Prospect Info: 2019 Draft | Round 6: Pick #184 - Santeri Hatakka (D) | Ilves (Liiga)

[The Nemesis]

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6th round, Pick # 184: Santeri Hatakka (D) | Ilves Tampere (Liiga)

Hand	L
Birthday (Age)	Jan 15, 2001 (18)
Hometown	Riihimäki, Finland
Height	6'0
Weight	174 lbs

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• The only player the Sharks selected in the 2019 draft using their own original pick (not acquired in trade)
• Previously played in the Jokerit system before transferring to Ilves for 19-20
• Was named one of the top 3 players on Finland at the U18 WJCs in 2019

Central Scouting Bureau	72 European Skater
Craig Button (TSN)	N/R
Bob McKenzie (TSN)	N/R
The Hockey News	N/R
HockeyProspects.com Black Book	Honorable Mention
Future Considerations	144
McKeen's	176
Corey Pronman (The Athletic)	N/R
International Scouting Service	N/R
EliteProspects.com	N/R
HockeyProspector	N/R
TheDraftAnalyst	71
DobberHockey.com	N/R
LastWordOnHockey.com	N/R
Tryamkin (HF Poster)	N/R
PKAnalyst (HF Poster)	N/R

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*N/R = Not Ranked. Keep in mind that the number of ranked prospects differs by outlet. a "N/R" listing on Bob McKenzie or Craig Button run their lists 93 players deep, whereas something like Black Book has a couple hundred players ranked.

S	Team	League	GP	G	A	TP	PIM	+/-
2015-16	Jokerit U16	Jr. C SM-sarja	11	1	0	1	4
2016-17	Jokerit U16	Jr. C SM-sarja	0	0	0	0	0
	Jokerit U18	Jr. B SM-sarja	35	3	19	22	63
	Finland U16 (all)	International-Jr	11	0	1	1	6
2017-18	Jokerit U18	Jr. B SM-sarja	5	0	0	0	2
	Jokerit U20	Jr. A SM-liiga	46	4	12	16	28	0
	Finland U17	WHC-17	5	0	1	1	2
	Finland U17 (all)	International-Jr	16	0	3	3	18
2018-19	Jokerit U18	Jr. B SM-sarja	3	0	1	1	0
	Jokerit U20 “A”	Jr. A SM-liiga	43	4	9	13	30	8
	Finland U18	WJC-18	5	0	0	0	2	5
	Finland U18 (all)	International-Jr	20	1	1	2	24
2019-20	Ilves	Liiga	-	-	-	-	-
	Finland U19 (all)	International-Jr	-	-	-	-	-

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Hatakka is a two-way defenseman from Finland who played this past season with Jokerit’s U20 team. He’s not a defenseman with a super-high upside, but he does just about everything well on the ice. He’s solid at both ends of the rink; in his zone he can play a physical game and be tough to play against along the wall and in front of the net. He has good speed going forward when rushing the puck or jumping into the play. His best offensive weapon is his shot from the point, a good, hard slapper that can be useful on the power play. He’s not very creative with the puck in the offensive
zone, however, and that what is holding him back from the next level offensively. He usually keeps his play with the puck pretty simple. His transitional play is pretty good, as he has a good first pass and he’s not shy to skate the puck out into the offensive zone. He also uses his good footwork to retrieve pucks quickly when dumped deep in his zone, and he is also strong on the puck and can absorb hits along the boards. Defensively, he uses his body well to win puck battles and
covers a good amount of space thanks to his agility and good active stick. Hatakka is not a defenseman who will wow you with his superior offensive skills, but does a lot of good things that can be useful for his team. He has decent size, physicality, and skating abilities..

-HockeyProspects Black Book

A sharp mind on the back end, Hatakka is an extremely confident and versatile puck carrier with excellent speed and a crisp first pass. Capable of running the power play or anchoring a lead penalty-killing unit, he wins the significant majority of his foot races and is not afraid to take a hit to move the puck safely. A glance at his stats with Jokerit or Finland’s under-18 squad do anything but jump out at you, but Hatakka’s speed, aggressiveness and sound decision making is critical in going from defense to offense in a hurry. He’s a smooth, fluid skater in all directions and appears to be an aggressive puck rusher with mature instincts, specifically in joining the attack. Hatakka’s swift skating and elusiveness work in concert to get him deep into the offensive zone, and once he’s there, he’ll distribute the puck cleanly without putting himself in danger. He has very good vision, particularly from the point in spotting open teammates near the goal. Hatakka always stays in motion and will walk the line or pump fake effectively to open lanes and unload an above-average shot.
Hattaka, who will move from Jokerit to Ilves for next season, was named one of Finland’s top three players at the U18 world championship. He provides excellent 1-on-1 coverage and tirelessly jabs at forwards battling for slot positioning. His ability to play either side also lends to his aforementioned versatility, but one of the most impressive aspects of his game is his physicality — Hatakka will line up an opponent in the neutral zone, finish his checks in the corners and deliver timely hip checks at his own line.

-TheDraftAnalyst

Hatakka, who recently signed a contract with Liiga team Ilves, has been the best defenceman for Team Finland in the whole tournament, and the quarter final game against the US was not an exception. Although Finland lost the game 6-0 and Hatakka was on the ice for two goals against, he played a relatively good game.
Hatakka was able to keep up with the pace of the speedy American forwards and played simple game with the puck. He couldn’t avoid mistakes though as he hesitated a bit too long a few times whether to pinch or not and got out-played by speed because of that.
Hatakka was, rightfully, chosen as one of the best three players for Team Finland in this tournament and showed that he can play at a high level even against this level of competition. While his upside is not sky-high, the potential to be a reliable two-way defenceman even at the NHL level is definitely there.

-FinnProspects.com review from April U18 tournament

Click to read more...

 

[Medinab31]

Fire DWjr.

 

[hohosaregood]

Santeri Hatakka | FinnProspects.com

 

[Kcoyote3]

Fire WD

 

[OffSydes]

Fire DWjr

 

[LadyStanley]

Connection

 

[Mr Fahrenheit]

Sounds like a pretty good pick

 

[SactoShark]

Looks to me like a bust out of the gate. So that probably means I'll own the kid's jersey in 4 years.

 

[The Nemesis]

Pronman quick pick analysis:

Hatakaa is a very good skater who can make stops due to his gaps and physicality. He moves pucks fine but I don’t see a ton of offense in his game.

Grading the San Jose Sharks' 2019 draft class

From reading a bunch of analysis it seems like once the picks got out of the first round the analyses were short and unimpressed sounding unless he really liked the guy (Pronman was notably high on Hamaliuk, so you'll see in his thread that the analysis for that pick is much more in depth and glowing. On the other hand, even if he noted that he liked the tools, the analysis on other picks tended to sound kind of down. So I wouldn't read too much into it at this point.

 

[PattyLafontaine]

Not every D man can be PMD with yuge offensive skills.

Given the current lack of footspeed on the Sharks D would love a physical defensive defenseman who can skate well.

As mentioned expecting 6th round players to make an impact is folly. Maybe 2-3 ever play a game in the NHL and 1 per year can carve out a decent career.

 

[hohosaregood]

Not every D man can be PMD with yuge offensive skills.

Given the current lack of footspeed on the Sharks D would love a physical defensive defenseman who can skate well.

As mentioned expecting 6th round players to make an impact is folly. Maybe 2-3 ever play a game in the NHL and 1 per year can carve out a decent career.

If I look at it in terms of asset value, a PMD prospect/player has more value than an equivalent defensive defender. Potentially gives DW more value to work with in the future.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

Saw his name in the trade but know almost nothing about him.

Why has he played just eight games this year?

 

[Munnyro]

Saw his name in the trade but know almost nothing about him.

Why has he played just eight games this year?

Injuries I believe.

 

[one2gamble]

Saw his name in the trade but know almost nothing about him.

Why has he played just eight games this year?

Caught the injury bug a few seasons ago and cant seem to stay healthy. Looked to have some kind of NHL future at one point and then kind of regressed.