It's hard to remember just how much things have improved when right now we're left with the Monarchs who just aren't playing very well against the Bruins right now.
I'm working on the CHL review, John is working on the AHL review, another feature article about the 2003 draft, and the HF Organizational Rankings and I am heading up the HF Top 50 Prospect project. Busy time for us all this summer. I also have a ton of draft articles in the works, keeping my fingers crossed that there might actually be a draft.
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Saxon Sports Information and Research
I'm working on the CHL review, John is working on the AHL review, another feature article about the 2003 draft, and the HF Organizational Rankings and I am heading up the HF Top 50 Prospect project. Busy time for us all this summer. I also have a ton of draft articles in the works, keeping my fingers crossed that there might actually be a draft.
Just out of curiousity, were you significantly involved in the April 2004 Top 50? How in the blazes did Jared Aulin rank #39?? That still sticks in my craw...at least it was fixed last November, I guess. Actually, I've been dying to tell someone important at HF this for at least 5 yrs: I've been a Caps fan for 25+ yrs and I am sick and tired of reading how great their prospects are. Either the people who rate them (and I'm not talking JUST about HF) are clueless or the Caps are the most unlucky franchise ever with "top rated" prospects. They've had more overhyped, overblown prospects who don't do didly (or is it "do didly"?) than any franchise in any sport!!!
Oh, and that was a great article on the Kings NCAA prospects. Really, it was very very good.
I've been a Caps fan for 25+ yrs and I am sick and tired of reading how great their prospects are. Either the people who rate them (and I'm not talking JUST about HF) are clueless or the Caps are the most unlucky franchise ever with "top rated" prospects. They've had more overhyped, overblown prospects who don't do didly (or is it "do didly"?) than any franchise in any sport!!!
that's funny you say that becuase most of the caps fans at HF complain their prospects are underrated and they get no respect
that's funny you say that becuase most of the caps fans at HF complain their prospects are underrated and they get no respect
Underrated? Historically that's just untrue. They've had one of the top rated organ-eye-zations in terms of prospects across the hockey media for as long as I can remember. They'll dip a little every now and then but they were rated in the top 5 for 8 out of 10 years in one stretch and you know how many of those guys made a significant contribution? ONE...Brendan Witt. Most of their guys are average at best and the guys you'd WANT came out of nowhere like Khristich, Bondra, Zednik, Halpern and Konowalchuk...even Gonchar (#14 overall) wasn't well thought of by the rankers since he showed almost ZERO offense until he set foot in North America.
Get no respect? If that's finally happened it's because the organization has earned that reputation. Although I will say this...the Caps prospects who have made it were very underrated and really most of them sort of came out of nowhere. But those guys are FAR outweighed by the years and years and years of prospects who were highly (over)rated: Nolan Baumgartner...Alex Volkov...Jaro Svejkovsky.
Just send those whiney ass complainers to me...a 25+ yr Caps fan and I'll tell 'em a thing or two.
Looks at these hosers and tell me the Caps deserve some kind of respect for their "top prospects":
89 – Kolzig (#19 overall)
90 – John Slaney (9)
91 – Pat Peake (14); Trevor Halverson (21); Eric Lavigne (25)
92 – Gonchar (14)
93 – Witt (11); Allison (17)
94 – Baumgartner (10); Alex Kharlamov (15)
95 – Brad Church (17)
96 – Alex Volchkov (4); Jaro Svejkovsky (17)
97 – Boynton (9)
98 – no 1st rounder, top pick was Jomar Cruz (49)
99 – Kris Beech (7); Michal Sivek (29)
*Kolzig wasn’t rated that high at the time because, well, because his stats flat-out sucked.
*Gonchar wasn’t rated high because he was seen as a defensive Dman and #14 was too high to take him.
*Witt was rated high
*Allison wasn’t rated high because he was a punk in juniors and by the time the Caps traded him they were absolutely sick of him.
The rest of those palyers are losers (except for Boynton who they let go). Blech!! It makes me ill just typing those names.
It's tough to argue with people who think Semin could be in the top 10 scorers the next NHL season and think he is already a good 2-way forward. Those are SO off base it's impossible to argue. The last I saw he was #13 and that seems about right. As for the other Caps prospects, I think Fehr is still too much of a wild card to complain about where he's ranked (#43)...anyone who wants him ranked higher is only ranking on upside without considering the downside of an unpolished gem. But the #1 complaint I have right now is Ouellet...in 3 yrs we're going to be talking about him the way we're talking about J-F Damphousse, Brian Finley and Adam Munro wondering "whatever happened to...?". Morrisonn I just don't know about. I really really liked him as a B's prospect but he didn't bring his game to Washington so I've backed off him a little. Green's made nice improvements but leading the WHL in scoring just isn't THAT big a deal and he's got to show that what he's learned will STICK.
Like I said, the Caps just have a history of drafting "good prospects" at the top of the draft who never amount to anything. I hope that changes but I won't hold my breath cuz I don't want to die.
I've been on the committee for several years, but I was just one of many people who worked on it (although, not anymore as I will be chairing it from here on out). Those ranking were actually done before while Aulin was still a King and we had to go back and re-write the blurb for him because he got traded just before release.
The overrating of caps prospects are a whole other issue. You mentioned that it is not just HF but most media outlets. I can't speak for the past but this is probably true today because the Caps went through and picked off everyone's big-name-but-failing-to-live-up-to-the-potential prospects these last couple of years. So media outlets get all gooshy over the name without asking why they are not living up to potential. Unfortunately here at HF, we had some Washington writers that were a bit out of control (I remember the way some of their goalies were rated, Matt Yeats a 6.5? yikes!) But those writers have been sacked and HF has centralized their control over each homepage to prevent the individual writers from throwing all their rankings out of whack. Each day, things improve as HF progresses from 40 writers with their own agendas (as it was years ago) to a more centralized control by the editors and infinitely increased input from the organizations (as it is now).
Ya know, there's a difference between arguing about coaching philosophies, actual results (draft, development, standings, stats) and whether someone deserves top 6 time or a demotion to Manchester...and arguing about someone's opinion of whether the future will be brighter for this 19 yr old kid or that one. In all the arguments I have, very few of them are about what the future bodes. Every now and then I'll sput off about it but not usually. I did about Storr (right), Berg (right), Belanger (wrong), Frolov (right), Lehoux (wrong), Aulin (a little early but I already think I've been proven right) and probably some others. But anyone who honestly thinks s/he knows how this player or that player will turn out (injuries aside) is nuts.
that's funny you say that becuase most of the caps fans at HF complain their prospects are underrated and they get no respect
That must explain all of the Chris Bourque discussions over on their board. I've tried getting up discussions on some of their other NCAA prospects such as Stephen Werner and Travis Morin (a player who I really like), but most of them don't seem all that interested or simply don't care.
I've been on the committee for several years, but I was just one of many people who worked on it (although, not anymore as I will be chairing it from here on out). Those ranking were actually done before while Aulin was still a King and we had to go back and re-write the blurb for him because he got traded just before release.
Well good, as entertaining as the past writeups/rankings have been, the flat-out wrongness of them is grating sometimes.
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The overrating of caps prospects are a whole other issue. You mentioned that it is not just HF but most media outlets. I can't speak for the past but this is probably true today because the Caps went through and picked off everyone's big-name-but-failing-to-live-up-to-the-potential prospects these last couple of years. So media outlets get all gooshy over the name without asking why they are not living up to potential.
Amen. That's what's got me about Morrisonn. I like the kid but there's a reason Boston was willing to trade him for (possibly) 2 months of Gonchar. I just haven't figured out what it is yet. But at least they finally dropped Aulin to a (still overated but) more realistic #10...but I think that's even too high and drop him AT LEAST a few spots below Boyd Gordon who I like MUCH better.
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Unfortunately here at HF, we had some Washington writers that were a bit out of control (I remember the way some of their goalies were rated, Matt Yeats a 6.5? yikes!) But those writers have been sacked and HF has centralized their control over each homepage to prevent the individual writers from throwing all their rankings out of whack. Each day, things improve as HF progresses from 40 writers with their own agendas (as it was years ago) to a more centralized control by the editors and infinitely increased input from the organizations (as it is now).
Well that explains some things as to how it was years ago. I remember seeing Yeats at 6.5 and fell out of my damn chair. He wasn't a 6.5 then.....or EVER!!
Thanks for the info and good luck with your new chairmanship.
In all fairness... asking jt to change the minds of Washington homers is like asking a first year doctor to cure cancer.
It's like trying to change the "anti" people's minds about Andy Murray and Dave Taylor and the "pro" people's minds about Cammy. Sometimes I'll argue because it's an interesting argument, even though I know there's no real "true answer". But arguing with people who think Semin could easily be a top 10 scorer in the NHL next season and he's already a good 2-way forward is like trying to convince Oral Roberts that he should be a Jew.
