No Worries, Montreal always keeps it going. I check in about once a week. Harris is starting to look interesting. Tuch? A nice dice roll. Norlinder I have no f***ing idea. Could be a star or a dud. What is your take on Norlinder at this point Montreal? Can he play real pro hockey?
Harris has always been interesting, you just don't see many just turned 18 year olds playing on the top pair at a top 20 program for a non top 20 or even top 50 draft pick. But to do that and play such a solid defensive game while being undersized was very impressive. I watch a ton of college hockey over the last 20 years and that really impressed me although I had wondered if I overrated it due to just how good his goalie was. As impressed as I was with Harris, Primeau's 18 and 19 age seasons were among the best I ever saw.
But last year we saw a nice improvement/progression in Harris's offensive game, to the point where he was among the top U-20 D's in the NCAA. This year he's taken another leap forward offensively to the point where he's one of the top blueliners in the NCAA. (I'd say best in the Hockey East for sure but David Farrance, when he plays is better)
It's going to be very interesting to see what Harris turns into, no doubt in my mind he plays in the NHL at some point. Needs to add mass and get stronger but those high IQ players are tough to bet against. His elite skating/mobility and poise really help as well.
Tuch has been a nice surprise, another year at BU in what hopefully ends up being a normal year so he can get the full experience/amount of games. Plays for Team USA at the WJC's, then we'll see how it goes as he has NHL size, strength, his skating/speed are fine. He's physical and seems to enjoy getting his nose dirty as he goes to the net hard and isn't easy to move despite being 18 in a league where the average age is 21.5
Not sure how much offensive upside he has as it's so early in his development, best to just see how next year goes and go from there but at this point at worst you should have a 4th liner down the road. As if you think McCarron but without the skating issues, he's not as nasty but plays much smarter then big Mike did at that age.
Norlinder will easily be an NHLer, I would be shocked if he's not, just has too many tools. That said I expected a much better season from him and if he doesn't make it my guess would be due to injuries as he had 2 last year that cost him a chunk and 3 minor ones this year which cost him his spot in the top 3 so since he's been back he's been more a 5th or 6th.
His team seems to be in a bit of a slump, losing their last 4 games by a score of 12-4 and the last 2 games by a 6-0 combined score.
If you look at U-21 defensemen in the SHL, despite missing a chunk of games, he's tied for 6th oa in goals, 2 more and he would be 3rd. His pts put him 10th OA and his ppg 9th OA but 2 more and he would be 3rd. So while he's not had the season I had hoped, I still think he's shown enough that he will turn into an NHLer. I assume he's back in the SHL for one more year and then in the NHL but we'll see how next year goes. I thought Brook would take a big leap forward this year and it's still very early but so far I don't see it so maybe we won't see it with Norlinder.
Another one to look out for is Struble, like Norlinder you get a little concerned over these injuries but he's got the physical tools to be an NHLer, strength, speed, skating, and he's got that compact Subban frame. He's physical and has some solid offensive skills. Another year in the NCAA where he can be a top pairing D to see how he handles it would be best imo and then we'll see how that goes. He's much more raw that Harris, who just gets it, but he's got more offensive skill and strength so there could be something special there or he could be just a decent bottom pairing D or nothing as he's still a wild card to me.
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