Prospect Info: 2019 Avalanche Development Camp [June 26th to 28th]

[Ryan Pat80]

Man I know it's only a 3 on 3 and you cant really read too much into it but...


I really like the way Saigeon looks.

What #?

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

What #?

Fairly certain he's #20 White

 

[Grackle Party]

Beaucage stands out as well

 

[TatteredTornNFrayed]

20 is Henry, with 2 goals. Saigeon is 17.

 

[Canadian Game]

The full roster for the game with numbers is in this tweet:

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

20 is Henry, with 2 goals. Saigeon is 17.

True.


Saigeon is the one who has stood out most to me. Haven't been paying attention to the numbers so much as the players and every time Saigeons name was mentioned he was doing great things with the puck.


Henry has been good also.

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

If a couple of those later picks can turn out to be serviceable NHLers, even if it’s just for a short time, it’ll help a ton

 

[Foppa2118]

Byram with the assist on the GTG with the goalie pulled, but his calmness and poise to grab the puck at his blueline, circle back behind the net, and then calmly skate up ice and gain the zone was a big part of setting the table for that play to happen.

 

[chet1926]

If a couple of those later picks can turn out to be serviceable NHLers, even if it’s just for a short time, it’ll help a ton

I've been pumping Saigeon for a bit now. Not the most talented guy, but always seems to show well and works hard. Wouldn't be surprised to see him in a bottom 6 role at some point in his career.

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

If Beaucage can work on his skating he could be a player for us. His hands and shot were top notch

 

[TatteredTornNFrayed]

True.


Saigeon is the one who has stood out most to me. Haven't been paying attention to the numbers so much as the players and every time Saigeons name was mentioned he was doing great things with the puck.


Henry has been good also.

I was pleased with how Saigeon looked in camp(s) last year as well.

 

[Avs_19]

I'm cautiously optimistic right now with him taking steps in the right direction. Preseason will be the big test because I doubt he'll be taking much contact until then.

 

[Freaky Styley]

This might sound strange, but I really like the way Ranta moves. I think he will get a shot in the league at some point.

 

[Avsavsavsavsavs]

Bowers looked so good in that 3v3 game, so fast.

 

[Gigantor The Goalie]

Was fun watching the goalies. Each one performed how you'd expect them to especially in the 3v3 situation. Werner looks like the most polished and the biggest adjustment he's going to have to make in the AHL is the speed at which the game is played at. He looked intimidating though to play against today. Annunen has taken steps in his game to better his edge work and adding more polish to his game. It was interesting watching Annunen vs Werner. They are close in play style with a few differences to noticeably differentiate themselves.

Then there was Miner vs Shmakov. What a contrast compared to the two goalies before them. Defense was completely gone by the time they got in and they were exactly who we all thought they were. Shmakov was a massive goalie who can move but the technical aspect of the game wasn't there. He's raw and needs good coaching to reign himself in. Miner looks like goalie in his DY at his first development camp. Was really just feeling his way out there. For all these goalies, especially Miner, it's a good opportunity to figure out what they need to work on through the summer. Definitely looking forward to improvements that Miner makes over the summer.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

Tbh it would not surprise me in the least if Timmins has a permanent spot on the Avs roster by February this season.


The Avs just seem to be really, really high on him(And I am just as high on him), to the point where I think he would have earned that spot last year if not for injury. The Avs will start him in the AHL and give him a couple months to get back into game shape and get back into that high level of play he's capable of.


But as soon as that happens I think he becomes injury callup #1 and the moment he gets into the NHL I dont think he leaves.

 

[Freaky Styley]

Tbh it would not surprise me in the least if Timmins has a permanent spot on the Avs roster by February this season.


The Avs just seem to be really, really high on him(And I am just as high on him), to the point where I think he would have earned that spot last year if not for injury. The Avs will start him in the AHL and give him a couple months to get back into game shape and get back into that high level of play he's capable of.


But as soon as that happens I think he becomes injury callup #1 and the moment he gets into the NHL I dont think he leaves.

I tend to agree with this entire assessment Pierce. Injuries aside, I always thought he would be ready to make the jump quicker than Makar. How crazy would it be if somehow Byram, Makar, Girard and Timmins are 4 of our 7 defensemen next year? Though I am of the opinion that there is no reason to keep Byram unless he unequivocally forces your hand.

 

[RoyIsALegend]

 

[S E P H]

Eagerly awaiting @McMetal report.

 

[thedoctor]

I was there. The group looked really good, better than last year. I'm just a fan, not a scout, but here's my take.

The Probable NHLers

• Kaut looked much faster and assertive vs. last year and when I saw him with the eagles. I don't know he's ever going to be an NHL top 6er but he was way ahead of the group today in most ways. I still don't think his shot is top 6 level, everything else looks reasonable. I think he'll at least get a long look in camp. Why does he skate all hunched over?
• Newhook and Kaut played together on white, and they had the most consistent chances and sustained pressure of any "line." Newhook is so so fast, and really uses the space he creates well. He was trying to make big plays every shift, and his puckhandling and offensive decisions were some of the best out there. He clearly was surprised a few times by the other players keeping up with him a bit. He had a sweeeeet shootout move but the refs waved it off for moving the puck backwards. The Duchene comp seemed startlingly accurate. I really wonder what we'd be saying about his chances of making the big club...but he's going to college, so moot point.
• Bowers was fast and smart, another guy physically ahead of most in the group. He didn't play as big as Kaut but I thought his mental game was on point, always making good choices. Again, not sure if he's top 6 material from a top end skill standpoint, but same as Kaut I think he gets a chance to make the big club, maybe starts in the AHL still.
• Byram seemed to be in cruise control. He made smart plays but didn't engage or push plays much until he made a bad turnover maybe 2/3 through the game, then he started getting a bit more aggressive and competing. He looked good, but he didn't take your breath away like Makar did last year. I don't think he's ready based on this small sample size.
• Timmins, wow. He played great, scored a sweet goal, constantly made offensive and defensive plays. I'd never really watched him before, I was very impressed with how complete his game was. He should push for NHL time this camp like Bowers and Kaut.

The Maybes

• Helleson looked solid, nothing flashy but smart. Didn't love his passing choices. He did play more aggressive than I expected given his rep as a more defensive type. He looks like he could get a LOT bigger.
• Beaucage looked...really good, kinda. Scored a couple times on sweet shots, showed some dangles. Good offensive instincts in other ways too with some nice passes, something I was a bit surprised to see. His skating was definitely subpar but it didn't really hurt him offensively in teh game, but he was often behind the play going the other way. Get this kid a full time skating coach.
• Stienberg I was prepared to hate, but he was honestly above average in the group. He didn't work super hard but he didn't need to -- he was constantly in the right spots, making smart passes, using his body well. He looked strong, at least in this group. He made one particularly nice pass out of a corner for a goal. I feel weird even including him here as a maybe but he stood out. /shrug

Others

• I'll mention Ranta. Real tools, .10c head. He looks...uncomfortable passing. He did at least try to pass a normal amount of the time, last year he was a black hole -- turnover or shot. A long ways to go but he's making progress and there's real talent.
• Henry looked pretty good. AHL top 6 bound I'd bet.
• Saigeon (the overager, right?) drove play well. I'd guess he's AHL bound too.
• I was sad not to see Kovalenko. He looked really smooth last year.

 

[CobraAcesS]

Tbh it would not surprise me in the least if Timmins has a permanent spot on the Avs roster by February this season.


The Avs just seem to be really, really high on him(And I am just as high on him), to the point where I think he would have earned that spot last year if not for injury. The Avs will start him in the AHL and give him a couple months to get back into game shape and get back into that high level of play he's capable of.


But as soon as that happens I think he becomes injury callup #1 and the moment he gets into the NHL I dont think he leaves.

Kind of interesting though.. Considering the real chances will come earlier in the year with EJ and Cole out. Then you have Byram. Which I think they should burn a year and give him like 12-20 games before sending him back. Unless he is just completely out of place even among our bottom pairing guys.

These days if you give me an excuse to burn a ELC year I'm doing it.

 

[McMetal]

I guess you guys can all watch the game on Facebook if you want to, Moser and McGahey were there calling it. Still though, my thoughts, despite getting there late and being stuck with shitty seats (the place was packed this time):

Jack Ahcan - Really impressed by him, he most definitely has talent. I hope the camp invite was a foot in the door for us to grab him on a pro contract because he was clearly a step ahead.

Josh Anderson - Mostly noticed him making bad decisions with the puck (not passing on a 2 on 0?) and whiffing on a one timer. Otherwise invisible.

Alex Beaucage - The small ice definitely helped mask his skating deficiency, but man, has he got hands. That toe drag goal for his second was a thing of beauty, and he was consistently pushing the play offensively.

Shane Bowers - Showed off some nice offensive pop with a sweet goal off the rush, but aside from that I didn't notice him much.

Luka Burzan - Man, he has a heavy shot. The slapper inside the post to tie the game with the goalie pulled was wicked, looked as casual as a golf swing but had rockets on it. Definitely has the tools to succeed and even for a scrimmage he did look engaged, which is a good sign.

Bowen Byram - Very aggressive all game, going below the hash marks over and over again. In a scrimmage where not much defense was played he did stand out quite a bit for that reason.

Nathan Clurman - Made a really nice cross ice pass to set up a goal, generally made good decisions with the puck from what I noticed and broke up a couple passes too.

Drew Helleson - For a guy billed as a defensive D he jumped into the play a lot. Drove the net a few times even. I wish I could have seen him shoot from the blue line but this wasn't that kind of game.

Nick Henry - Also all over the ice, he looks the part of a 20 year old playing mostly younger players. Definitely will carve himself out a role for the Eagles next year.

Martin Kaut - Didn't have a goal but was dangerous often, got a lot of shots on net and made some sweet passes besides.

Sasha Mutala - Got some chances in but generally was ineffective offensively. Rooting for him to succeed though.

Alex Newhook - Definitely has some serious straight line speed, he was trying a ton of fancy dangles though and not one of them worked. Even his nifty shootout move was waved off for moving the puck backwards.

Sampo Ranta - Aside from the game winning shootout goal where he beat Shmakov clean on the backhand, I didn't notice him much.

Brandon Saigeon - One of the busier forwards out there, made a lot of noise but didn't score. Definitely want to see what he does with the Eagles next season.

Shamil Shmakov - It's not easy for me to evaluate goalies but he seemed like the best of the four to me. He's a giant obviously but he's nimble for a big man and came up with quite a few really good saves, most of the goals against him were on cross-ice feeds and not stoppable.

Igor Shyvrev - Man, I like him. Showed off his tape to tape passes through traffic all game and was a possession machine for one sequence where he singlehandedly hemmed in team Burgundy in their own end for a good 40 seconds.

Denis Smirnov - I didn't like him at last year's dev camp and he didn't do much to change that impression. Feet are too slow to keep up with his silky hands.

Matthew Stienburg - Actually has some skills, I was fully expecting to boo his game but he's got some sneaky passing ability and despite not scoring had a nice shootout move.

Conor Timmins - Definitely a tier above the rest, he sure doesn't look like he missed a whole season. Beauty goal off the rush over Annunen's shoulder and some strong defensive plays too.

Everybody else I either didn't notice or they didn't impress me enough one way or the other.

 

[Ivan13]

I still won’t let myself count on Connor, but if he recovers and gets back on track to reaching his potential we’ve hit the lottery. He has every tool desirable for a top pairing D, yes, even skating. He is a good skater with an awkward stance.

 

[klozge]

Having only watched the first period so far I'm sloooooooooowly starting to hope Timmins makes the team right out of camp because of EJ's and Cole's absence. He looks like he hasn't missed a game and goodness is he ever good. Seems to read everything and his passes are insane. I'm fully back on the hype wagon.

 

[klozge]

Beaucage is a fun player.