Prospect Info: 2020 NHL Draft Thread Vol. 1

[ValeriKamensky]

You have 4 OA and 5 OA. Lafr, Byfield and Stutzle are top-3.
Your choices are....?

 

[TB87]

Wyatt Kaiser sounds like quite an intriguing player:


Wyatt Kaiser, Defenseman (Senior | 7/31/02 | 6’0, 173 | Shoots Left | 2020 Draft)
The most coveted draft prospect among all defenders in the state of Minnesota this season, Kaiser lived up to the preseason hype by delivering a fantastic senior campaign for the top-ranked Andover Huskies. His season began with an impressive showing for Team USA at the under-18 Ivan Hlinka tournament and his solid play in the Czech Republic carried over against high school competition. Although his Huskies were upset in the first round of the state tournament, Kaiser carried himself like a veteran leader and strengthened his case of a top defense prospect for the upcoming NHL draft. He also was a finalist for the Mr. Hockey award and is committed to Minnesota-Duluth.

The first thing you notice about Kaiser is his skating ability, and not just moving north to south. He is fluid and graceful in all directions and crosses over in a textbook fashion. One can make the argument that his backskating or lateral movements are quicker than most defenders moving forward. Kaiser covers a ton of ground and can recover to a desired spot in just a few seconds. His control of the puck is done with an obvious attention to detail and passes or shots are delivered with confidence and effectiveness. Kaiser can blister the puck with accuracy and he also generates power behind over-extended attempts or those off his back foot.

Kaiser is active in all three zones. On offense he will activate without hesitations and drop down below the circles to keep plays alive. He also alternate sides in conjunction with the flow and movement of the cycle, and he seemed to execute timing and precision plays down low with perfection. The neutral and grey zones are patrolled with hawk-like vision and anticipation, and Kaiser will step up to intercept a pass for an immediate counterattack. It is also where Kaiser’s elite hockey sense comes into play as he can determine actions that would lead to smart or poor decisions. Therefore, his skating allows him to double back or retreat to a more tenable position as he attempts to check an opposing rush. He can play physical and is very strong on his skates to absorb hits after moving the puck to safety. The hype is definitely real.


***Per Steve Kournianos (The Draft Analyst) ***

 

[Curufinwe]

Why so many Wyatt(e)s?

 

[wankstifier]

Why so many Wyatt(e)s?

Travis, Wyatt, Bryce, Tanner, Hunter, etc

 

[TB87]

Holy skating Batman! Just turned on a Wyatt Kaiser USHL game from this past season. He’s a PHENOMENAL skater. Seriously. It’s breathtaking to watch.

 

[FLYguy3911]

Ted always taking my guys. SMH.

 

[TB87]

Ted always taking my guys. SMH.

We have good taste. It’s a blessing & a curse

 

[Ja Sports]

New hype reel for Seth Jarvis very underrated player (with one of the best names in the draft)

Let me know if there's a player you want covered next!

 

[FLYguy3911]

We have good taste. It’s a blessing & a curse

I’m going to start mixing in guys I don't like just to see.

 

[TB87]

Became a patron of Mitch Brown’s to see his CHL micro-stat tracking and here were some interesting finds:

- Lafreniere & Byfield have unsurprisingly excellent results
- Daemon Hunt looks like a beast (8 games tracked)
- Ronan Seeley’s pre-shot movement, rush defense, & exit data is very good (9 games tracked)
- Ridly Greig’s results are middling-to-trash in practically all categories (13 games tracked)
- Ozzy Wiesblatt’s results are high-end (13 games tracked)
- Mavrik Bourque and Dawson Mercer’s results are both great (11 & 13 games tracked respectively)
- Connor Zary’s transition results are trash poop (10 games tracked)
- Seth Jarvis’s results are outstanding (9 games tracked)



**I’d share pics but I doubt Mitch would like it if I shared this stuff publicly**

 

[wankstifier]

Became a patron of Mitch Brown’s to see his CHL micro-stat tracking and here were some interesting finds:

- Lafreniere & Byfield have unsurprisingly excellent results
- Daemon Hunt looks like a beast (8 games tracked)
- Ronan Seeley’s pre-shot movement, rush defense, & exit data is very good (9 games tracked)
- Ridly Greig’s results are middling-to-trash in practically all categories (13 games tracked)
- Ozzy Wiesblatt’s results are high-end (13 games tracked)
- Mavrik Bourque and Dawson Mercer’s results are both great (11 & 13 games tracked respectively)
- Connor Zary’s transition results are trash poop (10 games tracked)
- Seth Jarvis’s results are outstanding (9 games tracked)



**I’d share pics but I doubt Mitch would like it if I shared this stuff publicly**

Daemon Hunt is an incredible name

 

[TB87]

Daemon Hunt is an incredible name

Top notch A Song of Ice & Fire (AKA: Games of Thrones books) first name for sure

 

[FLYguy3911]

Daemon Hunt looks like a beast (8 games tracked)

That's interesting. He did nothing for me when I saw him this year or last year. Looked like JAG.

Ridly Greig’s results are middling-to-trash in practically all categories (13 games tracked)

Also a bit surprising.

IIRC Mitch hated York last year fwiw.

 

[wankstifier]

Looked like JAG.

What does this mean, again?

 

[TB87]

That's interesting. He did nothing for me when I saw him this year or last year. Looked like JAG.


Also a bit surprising.

IIRC Mitch hated York last year fwiw.

It’s interesting seeing his Micro-stat perspective on certain players...especially if they’re different to what I remember seeing in my viewings.

You should see Antonio Stranges micro-stat results. They’re nearly on par with Lafreniere & Byfield. In my admittedly limited viewings of him, Stranges came across to me as hockey illiterate.


I may end up using a similar set of data when measuring a players defense moving forward. This season: Mitch observed and measured breakups, pressured shots, & DZ puck retrievals.

 

[FLYguy3911]

You should see Antonio Stranges micro-stat results. They’re nearly on par with Lafreniere & Byfield. In my admittedly limited viewings of him, Stranges came across to me as hockey illiterate.

Yeah I don’t think I’d touch him. He plays like a kid whose parents spent a lot of money on skating and skill camps when he was younger. Reminds me of Bracco. A bunch a duck walking around the ice and not much substance.

What does this mean, again?

Just A Guy.

 

[Stizzle]

Became a patron of Mitch Brown’s to see his CHL micro-stat tracking and here were some interesting finds:

- Lafreniere & Byfield have unsurprisingly excellent results
- Daemon Hunt looks like a beast (8 games tracked)
- Ronan Seeley’s pre-shot movement, rush defense, & exit data is very good (9 games tracked)
- Ridly Greig’s results are middling-to-trash in practically all categories (13 games tracked)
- Ozzy Wiesblatt’s results are high-end (13 games tracked)
- Mavrik Bourque and Dawson Mercer’s results are both great (11 & 13 games tracked respectively)
- Connor Zary’s transition results are trash poop (10 games tracked)
- Seth Jarvis’s results are outstanding (9 games tracked)



**I’d share pics but I doubt Mitch would like it if I shared this stuff publicly**

Good stuff.

What's this fellas Twitter?

 

[TB87]

Good stuff.

What's this fellas Twitter?

@MitchLBrown

 

[TB87]

Ronan Seeley’s passing ability shines through via his percentiles in:

Expected Primary Assists/60
Shot Assists/60
Transition Shot Assists/60



***307 defenseman tracked in Mitch’s data set***


***Seeley’s in the upper 90’s percentiles for Shot Assists/60 & Transition Shot Assists/60 and he’s in the upper 80’s percentile for Estimated Primary Assists/60***

 

[Appleyard]

 

[Appleyard]

 

[TB87]

***2002 Born 1st year NHL draft eligible FWDS ranked via Estimated Non-PP Points/60***


***These Top 20 forwards were the top 20 rated 2002 born CHL forwards by NHL CSS final rankings. Used that as a reference point.***

The more familiar with this draft class that I become, the more I think that my dude Jack Finley will get picked higher than many of the internet prospect enthusiasts think. He good and I think he's only scratched the surface of what he'll eventually become. Not many mammoth Centers in the CHL can skate, pass, defend, & think the game like he can.

 

[FLYguy3911]

If Jack Finley's dad has any say, he's going in the first round. Size = King.



Good series btw if you wanna learn how the minor hockey system works these days. His Bantam team had 6 of the top 13 picks in the WHL Draft.

 

[Chinatown88]

I swear if anyone takes Finley in our mock I'm going to be upset. He's my young player that's the big draft crush this year. I profess to watching zero seconds of him play this is just a stupid hunch I have on him being good.

 

[Stizzle]

***2002 Born 1st year NHL draft eligible FWDS ranked via Estimated Non-PP Points/60***


***These Top 20 forwards were the top 20 rated 2002 born CHL forwards by NHL CSS final rankings. Used that as a reference point.***
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The more familiar with this draft class that I become, the more I think that my dude Jack Finley will get picked higher than many of the internet prospect enthusiasts think. He good and I think he's only scratched the surface of what he'll eventually become. Not many mammoth Centers in the CHL can skate, pass, defend, & think the game like he can.

I'm really intrigued by Chromiak. Highest PPG on Kingston, with only Wunderkind Wright close.

August birthday. Excellent size and frame, yet not fully mature. Two years of good Hlinka stats, and a decent U-18 as an underage for Slovakia.

What's the knock on this guy? His profile looks rock solid.