Undrafted invites :
F | Alistrov, Vladimir | 02/12/2001 | Edmonton (WHL) |
F | Bradley, Trey | 05/06/1996 | Colorado College (NCAA) |
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F | Carroll, Joe | 02/01/2001 | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) |
F | Conrad, Colton | 04/27/1997 | Western Michigan (NCAA), Toronto (AHL) |
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F | Fontaine, Gunnerwolfe | 09/16/2000 | Chicago (USHL) |
F | Hamblin, James | 04/27/1999 | Medicine Hat (WHL) |
F | Haudum, Lukas | 05/21/1997 | IK Patern (Allsvenskan) |
F | Kartye, Tye | 04/30/2001 | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) |
F | Polin, Jason | 06/17/1999 | Cedar Rapids (USHL) |
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F | Rotenberg, Pavel | 02/20/2000 | Brookings (NAHL), Dynamo St. Petersburg (VHL), MHK Dynamo St. Petersburg (MHL) |
F | Simoneau, Xavier | 05/19/2001 | Drummondville (QMJHL) |
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F | Woods, Riley | 06/25/1998 | Spokane (WHL) |
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D | Kapcheck, Brennan | 11/17/1996 | American Int'l College (NCAA) |
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D | Larsen, Oliver | 12/25/1998 | IK Pantern (Allsvenskan) |
D | Larochelle, Sean | 02/11/2001 | Victoriaville (QMJHL) |
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D | Pepin, Marc-Antoine | 03/07/2001 | Shawinigan (QMJHL) |
D | Sapego, Sergei | 10/08/1999 | Prince Albert (WHL) |
D | Staios, Nathan | 05/17/2001 | Windsor (OHL) |
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G | Cooley, Devin | 05/25/1997 | Denver (NCAA) |
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I know some things about these guys.
Alistrov plays like a power forward but I believe his issue is he lacks skating ability. Joe Carroll had issues with IQ and consistency in both ends. He does possess some decent skill, but he does not possess a ton of upside, and his skating is also kind of an issue. Really, there is not a lot which doesn't need a fair amount of work, and even then you may only get a solid 3rd/4th line grinder out of it. If he takes major leaps, I could see him maybe getting drafted as a D+1 or D+2, but it would be a Leason-like rise. Very similar to Alistrov from what I've seen from him, but I've seen a lot more of Carroll than I have Alistrov. Both seem like filler.
I've seen a lot of Kartye as well. Smart, responsible, respectable two-way center but lacks upside. He should be a great OHLer, but I doubt he ever becomes a pro player from what I've seen out of him, and if he does, it'll be on an AHL contract at best. He's filler.
Sapego is a puck moving PP QB type whom I believe has a physical edge to him along with solid two-way ability. I thought he could have been drafted this year possible. I think out of everyone, he could have the best chance at an ELC. Staios is very similar, but is much smaller and was held back by a poor Windsor team. He could be drafted next year. Pepin is solid in his own zone but can move the puck well. He too could be drafted next year after doing well in a small sample size with Shawinigan this year. Those guys need to make some improvements and lead teams that should be on the rise for that to happen though. People already know quite a bit about Simoneau. Undersized with not enough skill to make up for it, but he's a potential breakout candidate for next year's draft.
Larochelle is a pure offensive defenseman who is undersized. Needs a lot work in his own end. I don't expect much out of him at any point. QMJHL produces a ton of guys just like him every year, but he'll be a great QMJHL PP QB for the next few years. Maybe gets an AHL deal at the end of it. He's filler.
Rotenberg was here last year. That's about as good as it gets. He's not very good, so he's mostly filler.
Fontaine is a decent player. I believe he was on Abrusseze's line and I think in a few highlight packages I've seen he's shown he has some good hands and shot. He's going to go to the NCAA next year so really this is just an early scouting report for a potential late 2020 pick. He may be more than filler, so I'll trust the couple of scouts we have in the USHL/Chicago area now on him.
Haven't seen the rest of them. I've heard of Haudum and I know he was often Austria's best player in international tournaments. Put together a decent season in the Allsvenskan points-wise last year but he's filler. Same with Larsen and the rest of the guys I haven't mentioned above. Hamblin is a guy who could explode in his OA year and earn an ELC, but more than likely he could just be another solid AHL contract candidate like Riley Woods. Keep tabs on him for that.
C/LW Josh Nelson also looks like he is on that list. He played in London, speedy, skilled, good IQ. Low upside though. He's a potential AHL contract candidate next year. I don't think he does enough to earn an ELC, and even an AHL contract would require a fair bit of improvement out of him offensively. He can play a solid defensive game, but he's small.
So to break it down:
Solid Invites (i.e. guys with a solid chance of getting drafted/earning an ELC): LD Marc-Antoine Pepin, C Xavier Simoneau, RD Sergei Sapego, LD Nathan Staios, LW Gunnarwolfe Fontaine
Filler: The rest.