Scott Wheeler of the Athletic has his Mock draft out, and it reiterates how all over the place 15-45 will be.
He has 3 players I would be perfectly content drafting with with our first 2 picks, slotted 34, 35, 36.
34. Philip Tomasino — C/RW, Niagara IceDogs, 6-foot-0
Tomasino’s game is built for today’s NHL in that he plays with pace, he’s a threat in transition, he handles the puck lightly but not too long, he drives the slot, he finds pockets off the puck and he makes tough plays look easy. A little more upper body strength will go a long way to making him a more complete player as well. Though Tomasino is a natural centre, he spent a good chunk of the post-trade deadline season playing right wing with Akil Thomas due to the IceDogs’ overwhelming talent down the middle. Now that a decent chunk of the IceDogs core is poised to move on, Tomasino will become more of a go-to threat next year and I think he will handle it really well. The talent is there for him to become a productive, borderline line-driving top-nine forward at the next level.
35. Mortiz Seider — RHD, Adler Manheim, 6-foot-4
Playing as a 17-year-old for most of the year, Seider was a third-pairing defenceman on the DEL champs, alongside former Stanley Cup champions and a number of players who fashioned out impressive careers in the AHL and NHL. He’s one of those players who isn’t going to wow you with his offensive upside but has proven he has the skill needed to be more than a tough-minutes option who goes off the glass and out. His size (which still has room to become even stronger, believe it or not) and length define him but he also possesses OK puck handling ability, a wrist shot that has some whip and bend to it (he doesn’t use his slapshot all that often but his wrister comes in hard) and rapidly-improving skating to his game too. You can see that skating at play below (you’ll notice his legs splay from the knees, creating an awkward extension, but that there’s still a lot of power being generated to allow him to pull away).
And watch the way he closes out on a loose puck, uses his size to gain body position, powers up the right-wing boards and exits the zone with a cross-ice pass for a primary assist.
Or the way he again uses that size along the boards, this time in the offensive zone to protect the puck and send the shot on net for another playoff assist.
He’s reliable in his own zone, rubs carriers out along the wall and has the skill needed to escape and exit the zone with an outlet pass. Though I wouldn’t take him in the first round, I’m not going to be surprised when a team does.
36 Brett Leason — RW, Prince Albert Raiders, 6-foot-4
Sometimes, players just hit their growth curve at different times and their talent has to play catch-up to their body. Once Leason’s skating improved this season, his game took off because he does such a good job recognizing his teammates and he has the puck protection skill to hang onto the puck in all three zones until the right play opens up. He’s still not the fastest player on the ice but Leason’s skating no longer holds back the rest of his skill set. Had he played a full 68-game season (Leason missed a portion of the year due to the world juniors and another due to injury), Leason paced for 110 points. The scary part: He could still add some muscle without sacrificing that newly developed foot speed. Leason’s not going to leap directly into the NHL but I suspect that in time he’ll get there after a stint in the AHL. Powerful wingers with size and enough skill don’t come around all that often.
He has 3 players I would be perfectly content drafting with with our first 2 picks, slotted 34, 35, 36.
34. Philip Tomasino — C/RW, Niagara IceDogs, 6-foot-0
Tomasino’s game is built for today’s NHL in that he plays with pace, he’s a threat in transition, he handles the puck lightly but not too long, he drives the slot, he finds pockets off the puck and he makes tough plays look easy. A little more upper body strength will go a long way to making him a more complete player as well. Though Tomasino is a natural centre, he spent a good chunk of the post-trade deadline season playing right wing with Akil Thomas due to the IceDogs’ overwhelming talent down the middle. Now that a decent chunk of the IceDogs core is poised to move on, Tomasino will become more of a go-to threat next year and I think he will handle it really well. The talent is there for him to become a productive, borderline line-driving top-nine forward at the next level.
35. Mortiz Seider — RHD, Adler Manheim, 6-foot-4
Playing as a 17-year-old for most of the year, Seider was a third-pairing defenceman on the DEL champs, alongside former Stanley Cup champions and a number of players who fashioned out impressive careers in the AHL and NHL. He’s one of those players who isn’t going to wow you with his offensive upside but has proven he has the skill needed to be more than a tough-minutes option who goes off the glass and out. His size (which still has room to become even stronger, believe it or not) and length define him but he also possesses OK puck handling ability, a wrist shot that has some whip and bend to it (he doesn’t use his slapshot all that often but his wrister comes in hard) and rapidly-improving skating to his game too. You can see that skating at play below (you’ll notice his legs splay from the knees, creating an awkward extension, but that there’s still a lot of power being generated to allow him to pull away).
And watch the way he closes out on a loose puck, uses his size to gain body position, powers up the right-wing boards and exits the zone with a cross-ice pass for a primary assist.
Or the way he again uses that size along the boards, this time in the offensive zone to protect the puck and send the shot on net for another playoff assist.
He’s reliable in his own zone, rubs carriers out along the wall and has the skill needed to escape and exit the zone with an outlet pass. Though I wouldn’t take him in the first round, I’m not going to be surprised when a team does.
36 Brett Leason — RW, Prince Albert Raiders, 6-foot-4
Sometimes, players just hit their growth curve at different times and their talent has to play catch-up to their body. Once Leason’s skating improved this season, his game took off because he does such a good job recognizing his teammates and he has the puck protection skill to hang onto the puck in all three zones until the right play opens up. He’s still not the fastest player on the ice but Leason’s skating no longer holds back the rest of his skill set. Had he played a full 68-game season (Leason missed a portion of the year due to the world juniors and another due to injury), Leason paced for 110 points. The scary part: He could still add some muscle without sacrificing that newly developed foot speed. Leason’s not going to leap directly into the NHL but I suspect that in time he’ll get there after a stint in the AHL. Powerful wingers with size and enough skill don’t come around all that often.
