Clayton Keller

[iglooinhabitant]

What are your thoughts on Mr. Keller moving forward?

I read such conflicting views on him but haven't watched the Coyotes much. Some people say he's just starting to figure it out and others seem to say he's just not that impactful and never will be. Good buy low or time to forget about him? Any chance at 65+ points in the next 1-3 years?

Thanks for any insight!

[Feenom]

I can see him being a perennial 25G scorer and 65 point guy. He’s only 22 so plenty of time for him to hit those numbers. He hit 65 points as a rookie and I think he can reach those totals easily as the team slowly continues to improve. Watched a few Yotes games this year and saw him get a lot of chances but not put them away. I do think he’s getting the hang of the NHL and it’s a matter of time before he becomes a consistent point producer.

[Bubba55]

It sure doesn't seem likely that Keller will hit a lofty upside of PPG or better that most of us expected. That said, Keller is still a talented offensive forward and he will produce points in the league. I believe he will still be a 1st line forward in the desert and if he gets some decent line mates he should be able to put up 60 - 65 pts on a fairly consistent basis. I think if you count on that your expectations are about where they should be. If Keller is indeed "figuring it out" you might see an additional 10 pts in production but as I said, I don't see a PPG forward moving forward here.

[YzermansLegacy]

I'm buying personally... though admittedly saw very few Coyotes games last year.

Based on limited viewings and pedigree though, I agree with others' takes that 65pts is definitely doable, and I think there's still a chance for a bit more too.

One thing I did look at throughout this year (and last) was deployment for Keller. I think Tocchet (somewhat rightfully) gave a lot of the primo PP/OZ minutes to Kessel (especially the season before). And while Keller sometimes shared those minutes - I'm really curious as to how things unfold with a new coach. If that deployment improves, I can see a solid bump in production, as I think that's where Keller needs to thrive in order to hit major points. (Or if they could land a legit top-line guy to play alongside him).

Still too much upside for me to lose faith, but it might be a bit of slow burn to peak based on the team.