Came in at #23 on my WHL list ahead of the 2015 NHL Draft:
http://whl-from-above.blogspot.ca/2015/05/final-whl-rankings-2015-nhl-draft.html
#23 Matt Bradley
Team: Medicine Hat Tigers
Position: C/LW
Shoots: R
Height: 5’11.25
Weight: 187
GP: 71
Goals: 17
Assists: 23
Points: 40
Pts/Gm: 0.56
PIM: 24
Player Analysis: Matt Bradley is a cerebral and versatile forward for the Medicine Hat Tigers…gets around the ice with above average speed and quickness…doesn’t possess a massive amount of power in his legs but his skating mechanics are at a good place…should gain a healthy amount of speed, acceleration and agility with added muscle in his lower body…sees the ice extremely well…displays a mature understanding of offensive timing and pace…isn’t afraid to drive lanes with the puck but is also comfortable slowing down in order to open up lanes in the offensive zone…has versatility in his passing game…can pass on the backhand or the forehand…really fires the puck around but can also slow it down and take something off to make it easier to handle…consistently impressed me with smart little passes that aided the Tigers breakout game…makes good use of unique area passes when faced with clogged passing lanes…makes tough passes look easy regularly…isn’t afraid to take a hit in order to make a play offensively…possesses an above-average shot with a good release…has a good one-timer…his spatial awareness comes across in his shooting game, too, knowing how to find open ice to get shots away…displays good hands around the net and in traffic…goes to the net and displays decent hand-eye co-ordination in front…slight frame doesn’t help him much away from the puck…doesn’t win a massive amount of battles for loose pucks but that’s not due to a lack of effort…could learn to position his body a bit better to get more leverage during board battles because at the next level he will ultimately be an undersized player…isn’t a punishing physical player by any stretch…will need to get bigger and stronger and faster but does display good hockey sense regarding stick positioning defensively…his smarts also come across while he’s on the forecheck…rarely caught out of position defensively…didn’t see him used on the penalty kill but I suspect we’ll see him used there in the future due to his hockey sense and mobility….was a fixture on the powerplay, even centering the top unit during a rash of mid-season injuries…saw him used in the high slot on the PP in some viewings and he appeared comfortable in that area of the ice…was a regular in the Tigers top 9 forward group all year but his position and minutes varied frequently…saw time most often at centre but also saw time on the left-wing…scored more than a goal per game for his midget team in 2013-14 while averaging nearly two points per game…as a WHL rookie his point totals were very consistent from the first half of the season to the second with 21 in his first 37 games and 17 in his next 29 (0.57 PPG vs. 0.58 PPG)…won the Tigers Top Rookie Award this season…his game has some similarities to a player like Jakob Silfverberg style-wise…both are guys who aren’t overly big but they compete, have smarts, will have the ability to play in any situation and use their above-average vision to make plays…was a 2nd round selection by the Tigers in the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft…overall, I think at his peak Bradley projects as a top 9 NHL player who can play in any situation and could even translate to the wing full-time if necessary… I feel that he is smart enough to round out his game if his scoring doesn’t fully translate as a pro, making him a good potential fit as a bottom 6 guy…I think he will also be a guy that scores a lot over his junior career, not shocking me if he nearly doubles his production next year…I think he will come off the board sometime after the 5th round is over at the NHL Draft but based on my analysis he has done enough to be drafted well before that and rates more as a late 4th or early 5th round pick for me…
, do you see him as a Centre or a winger moving forward especially if he makes it to the pro level?
