I think Florida is out of reach at this point. They've shown nothing to indicate that they can string any wins together. At his point it's holding off Ottawa and hoping the Islanders can win some games.
ranks #2 in his scout poll of best OHL prospects (only guy besides Ekblad to get a #1 vote)
not sure if he could step into nhl next year
very strong overall player, doesn't really have weakness
terrific skater, great hands, great play with and without the puck, leader for his team
when he has been out of the lineup, the Frontenacs haven't been the same
very aggressive player, gets in on the forecheck and hits people
thinks if Bennett were to go into the NHL next season he will struggle with the size aspect, doesn't think he is strong enough yet, needs another year in junior
Ekblad
thinks Ekblad is ready for the NHL next year (big and strong enough)
seems to elevate his game in the playoffs and WJC
thinks his OHL career is done when Colts are eliminated
surprised by improvement in offensive game this year (previously thought of him as a defensive first dman with a little bit of offense)
shown a lot of offense this year particularly on the PP making him more of a 2-way dman now
thinks Ekblad is closer to the NHL than Darnell Nurse because of size and strength while Nurse is still growing into his body
Dal Colle
would NOT consider him a classic power forward like Shanahan or Lucic
will drive to the net and he will use his size offensively, but he doesn't throw his weight around
more of an offensive guy who just happens to be a bigger kid
needs to make improvements on the defensive end
needs to work on the consistency of the back check
some issues with his intensity level this year especially without the puck
his bread and butter is his shot, great release
projects to be a 30-40 goal scorer at NHL level
Ritchie
very good skater for his size, almost elusive, surprises defenders by his ability to go around them
Flaming wonders if he has some physical maturing left to do (says there looks to be baby fat in Ritchie's pictures)
his conditioning is a legitimate concern, always comes up in conversations at the rink around Ritchie, something he will need to work on
Brother Brett will help him in that area (conditioning)
Perlini
impressive improvement this year
has the size and skill package
like Dal Colle would NOT consider him to be a power forward, just a big guy that has skill
comparable to Jeff Carter
terrific shot, great skater, thinks game well
starting to improve his play away from the puck a lot, impressed by his back checking
Dal Colle vs Ritchie vs Perlini
thinks its very close between Dal Colle, Ritchie and Perlini
if a team thinks Ritchie can get past his consistency issues, then thinks a team will pick him over the other guys because he has the most potential
Dal Colle has been the most consistent and probably the safest pick amongst the three
Perlini is the wild card - best skater of the three, doesn't play with the same talent as the other 2, wasn't as hyped as Dal Colle or Ritchie and sort of came out of nowhere
Ho-Sang
Flaming says he got a bunch of texts/tweets about Ho-Sang from scouts warning him about Ho-Sang
Otten didn't like him last year, really struggled and didn't use his teammates
impressed this year made great strides on how to use teammates
his hockey sense has developed this year and he doesn't try to force offensive plays to happen anymore
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Ditto. He's kinda been the guy I've had my eye on for the past couple months, really like his game. A little concerned if he might be more of a winger then center in the NHL but despite that he's the guy I want, just see a tonne of upside there. Hoping the Islanders can pass the Flames and we land in the #4 spot. The draft seems a little wide open this year and always a chance someone goes "off the board" (There is no board) and he gets to us at 4.
Ditto. He's kinda been the guy I've had my eye on for the past couple months, really like his game. A little concerned if he might be more of a winger then center in the NHL but despite that he's the guy I want, just see a tonne of upside there. Hoping the Islanders can pass the Flames and we land in the #4 spot. The draft seems a little wide open this year and always a chance someone goes "off the board" (There is no board) and he gets to us at 4.
All it would take is Buffalo deciding to take Ekblad. Then the Oilers would likely take Draisaitl, leaving us with either Reinhart or Bennett depending on who the Panthers take.
In my mind, this is a best-case scenario, but its possible. I'd be happy with us landing either of the Sam's.
ranks #2 in his scout poll of best OHL prospects (only guy besides Ekblad to get a #1 vote)
not sure if he could step into nhl next year
very strong overall player, doesn't really have weakness
terrific skater, great hands, great play with and without the puck, leader for his team
when he has been out of the lineup, the Frontenacs haven't been the same
very aggressive player, gets in on the forecheck and hits people
thinks if Bennett were to go into the NHL next season he will struggle with the size aspect, doesn't think he is strong enough yet, needs another year in junior
Ekblad
thinks Ekblad is ready for the NHL next year (big and strong enough)
seems to elevate his game in the playoffs and WJC
thinks his OHL career is done when Colts are eliminated
surprised by improvement in offensive game this year (previously thought of him as a defensive first dman with a little bit of offense)
shown a lot of offense this year particularly on the PP making him more of a 2-way dman now
thinks Ekblad is closer to the NHL than Darnell Nurse because of size and strength while Nurse is still growing into his body
Dal Colle
would NOT consider him a classic power forward like Shanahan or Lucic
will drive to the net and he will use his size offensively, but he doesn't throw his weight around
more of an offensive guy who just happens to be a bigger kid
needs to make improvements on the defensive end
needs to work on the consistency of the back check
some issues with his intensity level this year especially without the puck
his bread and butter is his shot, great release
projects to be a 30-40 goal scorer at NHL level
Ritchie
very good skater for his size, almost elusive, surprises defenders by his ability to go around them
Flaming wonders if he has some physical maturing left to do (says there looks to be baby fat in Ritchie's pictures)
his conditioning is a legitimate concern, always comes up in conversations at the rink around Ritchie, something he will need to work on
Brother Brett will help him in that area (conditioning)
Perlini
impressive improvement this year
has the size and skill package
like Dal Colle would NOT consider him to be a power forward, just a big guy that has skill
comparable to Jeff Carter
terrific shot, great skater, thinks game well
starting to improve his play away from the puck a lot, impressed by his back checking
Dal Colle vs Ritchie vs Perlini
thinks its very close between Dal Colle, Ritchie and Perlini
if a team thinks Ritchie can get past his consistency issues, then thinks a team will pick him over the other guys because he has the most potential
Dal Colle has been the most consistent and probably the safest pick amongst the three
Perlini is the wild card - best skater of the three, doesn't play with the same talent as the other 2, wasn't as hyped as Dal Colle or Ritchie and sort of came out of nowhere
Ho-Sang
Flaming says he got a bunch of texts/tweets about Ho-Sang from scouts warning him about Ho-Sang
Otten didn't like him last year, really struggled and didn't use his teammates
impressed this year made great strides on how to use teammates
his hockey sense has developed this year and he doesn't try to force offensive plays to happen anymore
From that description I want Perlini out of the three.
After some youtube scouting on Perlini, Ritchie and Dal Colle.
1. Perlini. (Very Jeff Carter like aside from the left hand shot) Will certainly need another year in juniors and that isn't a bad thing. I love Jeff Carters game so I'd definitely like the Flames to take the bait on this kid.
2. Dal Colle. Good playmaking vision, Decent shot. nothing to complain about aside from the continuous comments about him disappearing a lot.
3. Ritchie. I can think of three players I'd put ahead of him. Even in highlight packages specifically designed to show his upside theres still something missing there. Definitely put Guys like Dal Colle, Virtanen and Perlini ahead of him.
I posted in THW draft thread in the Back Burner forums that I'm a big fan of Nikolai Goldobin. Fast, elite offensive skill , high hockey IQ and a killer shot. It's been said many times by many scouts where his deficiencies lie and thats defensively but hes definitely not on Yaks level of terribleness. 6'0 181lbs is the biggest I've found people reporting him on being. 5'11 and 173 being the smallest. Still some room to grow but I'd take a shot at him if Perlini/Dal Colle werent available. I'd personally put Goldobin ahead of Ritchie on my list.
His placing could be all over the map in the first round this year. Could definitely see a top ten team take him high outside of the top four and will not be surprised one bit. And I could also see him fall into the early second round too (where it would be insane for the Flames not to take him with their scond rounder if he fell that far. Which I doubt he will)
The more I'm reading up on Perlini the more I'm warming up to the idea of drafting him.
From what I read he has ability to singlehandedly turn a game around, big & strong and skilled and willing to get into the dirty areas. Committed to two-way defensive play. Gifted with scoring streaks. We definitely need those type of wingers badly.
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As we get closer and closer to finding out the actual pick the Flames will be drafting at, names like Ritchie and Perlini are getting a lot more attention. Great to see that kind of excitement even if we aren't picking top 3.
The more I read about Sam Bennett the more I want the guy to be drafted by the Flames. Seems like his only weakness is size and strength which can be corrected with diet and gym.
