Prospect Info: Rangers Prospect Poll: #10 TIE-BREAKER

[Beacon]

After 24 hours of voting Michael St. Croix and Boo Nieves are tied at 29 votes each. The winner of the tie-breaker will be ranked #10 and the loser will be ranked #11 because in the 3.5 years I've been doing this poll, every single tie-breaker loser wound up winning the next round. Nobody else was even close to them in round 10. Cam Talbot and Peter Ceresnak added to the next poll because they were the two with the most votes.

Michael St. Croix
Center
Born Apr 10 1993 -- Winnipeg, MAN
Height 5.11 -- Weight 180 -- Shoots R

2011-12 Edmonton Oil Kings WHL 72 45 60 105
2012-13 Edmonton Oil Kings WHL 44 21 28 49


Cristoval Nieves
Forward
Born Jan 23 1994 -- Baldwinsville, NY
Height 6.02 -- Weight 185

2011-12 Indiana Ice USHL 13 2 8 10 2
2012-13 U. of Michigan CCHA 22 3 11 14 8

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[HatTrick Swayze]

Gotta be Boo.

 

[Kokoschka]

Boo!

 

[Beacon]

Went with potential over probability to make the NHL. St. Croix has clearly more upside, and Nieves has clearly more odds to make the NHL. Both good prospects and we are lucky to have kids this good as we get this deep into our prospect pool.

 

[The Gloaming]

Once again, voting for Boo, who I also voted for over Thomas. Good skater and passer. Big, but lanky. His stats at Michigan this year as a rookie are very nice.

MSC-I just don't see him having much of an NHL career. He doesn't battle along the boards hard enough. He doesn't have the compete level. And his play dropped off considerably in the Memorial Cup last year, when guys like his teammate Henrik Samuelsson picked it up.

Oh, and Boo is an awesome nickname.

 

[Kreider Typical]

went w/ nieves again. def a tough call

 

[Gardner McKay]

MSC. I like Boo a lot but... for some reason I just think MSC can develop into a very solid NHL player.

 

[LittleKev6D9]

Went with St. Criox. Although both are no guarantees to make the NHL, I think right now St. Criox has a better shot than Boo. I do think Nieves has a higher ceiling, but it's not by much. Close though.

 

[Boruto]

voted St.Croix and made the poll 11-10 Might need a tie breaker #2

 

[nyr2k2]

Boo.

 

[Beacon]

voted St.Croix and made the poll 11-10 Might need a tie breaker #2

Yeah, it's 13-13. I made the tie-breaker so that it will close automatically after 24 hours and whoever wins, even by a single vote, has won the round. It better not be tied.

 

[CTRanger]

Nieves

 

[Roo Returns]

At this point MSC is more ahead in his development and the "better" prospect but he needs to show he can produce at the next level or he's not going to make it.

MSC has the better chance of being a homerun, but also as big a chance to be bust.

Really like Nieves a lot, no need to rush him, he can stay at Mich for all four years if needed.

 

[bernmeister]

What? I'm first to point out the Eugene Levy quote:
"You got me trippin, boo"

All kidding aside, it's close, but see more upside w/Nieves

 

[Hunter Gathers]

So, MSC is somehow leading a poll involving the highest scoring freshman on Michigan not named Trouba? Really?

 

[HatTrick Swayze]

So, MSC is somehow leading a poll involving the highest scoring freshman on Michigan not named Trouba? Really?

I also am a bit shocked. I just have zero faith the MSC will be able to transfer his skills to the pro level. Not to mention that his scoring has dropped off considerably this year.

 

[CTRanger]

Agreed, I am shocked by this result so far. MSC's flame-out potential is through the roof. I don't see him ever making the transition to a top 6 role in the show. And he has ZERO bottom 6 potential!

 

[NYR Viper]

Nieves

 

[Beacon]

Agreed, I am shocked by this result so far. MSC's flame-out potential is through the roof. I don't see him ever making the transition to a top 6 role in the show. And he has ZERO bottom 6 potential!

I disagree that he has zero bottom-6 potential. Claude Lapointe was a similar type of player in the QMJHL, seen as a small perimeter guy. He went on to play 900 NHL games as a bottom-6, defense-first player by working really hard on this part of his game. He used his offensive skills to use on defense (on-ice awareness, passing, hockey IQ).

 

[FoxysExpensiveNYDigs]

MSC due to higher ceiling. May never reach that potential but its there.

 

[kovazub94]

Really tough call. MSC made it tougher by not having as good of a season as a year ago. Still believe in his upside and his Edmonton team is still successful this season while Michigan has been struggling.

 

[Hunter Gathers]

I disagree that he has zero bottom-6 potential. Claude Lapointe was a similar type of player in the QMJHL, seen as a small perimeter guy. He went on to play 900 NHL games as a bottom-6, defense-first player by working really hard on this part of his game. He used his offensive skills to use on defense (on-ice awareness, passing, hockey IQ).

So you can find one player who is similar.

And Lapointe was MUCH better defensively than you are giving him credit for. He was really good at taking the puck away from people, really good at making heady stick checks, etc. I've never, ever seen MSC do any of the things that Lapointe used to do. Lapointe was a lot of fun to watch play because of how damn good defensively he was.

 

[Beacon]

Lapointe was MUCH better defensively than you are giving him credit for. He was really good at taking the puck away from people, really good at making heady stick checks, etc. I've never, ever seen MSC do any of the things that Lapointe used to do. Lapointe was a lot of fun to watch play because of how damn good defensively he was.

Lapointe was excellent defensively in the NHL, but the reason he slipped to round 12 in his draft was his poor defensive play. Defense can be learned, offense cannot.

 

[Hunter Gathers]

Lapointe was excellent defensively in the NHL, but the reason he slipped to round 12 in his draft was his poor defensive play. Defense can be learned, offense cannot.

I disagree. Defense usually cannot be learned, which is why 99/100 of the small offensive guys who can't learn to play defense flame out. There's a reason you can only think of 1 or 2 examples, man.

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

What I don't get is the folks who are saying that MSC has higher potential. I think he does have high potential if he pans out - but saying it's higher than Nieves's is selling Boo short.

Remember, the report on Nieves when they drafted him was somewhat Kreider-esque: great raw physical tools (in particular the speed and the lanky size). The question was whether or not he would be able to develop as a player. Seems to me the stats at Michigan indicate that he has (already as a freshman!). There is serious upside here - as much as there is with MSC.