A contributor to The Hockey Writers for SJS defines Tiers for prospects, then places Brandon Coe in 3 with a brief summary after summer camp and their prospects’ scrimmage.
Tier 1 – Elite talent (Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid-level talent)
Tier 2 – Very, very good prospects with a real chance of being top-six forwards, top-two defenders, or good starting goalies
Tier 3 – Good players who fall just short of tier 2, perhaps due to lower ceilings, but who are distinctly better than tiers below them
Tier 4 – Distinct shot at making an NHL roster and being a contributor (top-nine forward, bottom-four defender, fringe starter, or backup goaltenders
Tier 5 – Players who likely don’t project to be anything more than a role player in the NHL as their ceiling – these players chances of making the NHL aren’t very high compared to their comrades (sometimes due to being relatively unknown at this point)
Tier 6 – Players who have an uphill battle to make the NHL, or there isn’t enough information to make an informed decision
Tier 3: Chekhovich, Wiesblatt, Gushchin, Chmelevski, Coe, Pasichnuk, and Chrona
Brandon Coe was impacted by the OHL shut down, but since he didn’t really have any other options, he came to San Jose to play in the AHL for the Barracuda. This was a huge jump in skill for him, as he won’t turn 20 until Dec. 1, 2021. Coe struggled in the AHL, which isn’t terribly surprising for the youngster. He failed to generate an average of even one shot on goal per game (.67) for the Barracuda. He similarly struggled with a poor NxG (.23) and Corsi of 42 percent. I wouldn’t expect such a young player to drive play in the AHL, and frankly, it could have been much worse for him. Toward the end of the AHL season, Coe increased his time on ice, capping out at 17:31 in his final game on May 23, 2021. He also had a handful of games with a positive NxG and Corsi.
Coe should be back in the AHL for 2021-22, though he could also return to the OHL, which wouldn’t be a bad outcome for him either. He will look to build on the limited success he had and be a more consistent producer. He’ll use the offseason to work on skating and strength while integrating what he learned this season to build strong habits. He has a lot of work to do in order to overcome the low 33 percent of becoming an NHLer.