Lmao. Stutzle and Norris are both atop this . Wth

yeah definitely stuezle over kurashev. Stuezle is in the top 3 right now

I have no idea what is going on with Lafreniere. So many scouts regarded him as this franchise level LW with a similar ceiling to Hall/Nash, yet he’s playing like a bust. He didn’t look ready to step into a top line role and it doesn’t seem like he’s effective in the bottom 6 with howden either.

Maybe as the season progresses but not right now

Are u doing okay in your brain? They’re 2 and 3 in scoring among rookies

Chicago is gonna regress this is not sustainable.

The Q isnt a good league. He needs to play in the AHL but he can’t

Patrick Kane is running a daycare

Never said it was sustainable. This list is as of right now. Suter/Kurashev have the same number of points as Norris/Stutzle in a harder division. Stutzle is the worst of the 4 right now because he can't play defense at all and the other 3 can.

Prospects take time. We have been spoiled by the McDavid, Matthews and Eichels of the past 5 years.

Oettinger should be in the conversation

He's not a starter and doesn't have outstanding numbers. Why should he be in the conversation?

To me it’s Ty Smith and it’s not all that close. 8 points in only 11 games makes him the best per-game scorer and that’s as a defenseman. Second-best +/-, top 10 TOI, strong possession numbers, and playing a top PP role for NJ.

North>Central I think.

Vanecek will fall back for sure since he'll get less starts with Samsonov back but Lankinen is top 2 for the Vezina right now which makes him the obvious Calder winner. Smith is an absolute monster though and the Calder race probably tightens as the season continues.

He has the same SV% as Vanecek, I know he played less games than him but still. He isn't the starter because Dallas actually has good goaltending that the Caps don't.

Dallas has a better defense and plays defensively. The East is also way better than every other division.

Agree the AHL would’ve been perfect for him. He’s not ready for the top level yet.

That’s true but I haven’t seen a top level prospect struggle this bad in a long time.

Hughes and Kakko last season.

the rangers as a whole have not been playing well offensively. Mika is at 3 points in 15 games, and the top 6 scoring has not had consistent scoring except for Panarin. he (Laf) has played well but nobody on the team can find a way to put up points. I think the biggest factor is Chytil's injury. Chytil was playing very well before he got hurt and gives Laf much more help than howden, rooney, PDG, etc. I'd like to see if the team and Laf can pick up the pace when he comes back (hopefully soon). and to build on your point, Laf is 19. I know stutzle is too but Laf has a little more competition for ice time, powerplay time, etc.

all that being said, K'Andre Miller definitely deserves to be in Calder talk

My top 3 right now would be Lankinen, Smith and Kaprizov. Kap will challenge and maybe overtake Lankinen eventually, but this is how I see it right now.

Some people have been questioning the absence of Tim Stutzle on your list and while I really like his potential, he is one of the worst defensive players in the entire league right now (his -14 rating aside). If he continues on this trajectory for this season, he'll put up points and get some down-ballot votes, but I can't see him cracking the top-3 with how raw his game still is.

And this is pure bias on my part, so take it with a grain of salt, but look out for Pius Suter. People forget that Kubalik didn't take off until the 2nd half of 19-20 and I think Suter could take a similar path as he continues to adjust to the North American game and he plays with a little more consistency. Either way, I love seeing him here, he's been better than expected.

The team sucks but Stutzle is the best

I think hughes did alright, he generated a lot of chances just didn’t lead to results. Statistically speaking, Lafreniere is still one of the top players on NYR in individual shot attempts, unblocked shot attempts and expected goals. So it seems he’s doing the right thing as well but he’s not talented enough.

Yes I agree, Chytil was playing really well before the injury. I was looking at the stats & Lafreniere was getting destroyed when the coach put him with a Zibanejad, he just wasn’t ready to face such heavy competition. He definitely won’t achieve anything with bad centers such as Howden or rooney either. It’s a bad situation for him.