Prospect Info: 2015 Leafs Board Prospect Ranking #28

[Schenn]

I will make a thread everyday until we have determined the top 30 prospects according to Leaf fans on HFBoards.

Rankings:
1. Mitch Marner -- 81.22%
2. William Nylander -- 97.50%
3. Kasperi Kapanen -- 51.18%
4. Connor Brown -- 80.00%
5. Stuart Percy -- 28.67%
6. Frederick Gauthier -- 29.64%
7. Andreas Johnson -- 32.43%
8. Jeremy Bracco -- 37.30 %
9. Travis Dermott -- 37.69%
10. Brendan Leipsic -- 40.74%
11. Scott Harrington -- 65.07%
12. Victor Loov -- 46.67%
13. Josh Leivo -- 36.84%
14. Rinat Valiev -- 40.94%
15. Antoine Bibeau -- 31.49%
16. Matt Finn -- 45.73%
17. Petter Granberg -- 19.59%
18. Nikita Soshnikov --19.05%
19. Carter Verhaeghe -- 21.57%
20. Martins Dzierkals -- 25.18%
21. Dmytro Timashov -- 22.15%
22. Sam Carrick -- 24.46%
23. Jesper Lindgren -- 25.40%
24. Zach Hyman -- 20.07%
25. Nikita Korostelev -- 22.94%
26. Casey Bailey -- 25.58%
27. Tom Nilsson -- 31.03%
28.

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On The Docket:
Dakota Joshua
Christopher Gibson
Garrett Sparks
Stephan Desrocher
Dominic Toninato
Ryan Rupert
Nolan Vesey
Andrew Nielson
Pierre Engvall
Fabrice Herzog
John Piccinich
Tony Cameranesi
Cody Donaghey
Byron Froese


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Next on the List:


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Past Results:
Prospect Ranking #1
Prospect Ranking #2
Prospect Ranking #3
Prospect Ranking #4
Prospect Ranking #5
Prospect Ranking #6
Prospect Ranking #7
Prospect Ranking #8
Prospect Ranking #9
Prospect Ranking #10
Prospect Ranking #11
Prospect Ranking #12
Prospect Ranking #13
Prospect Ranking #14
Prospect Ranking #15
Prospect Ranking #16
Prospect Ranking #17
Prospect Ranking #18
Prospect Ranking #19
Prospect Ranking #20
Prospect Ranking #21
Prospect Ranking #22
Prospect Ranking #23
Prospect Ranking #24
Prospect Ranking #25
Prospect Ranking #26
Prospect Ranking #27

Suggest who I should add next.

Click to read more...

 

[Bullseye]

The Toninato Tornado! Has reminded me of Joe Neuindyk ever since we drafted (still wanted Seth Griffiths over him - Captain centre of the Knights arg) anyway let's hope Tonni can be something special at the pro level

 

[ChrisCall]

Voting Gibson here. I may like Bibeau's upside more, but Gibson was a 22 yo starting goalie in the AHL last season and was very consistent about it. I'd hate to see him fall out of the top 30.

 

[LeafsNation149]

Herzog

 

[LV*]

Toninato...

 

[timlap]

We've got three goalies who have already proven to be capable pros. They deserve credit for that. I'm going with Sparks once again.

 

[Leafidelity]

Kind of wild a 3rd round pick (65th overall) made it to 28th

 

[Banic]

Gibson. Shocking he's still here.

 

[67Cup]

I can actually see the merit of an argument that players who have played well in the AHL and are nearer to making the big team should be rated ahead of 2015 draftees. It's not my position but I can see the point of the argument.

What seems really thick to me is rating higher than Nielsen four different players who were drafted after him, in most cases long after him. If those players had actually played any games in the meantime, maybe, but that hasn't happened.

 

[WildcatMapleLeafs28]

Dominic Toninato.

 

[Lauro]

Nielsen.

 

[Pholus]

It's nice to finally see some other ppl supporting Gibson lol. I was starting to wonder if any others thought more than 1 goalie deserved to be in the top 30.

 

[burpsalot]

I can actually see the merit of an argument that players who have played well in the AHL and are nearer to making the big team should be rated ahead of 2015 draftees. It's not my position but I can see the point of the argument.

What seems really thick to me is rating higher than Nielsen four different players who were drafted after him, in most cases long after him. If those players had actually played any games in the meantime, maybe, but that hasn't happened.

Defence are generally not as sexy as forwards & a late bloomer, raw talent, physical defence, even more so. He is a player that has just started to develop & a lot of his skills have a way to go. That could turn some people off, but it is probably what made him so attractive to the Leafs. He was moving up throughout the year & he still has so much potential upside.

I had him in my top 5 from 20 onward, but other people kept picking the wrong players. He won't get my pick until 29.

 

[deletethis]

Looks vaguely like Joffrey Lupul (same # too) in his scoring highlights:

 

[Moonman]

Andrew Neilsen

 

[Joey Hoser]

I can actually see the merit of an argument that players who have played well in the AHL and are nearer to making the big team should be rated ahead of 2015 draftees. It's not my position but I can see the point of the argument.

A position like that, or opposite, can't be black and white and universally applied. Sam Carrick might be closer to the NHL but there is no way you can say he's a better prospect then Marner. Percy may not have more potential than Dermott, but the difference isn't vast and Percy is closer, so it would make sense to put him ahead.

 

[67Cup]

A position like that, or opposite, can't be black and white and universally applied. Sam Carrick might be closer to the NHL but there is no way you can say he's a better prospect then Marner. Percy may not have more potential than Dermott, but the difference isn't vast and Percy is closer, so it would make sense to put him ahead.

It's not my position. As you say, it can't be universally applied or you end up with Carrick ahead of Marner. But I do see why a reasonable person might rank, say, Nilssen ahead of Nielsen on that basis. It's not my argument but I can follow the reasoning. For that matter, in this round, I can see why the most popular choice seems to be Toninato, on the basis of his strong year in the NCAA. Not my choice, but I can see it.

What does seem thoroughly unreasonable is ranking four fellow 2015 draftees ahead of Nielsen, all of whom were drafted after him, several long after. This is is especially the case since there have been no games to provide further evidence since the 2015 draft.

As another poster suggested earlier, it looks like prejudice against a type of player a lot of posters don't think is sexy.

 

[deletethis]

What does seem thoroughly unreasonable is ranking four fellow 2015 draftees ahead of Nielsen, all of whom were drafted after him, several long after. This is is especially the case since there have been no games to provide further evidence since the 2015 draft.

As another poster suggested earlier, it looks like prejudice against a type of player a lot of posters don't think is sexy.

There's a belief that for very long that skill, skating and offensive results were being ignored/undervalued in favour of "old school" hockey attributes like aggression/strength/size. Again, there appears to be some validity in that argument even with many sub-6 footers drafted every year but like many things it isn't black and white, it's part of a bigger picture.

It now appears that some are refusing to concede that there is ANY value in size and aggression. A big bodied hockey player with similar abilities as a smaller version of himself is always going to have that as a competitive advantage whether or not it fits with a narrative. It's a hard fact that the majority of the NHL is above 6'.

 

[Stringer Bell]

Toninato lead his team in goals as a sophmore. Tony Cameranesi led the team in points. I can only imagine these players would have better stats on a deeper team, especially Toninato.

 

[deletethis]

Toninato lead his team in goals as a sophmore. Tony Cameranesi led the team in points. I can only imagine these players would have better stats on a deeper team, especially Toninato.

Word is that Toninato played the second half of his sophomore season nursing an injury.

 

[Byron Bitz]

andrew Neilson was drafted just a few spots behind Bracco, the fact that management is so high on him should mean more to you guys.

P.S. i think Bracco is too high on this list.

 

[Joey Hoser]

It now appears that some are refusing to concede that there is ANY value in size and aggression. A big bodied hockey player with similar abilities as a smaller version of himself is always going to have that as a competitive advantage whether or not it fits with a narrative. It's a hard fact that the majority of the NHL is above 6'.

The advantage of size shows itself in other areas though. If he uses his size to drive the net, he should score more goals. He should defend better, hit harder, be a better penalty killer, play in the corners better, possess the puck longer, block more shots, etc.

Effectiveness is what matters. If a small player and a large player appear equally effective in those areas, then size is not an advantage on top of all that. Size didn't make that big player any better, or it just made up for having less skill/smarts.

People often talk as though having size is some external component you use as a trump card after considering all the usual stuff. It's not. It goes into everything else.

 

[Drew75]

There's a belief that for very long that skill, skating and offensive results were being ignored/undervalued in favour of "old school" hockey attributes like aggression/strength/size. Again, there appears to be some validity in that argument even with many sub-6 footers drafted every year but like many things it isn't black and white, it's part of a bigger picture.

It now appears that some are refusing to concede that there is ANY value in size and aggression. A big bodied hockey player with similar abilities as a smaller version of himself is always going to have that as a competitive advantage whether or not it fits with a narrative. It's a hard fact that the majority of the NHL is above 6'.

I agree that size matters - I just think that looking at height is an inaccurate and VERY misguided way to judge "size".

• The difference between 5'11 and 6'0 is almost nothing - and yet for some reason many people here seem to think it's the difference between big enough and too small
• Height alone provides absolutely NO advantage to a player in hockey (outside of goalies as it allows them to see over players heads in a scrum)
• A 5'11, 190lb - 200lb player has the definite "size" advantage over a 6'3, 180lb player

The key to "SIZE" in hockey is MASS. Now, granted - a taller player has a larger frame on which to add mass - but doesn't mean they will. The league is also littered with BIG guys (both height and weight) that never use it. Darcy Tucker and Doug Gilmour were considered small in both height and mass - but both played like they were 6'5, 250lbs. I'll take the little feisty guy over the big pillow any day of the week.

Take a guy who is 5'11 - let him get to 185lbs +, and give him heart. That's a player I'd be happy with.

Tarasenko for example is an absolute tank. He's about 1/2 inch taller than Marner, but tips the scales at 200lbs - to me, THAT's size.

 

[diceman934]

It's nice to finally see some other ppl supporting Gibson lol. I was starting to wonder if any others thought more than 1 goalie deserved to be in the top 30.

He should have been the first goalie voted in based on the fact that he was the starting goalie in the AHL....last year I was the only person giving him votes..this year I stopped after a while as it is pointless...