Can you guys give me some insight into Hawks players who made their NHL debut last season? Specifically what type of player they are, if they have an NHL future and what role they project as in the long-term. Thanks!
Alex Debrincat
Blake Hillman
Matthew Highmore
Carl Dahlstrom
Dylan Sikura
Victor Ejdsell
David Kampf
Collin Delia
Jan Rutta
Jeff Glass
Nobody want to answer the kind Preds fans question? Damn are some of you cold! Guess I'll just have to do my best.
Hillman/Dahlstrom: Both big, stay at home types that lack mobility and high upside. Either could make the NHL, but neither deserves to on a permanent basis for at least another year (maybe two). They probably top out at #5s.
Highmore: Fast, hard working, checking line C/W. Won't put up much for points and is likely a year away IMO from being a permanent fixture on any NHL team. Might become a fan favorite simply because his game translates into being an awesome future PKer, not to mention his awesome last name.
Sikura: Fast, highly skilled playmaking winger (who has a history at center, though probably wont ever stick there). Has a good shot to boot. He's pretty scrawny, so battles along the board and in front of the net won't likely ever be his forte. His NHLe is projected to be at around 50pts next season, so he can very easily be a guy that can play top 6 wing for us with the right linemates.
Ejdsell: You should know him well. Big Swede who skates pretty well, albeit a bit lanky. Good hands and a decent shot. Put up a ton of points in Rockford's long playoff run, but he was riding an insane shooting percentage (I want to say I remember it being around 40%). He was moved from center to wing during those playoffs, so it's hard to know what the organization feels is his best position. I think he gets a shot at 3C if we trade Anisimov and if a guy like Dominik Kahun (German UFA we signed recently) doesn't snatch the spot up. If he doesn't get that spot, I'd say he at worst winds up at 4LW.
Kampf: He was a good 4C for us. Fast, constantly forchecking, killed penalties, was our best faceoff guy outside Toews. Hard to see him having enough skill to be in the top 9, but he could become a faster Kruger for us.
Delia: What a whirlwind of a year for that guy. Started the year in the ECHL rocking a save percentage under .900, gets recalled to Rockford after Crawford and Jeff Glass both go down with injuries at around the same time, struggles in Rockford for nearly a month until he figures it out (for lack of a better phrase), gets to eventually play two games for the Hawks and not look any worse than any of our goalies not named Crawford or Foster (the legend). Delia then did awesome in the AHL playoffs until he ran into a hot Stars team. CD might be ready for backup duty in the NHL, but Hawks can't afford to take a chance on a kid like that after all the health issues Crawford has had to endure. So CD might not make it as a backup in the NHL for a few more years.
Rutta: Fast, big, strong, two-way defensemen was a good way to describe him when he was healthy. Unfortunately, he hit the injury bug quite hard. Not sure what it was, but he got injured, I want to say December, and had a few times when he'd play a few games and then be scratched due to injuries. He had issues finding a comfort level at that point, and his play regressed a bit. At his best, he was about a #3 in this league, while the injury plagued version of him was closer to a #5.
Glass: 30-something AHL goalie that had a good first few games due to the league not knowing anything about him. He regressed big time after just a week or two and might not get another chance in this league.
DeBrincat: I saved the best for last. The sky is the limit for him. He's short (5ft7), but has a low center of gravity, so he's not the easiest to knock off the puck. Skates better than advertised. Has arguably the best wrister in the league; able to get an accurate and hard shot off in a blink of an eye. Is sneaky good at positioning and has taught himself how to fire a puck no matter his body position. He's quietly an awesome playmaker as well. Like I said earlier, his speed is decent. But if he improves it still, basically the only thing he can improve at outside of maybe confidence and experience, he'll become even more lethal. Would not surprise me if he hits 70pts next year provided Q puts him on the PP for the full season and in a top 6 role (things Q did not do all that much this past season).
I think that pretty much covers all of them. Feel free to ask more questions if you have them.