2018 Draft: 2nd Pick: Ryan McLeod (F) - Recalled to taxi squad 4/18/21

[nabob]

If you wanted an impact player, that's the risk you have to take. 'Safe' players aren't very safe either, look at Lazar and Mark McNeill.

Chicago drafts very well with Shaw, Saad, Teravainen, Hayes, Schmaltz, DeBrincat etc. They just swung for the fences with their first five picks, possibly all their picks.

Yeah, our drafting and development sucks. Have to start somewhere. I think they're drafting fairly well now, but I'm not sure if it's good enough to make a contender.

Maybe go look at who the bolder player was drafted by. In one breath you’re saying draft like Chicago, then you’re saying to not draft player like a guy who was drafted by Chicago...

 

[nabob]

I like how you know this kid will never,ever be able to be a star. Bravo.

Once you read more than one scouting report on a player that is posted somewhere on the internet then you can basically consider yourself a scout and make concrete statements like that.

 

[scallionjj11]

 

[Trafalgar Sadge Law]

Wait, so we draft a player projected to be a late 1st rounder who seems to have all the tools but hasn't put it all together (due to the competitiveness issues) and people here are complaining about him being the standard Mitchell Moroz safe pick? No this is a swing for the fences pick that has a higher floor than most of these types of players. Sure I would've liked Wilde or Addison over him, but the team isn't going to always take the exact player you want. If he busts he busts, but until he does, I have high hopes for him.

 

[CycloneSweep]

Wait, so we draft a player projected to be a late 1st rounder who seems to have all the tools but hasn't put it all together (due to the competitiveness issues) and people here are complaining about him being the standard Mitchell Moroz safe pick? No this is a swing for the fences pick that has a higher floor than most of these types of players. Sure I would've liked Wilde or Addison over him, but the team isn't going to always take the exact player you want. If he busts he busts, but until he does, I have high hopes for him.

Apparently a high skill uncompetitive guy is a safe pick lol.

 

[Joey Moss]

His skating is ridiculous.. Dare I say close to McDavid? I don't think he looks that far off with how quick his feet are. His straight ahead speed that is.

 

[Senor Catface]

Evan + Ryan = summer BFFs

That's all I really took from the interview.

 

[SomeDudeOTI]

Evan + Ryan = summer BFFs

That's all I really took from the interview.

And he wants to be harder to play against.

Perhaps he heard some of the uncompetitive stuff and wants to prove them wrong.

 

[ohheyhemsky]

 

[ChaoticOrange]

And he wants to be harder to play against.

Perhaps he heard some of the uncompetitive stuff and wants to prove them wrong.

My honest thought is McLeod might be a guy that finds junior hockey too ‘easy’ if that makes sense. I don’t think he’s particularly challenged by it.

Can’t shake the feeling that he’s a guy that plays up or down to the competition. I think he’ll excel once the level of competition ratchets up.

His brother took a huge step back tho. Missed a bunch of time and barely PPG in his 20 year old year.

 

[ohheyhemsky]

My honest thought is McLeod might be a guy that finds junior hockey too ‘easy’ if that makes sense. I don’t think he’s particularly challenged by it.

Can’t shake the feeling that he’s a guy that plays up or down to the competition. I think he’ll excel once the level of competition ratchets up.

His brother took a huge step back tho. Missed a bunch of time and barely PPG in his 20 year old year.

Curtis Hamilton and Ryan Martindale kind of did the same thing, which is what is a little worrisome - but hopefully we'll see someone break that mold for us here.

The fact that his namesake is Ryan Smyth and he's a fan of the Oilers (and looks like the kid from Deliverance) has raised his stock in my books. Cheering for him 100%.

 

[SomeDudeOTI]

My honest thought is McLeod might be a guy that finds junior hockey too ‘easy’ if that makes sense. I don’t think he’s particularly challenged by it.

Can’t shake the feeling that he’s a guy that plays up or down to the competition. I think he’ll excel once the level of competition ratchets up.

His brother took a huge step back tho. Missed a bunch of time and barely PPG in his 20 year old year.

Makes 100% sense to me, when there's no challenge it's easy to coast a bit. We'll see how he responds to nhl competition, probably light a bit of a fire.

 

[McDNicks17]

My honest thought is McLeod might be a guy that finds junior hockey too ‘easy’ if that makes sense. I don’t think he’s particularly challenged by it.

Can’t shake the feeling that he’s a guy that plays up or down to the competition. I think he’ll excel once the level of competition ratchets up.

His brother took a huge step back tho. Missed a bunch of time and barely PPG in his 20 year old year.

I sort of agree with the first part, but I don't think it's a positive since it's easy for him because he's avoiding the hard stuff.

He doesn't stick to the perimeter, look pretty weak on the boards and passive on the forecheck because the opposite is easy for him. It's just natural for him and it's something that will get exposed at a higher level of competition without improvement.

He's got the tools and smarts, but like every second rounder, he needs to take some big steps in a few things if he wants to be good NHLer.

 

[fireantz]

I’m betting Smytty makes a few trips down east for the Oilers to “motivate” him next winter

 

[Skolman]

I have a gut feeling we have a good one here fellas, I predict he he is going to be a very solid #2 LW with Drai for a long time

 

[voxel]

I have a gut feeling we have a good one here fellas, I predict he he is going to be a very solid #2 LW with Drai for a long time

He needs to improve by a significant amount next season for that happen. We’ve been spoiled by these “elite” forwards for so long. Heck, Eberle was CHL player of the year.

 

[Trafalgar Sadge Law]

Curtis Hamilton and Ryan Martindale kind of did the same thing, which is what is a little worrisome - but hopefully we'll see someone break that mold for us here.

The fact that his namesake is Ryan Smyth and he's a fan of the Oilers (and looks like the kid from Deliverance) has raised his stock in my books. Cheering for him 100%.

Young players usually have inconsistency issues and have slump years. Sometimes that just happens to be a year or two after their draft. I mean just look at Brendan Perlini. He was pretty much written off as a guaranteed bust by most of HF, myself included, due to his regression post-draft and then all the sudden, he finds his footing in the AHL and is now a full time NHLer. Also just because his brother has struggled doesn't mean the same will happen to him. They have different skillsets as far as I've heard aside from the high end skating.

 

[onetweasy]

This pick to me screams a lot of "oh crap, we really did blow it by passing on Barzal, we'll never look past skill again even if there are some compete issues" type of pick.

Good - let's hope they learned their lesson.

 

[Skolman]

He needs to improve by a significant amount next season for that happen. We’ve been spoiled by these “elite” forwards for so long. Heck, Eberle was CHL player of the year.

Ya dude, I don't really take your posts serious. You literally just said Bouchard's closest comparison is Petry, or maybe a "worse skating" Justin Schultz.

 

[McDNicks17]

Young players usually have inconsistency issues and have slump years. Sometimes that just happens to be a year or two after their draft. I mean just look at Brendan Perlini. He was pretty much written off as a guaranteed bust by most of HF, myself included, due to his regression post-draft and then all the sudden, he finds his footing in the AHL and is now a full time NHLer. Also just because his brother has struggled doesn't mean the same will happen to him. They have different skillsets as far as I've heard aside from the high end skating.

Yeah, they're different players.

Similar skaters, but Ryan is the more naturally skilled of the two and Michael's consistency and motor is on another level.

 

[Dan Kelly]

Maybe go look at who the bolder player was drafted by. In one breath you’re saying draft like Chicago, then you’re saying to not draft player like a guy who was drafted by Chicago...

Maaaaan did we get lucky Chicago took McNeill and not Klefbom ! Could have set us back years if we hadn't gotten him and had McNeill instead !

 

[nabob]

Maaaaan did we get lucky Chicago took McNeill and not Klefbom ! Could have set us back years if we hadn't gotten him and had McNeill instead !

Yep! There were a lot of disappointed posters here when we didn’t get McNeill.

 

[NotAVacuumSalesman]

He's got a lot of tools to work with. I think Chia/KG selected him knowing that he can play up and down the lineup. A few scouting report has Ryan Kesler as his comparable, yet he says he models his game like John Tavares. With his inconsistency issue it's scary to think he might end up being a Ryan Strome clone.

 

[bone]

He's got a lot of tools to work with. I think Chia/KG selected him knowing that he can play up and down the lineup. A few scouting report has Ryan Kesler as his comparable, yet he says he models his game like John Tavares. With his inconsistency issue it's scary to think he might end up being a Ryan Strome clone.

Nothing wrong with a Ryan Strome clone out of pick 40. Criticism of Strome comes moreso from acquisition and salary costs (5th overall pick by NYI and Eberle trade with a $3M salary). I don't think the Islanders are as disappointed in him if he was a second rounder. We also wouldn't be as down on him either if he hadn't cost us Eberle and $3M+ salary.

But no doubt Strome is at least an NHL-level player which we should be happy with out of a 40th pick.

 

[McDNicks17]

If you get a Strome that skates like McLeod in the second round, you're laughing.