Jani Nyman is a raw, untapped, hybrid power forward who compensates for awkward and unrefined skating mechanics with his deceptive puck skills, advanced pass reception ability, and exceptional shot quality. He was one of the only players we scouted this season who played full time in Mestis, where his performances varied from dominant to invisible. This represents his roller coaster-like curve as a result of his up and down play. Although enigmatic, he is one of the most fascinating players we evaluated in this draft class, as a result of having the handling ability seen in much smaller players than himself, as well as being the youngest, out of the top end power forwards featured in this class.
Let’s address his massive frame and the difficulties that emerged for Jani as a result of weighing close to 220 pounds. We wouldn’t label him as a bad skater, in fact once he gets going, he can carry himself down a skating lane at a decent speed. It’s not a separating speed but it projects to be passable. The primary difficulty for Nyman was his first couple of steps. A bigger frame requires that much more power than the average prospect to get moving. Although he has some natural power, it seemed to drain his tank quicker. Games that required a lot of up and down transitional play made him effectively useless by the end of some shifts. We think that probably played a factor into why he was so inconsistent.
