[Sandman]

Draft Thoughts (Hidden Gems Edition, Vol. 40):

RD Evan Passmore (6'4",209)
Barrie (OHL): 62gp/ 3g/ 8a/ 11pts, -1, 58 PIM

In a draft full of behemoth defenders, righty Evan Passmore (ranked #55 NA Skaters) of the Barrie Colts, who were the OHL's Central Division Champions, seems to have plenty of fans in the scouting world. Passmore is a shutdown defender with a robust physical game, and skates quite well for a big man with fluid mechanics on a long, powerful stride. He accelerates fairly rapidly, transitions smoothly, and exhibits solid agility in his cuts and pivots, with the quickness to match footwork with smaller opponents. He is solid on his skates with good balance, and very difficult to knock off stride; when attackers try to bodycheck him, they usually end up on their backs. A violent defender with plenty of snarl, he delivers hits not only to cause disruption and separate his man from the puck, but also to punish and intimidate, making him a menace in all three zones. He seems to initiate contact every chance he gets, never leaving a check unfinished, and many of his hits result in his opponents being sprawled out on the ice in his wake. His thunderous bodychecks can shift momentum for his team and cause agitation for the opposition, and he will drop the gloves if challenged.

Passmore has a long reach, a lengthy wingspan, and an expansive range that's impossible for attackers to navigate, helping him to kill plays and extinguish the rush, and making the process appear effortless. He repels entries with suffocating gap control, and employs his smooth lateral agility to surf across the ice to layer stiff hits on top of deft stickwork to poke pucks out of danger. In the zone, he makes an effort to keep pucks away from the middle by keeping attacks outside with adroit stickwork to tip away passes to the inside and sweep pucks off of sticks, and he rebuffs opponents from cutting to the slot. He is aggressive and mean in defending his net, rubs opponents out along the wall, and dominates physically down-low. While exhibiting solid awareness and smart positioning defensively, he locks down secondary threats, blocks shots, and intercepts passes. He then recovers the puck smoothly while shaking off pressure and scanning thoroughly to get the puck moving in the right direction with mostly short and simple feeds, but he flashes the ability to stretch the ice on longer-range breakouts on occasion. Passmore's puck-skill is reasonably good, but nothing too special or dynamic, and he keeps his carries safe, simple, and brief; he sometimes has trouble maintaining control of the puck at high-speeds, and can struggle with catching in full-flight. In transition, he supports the play from the back with short connective passes, and is often the last player to enter the offensive zone.

Passmore has a virtual cannon from the point, and he can fire through traffic to the net in order to create chaos in-front and provide teammates with rebound opportunities, but he needs a more deceptive release, as his shot gets blocked quite a bit. With his team installed in the zone, he holds the line well and will pinch in to keep the play alive and extend offensive zone time. Though he lacks vision and creativity, he activates into the play quite often in search of opportunities- but he needs to improve his skill and playmaking ability to be able to capitalize more often. He is more of a facilitator than a true creator, at least right now. If Passmore can add another layer or two to his puck-skill, and hone his play a bit more in the offensive-third, he could end up potentially playing in an NHL team's second-pairing, but for now- he looks like a fantastic bottom-pairing, shutdown defender. Look for him in the third-round, with the possibility of moving up to the second.