Kadri In The "A"

I'm just going to come out and say it; Patience is a virtue. This thought seems to be lost on some Maple Leaf fans and it has been like this since the very night that Nazem Kadri was drafted 7th overall.

Last season Kadri played 29 games with the Leafs with only 12 points to show for it. It would be a very sore topic for Leafs' management if he had put up the same numbers in the AHL, he did not. After coming back from an injury earlier in the season and spending time with the Leafs, Nazem could only put together a 44 game campaign with the Toronto Marlies. Most of this is in credit to Kadri who was called up late in the season and stuck with the team until the final game. If he had not been injured or promoted for the last few months, Brian Burke would be likely be looking at some very impressive AHL numbers. In 44 games with the Marlies last season Kadri scored 17 goals and 24 assists for 41 points. With his progression through every game it would've been understandable to assume he could've reached the total he was on pace for, which was about 75 points. Those are VERY good AHL numbers for a rookie in any given year.

If kadri makes the team out of training camp I don't think anybody would argue the decision. If he is relegated to the Marlies for the beginning of the season though, people may start to go nuts. Why? If he shows the same drive he did last season in the AHL, leave him there and let him thrive. Whats the worst that could happen? Kadri has a 80 point season? Come on guys, players develop because they are young. You don't get a player for everything he will ever be at the ripe old age of 19. I say leave him in the "A" and let him dominate the league. If there is an emergency than he's the first on your list to be called up,  plain and simple.