StevenToddIves
Registered User
STI 2021 Draft Rankings 2.0 for May — Top 64
This is the most difficult year to process and rank prospects in recent memory, obviously. Normally I would caution people (and myself) not to take too much stock in tournament play when ranking prospects, but how else are we do achieve this when many players have not played a single game and the first time we’re getting to see them is the U-18 tournament?
So, we do the best we can. There is more movement from month to month in my rankings than in most years, but I’ll give myself a pass on that due to the circumstances.
In terms of debate concerning order, I suggest not to focus too hard on numbers exclusively. Sure, I have Eklund 4 and Guenther 5, but I literally need an electron microscope to separate the difference in these two extraordinary talents. Lastly, I’d like to say these are not final rankings and we can expect some movement before I complete those just prior to the actual draft.
This is the most difficult year to process and rank prospects in recent memory, obviously. Normally I would caution people (and myself) not to take too much stock in tournament play when ranking prospects, but how else are we do achieve this when many players have not played a single game and the first time we’re getting to see them is the U-18 tournament?
So, we do the best we can. There is more movement from month to month in my rankings than in most years, but I’ll give myself a pass on that due to the circumstances.
In terms of debate concerning order, I suggest not to focus too hard on numbers exclusively. Sure, I have Eklund 4 and Guenther 5, but I literally need an electron microscope to separate the difference in these two extraordinary talents. Lastly, I’d like to say these are not final rankings and we can expect some movement before I complete those just prior to the actual draft.
- C Matthew Beniers, University of Michigan NCAA absolutely otherworldly mix of compete level and hockey IQ in a two-way center with high-end skating and offensive skill.
- RD Brandt Clarke, HC Nove Zamky Slovakia elite trio of offensive tools — hands/passing/shot; also adds a ridiculous on-ice awareness and proved in a dynamic U-18 he can defend extremely well.
- LD Owen Power, University of Michigan NCAA nearly 6’6 shut-down defender with immense strength, terrific skating and very good puck skills.
- LW/C William Eklund, Djurgardens SHL stratospheric hockey IQ combined with fierce compete and tremendous two-way skills and instincts. Processes the game like a super-computer and executes like a surgeon.
- RW/LW Dylan Guenther, Edmonton WHL slam-dunks every tool in the tool box and ties his elite skill-set together with ribbons of elite on-ice intelligence, mature polish and consistency of effort.
- LD Luke Hughes, US-NTDP fastest skater in the draft also adds a tremendous pair of hands and elite passing potential; a one-man transition machine.
- LW/C Kent Johnson, University of Michigan NCAA perhaps the highest offensive upside in the entire 2021 class, Johnson combines a magical set of mitts with elite passing and scoring abilities.
- RW/LW Fabian Lysell, Lulea SHL most dynamic skating forward in the draft also has potentially elite passing and scoring ability; took over large stretches of games in the U-18 to solidify himself as top 10 2021 eligible.
- C/RW Chaz Lucius, US-NTDP best pure shooter in the 2021 class, also an excellent all-around game; unremarkable skating is all which keeps him out of the top 7.
- C/LW Mason McTavish, EHC Olten Switzerland brilliant U-18 tourney has answered questions about his skating and ability to remain at C in the NHL, tremendous finisher but also dual-threat offensively; brilliant on both the PP and the PK.
- C Fyodor Svechkov, Lada Togliatti VHL neck-and-neck with Beniers for top two-way F in the 2021 class; also a brilliant playmaker with an absurdly good compete level.
- C Francesco Pinelli, HDD Jesenice Slovenia electrifying offensive tool-kit, consistent ferocity on the ice and high-end intelligence and vision make Pinelli the most overlooked potential top-line C in the 2021 class.
- LW Isak Rosen, Leksands SHL dynamic skater is right there with Team Sweden teammate Lysell for best among 2021 forwards; also a tremendous scorer and disher with high compete and two-way play.
- LD Stanislav Svozil, HC Kometa Czech only challenged by Power for best defensive D in the draft and checks every tool in the box; plays with consistency of intelligence and advanced decision making; possesses more intriguing offensive potential than often given credit for.
- LW/C Cole Sillinger, Sioux Falls USHL high-end skills all across the board except for skating — the only aspect holding him back from the top dozen picks but will not hold him back from a successful career as a top-6 forward in the NHL. An “old school” player with grit and an edge to his game.
- LW Brennan Othmann, EHC Olten Switzerland smart, high-motor sniping winger who also plays with an edge; has shown alongside Shane Wright he is the perfect compliment to an elite, high-skill center and displays an impressive level of flash and dazzle in his own right.
- LW/RW Nikita Chibrikov, SKA-St. Petersburg KHL the classic “sum is better than the parts” player with his high-IQ, fierce competitive streak and leadership abilities… but the parts are also simply terrific.
- LD Simon Edvinsson, Vasteras Allvenskan elite combination of size/skating/stickhandling combined with excellent defensive/transitional talents earns him a deserved spot in the top 20.
- LD Carson Lambos, Winnipeg WHL big, fast two-way defender with a booming shot oozes talent but has yet to reach the consistency of play he is capable of; certainly a kid with top-pairing upside if he puts it all together.
- RD Corson Ceulemans, Brooks AJHL similar to Edvinsson & Lambos, Ceulemans has size/speed/physicality/skills galore but a few “buts” in his game; if development and maturity kicks it all in place, he possesses top pairing potential at the professional level.
- RD Aleksi Heimosalmi, Assat FIN JR. cerebral defenseman is excellent defensively despite being slim and 5’11, automatic in his slick transition game and regularly dissects defenses in the offensive zone.
- LD Ethan Del Mastro, Mississauga OHL after not playing a single game all season, Del Mastro burst onto the scene with an unquestionably phenomenal U-18 tourney; at 6’4-210 with borderline elite skating and high-end physicality, Del Mastro’s sneaky good abilities with the puck make him perhaps the most underrated player in the entire 2021 draft.
- C Aatu Raty, Karpat Finland big, two-way pivot does everything well — skates, shoots, dishes, you name it; star has dimmed a bit with tumultuous draft-eligible season, but remains a terrific prospect as a 2nd line pro C.
- LW/RW Simon Robertsson, Skelleftea SHL a bomb of a shot and and excellent game around it; leads the second group of Swedish forwards after the elite trio of Eklund/Lysell/Rosen.
- C Zachary Bolduc, Rimouski QMJHL the top prospect out of the Q is a rangy center with tremendous two-way excellence and high-end playmaking and offensive capability.
- RW Matthew Coronato, Chicago USHL may lack eye-catching size and speed but all this kid does is score — 48 goals in 51 games in a defense-oriented USHL certainly catches the eye. If there’s a DeBrincat in the 2021 class, it’s this guy.
- C/RW Mackie Samoskevich, Chicago USHL his playmaking skill can only be described using famous artists as comparables and he might be the best puck-handler in the draft after only Clarke and Johnson.
- LW Sasha Pastujov, US-NTDP without question the best playmaker of all 2021 wingers; if he can get more consistency in his 200-foot game he has the potential of putting up as many NHL points as anyone in the draft class.
- RD Jack Bar, Chicago USHL super heady shut-down defender with size, strength and very good 4-way mobility also shows skill with the puck; a high-floor, all-situations guy for your NHL second pairing.
- RW/C Logan Stamkoven, Kamloops not a true burner and only 5’8 but don’t tell him that; Stamkoven plays with frenetic pace and scores as many goals from the dirty areas as by turning defenders inside-out with his litany of skill. Nicknamed “Little Ball of Fire”, you just need to watch him for a shift or two to see why.
- LW Zachary L’Heureux, Halifax QMJHL potentially the premier power-forward in the draft, L’Heureux has become very polarizing with his four suspensions in a shortened 2021 season and sometimes maddening inconsistency of effort. The fact remains that he is a pure scorer with tons of skill and Claude Lemieux-type ability at the NHL level.
- RW/C Xavier Bourgault, Shawinigan QMJHL still a question of whether he stays up the middle or slots to the wing at the pro level, but no question about his high-end scoring ability and excellent surrounding offensive skill set.
- LD Sean Behrens, US-NTDP the 5’9 defender does not play the assumed “undersized blueliner” all-speed, all-offense game — he regularly hits the highlight reels with bone-crushing body checks more than end-to-end rushes. Though very adept offensively, Behrens’ bread and butter is actually as a shut down defensive force.
- RD Logan Mailloux, SK Lejon Hockeyettan a 6’3-215 defender who skates extremely well and shows high offensive proclivity, Mailloux might have been on every first-round ranking had the pandemic not cancelled his season at London of the OHL and limited to 15 games all year in a minor European circuit.
- RW Tyler Boucher, US-NTDP the prototypical NHL, middle-6 power forward; Brian Boucher’s son is a 6’1-200 wrecking ball of a forward who also has an excellent set of hands and unheralded scoring instincts.
- LD Shai Buium, Sioux City USHL at 6’3-215 with the elite hands of a scoring forward, Buium can either plow through you or dangle around you, depending on his whim. If he can improve his so-so skating, this top-flight defender can become a tremendous steal after the first-round of the draft.
- RW Samu Tuomaala, Karpat FIN JR. A deadly sniping winger who dominated offensively at the U-18 tourney, Tuomaala’s 30+ goal NHL upside could see him go in the first round.
- RD Vincent Iorio, Red Deer WHL a very good skater at 6’3-200 who has improved exponentially in recent years, Iorio is already an impact player defensively and has offensive upside for an NHL 2PP.
- LD Dmitri Kuzmin, Dinamo-Molodechno Belarus this 5’11 offensive defenseman burst onto the scene with a spectacular U-18 filled with end-to-end rushes, lacrosse goals, and spine-tingling stretch passes. His hands might only trail Clarke among 2021 draft-eligible D, while his skating might trail only Luke Hughes.
- LW Oskar Olausson, HV71 SHL 6’2 winger combines high-end skating and scoring ability, offers great potential as a two-way middle-six winger who can elevate a line with his tantalizing mix of speed and skill.
- RD Scott Morrow, Shattuck St. Mary’s USHS a big wild-card for the 2021 draft, Morrow offers high end skating, size and puck-skills but his very raw game which has not seen high-level competition has him projected all over draft boards.
- C Brett Harrison, Koovee FIN JR. once seen as a third-line center prospect, an excellent U-18 tourney had his impressive-across-the-board offensive skill set really play up when alongside high-end talent.
- LD Anton Olsson, Malmo SHL rock-solid defender was the best blueliner for Sweden in the U-18 tournament and showed better skills with the puck than he was able to consistently display playing against much older competition in the Swedish men’s league.
- LD Vladislav Lukashevich, Loko Yaroslavl MHL silky smooth defender can really skate and sauce the puck, projectable frame and high-end game-processing make him a potential two-way stud for an NHL second-pairing.
- LW Prokhor Poltapov, Krasnaya Armiya Moskva MHL playmaking, high-motor forward with an edge to his game, Poltapov can beat you in a litany of ways and has a big-time nose for the net.
- C/LW Zach Dean, Gatineau QMJHL rangy, high-skill forward displays high-end abilities in playmaking and puckhandling but has yet to produce consistency in dominant performances he is physically capable of.
- LW Ayrton Martino, Omaha USHL high-skill playmaking winger can dazzle with the puck and make pretty good line mates score like all-stars; flying under the radar in the USHL despite 38 assists in 38 games, Martino is the classic second-round sleeper for the 2021 draft.
- C Wyatt Johnston, Windsor OHL the prototypical two-way middle-six center, Johnston’s terrific U-18 tournament has rocketed him back in the public eye after not playing a single game in his draft-eligible season due to the pandemic.
- RD Ty Gallagher, US-NTDP the United States development program has been so good at pumping out high-end prospects that sometimes the supporting players on the team are sorely overlooked; this may be the case with Gallagher, a borderline-dynamic player in the offensive zone and a rock-steady presence in the defensive one.
- LW Matthew Knies, Tri-City USHL a classic power forward at 6’2-210 who loves to crash the net and bang bodies, Knies also is a very good playmaker with the offensive acumen to have a ceiling as a 2nd line scorer with sandpaper in his game.
- LD Kirill Kirsanov, SKA-St. Petersburg KHL a big, slick-skating D with an active defensive stick, Kirsanov is steady in his own zone and also shows extreme calm with the puck and high-level transitional abilities.
- C Oliver Kapanen, KalPa FIN JR. the nephew of Sami and cousin of Kasperi is a freakishly smart two-way pivot with efficient playmaking skills and a nice scoring touch around the net.
- LD Daniil Chayka, CSKA Moskva KHL the 6’3 defender can skate extremely well and checks off every skill you can think of, but somehow often leaves you wanting more in his overall performance. The upside is tremendous if he can tie it all together.
- RW Matvei Petrov, MHK Krylia Sovetov Moskva MHL a very raw prospect with tremendous gifts in his offensive capabilities, Petrov has a ton of projection in his development arc but also tremendous upside if a team is patient with him.
- C Samu Salminen, Jokerit FIN JR. the 6’3 center captained Team Finland in the U-18 tourney and led by example, scoring big goals and playing tenacious two-way hockey.
- LW Dylan Duke, US-NTDP tenacious two-way forward is a beast on the forecheck and has sonar for loose pucks around the net, the penultimate middle-six energy guy with a nice amount of scoring pop.
- LW Ville Koivunen, Karpat FIN JR. Your classic “sum better than the parts” player, Koivunen lacks any particular standout skill and is not particularly big or fast, but all he does is score at every imaginable level.
- LD Nolan Allan, Prince Albert WHL your classic super-physical, big & mobile presence for an NHL middle-pairing, Allan may not be the sexiest pick but he certainly is a smart one.
- LD Olen Zellweger, Everett WHL smaller defensemen without elite skating are often ignored at the draft, but Zellweger’s smarts and puck-skills shone throughout the U-18 and he proved he could defend admirably against higher-end competition while also putting up big offensive numbers.
- LW/RW Dmitri Rashevsky, Dynamo-St. Petersburg VHL I rarely rank double-overages so highly, but Rashevsky has elite hands and shooting ability and also high-end playmaking. If he ups his skating a notch, this kid could be an electrifying steal for an NHL franchise.
- C Red Savage, US-NTDP maybe the best face-off guy for the draft, Savage has all the classic attributes for a bottom-six, shut-down center — he’s rabid in his compete level and relentless in his puck pursuit.
- LW/C Tristan Broz, Fargo USHL upside is the name of the game with this highly skilled young man who will likely need to develop three to four years at the University of Minnesota.
- LW Justin Janicke, US-NTDP perhaps the most effective forechecker int he draft class, Janicke mixes high end skating with the tenacity of a rabid honey badger in puck pursuit. May lack top-6 offensive tools, but a high-floor monster for your bottom six.
- RW/C Danila Klimovich, Minskie Zubry Belarus Jr. one of the better shooters in the entire draft, Klimovich needs to improve his decision making with the puck as he often tries to do it all himself. But this is certainly a hidden gem with top 6 potential — you simply can’t teach those kinds of high-end scoring and puck-handling skills.
