Ethan Samson is an odd prospect. I don’t understand the pick or the potential in him, but I do at the same time.
I got to watch 5 of his games and I’ve come to the following conclusion:
SKATING:
Absolutely horrendous. There’s no other way to describe it. Shorter strides for a tall Dman leads him to be off balance most of the time. You can tell that he’s not fully comfortable taking longer strides as it actually slows him down: he leans forward, not as of to use his momentum as leverage, but due to the fact that his legs are a bit weak. The same works for him when he skates backwards. Funny enough, his transition from skating forwards to backwards is actually pretty fluid.
He’s not able to make quick maneuvers in tight spaces or even handle to pick up close. It will get lost in his skates and his edge work is nonexistent.
The bright light is that once he gets going he can pick up speed. He’s actually pretty good jumping up in the rush, but don’t expect a quick transition back.
His lateral skating is slower, but better than Haggs at his current NHL level. The angle of his turns are way too wide at the CHL level, but you can tighten that with training. That isn’t a concern for me.
Gap control, via skating, is very loose, but he has to play that way given his skill set. His reach allows him to back off, but it’s just not good enough.
Grade: 1.75/10
OFFENSE:
For a defensive Dman his offense isn’t as bad as you think. His mind for the OZone is better than I expected. For most prospects trying to make a name for themself you’d think they’d be a bit selfish. Against Kelowna Samson was at the far right corner moving with the puck towards the boards to move the support F and defending F on him to the right. Smart play as this opened up Ty Grosnick on the left dot for a one-time. The pass from across the ice wasn’t great, but it should have been handled. I would’ve expected Samson to make the shot, but it was a smart play with good vision and IQ.
His shot has some power to it, but it could just be the level of play. Not much accuracy as his lower half is inept in this regard. It’s more an upper body fling towards the net. All the power is generated in his shoulder and the shot is a bit wonky. I feel like it plays to his style as it may be hard to pick up.
With the good comes the bad. Mistakes come with confidence for him it seems. He tried to open up a lane at the center portion of the blue line by doing a Ghost-like lateral move, but his skating just can’t do that. He was stripped and there was a break away.
Other than some smart plays he’s pretty bland. For him, no news is good news as a simple play style is best.
Grade: 3.75/10
DEFENSE:
I don’t see it, lol. He constantly gets beat up ice even when he leaves enough room to fit 5 JVRs in between.
Board battles may be his best bet since he’s big and aggressive in the corner. My only thing is that he got absolutely manhandled by Trevor Wong on a 1-1 board battle where Wong got the puck and set up a goal. Wong is about 6 inches shorter and 25-30 pounds lighter. Skill > physicality if you aren’t good.
I was so unimpressed by his ability to shut down play or any shot that wasn’t a low scoring chance.
Grade: 2.00/10
PHYSICALITY:
I can understand why scouts say this is his best attribute. If he has the opportunity to make contact he will. I wouldn’t say that he’s a physical Dman as he has no leverage with his legs. The impact isn’t big and it’s not great at separating the puck. He with throw cross checks in a board battle, won’t really chase hits, but if he does then he’s beat 100% of the time.
I like that he’s aggressive at the blue line when he needs to be. I feel like he wants to be aggressive, but he doesn’t have the skating to make up for taking himself out of the play. He’s also not big into post-whistle scrums.
Grade: 5.50/10
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Total Grade: 2.50/10
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I think his tool box is there, but I don’t think it can come together. His sloppy skating, use of his body, and aspects of his game that he needs to fix isn’t just a long-shot prospect, but one that won’t be in the NHL. If he puts it together then I think he’s valuable.
They made this pick in hopes that he can put it together. I don’t he can, but I hope I’m wrong.