Drafted fifth overall in 2018, Barrett Hayton was said to have gone too high by many experts.
Of course, there is no such thing as an expert at predicting how 18 year old kids - some of whom are still technically 17 - will turn out.
Outside of the years when the #1 pick is so famous by the time he's drafted that your grandmother could make the proper selection, there's a high degree of randomness even on the top picks.
Maybe they should have picked Quinn Hughes instead, but you can't fault them for going with the guy they liked when no one really knows.
Either way, it's starting to look like a much better pick. Reassessments were made after he beat his career high OHL totals by six points 24 less games, and people were starting to call him one of the best players outside the NHL.
Better to ride the pine in the NHL than play in a league you've outgrown by miles, but still, it's pretty bad that he isn't playing, development wise.
He's only gotten into 14 games for a team that he is one of the better players on. Sure, experience, and learning to be a pro matter, but talent wise, the Coyotes, a team that generally doesn't score, are intentionally not playing a guy who is - at worst - their 5th most talented player.
Hayton played through a separated shoulder and scored the tying goal in Canada's Gold Medal win yesterday. Although I'm not sure how much honour is in winning on a technicality, Hayton's stock has risen like mad over the last couple weeks.
He was the team's captain, and had six goals and 12 points in seven games. He was the WJHC's second leading scoring, and it's leader in anthem disruptions.
He should immediately become a regular in the Coyotes lineup.