Prospect Info: The 2015 Draft Thread
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Bob McKenzie released his preliminary list last night. I'm gonna see McDavid (and Strome) play against Windsor tonight. Aiming to watch a US U18 game tomorrow night in Ann Arbor (Kyle Connor, Colin White, Jordan Greenway).
Bob McKenzie released his preliminary list last night. I'm gonna see McDavid (and Strome) play against Windsor tonight. Aiming to watch a US U18 game tomorrow night in Ann Arbor (Kyle Connor, Colin White, Jordan Greenway).
CerebralGenesis
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- Jul 23, 2009
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AfroThunder396
[citation needed]
Went to the All American Prospects game yesterday. I didn't think anyone had a noticeably bad game, but some guys stood out more than others. I'm sure we'll draft at least one American like we always do so I wanted to pay really close attention. Took a notebook and wrote down some observations.
Some names to keep in mind for next year....
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Jack Eichel, C - McDavid had better be the next Gretzky if he's getting rated higher than this guy. Barely even broke a sweat and he just walked everyone at will. Goes through crowds untouched and no one can stop. IQ is off the charts. Skating is so effortless, it doesn't even look like he's touching the ice.
Noah Hanafin, D - Big boy, very calm and poised. Slow and steady. Like Pronger without the edge.
Brandon Carlo, D - I thought he was the best defenseman on the ice. Great skater, strong on the boards, clears the crease well, outstanding skater, knows when to pinch, strong shot. Fantastic two-way defenseman.
Zach Werenski, D - Huge point shot, but needs to use it more. Too often he passed up a good shooting lane for a pass to his partner. Made some nice disruptions in the neutral zone.
Alex Baer, C - Strong on the puck, great hockey IQ, seemingly always in position to make a play. Big shot, but not always accurate. Had some nasty tips and deflections.
Jeremy Bracco, RW - Great hands, great speed, excellent transition game. North-south player. Very fast closing speed, easily gets separation from defensemen. Always finishes plays hard and strong.
Jordan Greenway, LW - Fast as hell. Reminds me of Afinogenov with his tucked jersey. Nose for the net, tall kid with a big reach. Shifty and seemingly always comes out of traffic with control of the puck.
Jack Roslovic, C - Great board worker. Constantly the first guy in the corner, uses his body and feet very well to box out opponents.
Kyle Connor, C/LW - Heavy shot with a quick release. Needs to use his teammates more, constantly tried to do everything himself.
Connor Moynihan, LW - Likes to park himself in front of the net and fish for rebounds. Makes it a point to always finish his checks.
Taggart Corriveau, RW - Tenacious forechecker, caused quite a few turnovers by getting his stick in passing lanes. Very good with his hands, dangerous in space, but can be too cute and fumble the puck.
Tom Novak, C - Not the fastest guy, but has a lot of momentum. "Downhill" skater. Quick hands around the net, very good at finding holes in coverage and lurking around undetected.
Colin White, C - Excellent control, deceptive outside speed, great offensive timing. Puckhandling is a strong suit.
Brock Boesser, RW - Crisp passer, always on the tape. Above average skating and quick shot release. Floated a bit too much for my liking in the neutral zone but was surprisingly active in the defensive zone. Very active stick.
Paul Bittner, LW - Tall and mean. Quick skater, especially for his size, and has a sick release on his shot. Effortlessly trucks through heavy traffic and always seems to be a step faster than whoever is chasing him. Always giving licks to his opponent after the whistle. Really like his game.
Mike Lackey, G - Very athletic goalie. Confident, always comes out of the paint to challenge. Communicates well with his teammates.
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I have notes on some other players, but these are the guys that made me notice them more than once.
Some names to keep in mind for next year....
-----
Jack Eichel, C - McDavid had better be the next Gretzky if he's getting rated higher than this guy. Barely even broke a sweat and he just walked everyone at will. Goes through crowds untouched and no one can stop. IQ is off the charts. Skating is so effortless, it doesn't even look like he's touching the ice.
Noah Hanafin, D - Big boy, very calm and poised. Slow and steady. Like Pronger without the edge.
Brandon Carlo, D - I thought he was the best defenseman on the ice. Great skater, strong on the boards, clears the crease well, outstanding skater, knows when to pinch, strong shot. Fantastic two-way defenseman.
Zach Werenski, D - Huge point shot, but needs to use it more. Too often he passed up a good shooting lane for a pass to his partner. Made some nice disruptions in the neutral zone.
Alex Baer, C - Strong on the puck, great hockey IQ, seemingly always in position to make a play. Big shot, but not always accurate. Had some nasty tips and deflections.
Jeremy Bracco, RW - Great hands, great speed, excellent transition game. North-south player. Very fast closing speed, easily gets separation from defensemen. Always finishes plays hard and strong.
Jordan Greenway, LW - Fast as hell. Reminds me of Afinogenov with his tucked jersey. Nose for the net, tall kid with a big reach. Shifty and seemingly always comes out of traffic with control of the puck.
Jack Roslovic, C - Great board worker. Constantly the first guy in the corner, uses his body and feet very well to box out opponents.
Kyle Connor, C/LW - Heavy shot with a quick release. Needs to use his teammates more, constantly tried to do everything himself.
Connor Moynihan, LW - Likes to park himself in front of the net and fish for rebounds. Makes it a point to always finish his checks.
Taggart Corriveau, RW - Tenacious forechecker, caused quite a few turnovers by getting his stick in passing lanes. Very good with his hands, dangerous in space, but can be too cute and fumble the puck.
Tom Novak, C - Not the fastest guy, but has a lot of momentum. "Downhill" skater. Quick hands around the net, very good at finding holes in coverage and lurking around undetected.
Colin White, C - Excellent control, deceptive outside speed, great offensive timing. Puckhandling is a strong suit.
Brock Boesser, RW - Crisp passer, always on the tape. Above average skating and quick shot release. Floated a bit too much for my liking in the neutral zone but was surprisingly active in the defensive zone. Very active stick.
Paul Bittner, LW - Tall and mean. Quick skater, especially for his size, and has a sick release on his shot. Effortlessly trucks through heavy traffic and always seems to be a step faster than whoever is chasing him. Always giving licks to his opponent after the whistle. Really like his game.
Mike Lackey, G - Very athletic goalie. Confident, always comes out of the paint to challenge. Communicates well with his teammates.
-----
I have notes on some other players, but these are the guys that made me notice them more than once.
glenwo2
LINDY RUFF NEEDS VIAGRA!!
Emperoreddy
Show Me What You Got!
No matter where we end up, this draft is going to go a long way to refilling our prospect pool.
McDavid was pretty filthy as advertised. Saw him before warmups taping up his stick and he's a string bean (aka looks likes your typical teenager). Scary to think he can put on quite a bit of muscle.
I'll post more about the games when I get home. I did enjoy being mildly hassled at the border. Is there something about "Asian guy from San Diego traveling alone to Windsor to watch hockey" that seems peculiar? I also got to skate at Yost yesterday; So now I can say I skated (poorly) on the same sheet as Madden, Morrison, Merrill, and Cammalleri.
I'll post more about the games when I get home. I did enjoy being mildly hassled at the border. Is there something about "Asian guy from San Diego traveling alone to Windsor to watch hockey" that seems peculiar? I also got to skate at Yost yesterday; So now I can say I skated (poorly) on the same sheet as Madden, Morrison, Merrill, and Cammalleri.
The Wumpus
bottomless pit supervisor
Not at all. In fact, I'm surprised the Ambassador Bridge doesn't have an "Asian Hockey Fans from San Diego" express lane.
CerebralGenesis
Registered User
- Jul 23, 2009
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my guess through experience
Sounds like a pretty phenomenal trip though. Gimme a yell if you swing through pitt ever
my guess through experience
Sounds like a pretty phenomenal trip though. Gimme a yell if you swing through pitt ever
Trip has been great so far. Saw Devils at MSG on Monday (right after a Letterman taping), Yankees day game Wednesday (not a Yankee fan, but still could tip my cap to Jeter), Tigers/Red Wings Thursday (Blackhawks plane was late which worked out for me since I could then stay for a couple more innings), Windsor last night, then US U18 tonight in Ann Arbor. I could squeeze in maybe the first half of the Michigan football game today, but they stink this year and I saw a game at the Big House a couple years ago.
I've been meaning to swing by Pittsburgh. I have a couple friends in the area and PNC is the last "must see" park that I haven't been to yet.
Here's video of McDavids goal and assist from last night. I had a great view for the deke which brought me out of my chair. The Top Gun-sequence "hit the brakes and he'll fly right by" on the assist was sick too if only for how effortless it looked.
Ripshot 43
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- Jul 21, 2010
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No doubt the guy is really good but those guys were playing terrible Defence. Leaving the goalie out to dry on both goals.
That's just how Junior leagues work. That's why the best players (like McDavid or Drouin) put up ridiculous point-per-game numbers.
Assorted thoughts.......
I went to a WHL preseason tournament in Everett during Labor Day weekend. Caught five of the six teams playing (Portland/Seattle/Tri-City/Victoria/Spokane).
Paul Bittner (11th on McKenzie's list): Big winger who could skate and had a decent shot. Played a little bit of the point on the PP, although I'm not sure if that's typical or just out of necessity since they didn't dress their full rosters. I shouldn't make NHL comparisons based on two games, but I'd maybe compare him to the good/motivated Dustin Penner. Big, but not necessarily a banger. He did a nice job protecting the puck against a 6'5 Brandon Carlo.
Keoni Teixeira: I believe he's slated to inherit the PPQB duties from Derrick Pouliot. I didn't really like him from the two games. Seemed to be way too eager to carry the puck instead of springing teammates.
Brandon Carlo: Big stay at home RH defender (so probably not somebody we'd be looking at). I liked that he made quick reads/decisions. Seemed like he had limited offensive upside. The first game I saw him, he was forced to play on the left side because Tri-City dressed 4 RH D. Carlo looked better in the second game on his normal side.
Parker Wotherspoon: A little more noticeable than Carlo. Jumped in the play a few times (Tri-City's forwards aren't great) and rang one of the post. Showed a little snarl and started a scrum to wake up the team after they were being dominated.
Ty Comrie: Younger brother of teammate Eric Comrie. Didn't really stand out, but Tri-City was on the losing end of the puck possession battle. Tough to gauge him since he never seemed to have the puck.
Tyler Soy: Smallish offensive center for Victoria. He was getting some hype as a 2nd round guy on the prospects board, but I was left pretty disappointed from that game.
Matt Barzal/Ryan Gropp: Biggest bummer from that trip was Seattle not dressing either guy for any of the three games because they were nursing minor injuries. Barzal is supposed to be a Nugent-Hopkins type player in this year's draft (I believe he was listed at #7 on McKenzie's). Gropp is a big winger who is expected to be somewhere in the 2nd round.
Ethan Bear (32nd on Craig Button's initial list): Small, but stout RH D. Scored one goal with a howitzer on the PP. Next game he got the OT winner by pinching in. Didn't really notice him defensively, which might be a good thing since that means he didn't have any glaring mistakes.
------------
From Erie/Windsor and Youngstown/US U-18 this past weekend.............
Connor McDavid: Brought me out of my chair a couple times. Saw him before warmups and there's definitely room to improve physically. Even without the offense, I was impressed by his defense. His ability to steal the puck away with a quick stick reminded me of John Madden.
Dylan Strome: He got two assists, but I was left a little underwhelmed. He's got size and plays more methodically than his older brother Ryan. But perhaps it's just unfair to watch Strome and have McDavid there at the same time.
Travis Dermott: Wasn't dressed, I think most lists have him as a 2nd round D at the moment.
Assorted: No Josh Ho-Sang for Windsor because of a suspension he incurred from last season.
Winsdor has a possible top 5/10 guy for 2016 in Luke Kirwan. I believe Kirwan, from upstate NY, wears #44 in tribute to upstate NY hockey legend Rob Schremp. Big punishing winger, showed some offensive upside. Used his size/strength to beat his defender to the outside on the rush, then dipped his shoulder and bodied off the defender and got a good scoring opportunity. Probably will look better once Ho-Sang comes back.
Windsor has another potential 2016 first rounder in center Logan Brown (son of former NHL D Jeff Brown). But he was scratched that night.
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US Under-18 game was crawling with NHL scouts. Of the ones I could identify for sure, I saw Trevor Timmins (Montreal), Randy Sexton (Pittsburgh), and Ville Siren (Columbus). Former Caps GM George McPhee was also there, but I can't seem to find where he's working now. Warren Rychel (Windsor owner/GM) was also there with a couple other guys. Not unusual for them to try to recuit the under-18 guys to skip college and go the OHL route.
Keith Tkachuk was also there watching his son Matt (2016 eligible). Matt had good speed/hands and wasn't afraid of the dirty spots. He also had some Clarkson-itis early in the game and seemingly was falling down a lot.
The other main guy was Auston Matthews who misses out on 2015 by two days. Currently he's the early favorite to go #1 in 2016. Again, probably a little unfair after seeing McDavid the night before, but Matthews was a nice combination of size/strength/speed.
Kyle Connor was the main attraction on Youngstown (honorable mention on McKenzie's list). Speedy, but super skinny center. Seemed like his wrist shot could use some improvement. Didn't do much for the first two periods of the game, then he pulls out a Matt Duchene-esque goal and blows by a defender/roofs it in tight against the goalie.
Colin White (HM on McKenzie's list) was a little maddening to watch. Reminded me a lot of one of my hockey teammates in that he kept trying the same move entering the offensive zone and turned it over every time. Tried to go one on four during a PP zone entry which was an easy clear for the opposition. But I suppose I shouldn't judge too harshly as a lot of these guys had played in Buffalo a couple nights before.
Jordan Greenway (seen him 20-30 on some lists). Came away not really liking him. He had size (6'4) and could truck some defenders, but didn't create a ton of offensive chances for himself or his linemates.
Jeremy Bracco - Liked him more as the game went on. Small RW, nice zip to his wrist shot. Showed some nice tenacity in his forecheck/PK. I think I've seen preliminary lists have him as a 2nd/3rd rounder.
I went to a WHL preseason tournament in Everett during Labor Day weekend. Caught five of the six teams playing (Portland/Seattle/Tri-City/Victoria/Spokane).
Paul Bittner (11th on McKenzie's list): Big winger who could skate and had a decent shot. Played a little bit of the point on the PP, although I'm not sure if that's typical or just out of necessity since they didn't dress their full rosters. I shouldn't make NHL comparisons based on two games, but I'd maybe compare him to the good/motivated Dustin Penner. Big, but not necessarily a banger. He did a nice job protecting the puck against a 6'5 Brandon Carlo.
Keoni Teixeira: I believe he's slated to inherit the PPQB duties from Derrick Pouliot. I didn't really like him from the two games. Seemed to be way too eager to carry the puck instead of springing teammates.
Brandon Carlo: Big stay at home RH defender (so probably not somebody we'd be looking at). I liked that he made quick reads/decisions. Seemed like he had limited offensive upside. The first game I saw him, he was forced to play on the left side because Tri-City dressed 4 RH D. Carlo looked better in the second game on his normal side.
Parker Wotherspoon: A little more noticeable than Carlo. Jumped in the play a few times (Tri-City's forwards aren't great) and rang one of the post. Showed a little snarl and started a scrum to wake up the team after they were being dominated.
Ty Comrie: Younger brother of teammate Eric Comrie. Didn't really stand out, but Tri-City was on the losing end of the puck possession battle. Tough to gauge him since he never seemed to have the puck.
Tyler Soy: Smallish offensive center for Victoria. He was getting some hype as a 2nd round guy on the prospects board, but I was left pretty disappointed from that game.
Matt Barzal/Ryan Gropp: Biggest bummer from that trip was Seattle not dressing either guy for any of the three games because they were nursing minor injuries. Barzal is supposed to be a Nugent-Hopkins type player in this year's draft (I believe he was listed at #7 on McKenzie's). Gropp is a big winger who is expected to be somewhere in the 2nd round.
Ethan Bear (32nd on Craig Button's initial list): Small, but stout RH D. Scored one goal with a howitzer on the PP. Next game he got the OT winner by pinching in. Didn't really notice him defensively, which might be a good thing since that means he didn't have any glaring mistakes.
------------
From Erie/Windsor and Youngstown/US U-18 this past weekend.............
Connor McDavid: Brought me out of my chair a couple times. Saw him before warmups and there's definitely room to improve physically. Even without the offense, I was impressed by his defense. His ability to steal the puck away with a quick stick reminded me of John Madden.
Dylan Strome: He got two assists, but I was left a little underwhelmed. He's got size and plays more methodically than his older brother Ryan. But perhaps it's just unfair to watch Strome and have McDavid there at the same time.
Travis Dermott: Wasn't dressed, I think most lists have him as a 2nd round D at the moment.
Assorted: No Josh Ho-Sang for Windsor because of a suspension he incurred from last season.
Winsdor has a possible top 5/10 guy for 2016 in Luke Kirwan. I believe Kirwan, from upstate NY, wears #44 in tribute to upstate NY hockey legend Rob Schremp. Big punishing winger, showed some offensive upside. Used his size/strength to beat his defender to the outside on the rush, then dipped his shoulder and bodied off the defender and got a good scoring opportunity. Probably will look better once Ho-Sang comes back.
Windsor has another potential 2016 first rounder in center Logan Brown (son of former NHL D Jeff Brown). But he was scratched that night.
-------------
US Under-18 game was crawling with NHL scouts. Of the ones I could identify for sure, I saw Trevor Timmins (Montreal), Randy Sexton (Pittsburgh), and Ville Siren (Columbus). Former Caps GM George McPhee was also there, but I can't seem to find where he's working now. Warren Rychel (Windsor owner/GM) was also there with a couple other guys. Not unusual for them to try to recuit the under-18 guys to skip college and go the OHL route.
Keith Tkachuk was also there watching his son Matt (2016 eligible). Matt had good speed/hands and wasn't afraid of the dirty spots. He also had some Clarkson-itis early in the game and seemingly was falling down a lot.
The other main guy was Auston Matthews who misses out on 2015 by two days. Currently he's the early favorite to go #1 in 2016. Again, probably a little unfair after seeing McDavid the night before, but Matthews was a nice combination of size/strength/speed.
Kyle Connor was the main attraction on Youngstown (honorable mention on McKenzie's list). Speedy, but super skinny center. Seemed like his wrist shot could use some improvement. Didn't do much for the first two periods of the game, then he pulls out a Matt Duchene-esque goal and blows by a defender/roofs it in tight against the goalie.
Colin White (HM on McKenzie's list) was a little maddening to watch. Reminded me a lot of one of my hockey teammates in that he kept trying the same move entering the offensive zone and turned it over every time. Tried to go one on four during a PP zone entry which was an easy clear for the opposition. But I suppose I shouldn't judge too harshly as a lot of these guys had played in Buffalo a couple nights before.
Jordan Greenway (seen him 20-30 on some lists). Came away not really liking him. He had size (6'4) and could truck some defenders, but didn't create a ton of offensive chances for himself or his linemates.
Jeremy Bracco - Liked him more as the game went on. Small RW, nice zip to his wrist shot. Showed some nice tenacity in his forecheck/PK. I think I've seen preliminary lists have him as a 2nd/3rd rounder.
Bracco should go in the first round has quick hands and feet and great hocket IQ. Has lead every league he has played in scoring. In addition he has grown in last year by 19 lbs and now at 173 he not that small.
Not saying this means anything, but his listed weight on hockeydb is 130 pounds.
Even at 5'7" that seems ridiculous!
The 29th Pick
Still Alive !
Not saying this means anything, but his listed weight on hockeydb is 130 pounds.
I just looked around at 5 sites and he's listed at:
130 lbs
154 lbs
154 lbs
154 lbs
172 lbs
take your pick !
I meant small as in height, 5'9 is still a little smallish for NHL standards. ISS just released their October rankings and they have Bracco at #21. Spotted at least one scout sporting an ISS branded jacket at the game.
http://www.isshockey.com/iss-top-30-released-october-2/
I won't claim to have any expertise after watching these guys once/twice, but I would have Strome over White (ISS is probably the only one so far with White over Strome), and Bittner over Greenway for sure.
Craig Button's October List: http://www.tsn.ca/craig-s-list-october-ranking-mcdavid-leads-the-pack-1.100255
Red Line Report October: http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...1/october-nhl-draft-red-line-report/17696133/
I had a great seat from the 3rd row and it was even sicker in person. I'm debating taking a week long trip next year which would include a game with Jack Eichel.
Current bad idea:
1/30: Penguins@Devils
1/31: Panthers@Devils
2/01: Watch Super Bowl somewhere
2/02: Beanpot tournament (BU/Harvard, BC/Northeastern)
2/03: Senators@Devils
2/06: Leafs@Devils
2/07: Devils@Canadiens
My buddy and his coworkers independently were planning a Montreal trip that weekend. He mentioned that the Devils would coincidentally be in town, so that might be a good excuse to go up. Although I'd probably only get 36 hours max to be a tourist.
Take it with a grain of salt, but one poster on the prospect board wasn't high on Greenway's character either.
For me, it probably didn't help that he wore #12. Reminded me of the bad Ponikarovsky.
Here are some pics from my trip last month:
McDavid during warmups. Dylan Strome in the slot taking shots.
This may have been the faceoff right before McDavid scored that PP goal in the video.
Kyle Connor, possible top 15 pick.
Greenway and White during warmups.
Early leader to go first overall in 2016: Auston Matthews. He missed out on this draft by a week.
Fuzzy pic, but George McPhee was there scouting. Standing in the back is Keith Tkachuk.
Matt Tkachuk had some soft hands and probably created the most scoring chances in that game.
The last row was comprised of scouts.
I was a week too early for Michigan's hockey season to start, but they have an open skate at the rink. Definitely was cool to skate on the same sheet as a lot of past NHLers.
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