Prospect Info: 2022 Ducks Prospect Rankings #6

[MMC]

It's time for our annual Ducks prospect rankings. Each poll will run for 48 hours except in the case of a clear landslide. I will go to the top 25 and include a final poll where you can pick 5 honorable mentions. Please tell me who you want me to add in the replies. In the sixth poll, I am voting for Urho Vaakanainen.

As always the list will define prospects as hockeysfuture does: NHL Prospect Criteria - Hockey's Future.

2022 Ducks Prospect Rankings

1. C - Mason McTavish (+2)
2. D - Pavel Mintyukov (2022 draftee)
3. D - Olen Zellweger (+3)
4. G - Lukas Dostal (no change)
5. RW - Jacob Perreault (no change)

Our graduates and departures are:

Trevor Zegras
Jamie Drysdale
Alexander Volkov
Josh Mahura
Brendan Guhle
Jack Badini
Roman Durny​

Click to read more...

 

[MMC]

Perreault has finished 5th in all 3 polls since he was drafted. Last year behind Zegras, Drysdale, McTavish, and Dostal, and in 2020 behind Zegras, Drysdale, Dostal, and Comtois

 

[bsu]

Urho

 

[MMC]

Also holy hell is our system deep. On the board now is everyone we've drafted in the first 3 rounds, or acquired from another team that picked them in the first 3 rounds (Vaak, Helleson, Clang, Andersson), plus Benoit and Thrun, and we have 5 off the board already

 

[Kalv]

Perreault has finished 5th in all 3 polls since he was drafted. Last year behind Zegras, Drysdale, McTavish, and Dostal, and in 2020 behind Zegras, Drysdale, Dostal, and Comtois

Steel vibes with those 6 goals every year.

 

[KelVarnsen]

Steel vibes with those 6 goals every year.

Hopefully he’s not just worth 6 goals a year……

 

[Gliff]

I have Thrun ahead of Vaak. I know people were very happy with Vaak but I would have had Thrun higher then him when we made the Lindholm trade and I can't let just 14 games change my mind. Thrun is 2 years younger then Vaak also.

 

[GunnarStahl]

Going with Gaucher right now, may switch vote to Helleson or even Warren though, kinda a tough one imo.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

If people liked Perreault that much, then Tracey should also be in the conversation as he was able to keep up with Perreault in production, but on lower lines.

 

[McDonald19]

Voted Vaak, even though he doesn’t seem like a prospect at this point.

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

Went with Gaucher, excited about him

 

[Deuce22]

Went with Gaucher, excited about him

Think some are underrating his offense.

 

[Kalv]

If people liked Perreault that much, then Tracey should also be in the conversation as he was able to keep up with Perreault in production, but on lower lines.

Tracey similar as Steel is not really standing out in any way. I think it's harder for those kind of players in the NHL.
JP can rip it and is developping an in-your-face style

 

[GreatBear]

It is tough to select a specific player now. It is almost like putting all the names in a sack and pull one out.
Excluding Vaakanainen and Benoit who are already on the team, I suspect that six - eight of these players will turn into productive NHL players of one sort or another, be it even fourth line forwards, third pairing defensemen or a back up goaltender.

I can see voting for Vaakanainin since he is currently a top six defenseman, but I don't really seeing him going any higher than where he currently plays. If I look for a potential breakout star, which is where I want to be at this time with this list of names, recognizing the relatively high risk of being a bust, I cast my vote for Pastujov. He is either going to be a top six forward or flame out. I think that Gaucher and Tracey have solid third line potential, but I don't see the same top end as if Pastujov plays to his ultimate potential.

The pool of prospective defensemen is deeper than our pool of forwards in my opinion, and at this point with Minty and Zell already off the board, I think it is harder for a defense prospect to rise to the top. If I were to choose one defenseman who I think that management will favor it is Warren due to his unique size in our pool, although I think that Thrun, Luneau, Lacombe, Helleson, and Andersson all have a chance at making a contribution at the NHL level. In terms of standing out as the potential top end of these six names, I favor Lacombe as having that same star/bust potential as Pastujov. He is either going to be very very good, or be wandering in the AHL wilderness until he is traded or released.

 

[Goose of Reason]

I'm going Gaucher because I think he'll be a solid middle 6er for us and I'm not yet sold on Vaaks personally

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Tracey similar as Steel is not really standing out in any way. I think it's harder for those kind of players in the NHL.
JP can rip it and is developping an in-your-face style

Steel's game didn't translate to the NHL, apparently. He still couldn't figure it out.

What I like about Tracey is he's willingness to overcome adversity. Everyone wrote him off two years ago. Granted, it's only the AHL.

AHL Productions

2020-21: 12 games, 0g + 0a = 0 pts (0.00 ppg)​

2021-22: 55 games, 11g + 20 a = 31 pts (0.56 ppg)​

Perreault scored 37 pts in 55 AHL games last year. I've always stated that Perreault has Lucas Raymond-like tool kit and skating, but we're still waiting for it to be unleashed. That's fine to take the time to develop. To see Tracey near Perrault's production while playing lower in the lineup is impressive. Knowing that Tracey's been the leading scorer on a defensive teams without offensive talent means he's finding ways to score despite not possessing anything elite.

I'm expecting another jump in development from Tracey, who looked like he's put on more weight at the Dev camp this off-season.

 

[pbgoalie]

Vaak.
Sticking with my pick last round

 

[Gliff]

Tracey similar as Steel is not really standing out in any way. I think it's harder for those kind of players in the NHL.
JP can rip it and is developping an in-your-face style

I think that's selling both of those guys a little short. Steel looked amazing in the AHL and definitely stood out.
Tracey was really under the radar last year but his production was really impressive, especially at about halfway through the season before both he and Perreault's production took a dip.

 

[Gliff]

This is actually really hard. I'm looking ahead and I have Helleson coming in at 17. The Ducks are just so deep it is crazy.

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

Tracey for me, think he had a good rebound season, hoping to see him get a little more nhl taste this year.

 

[TheStuntman]

So tough, the next 5-10 can be interchangable. I'm picking Vaak.

 

[Paul4587]

That was a snipe.

Edit wrong thread.

 

[Kalv]

Urho, as the "safe pick"

 

[EXTRAS]

Benoit can be a manson type I think which is important

 

[Kalv]

Benoit can be a manson type I think which is important

I haven't seen Benoit nearly as quick as Manson which limits him a lot, IMO