Confirmed with Link: Golden Knights trade 2nd[45th overall] to Columbus for forward Keegan Kolesar

[CupInSIX]

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[Anarchy Joe]

Seems like a solid get gives us another Power Forward prospect with Tuch

 

[Ship It To Vegas]

I like it. Kolesar might be able to step in this year. 220-230lbs.
One of the better power forward prospects

 

[spintheblackcircle]

He has skill and a real nasty streak, been suspended a few times. Very strong and can skate. I think worst case scenario is a 4th liner in about 2 years.

 

[derriko]

Put him with the Wolves in the bottom six to develop on a strong veteran team and compete for a championship.

Maybe the year after that he gets a sniff in the Show.

I think he was attached to the hip with Barzal where he put up the ppg seasons, but thats a skill all in itself. Being able to play with skilled players as a power forward / grinder is an underrated skill.

If you want to spread out offense in the future, you could put Kolesar in the top 6 to do the dirty work for players like Glass and Suzuki.

 

[SoldiersOfFilth]

Put him with the Wolves in the bottom six to develop on a strong veteran team and compete for a championship.

Maybe the year after that he gets a sniff in the Show.

I think he was attached to the hip with Barzal where he put up the ppg seasons, but thats a skill all in itself. Being able to play with skilled players as a power forward / grinder is an underrated skill.

If you want to spread out offense in the future, you could put Kolesar in the top 6 to do the dirty work for players like Glass and Suzuki.

T-Birds fan here. In these last playoffs, when Barzal was injured, Kolesar was still putting up tons of points. Same with when Barzal was in NY. Super excited to see 3 of my boys on my #2 NHL team!

 

[Vegas Mac]

I love the addition. These are the kinds of guys you need to have in order to be resilient in the playoffs, to advance through those dogfight type series. And he has a chance to play soon. Real nice move for us and hope he shows well in camp.

 

[Nighthock]

LOVE this trade. Can step in right away if need be... love his style. GREAT value.

 

[SoldiersOfFilth]

So torn about what jerseys to get now. It was so much easier when it was just Pickard and Theodore on the Knights. Pickard (Away) and Theodore (Home). But now with Keegan in the mix, I'm stumped.

#TBirdsFanProblems

 

[Vegas Mac]

So torn about what jerseys to get now. It was so much easier when it was just Pickard and Theodore on the Knights. Pickard (Away) and Theodore (Home). But now with Keegan in the mix, I'm stumped.

#TBirdsFanProblems

Yeah no doubt. I'm going to wait for the dust to settle before I decide on which jersey to get. Might just end up going Engelland since he's the hometown player. Or maybe one of the draft picks and take a guess on their numbers idk.

 

[sabresfan65]

So torn about what jerseys to get now. It was so much easier when it was just Pickard and Theodore on the Knights. Pickard (Away) and Theodore (Home). But now with Keegan in the mix, I'm stumped.

#TBirdsFanProblems

Wait until next year and grab a Keegan third jersey
Or pick a Chicago Wolves jersey.

 

[Vegas Mac]

So according to the recent news on the VGK website Keegan went to school with Cody. Real nice move to go get a power forward who can also help the kid settle in and protect him, not to mention grow with him on the roster.

Quote: "-Went to high school with Golden Knights prospect Keegan Kolesar, acquired in a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for the 45th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft"

 

[derriko]

So according to the recent news on the VGK website Keegan went to school with Cody. Real nice move to go get a power forward who can also help the kid settle in and protect him, not to mention grow with him on the roster.

Quote: "-Went to high school with Golden Knights prospect Keegan Kolesar, acquired in a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for the 45th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft"

Probably asked about his character and work ethic during the combine interviews. So in a round about way, Glass got Kolesar here.

 

[SoldiersOfFilth]

They are very close friends. Always hung out when PDX and SEA played.

Via http://m.winnipegsun.com/2017/06/24/winnipeg-to-chicago-to-vegas-plans-change-for-kolesar:

While his surroundings won't be all that familiar, Kolesar hasn't travelled to Sin City in the past, he'll be flanked by high school buddy and 2017 sixth overall pick by the Golden Knights, Cody Glass from the Portland Winterhawks.

The duo's friendship dates back to their days at West Kildonan Collegiate.

"I play against him about 12 times during the year," Kolesar said. "It's going to be nice to play with him. Whenever I see him, him and I have some pretty funny convos. We're pretty close."

Seeing one of his best buds experiencing the same call on draft day that he got two years earlier earlier was a special feeling for Kolesar.

"Very excited to see that," he said. "I was rooting for a lot of the Winnipeg guys. It was nice to see Nolan (Patrick) go as high as he did.

"But for Cody, I was beyond happy for him. You see the video the NHL did on him at the draft and his family. You push for those guys and you want happiness for them."

 

[neelynugs]

how would you rate kolesar vs tuch? my top 6:

glass
suzuki
brannstrom
hague
tuch
kolesar

 

[derriko]

I like Kolesar and Tuch over Hague at least right now for probability of a pro career.

Hague is a big project, and I foresee him taking at least 3 years to show he was worth a 2nd rounder, especially as an oversized defender. You have to admit, the tools are impressive though. Like Ive mentioned in previous threads, he's a pretty safe bet to be a bottom pair guy, but a Methot type player in the 2nd round is a killer pick.

I think Tuch vs Kolesar, Tuch has to be the better prospect as of now. He's already proven he can score at about a .75 ppg in the pro's in his rookie year. We will just have to wait and see how his game translates to the pro's next year.

My personal list for probability of a good NHL career:

Glass
Brannstrom (puck moving d-men I take over middle 6 wingers 9 out of 10 times)
Suzuki (see him as a wing at the pro level)
Tuch
Kolesar
Hague


And even with Kolesar / Hague last, that is no slight against them. The top end of the prospect list is better already than most teams in the league imo. There's just no depth due to obvious reasons.

Purely potential top end ranking:

Glass - 70 point all situations 1C
Brannstrom - weak man's Karlsson (40-50 point power play specialist I.e. Gardner / Shattenkirk)
Suzuki - weak man's Gaudreau (I'd say 50-60 point dynamic winger)
Hague - defensive leaning #3 (I'd say 20-25 points is fair)
Tuch - middle 6 power forward (20/20 player)
Kolesar - not nearly as tough, but a better skating Lucic i.e. (20/20 player who bangs more than Tuch)

And I think those top end projections of mine are fairly realistic. I think at least a couple hit that peak. I try and keep the prospect hype in the middle and not be a fanboy.

 

[NY2LV]

^^ I'd have no problem if that's the production we get from those 6 guys in the future.

 

[Vegas Mac]

I like Kolesar and Tuch over Hague at least right now for probability of a pro career.

Hague is a big project, and I foresee him taking at least 3 years to show he was worth a 2nd rounder, especially as an oversized defender. You have to admit, the tools are impressive though. Like Ive mentioned in previous threads, he's a pretty safe bet to be a bottom pair guy, but a Methot type player in the 2nd round is a killer pick.

I think Tuch vs Kolesar, Tuch has to be the better prospect as of now. He's already proven he can score at about a .75 ppg in the pro's in his rookie year. We will just have to wait and see how his game translates to the pro's next year.

My personal list for probability of a good NHL career:

Glass
Brannstrom (puck moving d-men I take over middle 6 wingers 9 out of 10 times)
Suzuki (see him as a wing at the pro level)
Tuch
Kolesar
Hague


And even with Kolesar / Hague last, that is no slight against them. The top end of the prospect list is better already than most teams in the league imo. There's just no depth due to obvious reasons.

Purely potential top end ranking:

Glass - 70 point all situations 1C
Brannstrom - weak man's Karlsson (40-50 point power play specialist I.e. Gardner / Shattenkirk)
Suzuki - weak man's Gaudreau (I'd say 50-60 point dynamic winger)
Hague - defensive leaning #3 (I'd say 20-25 points is fair)
Tuch - middle 6 power forward (20/20 player)
Kolesar - not nearly as tough, but a better skating Lucic i.e. (20/20 player who bangs more than Tuch)

And I think those top end projections of mine are fairly realistic. I think at least a couple hit that peak. I try and keep the prospect hype in the middle and not be a fanboy.

I don't disagree with any of that. But I will observe that the ceiling of a prospect and how soon they might be able to break in with the big club are two different things. And for me right now all I'm wondering about is which of these guys, if any, might find things aligning for them to get a shot at a roster spot.

Guys like Tuch and Kolesar can play on lower lines fairly early on, since they're big and do the dirty work, provided they skate well enough. Neither are minus skaters, so I have to think they'll have a good opportunity this year in camp to make the team (Tuch moreso than Kolesar).

Of all the draft picks there's only one who I don't worry about in size/weight and that's Hague. And he also has really good movement and hands for big guy as young as he is. I was listening to the scouting report on the draft today on Sirius and it didn't surprise me the guy had him at 20 overall on his board. This guy is a legit round one talent that slid to us.

Unfortunately Hague is a blueliner, which is really tough for dev time. But in his case I don't think he'll take as long as some of the big guys have. Also, what is interesting about guys like him is you can actually throw them into a lower pairing a bit earlier than the guys who need to put on weight. Problem of course is the lower pairing means less ice time, so they need to reach a certain point before the team will consider that.

Just spitballin here. Not making a prediction, as I don't want to set myself up to have expectations I feel these guys must meet. Going to enjoy watching them progress and hope that one or two of them are quick studies, basically. And from there, well, let's hope a couple of them truly excel.

 

[SoldiersOfFilth]

Reporter for the LV Sun at dev camp today:

 

[Heinz Skitz Velvet]

When do we start the gofundme to purchase shorts for Kolesar?

 

[TheGoldenJet]

A very nice add for the Knights.

 

[Edge]

Solid power forward prospect who improved every season in the WHL.

Was easily Seattle's best player for stretches last season.

 

[SoldiersOfFilth]

I think out of all of the VGK prospects, Kolesar has the best shot at making the club out of camp

 

[derriko]

I think out of all of the VGK prospects, Kolesar has the best shot at making the club out of camp

I would have to go against that and argue Tuch has the better shot. He has already been through the rigors of a full pro season, and for a power forward, scored at a pretty decent clip.

Not to mention 2 years of Division 1 hockey where the players are much older and stronger vs the CHL.

They are both right handed wingers, so that doesn't really give Kolesar the advantage over Tuch in that aspect either.

 

[Jonas1235]

We'll have to track Kolesar vs. Texier over the next few years.