Considering the low draft positions, the Wings played in the SCPO 5-ever!!! That shows that our developmental and scouting systems were excellent. The problem was the philosophy of over-developing and hanging onto older players for more $$$. Well documented, of course. That's all changed.
The kids in the developmental program now are some pretty solid selections. I think Soderblom could be a strong player, but he's going to take a LOT of incubation time. Johannsson should be powerful, Tuomisto ("Twisted Mister"???
) seems like he's got serious potential, but the rest of the guys seem like a crap-shoot. Heck, ANY draft selection is a crap-shoot.
The good thing is that our developmental program is solid, Euro scouting is strong as heck. So those 2 things combined bode well for the future. Some excellent UFA/Trades from The Captain, and BINGO! We're no longer wallowing in the dregs of the NHL. Just takes time.....LOTS of time. Hell, and ENTIRE generation of fans knew nothing but making the SCPO. 25 years. Incredible. But that means the fans fail to realize what it takes to create a professional. It takes TONS of work, both on the part of the system AND the player (really, for ANY profession in society). Army Rangers aren't born; they're developed. Same with athletes.
