Prospect Info: Will Kyle Wood Amount To Anything?

[RABBIT]

Honestly keep forgetting that he is in our organization. The Boedker deal was fairly underwhelming. I knew he really wasn't worth much at the time he was traded, but i always thought he would fetch us more than what he did. Tanguay was the bright spot of that deal.

Bleakley will most likely never wear a Coyotes sweater, and there is a good chance Tangs has played his last game as a Yote.

So we're left with Kyle Wood. I remember SOME Avs fans were buzzing about him, and were sad to see him go. It's hard to find any highlights of the guy because nobody had really ever heard of him until right before the draft, as he was a late bloomer. The scouting reports i find on him are kind of old. Hard to judge by his numbers because he hasn't played at the pro level. He is a very big boy, standing at 6'5, 210 lbs.

The scouting reports I HAVE read refer to him as "Mr. Security Blanket" meaning he is very safe on the backend, and if he ever does make a mistake, he's usually quick to make up for it. They also state that he uses his size to his advantage, which is refreshing to hear due to a lot of big boys in hockey nowadays playing like softies. They claim that he was Brampton's PP quaterback, has a very smooth and agile style of mobility, and has what they refer to as a "salivating" stretch pass. Claims Kyle is the perfect mixture of a stay-at-home defenseman and an offensive defenseman. His +/- is usually always in the positive.

He has put up fairly decent offensive numbers for the Brampton Battalion in the OHL:

16g, 24a, 40pts in 67 games in 2014-2015

and

8g, 31a, for 39pts in 49 games in 2015-2016

And he's only 20 years old. That being said, he was hardly scouted at all until the end of his draft year, when someone noticed him. NHL Central Scouting didn't even have him ranked early on, listed him unlikely to be drafted (ended up being a 3rd round pick.)

A lot of positives, but all from observations of his play in the OHL. Also A LOT of unknowns. For example, some sites have him listed as 6'5, 230lbs while others have him listed as 6'5, 210lbs. The dude doesn't even have a Wikipedia page

I think it's safe to say he's a huge wildcard. Do you guys think he has the potential to be an impact defender in the future?

Click to read more...

 

[hbk]

This is the problem with drafting D.

unless a sure thing/top rated guy (and even then this depends on hockey iq and speed) they usually aren't ready until after they are waiver eligible. Especially large D like Tinordi for example.

 

[RABBIT]

Agreed. There are always exceptions to that rule though. Michael Stone comes to mind. Had great tools in juniors, though nobody was sure if that would translate. He has been a very pleasant surprise.

 

[rt]

He could be be next Mike Stone.

 

[hbk]

Agreed. There are always exceptions to that rule though. Michael Stone comes to mind. Had great tools in juniors, though nobody was sure if that would translate. He has been a very pleasant surprise.

Funny story. I used to work with the father of one of the players on the Hitmen (AZ actually tried to sign his kid as well) and we were chatting about the NHL and I mentioned that AZ drafted Stone and first thing he said to me was "oh yeah, he's going to make it to the NHL". No hesitation.

 

[tigervixxxen]

Don't want to tread too much into your discussion but couldn't help but notice the thread title. Yeah some Avs fans still aren't happy about letting him go (generally the ones who have seen Wood play). He's going to need to keep working on his skating and using his size (he's not soft but doesn't play mean). He's a good workhorse defenseman, the system in North Bay (not Brampton) has taught him a lot and his shot is incredible. He's going to need a few years in the AHL to refine but could be a gem. Here's his hat trick from ~Feb 2014. The first one is how he scores a lot on the PP, usually the other team is smart enough to know not to leave him that wide open tho.

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[MIGs Dog]

I'm no expert judge of prospects, but yes, I think he could be a solid NHL dman. I look forward to seeing him in camp.

 

[Mosby]

One point I'd add to his positives, and this may be the biggest of all, is his shot. He has an absolute cannon. So he's similar to Michael Stone in that regard too.

 

[rt]

Funny. I didn't read the thread before I mentioned stone. I guess we're all on the same page.

 

[ck26]

Rabbit, get on it, make him a wikipedia page.

The return for Boedker was outstanding given the circumstances. Tanguay out-scored Boedker after the trade. Plus he revitalized Vermette's year. And Wood. And Bleackley / 2nd is not bad. And Tanguay held down that PP point position Boedker so completely failed to. We improved short term and long term in the same trade.

He's a big right D that can skate. Stone's body and maybe he'll be smarter with the puck. Sky's the limit.

Also, this is a funny wikipedia page:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tucson_AHL_team

 

[Ebb]

Also, this is a funny wikipedia page:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tucson_AHL_team

The Tucson Unnamed, I'll take that.

 

[Llewzaher]

Don't want to tread too much into your discussion but couldn't help but notice the thread title. Yeah some Avs fans still aren't happy about letting him go (generally the ones who have seen Wood play). He's going to need to keep working on his skating and using his size (he's not soft but doesn't play mean). He's a good workhorse defenseman, the system in North Bay (not Brampton) has taught him a lot and his shot is incredible. He's going to need a few years in the AHL to refine but could be a gem. Here's his hat trick from ~Feb 2014. The first one is how he scores a lot on the PP, usually the other team is smart enough to know not to leave him that wide open tho.

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Thanks alot

 

[Matias Maccete]

While I was bumping the Chychrun thread I saw this one. If he looks as good against the big boys as he did at prospect camp he's got top 4 D written all over him at least.

 

[RemoAZ]

Would be great to have a legit big guy that can move people out from in front of the net. And a RH shot too. REALLY rooting for this guy.

 

[AZviaNJ]

While I was bumping the Chychrun thread I saw this one. If he looks as good against the big boys as he did at prospect camp he's got top 4 D written all over him at least.

has the tools offensively...love his shot and skates well for a guy his size. Read back on this thread I see positive comments about his defensive ability as well.

He may be a huge steal. He and Chychrun seem to compliment each other well....may be a great 2nd pairing in a few years.

 

[Grimes]

has the tools offensively...love his shot and skates well for a guy his size. Read back on this thread I see positive comments about his defensive ability as well.

He may be a huge steal. He and Chychrun seem to compliment each other well....may be a great 2nd pairing in a few years.

That would be an exciting 2nd pairing.

He seems to have a similar skill set to Stone but is bigger and faster. Thought he was eye opening during the prospect game, even if he made some risky plays.

 

[lanky]

Is he actually faster than Stone though?

 

[Grimes]

Is he actually faster than Stone though?

He sure looked like he was at the prospect game.

 

[XX]

Is he actually faster than Stone though?

Stone is a pretty average skater.

 

[kihekah19*]

Is he actually faster than Stone though?

It was obvious at Stones first camp that he had everything he needed to be a strong NHL prospect EXCEPT foot speed. Now I can't comment in regard to overal top speed, but Chychrun's much smoother and has better foot speed than Stone did. He may actually be better in this regard then Stone is (well a healthy Stone) now. I haven't seen enough of him to be certain.

 

[Jakey53]

It was obvious at Stones first camp that he had everything he needed to be a strong NHL prospect EXCEPT foot speed. Now I can't comment in regard to overal top speed, but Chychrun's much smoother and has better foot speed than Stone did. He may actually be better in this regard then Stone is (well a healthy Stone) now. I haven't seen enough of him to be certain.

Chychrun is very smooth and mobile. Can't wait for main camp to see where he is development wise.

 

[lanky]

It was obvious at Stones first camp that he had everything he needed to be a strong NHL prospect EXCEPT foot speed. Now I can't comment in regard to overal top speed, but Chychrun's much smoother and has better foot speed than Stone did. He may actually be better in this regard then Stone is (well a healthy Stone) now. I haven't seen enough of him to be certain.

I know Stone isn't very fast. My question is whether Wood is any faster. Any Avs fans that doubted him, pinned their doubt on his skating ability. I think Grimes' original comparison was Stone/Wood and not Stone/Chychrun.

 

[Matias Maccete]

Wood is already a significantly better skater than stone is imo. He may not look as fast as he is because of his long stride, it's deceiving. Not comparing the players in any way shape or form but I always think of how Mario Lemieux didn't appear to moving that fast until he blew right by someone. Wood isn't even close to that level but it's still deceiving because his legs aren't moving as much as a shorter player. If he can match or get close to the rest of stones game he'll be a hell of a player.

 

[strizzy16]

All sounds very promising about Wood. as he develops it will make the Boedker trade look better and better. tanguay didn't matter, but other than that we got Wood and the Bleakley compensatory pick was used to acquire the pick where we took Chycrun. I'm happy about it so far.

 

[Grimes]

Tanguay also helped keep the team afloat. Helped the team win games which is good for the rookies. We didn't flush the season down the toilet with that trade and got two assets that may make a huge impact on the franchises future. Win-win-win.