I think what this pick really came down to, is, what's more valuable in playoffs, especially when you get to game 6-7? Ehlers, Nylander, will probably become better point producers, but when you talk about trying to get through 3 rounds consisting of say LA, ANA, CHI, all going to 6-7 games, who becomes more VALUBLE to WINNING?
I can tell you right now that a player like JV who plays 15-18 mins a night of hard physical play will wear out the opponent and give you an advantage as the series go on, along with popping in the odd goal. The smaller players usually don't last (save for a guy like P.Kane but he has all world skill). So really who cares who becomes "better", at the end of day it's all about winning, and JV is going to be more valuble to winning than Ehlers or Nylander.