Craig Button - TSN Director of Scouting
March 28th - TSN 1260
QMJHL focus. bonus talk on Mike Reilly
https://soundcloud.com/pipeline-show/craig-button-mar28
Mike Reilly- he is dynamic, brilliant mind, excellent vision
- really makes things happen from the blueline
- for Button, Reilly among Dubnyk would be the most coveted free agent this summer
D Jakub Zboril- had a knee injury and missed an early part of this calendar year
- big time competitor
- not going to put up massive number of points
- can effectively move the puck out of his own zone
- he is going to separate opponents from the puck in defensive zone with his quickness and determination to get involved in body on body battles
- can get up in attack and has a good shot, but not talking about a prolific point producer
- style comparable: Marc Staal - can play big and strong in his own zone and when required can make good plays in the offensive zone, but can certainly get the puck out of his own zone
D Thomas Chabot- after the trio of Hanifin, Werenski, and Provorov; Chabot is clearly the next guy in Button's mind
- depending on team he might even be higher than some of the guys in the aforementioned trio
- he is smooth and has a great mind
- makes plays of all kinds under pressure
- he understands where options are and never panics
- efficient "crisp" defenceman
- wherever there is trouble, it is quickly over when he gets control of the play
- exceptional skater
- game has progressed since he was 16, kept getting better and better and better - no reason to think that won't continue
RW Daniel Sprong- very interesting player
- could arguably be one of the most skilled players in this draft
- has a real determination to make a difference in the game
- some moments in the game where he tries to force the issue - not because he isn't a smart player
- he needs to understand how at times to get his skills into the game and when those times aren't there how he continues to work the game so that he doesn't butt up against it
- for a lot of players that is a developmental issue
- one concern is that he is too individualistic
- if you don't distribute the puck you become very easy to check and defend against
- despite abundance of skill, you gotta know how to play with others and open up plays for them - if you don't you aren't going to come anywhere near maximizing your skills
C Filip Chlapik- Filip is an all around centerman
- not going to wow you with end to end rush or jaw dropping skill
- smart and competitive
- in the guts of the action
- willing to play defence as much as offence
- these type of centers find their ways onto successful teams
- a player like Pavel Zacha came in with a lot of hype and right now don't see a lot of difference between Zacha and Chlapik
- a team with 2 first rounders might decide to pass on Zacha and get a similar player in the late 1st round with Chlapik
- comparison: Antoine Vermette but not as good a skater as Vermette. An all around center - not a #1 center but a center that rounds out your group
RW Timo Meier- compared to other Swiss players drafted in the NHL: different than Baertschi, a little similar to Nino Niederreiter in the sense that he is a big winger and strong
- can't really think of any real dynamic top-end Swiss offensive player that he would compare to
- has a real power to his game
- has an ability to not only beat you with skill but also power
- not talking about running you over like Lucic
- he gets under guys and an edge on you physically
- has great leverage in his skating
- great strength in his upper body
- really drives the puck to the net and scoring areas
- as good at finishing plays as he is making plays
- these type of players are not commonplace
- fully expecting Meier to be a top 10-12 picks
- he is also a late birthday