{"id":129095,"date":"2022-05-28T09:19:51","date_gmt":"2022-05-28T13:19:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=129095"},"modified":"2022-05-27T15:41:27","modified_gmt":"2022-05-27T19:41:27","slug":"player-development-top-10-picks-conclusion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2022\/05\/28\/player-development-top-10-picks-conclusion\/","title":{"rendered":"Player Development: Top-10 Picks, Conclusion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Player development seems to always result in more questions than answers. How likely is it for a top pick to pan out? What makes a player a \u201csteal\u201d? Last Word On Hockey will be starting a new series on how to properly develop prospects from all different spots throughout the draft. This week\u2019s piece involves top-10 picks and how they were used early in their careers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Player Development of Top-10 Picks<\/h2>\n

In the span of 2005 through 2015, there were 40 total selections made between fourth overall and tenth overall on forwards playing in North America. Looking at all 40 forwards, they were split into eight categories. Those eight are \u201cDeemed NHL-ready and brought in immediately,\u201d \u201cNear NHL-ready and brought in immediately,\u201d<\/a> \u201cRushed slightly,\u201d<\/a> \u201cRushed,\u201d \u201cForced,\u201d \u201cA little patience,\u201d \u201cPatience,\u201d and \u201cToo much patience\/never panned out.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Of those categories, five of them included players who were brought in as soon as possible, or before the player was ready. The other three categories included players who were given additional time despite possibly being deemed ready sooner.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Immediate Call-Ups<\/h3>\n

Looking at the first five categories, which included players brought in quickly, there were 24 total players. Of those players, nine were brought in immediately following the draft. Those players are Sam Gagner<\/a>, Sean Couturier<\/a>, Evander Kane<\/a>, Josh Bailey<\/a>, Jeff Skinner<\/a>, Sean Monahan<\/a>, Phil Kessel<\/a>, Mikkel Boedker<\/a>, and Alex Burmistrov<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In total, these players average 0.852 wins above replacement (WAR) per season. What that means is, per season, these players average just shy of 1.0 WAR. These players also averaged 17:02 time on ice per game in their careers altogether, while recording an average of 0.586 points per game (48 points in 82 games). That\u2019s about what you\u2019d expect from an average second-line forward, generally speaking.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>