The CHL's most improved players in the 2023-24 season and how they did it
Prospects are defined by their growth, even more so than their starting points.
Statistically, the average CHLer improves each season, with the average player improving most in their NHL draft season.
But there are a handful of post-draft players who accelerated past their peers, who take a significant step forward in their development.
Sometimes, those leaps are predictable. Others, those leaps are unexpected or occur in subtle ways.
To make sense of how prospects improve, I've tracked data of 1400 games over the last two seasons, roughly divided into 700 per year. With the help of those offence, transition, and defensive metrics, I've assembled a list of 10 post-draft-season improvers, as well as two big draft-year improvers, and broken down how they did it.