If Virtanen didn't play in Calgary, we'd not be having this discussion. Dal Colle outscored Virtanen by a mile (95 points to 71). Ritchie is a guy who can fight and is physically imposing.
The reason people find Virtanen attractive is his 45 goals and his 100PIMs, along with his size and speed. He is one of the fastest prospects available, and they have an easier time adjusting to the NHL in terms of being able to create space for themselves. There are not many prospects in any given year that can score at his clip (and that is an understatement).
I do think Dal Colle and Ritchie both have more to offer - but there is a lot to like about Virtanen in his own right.
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The reason people find Virtanen attractive is his 45 goals and his 100PIMs, along with his size and speed. He is one of the fastest prospects available, and they have an easier time adjusting to the NHL in terms of being able to create space for themselves. There are not many prospects in any given year that can score at his clip (and that is an understatement).
I do think Dal Colle and Ritchie both have more to offer - but there is a lot to like about Virtanen in his own right.
I wasn't implying that I believe you have him jotted down in the 'suck' category. Just saying that I can see why some people feel he is in that 5-8 mix this year, that's all.
Are Ehlers, Perlini, Ritchie and Dal Colle really that much better than Virtanen or Fleury? If not, we may as well go with one of the latter two since we are so weak in RW & D prospects.
Also, unlike Dal Colle & Ritchie, Fleury & Virtanen are already excellent skaters.
Is skating an issue for Dal Colle though? The guy is fast and has quick acceleration. Maybe he is a little of a north-south skater, but nothing I read recently indicates that it's a real weakness.
Not that I am trained to know all the little details to watch for when it comes to skating, but just going by scouting reports out there.
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"A pessimist thinks things can't get any worse. An optimist knows they can."
Buffalo: Ekblad- Add to their massive d-core
Edmonton: Draisaitl- reportedly very high on him
Florida: Reinhart- He is being under-rated now
Islanders: Dal Colle- big winger to try to keep JT happy
Calgary: Bennett
Buffalo will go after a forward this year. Reinhart is touted as the best prospect, or the 2nd best prospect.
Oilers will more than likely take Ekblad as he would be the best (or the 2nd best anyways, depending on how you see it) prospect left and fills organizational need. If they don't take Ekblad, apparently they are very high on Draisaitl which fills another organizational need - 2nd line center with size.
Panthers and Isles - they could both use defencemen, but really doubtful they select a D when the next D is ranked far below. They may view Bennett differently. Perhaps with him requiring another season in junior ranks him a bit lower than Draisaitl who could be NHL ready now? Perhaps one of them rank a winger a bit higher?
I have a hard time seeing it myself, but you never know. Crosby's Hat has always been very reliable with his insider info. Besides, all it takes is for one or two players to have a very strong playoffs to change things.
Yeah, that's a good scenario too. I agree that Buffalo likely goes forward, they need them much more, but I still wouldn't be surprised at all if they took Ekblad.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperMatt18
The other potential order would be:
Buffalo: Ekblad- Add to their massive d-core
Edmonton: Draisaitl- reportedly very high on him
Florida: Reinhart- He is being under-rated now
Islanders: Dal Colle- big winger to try to keep JT happy
Calgary: Bennett
Additionally, Dal Colle would be good for Tavares, but imagine a pitbull like Bennett on his wing?
Wonder if Burke considered Monahan's remarks about liking Bennett. However, if I am Burke, if I am trading up I am going after Ekblad first. Our team would be so much better with Ekblad or Reinhart/Bennett.
Honestly, all of the top 10 prospects have something to offer to us, but I really think that those three players are NHL ready, maybe Dal Colle as well.
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Virtanen on paper is a player who should definitely go top 10, but there's obviously a reason there has been absolutely no discussion whatsoever about him going top 5.
He's possibly the fastest skater in the draft class. He has a monster shot. He's big and can play an imposing game. What's not to like? Lack of consistency has been mentioned, and I've heard nothing mentioned about his hockey IQ.
My fear is that he has all the tools but no toolbox. Any observations from our resident amateur scouts?
2010: Cam Fowler dropping to 12th
2011: Landeskog up at 2nd, Couturier at 8th
2012: Morgan Rielly 'early' at 5th, there were a number of reach picks I think this year
2013: Seth Jones down to 4th
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Is skating an issue for Dal Colle though? The guy is fast and has quick acceleration. Maybe he is a little of a north-south skater, but nothing I read recently indicates that it's a real weakness.
The problem with most reviews (that are free to the public) is that they only focus on the positives. I've seen a couple of other reports questioning his skating. Not to say it's poor, just that it needs work.
What really bugs me is that the best players who'll likely be available when the Flames pick 5-7 are all LW, the one position where we have prospects in abundance.
I wouldnt be surprised if Virtanen is the guy we take assuming Reinhart, Ekblad, Bennett, Draisaitl are all gone. He looks like a truculent Phil Kessel the way he shoots the puck and a shot like that will surely be effective at any level.
All this Virtanen talk is making me thirsty... for a freaking stiff drink.
What's your beef with him? Not saying you shouldn't be wary of this prospect, but I'm just curious to know why. On paper he looks great; probably the most 'athletic' prospect in the draft. It means if we fail at tanking and get bumped a spot to 6th or 7th after the lotto there's still a decent prospect which fills a pretty serious area of need in our prospect pool. I'm imagining him and Poirier destroying defensemen on the forecheck.
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He was named the top performer in the on-ice testing process [CHL Top Prospects Game], a variety of drills designed to measure speed, agility and reaction time, among other attributes.
According to data released by Sport Testing, Virtanen had the highest overall grade from the on-ice tests.
Among the highlights was his top time in the 30-meter forward sprint at 3.92 seconds, as well as the top time in the 30-meter backward sprint, 4.55 seconds.
I've seen him described as "The purest power forward in the draft. My main (and hopefully unjustified) fear is that he might turn out to be Rico Fata v. 2.0. All the tools, but does he have a toolbox?
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From watching this video specifically, he has bits of everything that you need, but nothing at an elite level. In that manner he's a bit like Monahan, albeit at a lesser level in virtually every way than Mono is.
Virtanen should become a solid secondary player, and anyone picking in the 7-10 range should be thrilled to get him. However, because he doesn't have that upper level skill, you're likely looking at someone that's more of a second liner at the NHL level if that.
That's not knocking him at all, he should be a successful pick for where he should go. However with the Flames likely picking in the 4-6 range, it would be a bit of a bad pick with guys that do have higher level skill like Ehlers Draisaitl, Dal Colle on the board.
He's got elite speed, an elite shot, good power and size and seems to enjoy the rough stuff. I'm not saying to pick him ahead of some others but I wouldn't be disappointed if we take him.
