Bluesnatic27
Registered User
- Aug 5, 2011
- 4,715
- 3,212
The Blues 2020 - 2021 Top-20 Prospect List:
1) Klim Kostin - 61.3%
2) Scott Perunovich - 50%
3) Zachary Bolduc - 45.9%
4) Jake Neighbours - 63.8%
5) Simon Robertsson - 35.8%
6) Nikita Alexandrov - 62.1%
7) Joel Hofer - 72.1%
8) Colten Ellis - 33.3%
9) Matt Kessel - 48.8%
Matt Kessel takes the #9 spot and the second defenseman on the list thus far. While many leagues had an odd season, the college hockey was one of the few leagues that didn't see a dramatic change in length nor execution, at least for the regular season. Matt Kessel took full advantage of this as his stock rose considerably. Drafted as an overager, Kessel doubled his output in 5 less games while only trailing Zac Jones for team lead in points for defenseman. His heavy shot and vision was fully used last year, and him beginning the year at a, or at least near, a PPG pace illustrated what his offensive ability can lead to. Although I've read his skating needs work, I've never thought of it as detrimental. It's not graceful like Mikkola was at that age, but it's not my biggest concern. What I do think he needs to prove is how he can step up this next coming season. Not so much in production, but in how he can take over Jones's spot in the lineup. Yes, his defense needs refinement, but I want to know how he can stack up as being "the guy" in UMass's lineup. It will require a lot of tuning in multiple areas (transition, dictating play from the back-end, gap reads/closure, etc.). I want to know if what we saw was strictly a highlight of his strengths without need to refine those other mental areas of the game, or if that's all he can do period. That might sound needlessly negative, but I view it as a complement to what he's achieved thus far. He can play at a high level already in college hockey, so now I want to know where the road to his development can end. He's exciting and I want to see him become even more so.
Let's round out the top-10 now!
1) Klim Kostin - 61.3%
2) Scott Perunovich - 50%
3) Zachary Bolduc - 45.9%
4) Jake Neighbours - 63.8%
5) Simon Robertsson - 35.8%
6) Nikita Alexandrov - 62.1%
7) Joel Hofer - 72.1%
8) Colten Ellis - 33.3%
9) Matt Kessel - 48.8%
Matt Kessel takes the #9 spot and the second defenseman on the list thus far. While many leagues had an odd season, the college hockey was one of the few leagues that didn't see a dramatic change in length nor execution, at least for the regular season. Matt Kessel took full advantage of this as his stock rose considerably. Drafted as an overager, Kessel doubled his output in 5 less games while only trailing Zac Jones for team lead in points for defenseman. His heavy shot and vision was fully used last year, and him beginning the year at a, or at least near, a PPG pace illustrated what his offensive ability can lead to. Although I've read his skating needs work, I've never thought of it as detrimental. It's not graceful like Mikkola was at that age, but it's not my biggest concern. What I do think he needs to prove is how he can step up this next coming season. Not so much in production, but in how he can take over Jones's spot in the lineup. Yes, his defense needs refinement, but I want to know how he can stack up as being "the guy" in UMass's lineup. It will require a lot of tuning in multiple areas (transition, dictating play from the back-end, gap reads/closure, etc.). I want to know if what we saw was strictly a highlight of his strengths without need to refine those other mental areas of the game, or if that's all he can do period. That might sound needlessly negative, but I view it as a complement to what he's achieved thus far. He can play at a high level already in college hockey, so now I want to know where the road to his development can end. He's exciting and I want to see him become even more so.
Let's round out the top-10 now!
