Bob's Final Top 100 Draft rankings
We're picking 95th overall so here are some guys from Bob's list in that range
89. Ben Roger - 6'4" righthanded dman for London in the OHL. Big and mobile dmen are a Lightning scout's delight. He didn't play a game this year, and only played 35 last year. Does that make him a sleeper pick or is there not enough to pick him that high? I also wonder what the lack of games at age 16-17 and 17-18 do to his development.
90. Ryan Ufko - 5'10" righty offensive dman. He had 10 goals and 39 points in 53 USHL games this past season. He was on the top pair for Team White at the BioSteel All American game back in April. He scored their only goal against the US U-18 team. He'll play for the defending NCAA champs at UMass in 2021-22. He also has an invite to USA Hockey's national junior team summer evaluation camp.
92. Matvei Petrov - 6'2" winger playing in the MHL. 42 points in 58 games. He's also played for Russia's U-17 and U-18 teams. He was the 1st overall pick in the 2020 CHL import draft for North Bay (OHL). Obviously he didn't come over this past year, but it is confirmed that he will play in the OHL this season.
96. Jack Matier - Like Roger, another big right handed mobile 6'4" dman from the OHL who didn't have a season in 2021. The difference between him and Roger though is Matier played 56 games last season and then joined Team Canada for the U-18's back in May that won gold. He was on the 3rd pair and didn't play as well as some of the other dmen for Canada while guys like Del Mastro and Zellwegger improved their draft stock.
97. Haakon Hanelt - 6'0" forward for Berlin in the DEL. I believe he's ranked as the top German prospect in the draft. Berlin won the league championship this season. Always kinda hard to judge teenagers who play low minutes in professional leagues. That'll change this season though as Gatineau took him 25th overall in the CHL import draft, and he'll cross the pond to play in the QMJHL.
Ryan Mast is another 6'4" righty dman from the OHL on Bob's list who's in reach.Gimme all of the big mobile righty D's
What would be our biggest needs in the system? Big wingers? RHD?
I have Perbix and Thomas pretty high on my "on-deck" list for the 5-7 slots. Perbix 2-3 years away though. Powell's way further out. There's more D depth needed for sure but I agree that we fall short on D prospects overall with this staff.
"I have a lot of role models. I try to learn from Victor Hedman, Miro Heiskanen and Cale Makar. I try to take things from a lot of players who are really good at what they do. That's my thinking."
What do you take from Hedman?
"He's a big guy, like me, and he uses his stick really good and makes smart decisions while always being aggressive and strong. So, just taking his game style of how he plays and skates. Everything that he does on the ice, I can do also."
"My favorite guy to watch is Victor Hedman for myself. I just think we have similar attributes with our size and skating. So I think just how good he is defensively in closing gaps and killing plays is something I really watch and try to put in my game. And obviously he's really good offensively and on the power play."
Who is your NHL role model?
"Brayden Point. I love watching him play. He's a really good skater and really smart, really smart without the puck, so a great guy to learn from."
I'm sure you appreciate that he gets it done at 5-foot-10, which is also your height. Among the top 20 ranked North American skaters this year, you are the only guy who's listed under 6-foot. Why has size not been an issue for you?
"Point is a little undersized but being competitive and outworking opponents will overcome that. And, also, being smart. You got to be in the right spots. If you're competitive and smart, I think it’s something you can overcome."
"It was special (celebrating the 2021 cup victory at Amalie Arena). I mean just to get that opportunity to be there and witness and be a part of a first class organization that treats us so well, I just can't say enough about what leadership is and you see how this organization runs it's business and how they treat people."
"I just knew it was a fit (coming here). It's like-minds. We all think the same way. When it comes to profiling a player and developing players, it all goes hand in hand. This organization in my mind is the poster child for the way things should be done and it's proven. You can't say enough about how well they do things, how detailed we are in our approach. When it comes to finding players and finding people, there's a lot of detail work put into it."
"The one thing that we've all learned is how much we appreciate cold rinks. Not being able to do it changes things a little bit, but one of the things our organization does so well is we watch players for more than just their draft year. So we have paid attention to the young guys coming through the line and obviously we're in a position now to get ready for the draft and we're ready. Know this, the leadership above us will give us the guidance and the direction to pick the right players. "
"I would suggest video scouting is not my friend. I wouldn't be too enamored doing this on a full time basis. So glad that hopefully that's behind us and we can move forward. There's more to a hockey player than watching them on video. You gotta do your homework and do all the things necessary to find the right information to make great decisions."