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Prospect Info: Sharks Prospect Info/Discussion Thread XV

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STL Shark

STL Shark

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wishman said:
From Corey Pronman's U20 Camp Notes: "Kniazev was named the top defenseman in the Sochi open with five points in three games. It was some of the best hockey I’ve seen Kniazev play in the past few years. His skating and puck-moving ability made a difference when he was on the ice, and he created a lot of offense."
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If only we didn't have Vlasic. So many young LHD that I am super excited about but roster spots are pretty limited for the foreseeable future with Vlasic's albatross deal and Ferraro looking like a legit NHLer.
 
Brock

Brock

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hohosaregood said:
I've generally been under the impression that Merkley's biggest assets are his vision and hockey IQ. So when you say his vision and anticipation are underrated, are you saying that those are even better than reported?
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Merkley's vision has never been disputed really. His decision making and ability to use that vision definitely has. The consistency and efficiency with which he makes good decisions with the puck has always been a sticking point for scouts. One great play. One bad play; be it a poorly timed pinch, overhandling of the puck at the blueline, trying to do things himself by driving through traffic, etc. However, under Hunter, he really cut down on those turnovers this year, and if he did make a poor read, he was more consistent in hustling back and accepting responsibility for the poor play.

Players like Merkley are always going to be high risk, high reward players. Like Karlsson. You have to live with turnovers from time to time because they are trying to create and be aggressive offensively. The big thing is the effort and ability to recover. That's always been Merkley's achilles heal. But, as I said, huge progression in that area this year and I think he really visibly matured.

Now...can he continue this progress at the pro level next year and continue to gel with the coaching staff with either the Sharks or the Barracuda? That will be the true test.
 
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Fistfullofbeer

Fistfullofbeer

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matt trick said:
Pretty strong ranking for Ryan Merkley from our good friend @Brock

OHL Prospects: Top 25 OHL Prospects - Summer of 2020

Dellandrea (13), and Foudy (18). I'm assuming Barret Hayton (5) and Evan Bouchard (10) are graduates?
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I am absolutely stoked to see Merkley on the Cuda this year and get a legit chance to be called up. I have supported him since the day we drafted him and really hope he becomes a big time player in the NHL.
 
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matt trick

matt trick

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Fistfullofbeer said:
I am absolutely stoked to see Merkley on the Cuda this year and get a legit chance to be called up. I have supported him since the day we drafted him and really hope he becomes a big time player in the NHL.
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Agreed. He'd be worth the price of admission if the Cuda had fans this year, but I expect the first oppty to see him in person will be in San Jose in 20 months (or whatever it is).
 

TheWayToRefJose

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Pronman released hsi SJ prospects review on the athletic. Nice to see that he thinks Leonard is a legit Top 6 potential prospect on par with Merkley.
Tiers:
Very Good NHL Player - Merkley, Leonard, Ferraro
Legit NHL Player - Chmelelvski, Blichfeld, Kniazev, Pasichnuk,
NHL Potential - Hatakka, gregor, True, Spiridonov, Chekhovich, Hamaliuk, Emond

Very good prospect = Top 6 forward, Top 4 D man
Legit NHL - Bottom 6, bottom pairing D man
NHL potential - Could possibly make the NHL with some improvements
 
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STL Shark

STL Shark

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Used As A Shield said:
Saw this a few days ago on twitter about Hatakka, granted its old.
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Obviously they won't all hit, but the org has an embarrassment of riches on LD right now at all levels. Makes the Simek contract puzzling for sure. Unless they know that they can move Vlasic this offseason. Otherwise, Vlasic, Simek, Ferraro, Pasichnuk, Middleton, Knyzhov, Kniazev, and now Harakka is quite the haul of D-Men that either are ready now or will be ready for the NHL in the next 2-3 years or so. Have to hope/think there is a move to be made to offload Vlasic soon. Even with $2 mil of retention.
 
Fistfullofbeer

Fistfullofbeer

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STL Shark said:
Obviously they won't all hit, but the org has an embarrassment of riches on LD right now at all levels. Makes the Simek contract puzzling for sure. Unless they know that they can move Vlasic this offseason. Otherwise, Vlasic, Simek, Ferraro, Pasichnuk, Middleton, Knyzhov, Kniazev, and now Harakka is quite the haul of D-Men that either are ready now or will be ready for the NHL in the next 2-3 years or so. Have to hope/think there is a move to be made to offload Vlasic soon. Even with $2 mil of retention.
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I don't know man. Thats a lot of quantity at LD but not sure how much of it is real quality.

Vlasic is declining but is still only the true top-4 LD we have. Ferraro has the potential to make it there and Simek showed flashes prior to his injury. But the rest are pretty much unknowns who have not played a single game in the NHL other than Middleton, who is really more of a #7D than anything.

There is potential in Kniazev, Hatakka and Pasichnuk but long way to go before we know if they are NHL level players or not. I liked the Kniazev pick when we made it and he definitely showed improvement last season as well. Another concern I have is how missed games due to COVID-19 impacts the development of these kids.
 
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STL Shark

STL Shark

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Fistfullofbeer said:
I don't know man. Thats a lot of quantity at LD but not sure how much of it is real quality.

Vlasic is declining but is still only the true top-4 LD we have. Ferraro has the potential to make it there and Simek showed flashes prior to his injury. But the rest are pretty much unknowns who have not played a single game in the NHL other than Middleton, who is really more of a #7D than anything.

There is potential in Kniazev, Hatakka and Pasichnuk but long way to go before we know if they are NHL level players or not. I liked the Kniazev pick when we made it and he definitely showed improvement last season as well. Another concern I have is how missed games due to COVID-19 impacts the development of these kids.
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Ferraro is a definite top 4 guy and I think Pasichnuk has the upside to be there as well. Kniazev is another I am excited about. Given the way we have built the top of our D around Karlsson/Burns, it's not like you are looking for a true #1/2 D-Man out of that group. Think you are looking for a bunch of guys in the Muzzin, Brodin, etc. mold that are not asked to carry a pair but can skate, PK, pass the puck out of the zone and play steady defense. Think there are a lot of those style guys in there. When you have a true #1 like Karlsson/Burns, you can get by with a bunch of #4's on the other side of them as long as their game compliments what the big guns are doing.
 
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OrrNumber4

OrrNumber4

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TheWayToRefJose said:
Pronman released hsi SJ prospects review on the athletic. Nice to see that he thinks Leonard is a legit Top 6 potential prospect on par with Merkley.
Tiers:
Very Good NHL Player - Merkley, Leonard, Ferraro
Legit NHL Player - Chmelelvski, Blichfeld, Kniazev, Pasichnuk,
NHL Potential - Hatakka, gregor, True, Spiridonov, Chekhovich, Hamaliuk, Emond

Very good prospect = Top 6 forward, Top 4 D man
Legit NHL - Bottom 6, bottom pairing D man
NHL potential - Could possibly make the NHL with some improvements
Click to expand...

If the Sharks have a top-6 forward and two top-4 defensemen in the pipeline, along with a bunch of bottom-6 players, that's pretty darn good.

List is also a good reminder of how difficult it is to make the NHL. Hatakka has been receiving a ton of praise and is apparently doing quite well in the SM-Liiga as a young player but is basically considered a potential future depth player at the NHL level.

themelkman said:
I usally don’t mind Pronman, but him putting Gregor in that tier doesn’t make any sense to me and makes me feel like he didn’t pay much attention to him
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Players like Merkley and Leonard have an "unknown" factor to them since we haven't seen them in the AHL/NHL. With lists like this, that unknown factor tends to work in the player's favor. Someone like Gregor we've seen in the NHL, and we can tell with 95% certainty he's not going to be a top-6 forward.
 
The Nemesis

The Nemesis

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OrrNumber4 said:
Players like Merkley and Leonard have an "unknown" factor to them since we haven't seen them in the AHL/NHL. With lists like this, that unknown factor tends to work in the player's favor. Someone like Gregor we've seen in the NHL, and we can tell with 95% certainty he's not going to be a top-6 forward.
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Which means he should've been in the tier above where he was placed. the one for bottom 6 forwards, not "they'll make it if things go right for them" tier.
 
OrrNumber4

OrrNumber4

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The Nemesis said:
Which means he should've been in the tier above where he was placed. the one for bottom 6 forwards, not "they'll make it if things go right for them" tier.
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Maybe that's fair. I don't know if he will ever have the scoring touch to be a true third-liner. On the other side, I'm pretty sure he has an NHL future.
 

Doctor Soraluce

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TheWayToRefJose said:
Pronman released hsi SJ prospects review on the athletic. Nice to see that he thinks Leonard is a legit Top 6 potential prospect on par with Merkley.
Tiers:
Very Good NHL Player - Merkley, Leonard, Ferraro
Legit NHL Player - Chmelelvski, Blichfeld, Kniazev, Pasichnuk,
NHL Potential - Hatakka, gregor, True, Spiridonov, Chekhovich, Hamaliuk, Emond

Very good prospect = Top 6 forward, Top 4 D man
Legit NHL - Bottom 6, bottom pairing D man
NHL potential - Could possibly make the NHL with some improvements
Click to expand...
Leonard is the forward I think exceeds expectations. Looking forward to seeing what he can do. Watching his highlights he has some slick hands and apparently a legit NHL caliber shot. Hope he plays with skill guys in camp so he can get his confidence quick.

Ferraro already a very good NHL player. If those other 6 guys become NHL regulars that would sure throw water on all the media types saying the Sharks system is a tire fire.
 
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