2014 NHL Draft Prospects

[UsernameWasTaken]

What do you expect, all 15 and 16 year old players to have fully developed complete games? Come on man, get real would you! Even Ekblad as advanced as he is for his age has a lot of developing to do. To single out a single player at that age and say he has to develop aspects of his game is stating the obvious, and about as relevant as me saying the flyers play their home games in Philly.

I agree. I don't understand...you hear more criticism about Ho-Sang than any other 2014 eligible player. He needs to grow up...and he is not going to be able to maintain the same style of play he had this past year...but he's an elite talent and very competitive. I think he will develop just fine, provided he maintains the right attitude...and think he has the potential to be one of the top players in his draft year.

 

[The Saw Is the Law]

Is Jake Virtanen 2014? or 2015?

E: Seems like 2014.

 

[BalticWarrior]

I think Rihards Bukarts will go top 10 in 2014,he has the same stats as Yakupov in the same league(MHL) at the same age and he has already signed with Dinamo Riga from KHL.

 

[shello]

Not sure if it was mentioned earlier on in the thread but Chase De Leo of the Portland Winterhawks is one player I could see rising in the next years.

 

[Tigers1992]

What do you expect, all 15 and 16 year old players to have fully developed complete games? Come on man, get real would you! Even Ekblad as advanced as he is for his age has a lot of developing to do. To single out a single player at that age and say he has to develop aspects of his game is stating the obvious, and about as relevant as me saying the flyers play their home games in Philly.

Ding Ding, we have a winner.

Every player has an area that they need to develop,be it Connor McDavid, Josh Ho-Sang or any other 15 year old player.

Ho-Sang's fall was two fold.

1. He got bored after the Marlboros Tournament and seemed to loose interest. He tried to play games almost shift to shift, seeing how far he could go before before loosing the puck. Partner that with the fact that he already won an OHL Cup, already won a GTHL title. There was nothing left for him, and he struggled to find motivation on a team that would win most games 6-1.

2. He fell victim to over-scouting. We have a history of this in every draft. Remember when John Tavares fell behind Victor Hedman and Matt Duchene on some draft boards? Sean Couturier was the same. In scouting we over analyze things so often that sometimes we look for things wrong with a player, instead of simply looking at how good they are.

A friend of mine who use to be in the OHL, but was signed to scout for an NHL team happened to be in town during the OHL Cup and took in a few games. He saw Ho-Sang play against Ottawa, and said he was the best player he's seen in his draft year in years (he qualified that by saying McDavid wasn't officially in his draft year yet). First time seeing him, but a person who has an amazing eye for talent. We sometimes loose that context when we see a player play over 60 times, like we did with Ho-Sang. I have no doubt hes going to be an impact player at the next level, and a potentail top 10 pick for the Draft, depending how things go in Windsor.

He has issues, no doubt, and needs to mature a bit, but most 15-16 year olds do.

That said, everyone is more then entitled to express their opinion on online forums.

 

[gongshow519]

Aaron ekblad is going #1 Forsure. Haven't heard one negative thing about the kid. He is just one solid player

 

[Dhockey16]

Late birthdays for the NTDP tryout camp include...

F - Connor Chatham - St. Louis AAA
F - Chase Deleo - LA Selects AAA
F - Michael Turner - Chicago Steel-USHL
G - Devin Williams - Motor City AAA

http://www.goerie.com/article/20120...Otters-edge-IceDogs-behind-Williams'-61-saves

As a 16 year old goalie in the O, really impressive. High hopes for him.

 

[YEGJuniorFan]

Aaron ekblad is going #1 Forsure. Haven't heard one negative thing about the kid. He is just one solid player

How often to dmen go first? There are already big names like Virtanen and Reinhart, and there will be many risers. I doubt he goes first.

 

[scout97]

Ekblad is by far #1 in my books already one of the better defence in the ohl when he should of been playing minor midget. I wouldent be surprised if he gets a U20 invite this year or next year. He's that good

 

[scout97]

Top 96 Ontario kids I've seen

Aaron ekblad
Josh hosang
Roland mckeown
Eric Cornell
Jacob Middleton
Jared McCann
Michael dal colle
Jonathan duchense
Brook hidnik
Robbert fabrri
Spencer Watson
Dylan diperna
Brett hargrave
Jerimiah addison
Matt schmalz
Sam Bennett
Jaden lindo
Dante salituro
Nikki petti
Damien bourne
Liam herbst

 

[Mason10]

does anyone have any info on Robby Fabbri ?

 

[scout97]

does anyone have any info on Robby Fabbri ?

On the smaller side but works incredibly hard and gives it every shift. Pretty good skater and can score goals. Also plays well with his linemates and makes good smart passes. He was a key player in the rebels OHL showcase cup win.

 

[McManked]

Top 96 Ontario kids I've seen

Aaron ekblad
Josh hosang
Roland mckeown
Eric Cornell
Jacob Middleton
Jared McCann
Michael dal colle
Jonathan duchense
Brook hidnik
Robbert fabrri
Spencer Watson
Dylan diperna
Brett hargrave
Jerimiah addison
Matt schmalz
Sam Bennett
Jaden lindo
Dante salituro
Nikki petti
Damien bourne
Liam herbst

Apart from the obvious guys on that list, I'm a huge fan of Addison and Di Perna.

 

[Tigers1992]

Apart from the obvious guys on that list, I'm a huge fan of Addison and Di Perna.

Addison is a 2015 elgible player.

 

[StormSurge9]

does anyone have any info on Robby Fabbri ?

GM of the Guelph Storm said about Fabbri "That probably wouldn't be a bad comparasion" As someone compared him to Ryan Callahan.

Storm head scout Chris McCleary said this "His compete level is through the ceiling and he has elite-level skill" Also saying they had him as the second best player behind 1st overall pick Connor McDavid.

Here is is profile from OHL Central Scouting:

" Robert is the type of player that does whatever it takes to win. Whether it means taking a hit to get a puck out, blocking a shot while killing a penalty, scoring the big goal in the third period or matching up against another team's top centre and being asked to shut him down. He plays much bigger than his stature and won't back down against anyone no matter how big they are. Robert is definitely a big game player, the bigger the game the better he plays. He is a very strong skater that has a low center of gravity which makes it very hard to knock him off of the puck."

He's obviously going to need to get bigger, but he has two years to do so. It sounds like he plays the type of game that will translate to the NHL. But then again, he's slightly on the smaller side so it will be interesting to see how much bigger he can get in two years.

 

[scout97]

IMO josh ho sang will go top 10 for sure. Not really sure what happened to him at the end of last season but he has huge potential and is definitely the most skilled player I have seen in a long time. If he can fix his attitude problems and learn that he can't do it by himself, I think he could be a top scorer for sure in the ohl

 

[Mason10]

On the smaller side but works incredibly hard and gives it every shift. Pretty good skater and can score goals. Also plays well with his linemates and makes good smart passes. He was a key player in the rebels OHL showcase cup win.

GM of the Guelph Storm said about Fabbri "That probably wouldn't be a bad comparasion" As someone compared him to Ryan Callahan.

Storm head scout Chris McCleary said this "His compete level is through the ceiling and he has elite-level skill" Also saying they had him as the second best player behind 1st overall pick Connor McDavid.

Here is is profile from OHL Central Scouting:

" Robert is the type of player that does whatever it takes to win. Whether it means taking a hit to get a puck out, blocking a shot while killing a penalty, scoring the big goal in the third period or matching up against another team's top centre and being asked to shut him down. He plays much bigger than his stature and won't back down against anyone no matter how big they are. Robert is definitely a big game player, the bigger the game the better he plays. He is a very strong skater that has a low center of gravity which makes it very hard to knock him off of the puck."

He's obviously going to need to get bigger, but he has two years to do so. It sounds like he plays the type of game that will translate to the NHL. But then again, he's slightly on the smaller side so it will be interesting to see how much bigger he can get in two years.

thanks! I watched some videos of him and I liked what I saw, going to try and watch some more Guelph games (if they're on TV or a stream) because of him

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

IMO josh ho sang will go top 10 for sure. Not really sure what happened to him at the end of last season but he has huge potential and is definitely the most skilled player I have seen in a long time. If he can fix his attitude problems and learn that he can't do it by himself, I think he could be a top scorer for sure in the ohl

If Ho Sang gets himself together and behaves on the ice (i.e none of his puck hog nonsense) he should be one of the top players.

As far as this year goes...he was under-drafted b/c of Windsor...which was probably a smart move - he should develop well there.

I have a level of sympathy, b/c I understand the problem that comes with considering exceptional status - you get that extra year in the CHL but are likely stuck on the worse team...and can get more control hanging out until your "natural" draft year and gaming things - but it didn't seem like this past year was the happiest situation for him...and i don't know that he handled things well. He's young, though...and no one expects perfect maturity - esp. from a 15 year old - people need to be reasonable in their expectations. I suspect having McDavid as his teammate made things all the more complicated.

His skill set is undeniable and with the right attitude he has every chance of living up to his hype.

 

[ryanalbertmills]

What do you guys think of Ryan Donaldson? Played 2 games in the WHL for the Kelowna Rockets as a 15 year old and got into a fight, i believe he is eligible for 2015 though. being a December birthday.

 

[sbtatter]

Just for clarification, what birthdate makes you eligible for the 14 draft?

 

[shello]

Just for clarification, what birthdate makes you eligible for the 14 draft?

Jan 1 1996 to Sept 15 1996

 

[tmg]

Jan 1 1996 to Sept 15 1996

Has something changed recently? Eight and a half month eligibility window for an annual draft just isn't sustainable. Players born Sept 16 thru December 31 (in this case, 1995) are never eligible for a draft?

 

[Sanderson]

Has something changed recently? Eight and a half month eligibility window for an annual draft just isn't sustainable. Players born Sept 16 thru December 31 (in this case, 1995) are never eligible for a draft?

No, nothing has changed. First year eligibility ranges from September 16th 1995 to September 15th 1996.

 

[sbtatter]

Jace Hawryluk

With those eligibility dates in mind I give you Jace Hawryluk as an exciting prospect for the 2014 draft. He will make the Wheat Kings roster this year, he's a combination of Calverts size and speed, and a little of Schenns vision. Needs to grow, but he's bigger than Calvert was at this age. Wheaties need to get a big strong guy on his line so no one takes any liberties with him
http://www.mbaaamidget.ca/leagues/r...&leagueID=16053&teamID=343197&playerID=830673
67 points in 40 games as a rookie on a brutal Parkland team bodes very well. He was a standout at the prospects camp in the spring, I'm looking forward to watching his game develop, he could be a top 6 forward this season on an offensively challenged Wheat King team.

 

[MrGeno101]

Ivan Nikolishin

Ivan Nikolishin (96 born) looks like a promising prospect for Russia. Great hockey sense, hands and skating. He is son to former NHL player Andrei Nikolishin.

Here is a small highlight video from Winter Youth Olympics earlier this year, he led his team to a silver medal, scored 12 points (6+6) in 6 games.