C Michael McLeod - Mississauga Steelheads, OHL (2016, 12th, NJD)

[Jason MacIsaac]

Even if McLeod hits his potential I don't see him ever being much of a goal scorer.

He could be a goal scorer the same way Hall is, by throwing so many pucks at the net off the rush some are bound to go in.

 

[Lebowski]

He could be a goal scorer the same way Hall is, by throwing so many pucks at the net off the rush some are bound to go in.

Hall has a great shot, though.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

Hall has a great shot, though.

Great is a little bit extreme, he has a nice shot but scores based on quick release and quantity.

 

[Kurt Cobain]

Of course, a 6-7 point night is special. I'm not harping on that. And it's not the Brown thing either, it's more that some people think just because McLeod has had a bit of a hot stretch here that his offensive upside all of a sudden would be much higher than anticipated and the fact that people (I assume NJ fans) now mock the notion that he'll be a middle-six guy in the NHL, just due to said hot stretch, pointing to that as "evidence" that he's something else than what he has shown in the 100+ games prior to that. That's the stuff that irks me. I probably wouldn't care so much if I hadn't just gone through the same (but opposite) thing with Dubois this season with everyone saying he's a bust because of a statistically slow start and a somewhat disappointing WJC, with the worst part of that being that the people making those proclamations were people who had seen him maybe 7 games at most.

Actually no one said anything about an upgrade in point production in NHL after his hot streak. You literally imagined it. McLeod had 3 points in 7 games at the WJC in limited ice time, which was dumb especially in the final game's OT, his speed could have made a difference. Also, don't assume how many games people from the states watch junior hockey. The Internet and also the NHLnetwork shows games. Also, for myself it's an amazing thing when you have a friend who's a computer programmer for the government, and he can set you up by hooking your computer up, so you can watch every channel from every channel in North and South America.

Also, every team bumps up their prosects thread when a top prospect has a good stretch of games. Not sure why Devils fans can't do it.

 

[KovalSNIPE]

Actually no one said anything about an upgrade in point production in NHL after his hot streak. You literally imagined it. McLeod had 3 points in 7 games at the WJC in limited ice time, which was dumb especially in the final game's OT, his speed could have made a difference. Also, don't assume how many games people from the states watch junior hockey. The Internet and also the NHLnetwork shows games. Also, for myself it's an amazing thing when you have a friend who's a computer programmer for the government, and he can set you up by hooking your computer up, so you can watch every channel from every channel in North and South America.

Also, every team bumps up their prosects thread when a top prospect has a good stretch of games. Not sure why Devils fans can't do it.

He produced 3 points in ~40 minutes of total ice time throughout the entire tournament. Statistically one of the best on the team.

 

[VoidCreature]

Michael McLeod with 3 points against North Bay, establishing new career highs in goals and assists. He has 14 points in his last 4 games.

 

[VoidCreature]

This clip pretty much sums up the way McLeod plays

 

[VoidCreature]

Some interesting tweets posted on the Devils board.

That includes a WJC where Dubois played top 6 and McLeod played 5~ minutes a game.

And for anyone who wants to bring up Dubois' pace from on his new team (37 points in 28 games)...

Since returning from world juniors, McLeod has 43 points in 28 games, good for 1.54 ppg. Overall he is at 1.27 but man he's been on a tear since returning.

And only 13 PP points. The guy is a 5v5 machine.

I have a very good feeling about Mikey.

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

I'd be wary of comparing him to dubois. He's a bigger guy who has a lot more of a project feel to him. There's no denying that he's got better by hands, shooting, and vision. Dubois might be more likely to bust but I'd take him over McLeod 10/10, but I have very little doubt that McLeod will become an NHL player. Not that I expect dubois to bust, but it wouldn't shock me.

Mikey's production improvement this year has been about what you'd expect for a draft+1 - similar improvement that we saw from Zacha. If he improves on his muffin of a shot, I'd say he could be a 20+ goal guy in the NHL. Love his puck hounding and ability to make plays off the rush. He's a bit like Taylor Hall when he's coming off the rush. Unfortunately, he's shares the same weakness where he's not great at slowing the play down and creating off the cycle, where the majority of offense is created these days.

I still have him as a middle 6 two way centerman who can play in all situations, take key faceoffs, and give you 10-15 goals 35-45 points.

And before I get called a hater or that I'm not a devils fan and underrating him with that projection, consider that he'd be around 4th on the team in scoring at that pace behind only Hall, Palmieri, and Zajac.

 

[Agent Zub]

I'd be wary of comparing him to dubois. He's a bigger guy who has a lot more of a project feel to him. There's no denying that he's got better by hands, shooting, and vision. Dubois might be more likely to bust but I'd take him over McLeod 10/10, but I have very little doubt that McLeod will become an NHL player. Not that I expect dubois to bust, but it wouldn't shock me.

Mikey's production improvement this year has been about what you'd expect for a draft+1 - similar improvement that we saw from Zacha. If he improves on his muffin of a shot, I'd say he could be a 20+ goal guy in the NHL. Love his puck hounding and ability to make plays off the rush. He's a bit like Taylor Hall when he's coming off the rush. Unfortunately, he's shares the same weakness where he's not great at slowing the play down and creating off the cycle, where the majority of offense is created these days.

I still have him as a middle 6 two way centerman who can play in all situations, take key faceoffs, and give you 10-15 goals 35-45 points.

And before I get called a hater or that I'm not a devils fan and underrating him with that projection, consider that he'd be around 4th on the team in scoring at that pace behind only Hall, Palmieri, and Zajac.

He's Antoine Vermette. Which isn't a bad thing at all.

 

[Roo Mad Bro]

Some interesting tweets posted on the Devils board.



That includes a WJC where Dubois played top 6 and McLeod played 5~ minutes a game.

And for anyone who wants to bring up Dubois' pace from on his new team (37 points in 28 games)...



I have a very good feeling about Mikey.

Notice how all of the attributes he listed are compete/defensive attributes (except skating)? What about passing? Shot? Offensive IQ? Things that show a potential for a high end offensive player.

 

[VoidCreature]

Notice how all of the attributes he listed are compete/defensive attributes (except skating)? What about passing? Shot? Offensive IQ? Things that show a potential for a high end offensive player.

I think you're missing the point of bringing those attributes up. McLeod's put up more points than Dubois over that time frame, so the offense is already spoken for. He brings up compete and defense to make the case that he feels McLeod is superior in every area.

You can disagree with that if you want, but reading comprehension is always good.

 

[Mathletic]

Oh look, Grant going on about McLeod. That's new. So, basically he's saying: McLeod is a better 4th line player than Dubois. Big deal.

If it's any comfort, last few years he kept blasting the Habs board for liking Mantha, Ho-Sang, Beauvillier and Duclair. On the other hand, he was a big fan of Lazar and other players like McLeod who were sure bets. Doesn't look too good for him. We'll see how McLeod turns out but Grant has a pretty big stake in this one and far from impartial.

 

[NJDevils17]

He's Antoine Vermette. Which isn't a bad thing at all.

This would be fantastic. If McLeod can get close to Vermette's career I'd be thrilled.

 

[VoidCreature]

McLeod with a goal and assist so far today. He's on another tear with 6 points in his last 3 games, 20 in his last 10.

He's 3 points behind Owen Tippett for the team lead in 3 fewer games.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

hes at 1.29 PPG for the season, and way better than that since coming back from the WJC

 

[Woll Smoth]

Watched him live a few times last year, was really hoping the Leafs would find a way to pick him up at the draft

Nice to see he's doing well after a slow start

 

[VoidCreature]

45 points over his last 30 or 1.5 ppg. I'm comfortable thinking of this as a breakout year for McLeod even if he started slowly.

That's a pace over more than half the season. I don't know you can call it a streak.

 

[Baemon Severson*]

Notice how all of the attributes he listed are compete/defensive attributes (except skating)? What about passing? Shot? Offensive IQ? Things that show a potential for a high end offensive player.

McLeod finished 13th in p/g in the OHL and was behind several overagers. I think it's pretty safe to assume that he has a fair amount of offensive ability.

Let's keep in mind the OHL is by far the best Candian Junior League