Kyle Turris has left Wisconsin after just one year and signed a contract with the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes.
OK, so.....just what exactly was the point in turning down the WHL repeatedly to stay in Jr A and get the scholarship? Boy, he sure put that scholarship to good use, didn't he? One whole year! So he wasted two years in the BCHL that he could have been in the WHL - and would have won a Memorial Cup with the Giants last year had he joined them. (Yes, I know he won the Royal Bank Cup in Jr A....but that's nowhere near as prestigious as the Memorial Cup)
I'm not knocking the BCHL or the NCAA, but the WHL is a much better league than the BCHL is. BCHL is a good option if you're serious about getting an NCAA education out of your career. Turris obviously isn't serious about his education or he wouldn't be dropping out of school so early....if you want to be in the NHL at 19, the WHL will better prepare you for the NHL style of play and rigorous travel schedule. I don't get some of these kids who claim education is so important to them and they hold out for a scholarship, only to flee school at the first sign of money. You coulda had the money AND a couple years of higher-calibre hockey if you had come to the WHL earlier.
3 comments:
You make a decent point, but are a little off base. First of all, was it guaranteed that Turris would be in this spot when he was 16 and originally made the decision to pursue the NCAA? How much ice time would a 145 lb. kid like him have gotten in the WHL as a 16 yr old [even a 17 yr old]? Th way he went about it he had his cake and ate it too, so to speak. If the hockey fell apart somewhere along the way he had school to fall back on, as it turns out now he has the contract, was a very high draft pick, and has one year of school done before he started a pro career if he ever decides to go back when the hockey's all done.
The size issue is a legitimate reason why many smaller players may be reluctant to play in the WHL at younger ages. No argument there.
But, to me that argument only really makes sense if the player wants to stay in midget....if he's going to go to junior A anyway, the players there are all bigger and stronger and older than him too. In fact, there are more 20 year olds allowed on a Jr A roster than on major junior rosters.
He didn't want to play in the WHL and that's OK....I have no issue with kids who go NCAA because they want the education. But the ones who really want the education don't leave school after one year.
LOL at anonymous. I'm over a decade removed from not finishing my liberal arts university degree. I think I'd pretty much have to start from scratch now that I'm past 30.
If Turris goes back to Wisconsin when he's age 30-35 to complete his degree, I'll eat my cat.
Taylor Field
Post a Comment