I can admit when I'm wrong.. to a point: Ales Hemsky

Ok, I've hated the guy for years because of the "yeah, he'll live to his potential one day" shit that went on for so many years in Edmonton.

He was always that idiot on Edmonton that figured he could stickhandle for 20 minutes until he found a perfect pass. Run down the wing, cut inside, deke the goalie out of position and have an empty net to shoot at... but keep going until he ran into the boards.

First 20 games this season he did the same shit, expect he found the art of randomly shooting, so I held hope for him.

Come December, Hemsky realized, why pass to Smyth when he'll just fuck it up? Might as well do it myself and if I'm about to run into the boards - hand it to Horcoff..

So Ales Hemsky started going to score himself, and alas... he does. He's got defensemen freaking out on what he's going to do on them. On a PP, people actually back off expecting a pass, but positioning for a random shot on net. This isn't the Hemsky of old, where the PK would just rush at him, force a turnover and clear it down....

My big problem these days with the guy, is that he's cutting in and out of traffic so fast, he's going to pay the price sooner than later. Bure used to do it - he's retired well before his prime. Lindros did it, Stevens put an end to that. Cam Neely did it, he's in Dumb and Dumber, Bobby Orr did it, etc. etc.... they all paid the price dearly.

Hemsky will one day. Mark my words, I fear the day, but even idiot Smyth himself almost gave Hemsky the Stevens business the other night.

He needs to learn this, and quick, or he'll have a short career. I don't see him as an elite player in the NHL right now - but I see where he can be in the future, given he stops this shit of running around. Unless that happens, I apologize for my negativity on the kid, and agree he has the tools to be a star in the NHL.

Whether or not he doesn't suffer a career ending injury - another fucking question. I put it at 2-1 odds right now.