Prospect Info: St. Louis Blues Top-20 Prospects: #2

[ChicagoBlues]

#1 Zachary Bolduc 75.9%

#1 poll was to automatically close tomorrow afternoon, but gonna start new one now.

Not sure how to close other poll.

Bitten added, Perunovich left on and Toropchenko added.

Kostin off the list.

#2 poll open for two days.

Click to read more...

 

[Beauterham]

Was a hard choice between Snuggerud and Neighbours, but eventually went went with Snuggs.

 

[stl76]

I like the potential of Jimmy The Snuggler, but went with the certainty of Neighbours.

Gets more interesting after the top 3 here...

 

[STL fan in MN]

Tough call for me with the inclusion of Perunovich but I’ll go with him. I think some have soured on him or already consider him a bust but the talent is clearly there. He just needs to stay healthy.

The other guy I considered was Sir Snuggles. Neighbours is a safer bet but Snuggerud’s are a bit higher end. People talk about Snuggerud’s shot a lot but the main thing for me that stands out in his game is his vision/on-ice awareness. He sees, assesses and reacts to the play very well. And he uses that to be good defensively as well. Most 17-18 year olds don’t give a damn about defense but he’s noticeably good in coverage for his age.

I’ll actually say a negative about his shot though. While his release is super fast, his accuracy seems to be quite poor. To me, he appears to have worked a lot at getting shots off super fast but I’d prefer he focus more on accuracy and then slowly build up release speed. Otherwise, he’s just going to miss the net or drive it right into the goalie a ton of the time.

 

[Blueston]

I went with Jake from State Farm. He looks nhl ready and also I think folks are sleeping on his upside.

 

[Memento]

Neighbours is my pick. Honestly, I think his upside is higher than most people think; I think he could be a solid top six winger.

Snuggerud is next on my list, followed by Perunovich and Alexandrov.

 

[Majorityof1]

Hofer for me.

It will be a long time before my vote matters, as I will keep voting for Hofer while Neighbours, Snuggerud and Perunovich at the minimum get picked. I'd rank those three in the this order: Snuggerud, Neightbours and Perunovich.

I'd have Ellis in front of those 3 as well. I think both Hofer and Ellis have starter, even high-end starter potential. They have the potential to be in the tier below elite. I'd say the minimum is a high-end back-up. Husso showed us that a good backup can be very valuable. That's more valuable to me than an offensively challenged middle 6 forward or defensively-inept defensman.

 

[Mike Liut]

Neighbors for me. Middle 6 player with 20g potential who plays physical. What’s not to like?

 

[Blueston]

Hofer for me.

It will be a long time before my vote matters, as I will keep voting for Hofer while Neighbours, Snuggerud and Perunovich at the minimum get picked. I'd rank those three in the this order: Snuggerud, Neightbours and Perunovich.

I'd have Ellis in front of those 3 as well. I think both Hofer and Ellis have starter, even high-end starter potential. They have the potential to be in the tier below elite. I'd say the minimum is a high-end back-up. Husso showed us that a good backup can be very valuable. That's more valuable to me than an offensively challenged middle 6 forward or defensively-inept defensman.

That is an interesting take. Ellis isn't even quality ECHL goalie yet.

 

[BlueOil]

shifty hips scotty p baby

 

[Daley Tarasenkshow]

Perunovich for me. After Bolduc/Perunovich/Neighbors/Snuggerud, no other skater really has much NHL potential for in my opinion. Maybe Peterson I guess, but the lack of 2nd rounders for the Blues the last handful of years has hurt their pipeline.

 

[Majorityof1]

That is an interesting take. Ellis isn't even quality ECHL goalie yet.

Ellis was a 21 year old on a bad team in his first year against men and held his own. He is 1 year removed from being dominant in the Q. Neighbours cannot even be dominant against kids in juniors. He was like 4th on his team in playoff points.

 

[STL fan in MN]

Hofer for me.

It will be a long time before my vote matters, as I will keep voting for Hofer while Neighbours, Snuggerud and Perunovich at the minimum get picked. I'd rank those three in the this order: Snuggerud, Neightbours and Perunovich.

I'd have Ellis in front of those 3 as well. I think both Hofer and Ellis have starter, even high-end starter potential. They have the potential to be in the tier below elite. I'd say the minimum is a high-end back-up. Husso showed us that a good backup can be very valuable. That's more valuable to me than an offensively challenged middle 6 forward or defensively-inept defensman.

I’m with you on Hofer - I have him 5th after Bolduc, Perunovich, Snuggerud and Neighbours, with those 5 clearly being the top tier.

But I have Ellis a ways down the list. Would be cool if they both panned out though. Zherenko seems like an intriguing goalie prospect too.

 

[Blueston]

Ellis was a 21 year old on a bad team in his first year against men and held his own. He is 1 year removed from being dominant in the Q. Neighbours cannot even be dominant against kids in juniors. He was like 4th on his team in playoff points.

Maybe. He was good in Q. Not saying it can’t happen. Just seems unlikely, whereas guy like neighbours looks like most likely nhl player. Maybe top 6, maybe not, but to downgrade him for playing hurt during memorial cup run seems harsh.

 

[Thallis]

Picked Neighbours, would have picked Perunovich had I seen him as an option, whoops.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Picked Neighbours, would have picked Perunovich had I seen him as an option, whoops.

You can change your vote.

They're in alphabetical order.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

I wonder how frequently young players look at this website.

 

[Thallis]

You can change your vote.

They're in alphabetical order.

Oh neat, thanks for the heads up

 

[Frenzy31]

Ellis was a 21 year old on a bad team in his first year against men and held his own. He is 1 year removed from being dominant in the Q. Neighbours cannot even be dominant against kids in juniors. He was like 4th on his team in playoff points.

I always have the same issue when trying to figure out goalies. But I would point out that Neighbors was injured for the 2nd half of the season and also the playoffs. I see him as a middle sixer - 2nd line upside. To me, Bolduc is a pure sniper - similar to Hull. Nieghbors is going to be a puck hound, dirty goal scorer - Barby type.

I think both Ellis and Hofer have the ability to be an NHLer. In fact, I had Ellis ahead of Hofer going into last year. Just a question of primary starter, 1b type, or solid back up. Hofer had a great season with Springfield. Interesting to see what Ellis does this year.

As for my pick, I went with Snuggs. I think he can be similar to Thomas - full service player. He just needs to get faster. I didn't know a lot of about the pick, but reading and research, plus a bit of the "shiny new toy" syndrome.

I wonder how frequently young players look at this website.

I bet quite a few do. I think it would be hard not too and there is a lot of good info here on other prospects. I also be parents and friends check this site out also.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

I bet quite a few do. I think it would be hard not too and there is a lot of good info here on other prospects. I also be parents and friends check this site out also.

I’ve been on this website since 2006, which means guys born in 2006 are starting to play junior hockey.

We all should know by now how social media can affect an individual’s sense of self.

Guys with wavering confidence may lose it altogether after reading about themselves on HF.

I am convinced that lots of players with NHL aspirations check out this site. A handful might even be members.

And only the strongest will overcome negative analyses on this site. Then again, the strongest probably wouldn’t come here as they already feel validated.