Originally Posted by Sandman
Draft Thoughts (Hidden Gems Edition, Vol. 61):
LD Rio Kaiser (6'7",207lbs)
Peterborough (OHL): 25gp/ 1g/ 5a/ 6pts, -14, 42 PIM
German rearguard Rio Kaiser (ranked # 140 NA Skaters) was chosen in the 1st-round of the 2023 CHL Import Draft, 31st-overall, by the Peterborough Petes- who were able to bring the monster defenseman across the pond in January, right after he made a two-game appearance in the World Junior Championships for his homeland (0 points). Until that point, Kaiser had been playing in 3 different tiers of hockey (the same as he did in 2023-24), with 2 games in the U20 Junior league (no points and 27 PIM), 7 games in the second-tier pro league (2 assists in 7 games), and another 7 games in the top men's league (no points). Kaiser joined a Petes team that finished dead-last in the OHL this season, with the worst goals-for in the league- Willkommen in Kanada, junger Mann! While he was still adjusting to playing in North America when the season in Peterborough concluded, he has shown himself to be a humongous, physical defenseman with good mobility, who is still quite raw.
There are plenty of times when he's not moving his feet nearly enough, and he's seen gliding quite a bit, but he possesses surprising mobility when he gets going, with an elongated and powerful stride that looks projectable and fluid, on long legs. He accelerates reasonably well to a top-speed that allows him to keep up with smaller forwards on the rush. His agility and edges are also decent, giving him the capacity to make sharp cuts, and transition quickly. Kaiser is a punishing hitter, with a robust physical game and a willingness to drop the gloves; he's also a little mean, delivering an extra shot or two to his prey after a hit, and using crosschecks or slashes whenever he can. He throws his considerable weight around to dislodge pucks, dominates down-low, makes life difficult for opponents in front of the net, and can rock opponents in open-ice; his style intimidates and agitates, and he's a regular presence in post-whistle scrums. Attackers are hopelessly immobilized and neutralized when he ties them up and pins them to the wall- much like a fly in the spider's web. Kaiser was still trying to figure things out, but he can make some plays and can move the puck when given time and space. His breakouts are wildly inconsistent, but he has shown the ability to connect on some higher-end feeds when he gets the time to scan for options; even still, he usually keeps his passes short and simple, and will dump it out or clear the puck off the glass quite often. He will join the rush to attack soft spots in the slot, and has shown a willingness to activate into the play from the line. He owns a booming point shot that he gets on net with fair frequency to make plays for teammates, and he holds the line well to extend offensive-zone time for his team. Keeping his play safe and simple, he relies on risk-free distribution and dump-ins, as he gets in trouble when he tries to get too fancy.
Kaiser has improved his play against the rush by keeping his feet moving more, and was executing sound gap-control by the end of the year, with an active stick to angle opponents to the boards, then surfing across the ice quickly to close them out. At times, he's was still showing difficulty in-zone against the cycle, and was still guilty of planting his feet to puck-watch, which took him out of the play and made him late to engage attackers- his defensive awareness needs an upgrade. Even still, his enormous range is difficult for opponents to navigate when he stays active, and he uses his reach well- timing his poke-checks to disguise his wingspan. Through transition, he pushes the puck up-ice and supports the play with short passes, but can also carry through the neutral zone once in a while, showing decent puck-skills and control in-motion to evade defenders, and even challenge them one-on-one at times. Kaiser's age works against him, with an October 7th, 2006 birthday, and it seems widely accepted that he will be a bit of a project for the team that drafts him, but his blend of size, mobility, and physicality will definitely interest scouts. He still takes himself out of the play looking for the big hit, and has plenty of things in his game that he needs to clean up- particularly his on-puck play under pressure, and his mistakes in the defensive zone. Look for him in later rounds this summer.
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