ISS Top 30

[Thirty One]

OK, don't worry. But I hope my explanation helped you understand that a low number of European trained players is not because of bias. In English, bias means, you treat somebody differently because of who they are or where they are from.

Another poster made a good point about how our scouts don't see Europeans as much early in the season. As the year goes on and we see them in more tournaments, they will climb up the rankings if their talent justifies it.

Cheers.

can I ask who you are?

 

[5mn Major]

North Americans are always over-represented in these lists early in the year.

I agree...but I was thinking that US players get missed too. Yes there are a number of players from the states who have gotten accolades early this year. But if you look at the last couple of years first rounders frequently surfaced late in the process. Two years ago, Oshie, Wheeler, Lee and then this summer, Fischer and Okposo...to name just a couple. Few had EJ at #1 until last winter.

 

[Ola]

Why even bother ranking Esposito, Boston will get him no matter what!

 

[ISS Hockey]

I'm an editor at ISS

can I ask who you are?

Yes you may, and I will tell you. Though I'm not sure if the mods want me to identify myself. If they don't, they can let me know and I won't post my name anymore, OK?

My name is Ryan Van Horne and I'm the editor of ISS's monthly report. I'm new to this job (at the start of October) but I've been involved with the company since October 2002, shortly after its first report was published.

A small part of my new job is to surf this board and talk hockey with fans. Hey, it's a tough gig, but somebody's got to do it. I'm here to answer questions and provide information and I'm doing so with the blessing of Hockey's Future, with whom we have a partnership.

If you have any questions or comments, e-mail me at [email protected].

 

[ISS Hockey]

I agree...but I was thinking that US players get missed too. Yes there are a number of players from the states who have gotten accolades early this year. But if you look at the last couple of years first rounders frequently surfaced late in the process. Two years ago, Oshie, Wheeler, Lee and then this summer, Fischer and Okposo...to name just a couple. Few had EJ at #1 until last winter.

That's an interesting point. It's possible that scouts take longer to get convinced the talent is there when they see players playing at a lower level. I know Minnesota develops a ton of great hockey players, but the Minnesota high school leagues are not considered on par with many junior leagues. Lee, Oshie, Wheeler and Fischer (all great prospects mind you) played HS in Minny. Eventually, all got their due, but it took a while. Scouts perhaps wanted to see more of them or see them against stiffer competition. In the case of Lee, he played for the U.S. world junior team. Also, Erik Johnson's coming out party was at the world juniors.

It's not uncommon for players to come out of nowhere. At this age, players are making huge strides in development. While all these players were known or on the radar, many of them made huge strides in their draft year.

 

[Heat McManus]

Yes you may, and I will tell you. Though I'm not sure if the mods want me to identify myself. If they don't, they can let me know and I won't post my name anymore, OK?

My name is Ryan Van Horne and I'm the editor of ISS's monthly report. I'm new to this job (at the start of October) but I've been involved with the company since October 2002, shortly after its first report was published.

A small part of my new job is to surf this board and talk hockey with fans. Hey, it's a tough gig, but somebody's got to do it. I'm here to answer questions and provide information and I'm doing so with the blessing of Hockey's Future, with whom we have a partnership.

If you have any questions or comments, e-mail me at [email protected].

Ryan, welcome to the boards. You've done a great job in handling some tought criticism. Best of luck.

 

[ISS Hockey]

Question to ISS:

Where do you rank Rimouski's Maxime Tanguay? I love his overall game and he's got great numbers so far this season. I fully expect to see his stock rise dramatically and be a first rounder next summer... Thanks.

Fozz, sorry to take so long to reply. I was hoping to have a better answer for you than this. It's possible I will in a day or two, but for now this is all I have.

Maxime Tanguay is not listed in our ranking of the top 150 prospects for the 2007 draft.

He has a good stat line, leading Rimouski in scoring with 11 goals and 10 assists for 21 points in 12 games, and his size, 5-11, 172 doesn't appear to be an issue. How is his skating? He is a late birthday who is in his third year in the Q. Until now, he hasn't done much:

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php3?pid=81739

Is he a late bloomer? Also, is he related to the Tanguays who own the Oceanic? Is he related to Alex Tanguay, I notice he's from the same region in Quebec. St-Georges de Beauce is near Ste-Justine is it not?

 

[ISS Hockey]

Ryan, welcome to the boards. You've done a great job in handling some tought criticism. Best of luck.

Vakar Lajos, Thank you for the welcome and for the best wishes. We don't mind criticism as long as it's fair and backed up with facts. Part of the reason why I'm on this board is because I've been on here before as a fan and I know there are lots of intelligent hockey fans who post here. Quite simply, it is the place to be if you want to talk about hockey prospects.

 

[Redwingsfan]

question to ISS:

where can i see this top 150 ranking??and do i have to pay for it??

 

[ISS Hockey]

question to ISS:

where can i see this top 150 ranking??and do i have to pay for it??

Well, as you know our top 30 is available free on TSN every month.

We have the top 100 in our Future Stars report. This is a more affordable version of our full pro scouting report. It is tailored for the hockey fan or the hockey pool GM. You can get an online subscription or get it mailed to you. The price is reasonable, IMO, and I'm a hockey pool GM who has paid his share of money for information.

Here's a link if you want more info.
http://www.internationalscouting.com/product2.html

Our ranking of the top 150 is available to the subscribers of our Monthly Scouting Report. This costs more, but it also has more pages, more reports, and more profiles. Some fans buy this, but it's usually junior, pro and university teams as well as agents who buy this.

 

[Fozz]

Fozz, sorry to take so long to reply. I was hoping to have a better answer for you than this. It's possible I will in a day or two, but for now this is all I have.

Maxime Tanguay is not listed in our ranking of the top 150 prospects for the 2007 draft.

He has a good stat line, leading Rimouski in scoring with 11 goals and 10 assists for 21 points in 12 games, and his size, 5-11, 172 doesn't appear to be an issue. How is his skating? He is a late birthday who is in his third year in the Q. Until now, he hasn't done much:

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php3?pid=81739

Is he a late bloomer? Also, is he related to the Tanguays who own the Oceanic? Is he related to Alex Tanguay, I notice he's from the same region in Quebec. St-Georges de Beauce is near Ste-Justine is it not?

Thanks Ryan,
Yes, Maxime Tanguay is Alex's younger brother. I don't know if I would call him a late bloomer, but he didn't have quality ice-time playing on a stacked Chicoutimi team last year and the year before. Once traded to Rimouski, he started playing a much bigger role on a much weaker team and did alright. This year, he's dominating the team in stats with his 21 points, while the team's 2nd leading scorer only has 12.

His skating is decent but not spectacular. He's very smart with the puck and has very good vision. Great work ethic and forechecks hard. Isn't afraid of playing in traffic either, although he absolutely needs to get stronger.

 

[ISS Hockey]

Thanks Ryan,
Yes, Maxime Tanguay is Alex's younger brother. I don't know if I would call him a late bloomer, but he didn't have quality ice-time playing on a stacked Chicoutimi team last year and the year before. Once traded to Rimouski, he started playing a much bigger role on a much weaker team and did alright. This year, he's dominating the team in stats with his 21 points, while the team's 2nd leading scorer only has 12.

His skating is decent but not spectacular. He's very smart with the puck and has very good vision. Great work ethic and forechecks hard. Isn't afraid of playing in traffic either, although he absolutely needs to get stronger.

I hear his skating needs improvement and there is concern that most of his production comes on the power play. We know about him, though.

 

[LaLaLaprise]

His skating is a big downfall for him and strength in terms of battling through checks, and protecting the puck along the boards.

One thing to add though...Alex wasnt a very good skater at 17 and he seemed to improve drasticly through his 18 and 19 year old seasons to the point where his skating is one of his best attributes. Not saying Maxime will follow the same path but its something to think about.

 

[Adam91]

Can anyone give a scouting report on Kyle Turris, strengths/weaknesses who does he compare to, etc.

The guy is an offensive wizard. He is averaging about a goal a game this year. I don't really notice how he plays on defence because I'm always to busy watching him when he has the puck but I think I'll be seeing him play tonight and I'll let you know.