If you have been following along, be it here or other media hubs over the last few weeks, this was the sensible pick for the Sabres if they stayed in the second spot (assuming that Aaron Ekblad went first overall). This is at all no slight to Sam Bennett or Leon Draisaitl, but we saw this Reinhart consistently outperform the other forwards in his peer group over the past three seasons to the point that it was the most comfortable talent for Tim Murray to select in his first draft rodeo as Sabres GM.
There is not much more you can say that hasn't already been said. Reinhart is a gifted playmaker and leader who can do a little bit of everything offensively, and he should work his way into NHL duty quickly. I'm not sure that it happens in 2014-15, but the door is certainly open for him to earn it with a great development camp, Traverse City showing, and NHL preseason effort.
If you look at what the Sabres have up front, you can't help but be excited for the future. We have already seen what Zemgus Girgensons is capable of. Joel Armia took his game up a notch in the AHL playoffs in his first year of North American hockey. JT Compher and Hudson Fasching are poised for dominating sophomore years in the NCAA, while William Carrier may very well be a player we see in Buffalo in his first professional season. And yes, let's not forget Nick Baptiste and Justin Bailey, who earned their team's MVP honors last season, and US NJEC invite Connor Hurley (heading to Notre Dame). All of a sudden there is less pressure on Mikhail Grigorenko, but we should expect him to perform as a top player when 2014-15 training camp begins.
But back to Reinhart. Smart, poised, MENSA IQ for the game. It leads to high level production. This kid is a gem on and off the ice.
