TSR 2012 Preliminary Top 30

[Tormentor]

I wouldn't really consider 6.00, 175lbs to be overly big. Collberg could even be closer to 5.11 than he is to 6.00, and he certainly doesn't play like a big forward. His game is all about generating offensive chances and getting opportunities to use his shot. Diminutive was used moreso in that context.

I have a feeling that Collberg's height and weight data are outdated. I think he's taller than 5'11'' and heavier than 175lbs. I watched some streams from the J20 finals last season and there were few moments when he looked like a poor man's Ovechkin out there (and that was while playing against clearly older players). He’s a strong kid for his age. His somewhat short stride and the fact he didn't contribute that much to the transition game below the red line were maybe some of the negative things in his game.

 

[The Scouting Report]

I have a feeling that Collberg's height and weight data are outdated. I think he's taller than 5'11'' and heavier than 175lbs. I watched some streams from the J20 finals last season and there were moments when he looked like a poor man's Ovechkin out there (and that was while playing against clearly older players). He’s a strong kid for his age. His somewhat short stride and the fact he didn't contribute that much to the transition game below the red line were maybe some of the negative things in his game.

There's certainly the possibility that he grew over the summer, and if he did, that's going to really help him this season. If he can add a two-way presence to his game and show that he can sustain physical play, he'll definitely make a strong push for the Top 10.

 

[Tormentor]

There's certainly the possibility that he grew over the summer, and if he did, that's going to really help him this season.

Swedes on this board probably have a better idea about how tall he actually is at the moment, but he looked something like 6'0'' and 190lbs last spring.

 

[FirmestPiano]

According to this roster for the Team Sweden U20, 4 nations tournament in Russia from the Swedish Ice Hockey Association's website Collberg is 5'11'', 170lbs.

http://www.swehockey.se/ImageVaultFiles/id_14500/cf_1583/roster_swe_sep_2011_u.PDF

Also checked Frolunda's website ,and there it says the same. Haven't got a clue if it's accurate, neither do I know how often they update their numbers.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Perhaps yeah, I've seen him a number of times and I really like how he plays the game and the little things he does on the ice. I've seen him make his fair share of mistakes, which is too be expected from a 16-year-old kid playing that many minutes, but he did a lot of things that indicate to me that he's got some really good upside at the next level. I know we probably have him high, so we'll see how the season plays out... I do like him where we have him at.

Any recent draft picks you'd compare Koekkoek's upside to?

I look at Koekkoek and see similarities to guys like Scott Harrington or Stuart Percy (not exact same play style, just similar upsides as mobile defense with solid defense). But neither guy were top 15 in a deep draft, either. So I figured Koekkoek would be anywhere from late 1st round to somewhere in the 2nd round.

 

[The Scouting Report]

Any recent draft picks you'd compare Koekkoek's upside to?

I look at Koekkoek and see similarities to guys like Scott Harrington or Stuart Percy (not exact same play style, just similar upsides as mobile defense with solid defense). But neither guy were top 15 in a deep draft, either. So I figured Koekkoek would be anywhere from late 1st round to somewhere in the 2nd round.

Tough to find a good comparable in terms of recent prospects for Koekkoek, but I would say he has a similar all-around skill-set to a guy like Doughty, just obviously not as advanced as #8 was. I think you'll see Koekkoek really elevate his offensive game this season as he was very impressive in both showings with the Canadian U18 team and was 2nd in team scoring during the fall.

I don't think there's a lot separating him and some of the high-end WHL guys and I would not be shocked in the least if he ends up being in the mix with guys like Rielly, Dumba, Reinhart, and Pouliot. Keep an eye on him this year because he should be a real player to watch, and it looks like Kingston may be short on those types of players unfortunately

 

[Tormentor]

According to this roster for the Team Sweden U20, 4 nations tournament in Russia from the Swedish Ice Hockey Association's website Collberg is 5'11'', 170lbs.

http://www.swehockey.se/ImageVaultFiles/id_14500/cf_1583/roster_swe_sep_2011_u.PDF

Also checked Frolunda's website ,and there it says the same. Haven't got a clue if it's accurate, neither do I know how often they update their numbers.

On different lists Collberg's height and weight have stayed the same for 2 years now (180cm = 5'11'' , 77kg = 170lbs), one example from 2009: Link. I'm 99% sure that his bigger than that.

 

[Tigers1992]

I think he improved his skating over the course of the year

Question, what makes his skating a negative?

Hes actually one of the better skaters in the OHL Draft.

At the NHL Research and Development Camp, in a one on one race against Alex Galchenyuk, he only lost by 0.05 seconds.

Alot of people like to say he is an average skater based on his size and longer stride, but the facts suggest otherwise.

 

[ottawah]

I can speak specifically to Ceci as I've had the chance to watch him play from a younger age (minus time in Peterbourough).

His size is even more impressive now, sitting at about 6'3, 210 (Off Ottawa 67's web site). His skating really is underrated, I've seen him catch any number of forwards (U18's against Sweden for example) coming back. Bang on with the physical aspect of his game. I'd probably also agree he looks more like a 3/4 D man in the NHL.

The only point I'd bring up is that I think his offensive ability has been underrated. His cautiousness through his first 1.5 years really held his point totals back. He consistently would outlet pass from behind his net, make his way to the blueline in the O zone and stay there. After Christmas last year his style change at the urging if the 67's, and he started to skate with the puck, only passing when he had to, and charged deep into the offensive zone. After what was a more or less horrendous start (5 points in 25 games) he really turned it up. Over the latter part of the year he actually had about twice as many points as Ebert, and his goal total really sky rocketed at the end of the year, 7 of his goals came in the last 16 games when he was strongly encouraged to shoot more. I believe with Gibbons gone, Ceci will be the top PP quarterback this year, and with what I saw from him at the end of the year with the 67's, 20 goals and 60 points would not be out of the question, with more even possible. My thought is that is he can pull in those point totals, with his intelligence, size and skating ability, he would move into the top 10 - 20 position.

 

[Pulkkinen]

As always, my small feedback from Spain. Really nice to see Ebert at #5. Some lists rate better physical players rather than skilled and offensive, and i see Ebert as a total package. He is fast, he can drive to the net and he's not afraid of being physical. He made 41 points in his first OHL year despite all the pressure. A more mature, adapted and calm Ebert can be great. Looking forward to see his progress. Completey agree with the Yakupov & Grigorenko duo on the first positions, maybe i would placed Murray ahead of Galchenyuk, but Alex deserves some love too. He made 83 points in a team with Yakupov and also, like Ebert, with a lot of pressure, defending his #1 honors at the OHL Draft.

On the other hand, i would placed Collberg higher than #20. I love this kid. He has speed, he can both score and assist when the team need it, he can drive through traffic and he also takes care of his own end. But no big deal, i'm not really objective when i'm talking of Collberg. Also, if we change to Finland, i maybe would placed Teravainen instead of Pokka. But again, personal bias. I throw another name: Matia Marcantuoni. He's really gifted with the puc and has a lot of offensive touch. A little bit missing at Ivan Hlinka but with a lot of upside. But you guys made a really good list, if we take into consideration that 2012 is a really hard year, with lot of gifted players with options.

Maybe at the next list you can put 30 players at the #30.

And again, also like always, one small question. What's the deal with Raphael Bussières, from Baie-Comeau?. Button placed him surprisely at #11 and is not in your Top 30. Button made a huge reach here or he can really crack the Top 15 in the future? I know that Button is really criticised, but last year, he was one of the first scouts to place Couturier outside the first positions and placing Huberdeau higher. The guy deserves a consideration, but he can be wrong, of course.