from Travis Yost of TSN,

The 2022 National Hockey League Draft will usher in another group of young, promising players looking to make the jump to the professional level.

In a league that’s increasingly youthful, the days of extensive, multi-year development cycles are long gone. Teams are aggressively injecting young players into the lineup – if not because they are friendlier to the salary cap rules, then because they are the ones generally driving the performance bus.

But there is clearly a limit to how aggressive franchises are willing to get with young talent. Despite the average age of lineups dropping off a cliff in recent years, teams are still reticent to put the youngest players into regular lineups.

Sometimes this is about physical development; other times, it’s about ensuring players can be successful against professional competition at lower levels first. From time to time you will find a player so uniquely talented and developed – think Edmonton’s Connor McDavid or Florida’s Aaron Ekblad – that the decision is easy. But that’s not the case in most every other situation.

Consider the frequency with which first-year draftees have made their way into the NHL over the past 15 years.

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