I am fairly surprised that Ayrton Martino isn't ranked higher than he is. I've seen many reports saying that he's the fastest/best skater in the draft. He's also a playmaker (which tends to translate well), has a high hockey IQ, and had good overall production.
Players with these attributes tend to succeed in the NHL. He's small, but he's not overly physical anyways.
I wouldn't be surprised if he goes way higher than projected. I also wouldn't be surprised if he ends up being a steal.
I think Mackie Samoskevich is in that same boat, and I wouldn't be surprised to see one, or both of these guys in the first. To a lesser degree, I think Red Savage will be a big riser as well. Lots of first-rate defensemen in the USHL that will surprise too, methinks.
LW/RW Isak Rosen,5'11"161lbs (Leksands J20, SWE):12gp/7g/5a/12pts (second in team scoring, and one of only 2 ppg players. In just 12 games, he was 4th among draft-eligibles from the J20 with 0.667 even-strength, primary ppg). He earned a 22 game stint in the SHL, with only 1 point. At the U-18s he put up 7g/2a/9pts in 7 games, tied for first on the team with Lysell. I have to add that in the games I watched, I liked Rosen better than Lysell-I thought Rosen was much more of a facilitator than Lysell. Rosen has been a prolific scorer at every level he's played. He is a highly skilled playmaker and goal-scorer who forces his opponents to respect his skill. Elite puck-skill, he can weave through opponents with his feet and stickhandling. He has a great all-around game, and his teammates want the puck on his stick.
Rosen is a very strong skater with good acceleration, and some of the finest mechanics in the draft. He's very slippery and hard to stop with his advanced edgework. Attacks open ice, is agile and can change gears instantly. He's often the first to loose pucks. His shot is top-notch, and he shoot on the rush. Excellent snappers and one-timers. Rosen might be the best transitional player in this draft, it's rare to see him enter or exit a zone without control. He explodes into transition.
Rosen is exceptional at reading the game, and he does so very well in all 3 zones-he's never out of position.This vision helps him out in the defensive zone, as he gets into passing lanes and disrupts the rush. He will battle, and block shots. Gets into the zone quickly on the forecheck and pressures relentlessly. Causes defenses to turn over the puck.
All of Rosen's deficiencies center around the fact that he is not as yet physically developed, or strong, and this will come in time. The good news is that his Father and Uncle played in the SEL, and both had size, so he may well yet have a growth spurt. Even with no growth spurt he'll be fine if he builds muscle on his thin frame. He doesn't do too well in net-front battles, or board battles as he gets overpowered. In addition, he's a different player when he plays against men, much more tentative-this has brought into question his ceiling in the NHL. I think however, that he'll be fine in that regard. His skating, while nearly elite, lacks an elite top gear, which will come as he gets stronger. I've read that he compares to Viktor Arvidsson, and Nikolaj Ehlers. I thought I would profile him, as I've seen him lasting into the 2nd round in some Mocks.
Last edited by Sandman; 06-02-2021 at 01:22 AM.
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LHD Isaac Belliveau, 6'2"185lbs (Gatineau, QMJHL): Last year (2019-20) on a star-studded Rimouski team that included Lafreniere, Pare, and Zavgorodniy, Belliveau finished 4th on the team with 53 pts in 62 games. Apparently, his production didn't falter without Lafreniere when Laf was suspended, or away at the WJC. This year, he started out with that same team, minus a lot of their high-end talent, scoring 5pts in 16 games. He was traded to a rebuilding Gatineau team, where he put up 12pts in 21 games. He has warts, but I'm intrigued.
He obviously has size, but he's also a smooth skater, and shows good edges and agility. He has solid positioning, and good gap control. Solid wrister, can hit the net from distance. He loves to jump up into the rush. Distributes the puck very well while walking the blueline, finds the difficult seams and executes. He's an excellent creator of offense, and has a good variety of passes, including his breakouts.
The bad news is that he is inconsistent from shift-to-shift. Sometimes he makes bad reads in transition and in the defensive zone, other times he handles those situations well. I question his top gear, and his backwards skating. Reminds me a little of Jeremie Poirier, who seems be working at rounding out his game, and hopefully, the same is true for Belliveau. Ranked 83rd by THN.
Last edited by Sandman; 06-02-2021 at 02:33 AM.
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C Samu Salminen, 6'3"190lbs (Jokerit U20,FIN): 17gp/10g/16a/26pts. For players with more than 10 games, he's 5th in ppg. He was Captain of Finland in the U-18s, and finished with 7g/2a/9pts (3rd on the team, 1st in goals, and tied with Lysell and Rosen for 11th in the tourney).
Salminen has put up huge numbers at every level in Finland. He's a smart play-maker, can dish as well as anyone in the draft, and consistently makes good decisions all over the ice. Has top-notch vision and IQ in the offensive zone. As evidenced at the U-18s, he can pick corners with his hard, accurate shot, and goes to the net with regularity. He also works well without the puck, and understands the game, and the Center position very well-he works very hard and exhibits good positioning. He's known to be a faceoff ace-he won 70% of his draws in the tournament, the leader by a large margin. He has strong puck skills, and stickhandling proficiency. He may not be the most physical, but he competes in the greasy areas, and will lean into guys going to the net, or along the boards. Battles for loose pucks. Apparently, he prides himself on his fitness-he's in good shape.
The bad part? His skating. I don't think it's as bad as people have said it is-he most surely improved before the U-18s, but it's a project. He looks okay in straight lines, and at top speed, but everything else needs a lot of work. If he could get it to an acceptable level, he would probably be the steal of the draft. Reminds me of the situation with Dylan Strome. THN ranks him 41st, but he could go in the third round.
Last edited by Sandman; 06-02-2021 at 03:29 AM.
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C/RW Logan Stankoven, 5'8"170lbs (Kamloops, WHL): A very enjoyable player to watch, he was one of my faves from the U-18s. 6gp/7g/3a/10pts for Kamloops this year, and 8pts in 7 games in the tourney. Last year he was Western Conference Rookie of the Year in the Dub with 59gp/29g/19a/48pts. Plays at a high-gear, with high compete, high motor, and high-tempo. Fearless.
Stanky makes things happen, even out of nothing, all over the ice. He's got great puck skills, strong puck management, and amazing 1-on-1 ability. He's been called an elite forechecker. His forte just might be his shot-he has one of the quickest, most accurate shots in the draft, and he can score from anywhere. He doesn't leave gaps in the defensive zone, or the neutral zone-he attacks the puck. He will battle anyone, anywhere on the ice, and never gives up on a play.
There have been some mixed reviews on his skating, and i firmly side with those who say his skating is near-elite. In the U-18s, his skating looked like a big strength of his, and it kind of makes me mad to read about his skating being mediocre. He was faster than most, according to what I saw. He can pivot and turn well, and has great lateral speed and agility. He needs the most work on getting stronger, as he can lose battles due to his size. He also needs to learn to use his teammates more, and some of his passes (like his cross-ice) can be inaccurate at times. He has all the tools to be a top-6 player, though. THN ranks him 39th.
Last edited by Sandman; 06-02-2021 at 04:08 AM.
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LHD Olen Zellweger,5'10"174lbs (Everett,WHL):11gp/2g/11a/13pts, and at the U-18s, he had 7gp/1g/7a/8pts- tied for 1st in the tournament for D. He's another one of my favorites from that tournament, and another mighty mite with a good motor and never-quit attitude. Zellweger makes a positive difference in all 3 zones, and can be a minute-muncher. Another extremely fun player to watch.
Olen's speed is explosive, and capable of shutting down attackers and choking out rushes. His elite bursts can win pucks, or help him activate off of the point. Truly great 4-directional mobilty, with elite edges and agility, and has great stickhandling to match. Zellweger is a fantastic distributor in all 3 zones, and in transition. His offensive awareness is off the charts. His top-notch vision and IQ goes well with his elite, precise passing, and his cannon of a shot. He has many ways of separating man from puck, and will battle in the dirty areas.
Zellweger competes hard, but there's a perception that he has a few defensive deficiencies that will get ironed out as he matures. Like all smaller guys, he needs to get bigger and stronger. He has top-4 potential. I think he'll go late second, early third.
Last edited by Sandman; 06-02-2021 at 04:41 AM.
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Might be one of those Ilya Solovyov type picks in the later rounds. Definitely has that speed and high end skillset Flames fans would want want Flames to draft. RHS, ppg in a nowhere QMJHL team...
Forgive the poop music in the video, but I definitely see NHL skill here.
19 years old... I'd spend a draft pick here.
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A tightening of the picks before and after the group as well. Kent Johnson now at 7.86 from 7.00, but still out. Fyodor Svechkov at 17.43 getting much closer to the group as well.
So far I have ...
FC Hockey
Cosentino
Ryan Kennedy
Steve Kournianos
Bob McKenzie
Craig Button
Forbes - Hockey Writers
Fire away if you guys find others that are worthy for the list. I've always been interested in Button and especially Kournianos.
Ryan Pike added to the list ... I think I know that guy.
He put a bullet in Svhechkov and sent him down the list and out of the Calgary range.
Kent Johnson creeps closer at 8.13, Raty at 17.63
FC Hockey
Cosentino
Ryan Kennedy
Steve Kournianos
Bob McKenzie
Craig Button
Ryan Pike
Forbes - Hockey Writers
Another update ...
This one is interesting as Wallstedt moves out of the Flames range (clearly I change the range tonight if sorry when they win the lottery) as he picked up two 4th rankings.
On the other end of the range Lambos slides down, and Raty moves into the heart of that section.
I hope the flames dont get Raty, I dont like the idea of picking a guy who is sliding. Also He hasn't shown progression from D-1 year to warrant a mid 1st (lottery)
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This one is interesting as Wallstedt moves out of the Flames range (clearly I change the range tonight if sorry when they win the lottery) as he picked up two 4th rankings.
On the other end of the range Lambos slides down, and Raty moves into the heart of that section.
FC Hockey
Dobber (Ferrari)
Cosentino
Ryan Kennedy
Steve Kournianos
Bob McKenzie
McKeen's
Craig Button
Ryan Pike
Forbes - Hockey Writers
I do think Wallstedt will be picked prior to the Flames, no matter the consensus rankings. (Detroit, SJ, LA, perhaps). I also think the Flames will have a choice amongst a really nice group.
__________________
From HFBoard oiler fan, in analyzing MacT's management:
O.K. there has been a lot of talk on whether or not MacTavish has actually done a good job for us, most fans on this board are very basic in their analysis and I feel would change their opinion entirely if the team was successful.
If Wallstedt is available at 13 or 14 when they pick, would you take him?
I might let someone else offer the moon for him.
For one, that would be a good trading piece to the Sabres for Eichel.
I think you could get a 2022 1st packaged with a mid 20’s 1st if a team wanted to bite. No knock on Wallstedt, he’s a great prospect. I just want us getting a skater with our first rounder if we use it.
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I would absolutely love it if some teams released a bulk of their draft prep after the fact this year. I know it won't happen, but I think stuff like that is always interesting, but in this pandemic year? Fascinating.
I am really interested to see how Bingo's averages line-up with what ends up happening. Those averages are usually pretty strong every draft, with only a couple of big surprises (hello Columbus last year!).
This year, with limited number of games, often no scouts being allowed in person, players having to play not only on different teams, but in different leagues, different countries and even on a different continent. How many viewings did a team get? Etc.. Everything is so different. My bet is that the variance is larger than it is most years, making it slightly less important where your pick falls.
However, maybe there becomes less surprises in the variance? Maybe some teams are less inclined to deviate much from the lists out there because they aren't as sure on some kids as they would like to be? Maybe they haven't been able to get enough eyes out there at times to see other kids really shine enough at those moments that would have otherwise had them deciding on that kid.
Will be interesting to see if the variance (or surprises) seem to be larger or smaller. Maybe a lot more prospects from the 2nd (and even 3rd round and beyond) find themselves drafted in the first?
One interesting aspect is that we know that teams like to try and figure out who else is high on a kid. For instance, Calgary knew that Boston was interested in Gaudreau, so they tried to figure out when to take Gaudreau. They were surprised when Tampa took Kucherov. Calgary knew that Montreal and NJ were two of the teams that may have taken Jankowski that year too. They watch to see which other teams' scouts are often in attendance, and I assume most other teams do exactly the same. I wonder if that will translate into more variance, as it is much less likely for teams to know right now who the prospects are that other teams are valuing.
Going to be a damn interesting draft.
I think long-term, there are going to be a lot of surprises - more busts than usual in the 1st and 2nd round, more kids that surprise in later rounds. I think this will be a draft that will be talked about for the next couple of decades.
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