""... Leno's different than that. Leno is, and why he's going to have a long, successful NHL career, is he has that but he also has this physicality. This power forward, this guy that's going to finish checks, that's going to go to the net front, that's going to win puck battles, that's going to take a puck hard to the net and find a way to put it in. And he can shoot it.""
""It's harder at the NHL level because now to do that, to be a power forward, to be [Florida Panthers winger] Matthew Tkachuk, to be Tom Wilson, you're going up against 6-foot-4, 250-pound 30-year-old men.""
Ryan Leonard joined the Washington Capitals at age 20 late in the regular season after scoring 61 goals in 78 college games at Boston College. Leonard recorded one empty‑net goal and one playoff assist in his first 17 NHL appearances. Early results prompted fan doubt, but the development plan prioritizes judging his game on more than goals and assists. Emphasis centers on power‑forward traits: finishing checks, net‑front presence, winning puck battles, driving pucks hard to the net, and shooting. NHL competition is tougher due to larger, more experienced opponents, requiring physical adaptation and coaching guidance.
Read at The Washington Post
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