(AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post)
It isn't an exact science, but in any given year, only the top handful of teenage first-round picks — and even that might be stretching it — generally stick with their NHL teams the next season. In recent years, of course, Nathan MacKinnon (first), Gabe Landeskog (second) and Matt Duchene (third) have pulled it off with the Avalanche, as well as a No. 33 overall longshot named Ryan O'Reilly.
So conventional wisdom would lead to the conclusion that winger Mikko Rantanen, the Avalanche's first-round pick and No. 10 overall June 26, will return to play for TPS Turku in Finland's pro league in 2015-16 to mature and gain more experience before beginning his NHL career.