[Sandman]

Draft Thoughts (What's In A Name? Edition):

If the NHL Draft was based on how cool a potential draftees' name was, then RW/C Zaki Crookes would surely be drafted 2nd-overall, behind John Mustard. Crookes was tied for 8th in scoring by U-18 players in Sweden's J20 league, with 14 goals and 39 points in 45 games for Leksands IF, a rather middling team that lost in the quarterfinals of the playoffs to Skelleftea AIK. Crookes, who stands 6'1", and weighs in at a lanky 161lbs, could only muster 1 assist in 5 playoff games.

Crookes' stride is short, choppy, and lacking in power with average speed at best- but his 1-on-1 skills, deception and smooth stickhandling help him to move through traffic like a ghost at times, and he still manages to get behind defenses for breakaways. His edges and agility are finely-tuned, making him highly elusive and shifty, and he can go end-to-end on occasion despite his mobility issues. He is helped along by his long reach and impenetrable puck-protection- he angles his feet and body away from sticks, and slips through checks, making it very hard to strip him of the puck. Crookes is blessed with high-end puck skills, featuring fast hands and slick moves, such as using toe-drags to move around checkers and their sticks- the puck seems to be glued to his blade. His shot is deceptive, with pinpoint accuracy, but he needs to work on it's power. Most of his goals seem to come from in-close, with nifty moves to deke goalies out of their jockstraps, or from finding openings to get to dangerous scoring positions. He shows a knack for sneaking in behind the defense to attack the net. Crookes is a strong playmaker with high IQ, vision, and awareness and can pull off passes of a more complex variety to teammates in high-danger that few others could see- often, his teammates aren't ready for them either, or expecting them. He is able to make sound decisons quickly, finding soft spots to move through and using open space to wait for the right play- he earns the time and space for teammates to get set up, rather than forcing a pass, or throwing the puck away.

In transition, Crookes' skating often hurts his effectiveness, so he will avoid carrying for long, instead deferring to his teammates or working give-and-go's when moving north. Off the puck, he skates smart routes and stays in the proper lanes to stay playable and support the play. As with his offensive zone play, he makes intelligent reads defensively and exerts solid proactive positioning to counter his opponents movements. He supports his D down low, and pressures the point using a smart, well-timed stick. Unfortunately, his lack of speed and strength pervades his entire game, and hurts his quickness and overall pace on both the forecheck and backcheck. He lacks physicality, and stays out of battles, and although he will throw the odd hit once in a while, he's a bit passive. He has a long way to go physically to add strength and mass, and to get his mobility up to par. Crookes reminds me a bit of Alex Tanguay when he was in junior, with the skating issues combined with high-quality playmaking, but Crookes doesn't have nearly as much impact on scoresheets as one would expect- certainly not enough to call him an elite offensive talent just yet, but he does have talent to work with, and a fairly well-rounded game. If he's drafted, he will have to wait until the later rounds.