Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Stefan Noesen Jersey Card

Another card I got from Ebay two weeks ago was this one, featuring New Jersey Devils prospect Stefan Noesen, whom the team acquired from the Anaheim Ducks off waivers just last week:
It's the "jersey" version of card #125 from Upper Deck's 2015-16 Trilogy set and Rookie Premieres and Level 1 Jersey sub-sets, showing him wearing the Ducks' black (now-home) uniform and featuring a white jersey swatch from a rookie photo shoot. It's extremely thick, and very beautiful, the silver foil looking great with the black and green framing. It's numbered 194/599.

Noesen had originally been an Ottawa Senators draft pick (21st overall in 2011) but had been traded to the Ducks in the Bobby Ryan deal. He was a point-per-game player in Juniors with the OHL's Plymouth Whalers, but had had trouble adapting to the AHL in his first two full seasons, until finding his groove this year with 15 points (6 goals, 9 assists) in 22 games with the San Diego Gulls.

Injuries had been an issue, but as we all know, power forwards take longer to develop than smaller, skilled ones, and perhaps the waiver rules are problematic for those who barely start delivering on their draft promises at age 23 but will likely still just start hitting their peak at 25.

Kids need to be given enough time to develop to their full potential. Perhaps the waiver rule for kids off their Entry-Level deals could be modified, maybe with one exception per team - one that could be traded, like foreign player spots in the MLS.

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