Yamamoto

[Fighting_Emu]

Feel like Ive cooled significantly on Yamo. Does he still have topline upside? Did he ever? Lol- outside of junior and a short streak in the NHL his scoring has been pretty spotty. Anyone seeing the games seeing anything differently? Is he more Gallagher or Gudreau?

[Axeman33]

What has brought on your cooling feeling now?

[lucafen4]

Most likely just time. Any super hyped player it seems needs to step in right away.

Any delay beyond 1 year in making an impact causes a significant downturn in favouritism.
Dylan Strome is a good example.
When Kyle Connor took an extra year of cooking this forum was filled with owners wanting to throw in the towel
Players like DeBrincat are the exception, not the norm.

Yet the majority believe it is the norm and when it doesn't work like that they'll be a bust.
Just imagine if Morgan Frost needs a couple more years before he's NHL ready.
Sometimes, smaller players just need more time.
Sometimes their skill sets & hockey sense meshes well with the team and NHL game and they transition quickly.

Preach patience

[Shift Disturber]

Feel like Ive cooled significantly on Yamo. Does he still have topline upside? Did he ever? Lol- outside of junior and a short streak in the NHL his scoring has been pretty spotty. Anyone seeing the games seeing anything differently? Is he more Gallagher or Gudreau?

Points-wise, closer to Gallagher than Gaudreau. I'm a Yamamoto owner and I think that the Oilers, true to form, screwed up by keeping him in the NHL to start the season. He struggled, sat, and generally stalled in his development. He was sent down to Bakersfield and started slowly there as well, but I heard that he was playing much better in the later stages of the season. He's only 20, and in spite of the Oilers poor record of prospect development he's in a good situation as the franchise is starving for scoring from the RW. He needs a good full year in the AHL to get his mojo back and I think he'll be okay.

[metaldude26]

A couple of things to consider:

1) His AHL numbers are decent but not exceptional, even for his age. For this player, scoring is the only thing he offers (similar to Dylan Strome example, only Strome destroyed the AHL), so he needs to be killing it to keep optimism high.
2) He has dealt with an upper-body injury all season, which cost him some games. A lot of speculation it's a wrist injury, which would hinder, puck-handling, passing, shooting, etc. If indeed this is the case, I'm open to the potential for a big bounce-back, however this also adds some track-record to the other concern with smaller players, which is injury.

Looking at the total package, I'd lean towards this being the time to buy rather than the time to sell. The new car smell has faded, which could make him gettable. That said, I was able to move Yamamoto and a pick in the 18-20 range for Mark Stone, so there will be league and owner dependent factors that will determine the value propositions available to you.

[Fighting_Emu]

What has brought on your cooling feeling now?

A few things:

- Basically what MD said about his AHL production being decent but not great. I know its been better lately which is nice but he has struggled at times too. I did NOT about the injury so that could obviously be a factor.
- Just in reading more- he apparently doesnt have speed to burn like a lot of younger players so i wonder if that affects any potential chemistry with McD. Just speculation on my part but thats where the Gallagher comparison came from as well (I know hes not a feisty net front guy).
- And lastly the "Oiler effect". Just watching whats happening with Pullijarvi and starting to get worried. between their poor development and their scouting staff having a history of reaching for guys somewhat out of turn who havent panned out.

Im not asking if hes a total bust- Gallagher numbers are still extremely valuable- especially in the format I play in- I just wonder if my initial expectations were too high. A small, slow(ish) skater on a team with a bad development track record is dampening my initial thoughts, which were essentially wondering if he'd be the next fantasy superstar. I dont watch a lot of oiler games and dont have much knowledge on him specifically so thats why I posted. Just curious what people in the know might say. I dont mind being patient on a prospect- Im just in talks to maybe acquire him and wondering how much he'd be worth...