HF's top 20 NCAA drafted prospects

[CH Wizard]

I don't know what he mean, but Walter this year is performing better than Jessiman. Can't say Walter is the better prospect, but the stats don't lie, Walter is outplaying Jessiman this year.

He's outplaying Jessiman because Jessiman played 5 games this season.Injuries disturbed Jessiman alot.So , how can you say that he outplayed Jessiman while Jessiman has only played 5 games ?

Jessiman has size and skills.He already proved that he can score at the NCAA level.He'll have to bring his game to the next level though.

 

[Vic Rattlehead*]

He's outplaying Jessiman because Jessiman played 5 games this season.Injuries disturbed Jessiman alot.So , how can you say that he outplayed Jessiman while Jessiman has only played 5 games ?

Jessiman has size and skills.He already proved that he can score the NCAA level.He'll have to bring his game to the next level though.

Shhh!

Seriously, look at Walters stats. 23 goals in 25 games is great.

 

[CH Wizard]

Shhh!

Seriously, look at Walters stats. 23 goals in 25 games is great.

Walter is having a great season , no doubt.You proved that you're a homer while proving that Walter is a better prospect then Jessiman.

MAN ! There are all kinds of homers on this board.

No for real , Walter is impressive but Jessiman has been injured and it wasn't his year(this year).He was one of the most dominant player in NCAA , last year.He was a force for Dartmouth.

 

[Vic Rattlehead*]

Walter is having a great season , no doubt.You proved that you're a homer while proving that Walter is a better prospect then Jessiman.

MAN ! There are all kinds of homers on this board.

No for real , Walter is impressive but Jessiman has been injured and it wasn't his year.He was one of the most dominant player in NCAA , last year.He was a force for Dartmouth.

Heyyyyy, when did I say Walter was a bertt prospect than Jessiman? Look at my post from before.

I was also kidding with the "SHHHH", but you don't seem to understand anything. I only knew about Jessiman injured when you said it, because someone from before said that Walter was outplaying Jessiman, so I took it from that.

EDIT----No homer is worse than a Habs homer.

EDIT2----Here it is from before:

Can't say Walter is the better prospect

 

[CH Wizard]

Heyyyyy, when did I say Walter was a bertt prospect than Jessiman? Look at my post from before.

I was also kidding with the "SHHHH", but you don't seem to understand anything. I only knew about Jessiman injured when you said it, because someone from before said that Walter was outplaying Jessiman, so I took it from that.

EDIT----No homer is worse than a Habs homer.

My bad...

But look at Ryan Lambert post : Walter>Jessiman.

 

[Fat Elvis]

Has anyone else been disappointed by Montoya's play this season? Hasn't looked the part of being a high ranked prospect this year. Some say he's hurt, but there are nights when his play really hurt his team. Haven't seen the great puck control either. Just haven't seen it from him *this* season and worry that it may be a trend

 

[BrettNYR]

umm, it's about looking at the numbers.

the past two seasons, ben walter has had more points than hugh jessiman, and also hasn't had the constant injury problems that jessiman has. upside or not, jessiman is not performing at the level walter has been.

Jessiman has been injured this year and was "the guy" who opposing teams wanted to stop, which led to his numbers dropping off.

Injury prone? He had one fluke injury. It could have happened to anyone.

And this ranking is based on what they could do in the NHL. Jessiman could amount to alot more than Walters, but Walter is the safer prospect, but he could also easily be a bust.

 

[BrettNYR]

Shhh!

Seriously, look at Walters stats. 23 goals in 25 games is great.

Great stats. But this ranking is more of on potential, as I said in my above post. No doubt Walter is playing great, but the better prospect is by far Jessiman. Walter doesn't have nearly as much potential as Hugh. And I'd take a potential star (Over exaggerating a bit there, but he could become damn close to one) over a second-or-third liner any day.

 

[The Mars Volchenkov]

Would anyone care to actually analyze this list instead of complaining about where your teams prospect is?

I know he's not the biggest guy in the world, but I believe Brett Sterling deserved to crack the Top 20. He's having an amazing season at CC and I've seen them play live a few times. He and Sertich have been unstoppable.

 

[BrettNYR]

Has anyone else been disappointed by Montoya's play this season? Hasn't looked the part of being a high ranked prospect this year. Some say he's hurt, but there are nights when his play really hurt his team. Haven't seen the great puck control either. Just haven't seen it from him *this* season and worry that it may be a trend

Yes. He looks more like a backup than a star this season. He hasn't shown me "It" that I saw last year in the Frozen Four.

 

[johnny cool]

Jessiman has been injured this year and was "the guy" who opposing teams wanted to stop, which led to his numbers dropping off.

and walter hasn't been? he creates his own opportunities because he is one of the best pure goal scorers in hockey east, end of story.

he was a steal for the bruins, and i'm not even a bruins fan.

 

[JonathanWashington]

Now lets not get overly romantic over this as soon as i saw this top 20 list i thought instantly of mr Jason MacIsaac.


i wanted the sabres to take a look zajac. However at 13. i don't think you can say stafford has any low spots in his game. I believe the albany river rats allready have a good centerman. I hope zajac works out for your team. i just think he is a skilled forward and has alot to learn. Thats why its an easy pick for stafford.. you would pick praise over vanek correct?

 

[BrettNYR]

and walter hasn't been? he creates his own opportunities because he is one of the best pure goal scorers in hockey east, end of story.

he was a steal for the bruins, and i'm not even a bruins fan.

Not in the way Jessiman was.

And there WAS a reason why Jessiman was picked in the first round, in one of the deepest drafts ever, while Walter was drafted in the fifth round in a weak-to-average draft.

 

[Vic Rattlehead*]

Not in the way Jessiman was.

And there WAS a reason why Jessiman was picked in the first round, in one of the deepest drafts ever, while Walter was drafted in the fifth round in a weak-to-average draft.

Well, Kim Johnsson was drafted last in his draft year. Draft position means squat.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

Now lets not get overly romantic over this as soon as i saw this top 20 list i thought instantly of mr Jason MacIsaac.


i wanted the sabres to take a look zajac. However at 13. i don't think you can say stafford has any low spots in his game. I believe the albany river rats allready have a good centerman. I hope zajac works out for your team. i just think he is a skilled forward and has alot to learn. Thats why its an easy pick for stafford.. you would pick praise over vanek correct?

I am starting to lean towards Vanek actually. I along with everyone else thought Parise could create offense by himself. We thought he could score and dish the puck. In the AHL Parise can't score, I have no doubt in my mind he will put up alot of assists in the NHL on a 2nd line but the lack of scoring will ultimatly leave him behind Gomez on the depth charts.

 

[BrettNYR]

Well, Kim Johnsson was drafted last in his draft year. Draft position means squat.

But was Johnsson ever considered a top prospect? No. We are talking about prospects, and Jessiman was drafted higher because NHL GM's thought that he would be better than all but 11 players in the 2003 draft. And more than half of All-Stars were drafted in the first, so draft position is somewhat relevant. Walter could become better than Hugh, but many GM's and myself think that Jessiman will become the better player and is the better prospect.

 

[Vic Rattlehead*]

But was Johnsson ever considered a top prospect? No. We are talking about prospects, and Jessiman was drafted higher because NHL GM's thought that he would be better than all but 11 players in the 2003 draft. And more than half of All-Stars were drafted in the first, so draft position is somewhat relevant. Walter could become better than Hugh, but many GM's and myself think that Jessiman will become the better player and is the better prospect.

Sure Jessiman could be better, and probably will, but Walter is looking like more and more of a steal from the fifth round, something that the Bruins scouting department does a lot of now.

 

[BrettNYR]

Sure Jessiman could be better, and probably will, but Walter is looking like more and more of a steal from the fifth round, something that the Bruins scouting department does a lot of now.

He could be a steal. But I don't think that he'll be more than a second liner if he does make the show. But that's still pretty good, especially for a 5th rounder.

 

[bleedgreen]

im surprised brett skinner (DU) didnt make the list, especially since matt carle did. skinner has been far better this season - carle has improved a bunch - but skinner has been the teams best d-man....and on a few nights the best player. i thinkthe reason is just because carle is a higher draft pick, so therefore a better "prospect". i dont agree. i would take skinner.

 

[spintheblackcircle]

Skinner is a year older and not quite as big either. Also, he gets a lot of assists vs. Carle, who scores a lot of goals. I think a defensemen who has the better shot will get the benefit of the doubt vs. a guy with a lot of assists.

 

[SpaceGhost79]

Has anyone else been disappointed by Montoya's play this season? Hasn't looked the part of being a high ranked prospect this year. Some say he's hurt, but there are nights when his play really hurt his team. Haven't seen the great puck control either. Just haven't seen it from him *this* season and worry that it may be a trend

I was just about to mention the puck control. Montoya likes to come out and play the puck, but in no way are his stick handling abilities outstanding. When I think outstanding, I think of Marty Turco. Watching him handle the puck at Michigan was amazing. Sometimes, yeah, he got a little too cute, but at other times he could stickhandle the puck around forechecking forwards. Montoya has this bad tendancy to hold the puck to the last second, sometimes a second too long, and end up giving the puck a weak little flip. He's been burned a few times this season as a result of that, when his weak flip would get knocked down by the opposing team and he would be caught out of net. He needs to make better, faster decisions, and put some power behind his passes.

 

[Levitate]

from what i've seen of montoya, consistancy has just been his problem. he'll make some great saves, amazing saves and really keep his team in it...but then it seems like he'll lose focus a little and let in some goals

he's also looked very tired a few times when i've seen him

i'm watching him right now tonight and he looks much sharper and on the ball than other times i've seen him...moving well in the net.

as for his puck handling...i dont' think he's really amazing or anything but when he's "on" he can move the puck very effectively for his team. he doesn't really try to stickhandle around other teams players (which is downright stupid for a goalie to do if you ask me...no matter how good you are, you're gonna cough the puck up) and can put enough on the puck to make a lonnnnng pass up the ice to start a rush. as long as he keeps it simple he can be about as effective as can be for a "puckhandling goalie".

 

[SpaceGhost79]

I guess I should be more specific with the puck handling. His long passes have the zing on them. But more times than not that I've watched him play this season, when he's shooting the puck from behind the net around the end boards, well, he's not really even shooting it... it's just been a weak little flip. And almost on cue, right after I posted that last message regarding that little flip, he just did it in the game and almost got caught out of net again.

 

[bleedgreen]

Skinner is a year older and not quite as big either. Also, he gets a lot of assists vs. Carle, who scores a lot of goals. I think a defensemen who has the better shot will get the benefit of the doubt vs. a guy with a lot of assists.

skinners shot seems just as good as carles to me. skinner moves the puck better and more frequently, is all. if you watch du play, skinner is more noticeable physically as well as offensively. he jumps up quite a bit.

ps. why do you think carle is bigger? skinner is 6 1 195, carle 6 0 185.

 

[jake1]

As far as Chucko goes. I ve seen almost all of the gopher games. I go to every Saturday home game. He gets better and better every time he plays. While it looks bad, well really bad, he will get back on D and has more than once been able to get his gloves down and try to block passes and play the man while skating backwards. Always keeps his head moving when in D zone to pick up forwards. On the O side he just plays like a bull. Drive hard and hit anything that is not a teammate. He works hard and it shows, his intelligence is there. But IMO power forwrds just take time, plus he is a year younger than most freshmen. If he gets his agility down i see him more of a first or very good second liner that plays PP.
Zajac: Seen him on TV twice and if NoDak makes it to final five i ll see him live. He looks good out there. At time he looked like the best player for NoDak. Did drive net hard and got a tip goal. Probally would benifit from better finishers around him, Solid passer too.
Who is better i do not know. If Chucko becomes a real power forward i give it to him. Right now i say Zajac.

Thanks for the unbiased observations. I too have seen a lot of Chucko and a little of Zajac, but I come at it as a UND fan instead. Chucko has been better than I expected. Right now the best thing about him is that he is good at using his body, which is not as common as it sounds. He goes into the corner, hits the opponent to create space and win the puck, and then moves the puck. As he fills out, he will be a monster in college and will rarely lose in the corners. His hands aren't great now, but he is young. How his coordination comes along as he matures will tell the tale of his top-end.

I hear from people who have seen a lot of UND games that Zajac has been a work of art in his own zone this year. His offense has been spotty (as has the whole team's), but he has never stopped working and has been real responsible all over the ice. A comment made earlier that Chucko might be ranked higher because the rankers value "more than just offense" suggests Zajac is some kind of Spehar-like cherry-picker. Nothing could be further from the truth. This kind of uninformed homer commentary from a UND basher helps no one understand the players.

As for Stafford/Zajac, I guess I understand that Stafford has proven himself at the WJC. However, when they play side-by-side every game, it's hard not to think you have a good basis for a comparison. For the next season-and-a-half, I'd rather have Zajac than Stafford on my college team.