Quoting: ConnorsCousin
You're labelling him as a bust too quick. Going back to 2014, Dal Colle and Milano are just starting their careers, anyone calling them busts? 2015 - Strome was a bust until he wasn't right? Zacha? Guryanov just starting this season? 2016 - Juolevi hasn't even played a game yet, Alex Nylander just starting his career, Tyson Jost, Logan Brown, Dante Fabbro all starting their careers just now. Most guys in his draft class are just starting their careers now and have the luxury of not being labelled a bust because they were given ample time to develop. He's getting it now, good for him.
It takes one good season as Strome proved for someone to turn their career around. Even when Strome was a "bust", him and Perlini ended up getting Schmaltz.
no, lets get this straight. The biggest reason for a player to "not be ready" is their size and strength level. They come in weighing 170lbs and they need to physically develop.
JP came in at 6'4 200+lbs.
He also got a prime spot on McDavids wing, which he could not hold. That's one of the easiest spots in the whole world of hockey to be able to produce any kind of offense, because someone is always going to be open as they 2 on 1 McDavid, and he couldn't capitalize on it or even look like he remotely fit in.
Then there is the fact that he became a cancer with his attitude. Which is why he's sitting in Liga right now refusing to put on an EDM jersey.
But you go tell me how anyone in the world should give up an arm and a leg for a player like that!
At some point you might get the fact that he had everything going for him. And he simply did not capitalize on any of it. Now you have a 21 year old player who has been playing size for several seasons, with an attitude problem and poor performance. And you seem to have a hard time dealing with it. Just because you picked him 4OA does not mean he's worth a 4OA return.
The league does not wait forever for wingers to develop. They are typically getting till they are somewhere between 21-23 and that's it. Their value plummets.
Which is why you look around the league and the value of guys like Sprong, Donato, Kyrou are all tanking compared to what they would once have returned on a trade.
It doesn't mean they can't eventually develop into a player when they are 24 or 25 years old. But that doesn't mean they will hold the value they use to have before they had their shots at the NHL.
JP is no different than anyone of them. He's been given a fair shot at the NHL level. Instead he blamed everyone but himself, under performed, and became a pain in the ass for management.
But clearly that screams insane return.