The NHL is almost back: prospect tournaments are wrapping up, NHL players are arriving in their respective cities and Winnipeg, informal skates are plenty. With this time of the year comes the eternal questions of “is [insert prospect here] ready for the NHL?”
For the top prospects, the answer is sometimes yes, but often no. In general, the prospects that make their way into the NHL are older bottom liners who squeak in ahead of the odd veteran. Prospects need a few years to mature and hit some percentage of potential they might’ve had when they were 18 before they can see a chance to make that jump.