D Rodwin Dionicio - Niagara IceDogs, OHL (2023, 129th, ANA)
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Fairly tall defenseman with good hands. He is very incosistent offensively though and I am not sold on his hockey iq, especially when it comes to the defensive side of the game. Might get drafted in the later rounds if he plays well in the OHL this year.
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I come from Switzerland and know Rodwin very well. I think he has a very good understanding of hockey. But he has to work on the speed. In the game he does things that are very surprising. This is something that cannot be learned. So I see it a little differently than described above.
What do you mean by "working on the speed" though? Making quicker decisions or skating speed? I am also not sure what you mean by "doing things that are very surprising". I admit I only saw him in limited capacity on the junior national teams but he seemed sometimes to make senselessly risky plays in his own zone and quite a few defensive mistakes in general. Again the sample size might be not that big but based on what I saw so far I am not sold on his hockey iq. On the other hand I didnt see any major deficencies regarding his skating if this is what you were refering to.
My English is not so good, sorry
Under this link is an analysis to Rodwin Dionicio:
OHL Prospects: 2021 CHL Import Draft Review
I referred to the agility (his lateral and backwards strides ).
The analysis in the review is good in my view.
At the "Hlinka Gretzky Cup 2021" he did not exhaust his potential.
But I do not know if you have seen these games.
Under this link is an analysis to Rodwin Dionicio:
OHL Prospects: 2021 CHL Import Draft Review
I referred to the agility (his lateral and backwards strides ).
The analysis in the review is good in my view.
At the "Hlinka Gretzky Cup 2021" he did not exhaust his potential.
But I do not know if you have seen these games.
Ok no problem, his lateral strides actually didnt stick out to me as as problematic as the report suggests but again I havent seen play that much and am mostly trying to reproduce what I can still remember about his game. We will have to wait and see how he does in the OHL I guess.
So from a stat watching perspective his OHL season wans't that bad overall. If you factor in his size it might even be enough to warrant a late round selection in the upcoming draft. But I really haven't seen him play at all this year so I can't really say if it will be enough. Any commet on this issue from a more knowledgeable user would therfore be appreciated...
Seen him a lot this year. He’s big, but painful awkward on his skates. He can get a top speed going eventually that is decent but he doesn’t have great balance or agility. Most of his points have come from the power play, directing pucks on net. He is an interesting project cause he does seem to have an offensive mind and knows where the play is going, but doesn’t always have the speed or the passing skills to really get it there. Needs a lot of work, but has a good frame to build on. Maybe a 5-7th round pick and see where it goes
Ok thanks for this assesment. The skating concerns are in line with what other posters said about him so that was to be expected. It seems like big defensemen are getting the benefit of the doubt more often than other players with red flags. So we will have to wait and see if someone is willing to take a chance on him.
Dread Clawz
LAWSonic Boom
FLYguy3911
Sanheim Lover
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Thought he should have gotten drafted last year. Showed well at the WJCs and now has 10 points in 6 games since the trade to Windsor. Really good skill level for a bigger skater. Former forward convert I believe.
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GermanSpitfire
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IQ is why he wasn’t selected last year. Can’t count how many times I’ve seen him rush a breakout and make a terrible pas - very suspect but he is a fun player to watch, has the upmost confidence, always wants the puck on his stick and in Windsor and has been their #1 defender since the trade. Can be a frustrating player at times though
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I agree. He was horrible in the summer WJC and from what I gather he wasn't always great in the CHL either. Having said that, the upside was always there and he played the summer tournament as a double underager. He was surprisingly good in the recent WJC though but I don't watch enough CHL to tell for sure if he's more mature and consistent now than he used to be or if he just played a decent tournament. Anyway, I'm also pretty sure that hockey IQ and inconsistency used to be his biggest problems.
FLYguy3911
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The NHL takes plenty of low IQ players so I'm not sure that's the reason. It's just certain types they prefer - the glass and out types. I think playing on the lowest scoring team in the league last year (and the first half of this year) hid his true offensive potential and for model friendly teams, if the old school scouting reports weren't glowing, his raw production likely wasn't going to move the needle. Idk, big kid with puck skills, playing on the worst team in the league as a first year Junior player with solid team adjusted production, I thought he should have been picked easily.
I think Rodwin's IQ "problems" are related to trying to leverage his puck skills on every single possession. He's going for controlled plays and sometimes that backfires. He's a player who thrives on manipulating opponents and he's in the experimentation phase of his career. He should be taking chances and seeing what works and doesn't. And I think evaluating the environment is important also. Aside from playing with Gushchin last year (and Fimis depending on the night) he played with very few players near his skill level. I think going from the lowest scoring team, to the highest scoring team in the OHL is going to do wonders for highlighting his strengths. He creates tons of advantages. Advantages that will get converted more often in Windsor.
GermanSpitfire
EU Video Scout for McKeen’s
He looks great in Windsor - decision making still isn’t great but he provides a swagger and confidence from the blueline that the team hasn’t seen this year, save for a 16 year old Cristoforo - and if you’re a good team, you don’t want a 16 year old carrying the workload. No matter how good that 16 year old is.
As Hinterland pointed out above also, he looked good at the WJC for the Swiss, so a lot of issues with him stem from being on the worst team in the CHL.
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I mean his game with the puck is sometimes a bit over the top as well but as you said at this point you probably don't watch that out of him. Also, he was playing vs many older players both at WJC's and in the CHL so mistakes are to be expected.
I do have much more of a problem with his game against the puck though. He got suspended for head shots and head butts already and he takes lots of dumb penalties in general. His positioning against the puck usually isn't great and neither is his consistency. Often times he looks lost or is just floating around. He played very well at the last WJC though so if that wasn't just a fluke maybe there's hope he'll be able to put it together eventually.
Good to hear. He has really some great offensive tools, especially his hands and offensive instincts but also a few glaring flaws in his game, especially defensively. Do you think he has a shot to be drafted as an overager?
GermanSpitfire
EU Video Scout for McKeen’s
I think he does, thought he deserved a late round selection last year. Still possible this year also. He has size and great offensive instincts.
Makes some really dumb decisions on the ice but he has been the only defender other than a 16 year old rookie, Anthony Cristoforo that has really been able to produce at a good rate and Windsor has the best offence in the CHL.
GermanSpitfire
EU Video Scout for McKeen’s
GermanSpitfire
EU Video Scout for McKeen’s
Lavar Ball
Neva Lost
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Last summer I didn't think I'd ever say this but he's most likely gonna get drafted. His scoring output with the Spitfires is just way too good for all teams to pass on him. He does remain a high risk pick though. The guy may be as talented as it gets. Big guy but still an elite skater with great hands, a great shot and can hit like a truck. He still does lack discipline and consistency though and I still question his hockey sense. I'm not sure if he's cömpletely crazy or just not as mature as other kids of his age group. He did prove that he can put it all together for a full tournament or stretches in the CHL though so maybe there's hope. High risk potentially high reward pick if you ask me.
I mean most mid to late round picks never make the NHL anyways. So if it was me I would rather pick a high upside player than just a guy who will never be more than a career AHLer that you can call up when half your team is hurt. So there is not that much risk involved if he doesn't play out for whichever team that would draft him.
I do see a lot of potential in him as well. He already has quite a few great tools that NHL teams are looking for, like size, grit and offensive skill/instincts. But there are some big questionmarks as well. The technical side of his skating still needs a lot of work as some posters in this thread have pointed out and his defensive decision making has often been suspect when I saw him play. That highlight reel goal a few posts ahead is a good example of this. This time it worked out but when he can't execute that dangle its a breakaway for the opposing player. I have oftentimes seen him causing brutal turnovers like this. He really seems to be a Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde type player that walks a fine line between genius and insanity sometimes. But if he can figure out how to take those risks more efficiently he could become a player to reckon with.
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These were my thoughts also back last year. In the later rounds, why not take a chance on a player with upside even though he has flaws (and those can be worked on)? Even if he becomes a career AHLer that gets a couple of NHL games here and there, that's better than what most 5th-7th rounders ever achieve.
