, steady, unspectacular game.
He's almost always in the right spot and in good position to recover defensively. He just needs to work a bit on what to do when space opens up. He's certainly not a flashy, dominant player out there, but more a steady, nagging presence that fits well within the team concept.
His playing style looks alot like Engqvist to me.. Hopefully he becomes a better player though..
I don't know... sounds like either a Jeff Halpern or Niklas Sundstrom type of player, IMO, which would be pretty good. Is he physical ?
You know, Halpern isn't a bad comparable. I know he's now a bit old and slow, but the more prime-time Halpern is very similar in build and style. I want to say Vail might have slightly better offensive instincts, but they both get around the ice in a similar fashion and are quite consistent.
I don't know... sounds like either a Jeff Halpern or Niklas Sundstrom type of player, IMO, which would be pretty good. Is he physical ?
Hmm... interesting comparatives. I'd say more of a skill set like Sundstrom that plays (or "gets around", as TW puts it below) like Halpern, if that makes sense.
I think Chris Kelly could be a good comparable too.
Disagree. In a lot of areas, if not so much "in the end". Kelly had a bigger impact and played a larger role than Vail at similar age, and Kelly came out of junior with that added element of intangibles - as a leader both in terms of captaincy for a stretch and scoring year to year - that I don't think anyone has really picked up from Vail yet. Skill set may seem similar (size certainly does), but imo Kelly both a) was higher "calibre" then, and b) is having a larger impact/role (mind you Kelly is among the captains group in Boston "currently" and a 20 goal scorer) at the NHL level than I could ever reasonably expect/project out of Vail. So not necessarily a horrible comparable, but depends on what we're comparing.
He's probably our draft pick last summer that I'm the least confident with. For some reason I see him as some kind of better skating Kyle Chipchura.
Luckily he's a 4th rounder so even if he's ''just'' a 4th liner or a borderline 3rd liner he'll be a good pick I guess.
I hope the Kelly comparison turn out to be correct.
Why?
Honestly, I have more confidence in him than Bozon and Hudon. I had him ranked above both of them in my mock draft. He plays a very strong two-way game and he thrives in any role Windsor gives him. He's an excellent PKer, he skates fast, and he has very good positioning. His offensive game still has some work to do, but he is still producing. He's also come up big when Windsor needs it. Whether it be a faceoff win, a game winner, an equalizer, or big PK, he's done it. I think he's going to have a huge year offensively.
Having said that....just a suggestion. Can we just close the draft threads and keep the stats on the Prospects thread? Just that 7 threads to look at instead of one....
