C/LW Zemgus Girgensons (2012, 14th overall, Buffalo)

[studley49]

http://www.eliteprospects.com/player.php?player=59843

23GP-11G-17A-28P while playing in the EJHL as a now-16 year old rookie import. He seemingly has good size at 6'0" and 172 lbs. and is currently playing for Latvia (who has a very young team) at the WJC-U18.

Has anyone seen him play?

Click to read more...

 

[VINMONTY]

Yes seen him play for Green Mountain in the EJHL. He has very good speed and acceleration. He did not play like a 94 as he was physical and not afraid to battle with kids up to 5 years older than him. He is also dangerous around the net.

I agree with USHR assessment: "Girgensons has all the earmarks of a first round NHL draft pick"

USHR also said: "Girgensons is accelerating his studies, which means he will now enter the University of Vermont in the fall of '11, and be eligible for the NHL draft in the summer of '12, after his freshman year."

 

[studley49]

Thanks for the info - could you provide a link for the USHR stuff?

His stats caught my eye since there are a few EJHL players with similar numbers that are ranked by CSB for this year's draft: namely Mike Zalewski (6'2", 194lbs., 27-10-20-30), Thane Heller (6'1", 200lbs., 27-6-12-18). Charlie Coyle and Christopher Wagner have much better numbers, but the fact that they're two years older than Girgensons made him stick out.

 

[VINMONTY]

USHR Linkhttp://ushr.com/news/20100301

You need a membership to view the site. It is a very good site and worth the money if you want to follow the Prep and East Coast players.

I actually saw Girgensons when he played at the Empire level (which is like the minor league for the EJHL) and he was dominate and I knew they could not keep him down there for long.

Girgensons got 1st line duty in the playoffs and 1st PP unit. As a '94, he was better than Mike Zalewski and Thane Heller - in my opinion.

 

[Kirk- NEHJ]

I saw Girgensons play in the 1st round of the EJHL playoffs against South Shore (Charlie Coyle, Chris Wagner) in early March and his team was way overmatched, but he clearly stood out with his speed and ability to create scoring chances.

I was shocked that he was a '94 with how much better he looked than so many older players on the ice with him at the same time.

Lot of potential there.

 

[danishh]

anyone think he'll go in the CHL import draft this year? Would love to see what he can do against the best of his own age group.

 

[cagney]

anyone think he'll go in the CHL import draft this year? Would love to see what he can do against the best of his own age group.

He's too young. It'll be '93s and older this year.

 

[danishh]

He's too young. It'll be '93s and older this year.

oops. That's a shame. At least we should get to see him at the WJC-U20.

 

[Jonas1235]

A potential Latvian star forward?

whaaaaaa???

strange.

 

[CAPiTA]

Yet another member of the All Name Team.

 

[wej20]

Yet another member of the All Name Team.

yep it's a beauty.

 

[Kirk- NEHJ]

oops. That's a shame. At least we should get to see him at the WJC-U20.

Unless he changes his mind and opts for junior, I'm pretty sure that he's already committed to the University of Vermont for the 2012-13 season.

A lot can change between now and then, but if he sticks to the NCAA plan, it'll explain why you might not see him in the CHL.

 

[v-man]

Unless he changes his mind and opts for junior, I'm pretty sure that he's already committed to the University of Vermont for the 2012-13 season.

A lot can change between now and then, but if he sticks to the NCAA plan, it'll explain why you might not see him in the CHL.

Yup, he's committed to Vermont, but will be playing in the USHL with the new Dubuque Fighting Saints until then: http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=282510. I had never heard of the guy, but it's good to see a promising Latvian center for the first time in nearly a decade.

 

[UkraineTrain]

16GP, 10G+8A in USHL being 16 years old.

What's his chance at 2012 draft?

 

[MrWilson*]

I dunno, but this kid can play.

 

[Gwyddbwyll]

Currently dominating the WC U-20s Div 1 in Belarus even though some of the players are 3 years older. Pretty impressive - the big game will be against the host nation Belarus for promotion on Sunday.

 

[JSmith81x]

http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/36139-Prospect-Watch-Zemgus-Girgensons.html

"He’s dominant down the middle," Montgomery said. "He’s a complete player who works as hard defensively as he does offensively."

...

"At the beginning of the year, we had all our players write down their two best attributes," Montgomery recalled. "Zemgus wrote 'puck protection' and 'I will never give up.' And I couldn’t agree more. I describe him as a relentless player. His intensity, his never-say-die attitude; you would think he comes from Moose Jaw."

 

[wej20]

http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/36139-Prospect-Watch-Zemgus-Girgensons.html

"He’s dominant down the middle," Montgomery said. "He’s a complete player who works as hard defensively as he does offensively."

...

"At the beginning of the year, we had all our players write down their two best attributes," Montgomery recalled. "Zemgus wrote 'puck protection' and 'I will never give up.' And I couldn’t agree more. I describe him as a relentless player. His intensity, his never-say-die attitude; you would think he comes from Moose Jaw."

Are people from Moose Jaw particularly intense? or known for having never-say-die? or is this just lazy stereotyping by Montgomery?

 

[Detroitredwingsfan]

what style does he play? is he a skilled dynamic Russian kind of player or a hard nosed skilled north American?

... what a name

 

[Sakaarnis]

what style does he play? is he a skilled dynamic Russian kind of player or a hard nosed skilled north American?

... what a name

Only saw him once, in the game against Belarus, but i would lean to 2nd type. Very strong on feet, protects puck well, good positioning, gritty and loves to play phisical. It also helps that he has a pretty good built for a kid his age. Not a speed demon, but skating is smooth and confident. Hands are not made out of stone, though i didnt see anything flashy. He had an assist in that game, when he started PP combination skating backwards behind the net and passed puck to his teammate. Stats shows that he knows how to score and gets alot of points on PP, that indicates that this kid also knows how to use head. In that game i also noticed how Zemgus, beeing the youngest, still showed his teammates on the play, where to skate and position.

Overall, impressive skill set and definately worth keeping eye on.

 

[J17 Vs Proclamation]

Would he stylistically compare to Nino or even a less talented version of Landeskog?

It would certainly be awesome to see a Latvian drafted in the 1st.

 

[yanokovich]

Finally Latvia produce,a top end talent

 

[Gwyddbwyll]

Latvia won promotion and have a solid team as always - its not just Girgensons.

So next year in the top tier will be a big year for him - he'll probably play both U18s and U20s.

 

[NEhockey]

Looks like kid finished strong in WJC Div.1. Just being 16 year old kid was third leading scorer 4g 3a 7p. And made pretty huge hit in last game http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hV-tESjJGFE

 

[Kirk- NEHJ]

Spoke to Arturs Irbe about him tonight at the Capitals-Devils game.

Archie grew up/played hockey with his dad. Spoke very highly of Zemgus's character and skill (he watched him play some hockey over the summer) and was very proud of Girgensons and the rest of the Latvian team taking the Div. 1.

I was pretty impressed with what I saw with Girgensons in the EJHL-- when the rest of his team pretty much mailed it in, he was still out there hitting everything he could, fighting for loose pucks and trying to make something happen.