Hunter "Call Me Bruce" Brzustewicz (brew-STEHV-itch )

[cral12]

(posted some of this in the Lindy trade thread, but this fascinating prospect deserves his own thread)

We had Hunter ranked 59th for last year's draft via E-Mac's Final Rankings.

From CP's own Sandman at Upside:

"Hunter Brzustewicz is one of the older players available in the draft, with a November 2004 birthday, but that shouldn't throw shade over his 57 points in 68 games for the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL, which is 28 points ahead of his nearest teammate. Like Akey, he is tagged with the label "modern-day defenseman", but is also often called "reliable", and a "two-way defenseman". Also like Akey, he may live to outclass his draft position. Another six-footer, he's said to be much stronger than his size, but he tends to use his superb skating and positioning to kill rushes, and break up the forecheck, but will use physicality when needed, and will fight hard in the dirty areas. Calm under pressure, but plays with pace and maturity, and of course- he will lead the transition. He needs some work on his gap control, according to some pundits, and his shot needs work- but some of those pundits say he might be one of the most NHL-ready defensemen in the draft."
~ from Sandman's Scouting Notebook

His other rankings pre-draft:

2023 NHL Entry Draft: Ranked #52 by Elite Prospects

2023 NHL Entry Draft: Ranked #51 by FCHockey

2023 NHL Entry Draft: Ranked #61 by TSN/Craig Button

2023 NHL Entry Draft: Ranked #66 by McKeen's Hockey

2023 NHL Entry Draft: Ranked #52 by TSN/McKenzie

2023 NHL Entry Draft: Ranked #41 by NHL Central Scouting

OHL Scout from McKeens - knows his stuff:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752876066312429896

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752876709085434126

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752878552863965658

But wait, there's more:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752878486023450957

What the Calgary Flames are getting in top prospect Hunter Brzustewicz?
DailyFaceoff (I initially typed FailyFaceoff as an aside lol)
"Acquired on Wednesday as part of the Elias Lindholm trade, there’s a bit of high-risk, high-reward with the 6-foot-0 right-handed defender. Through 47 games, Brzustewicz has an OHL-leading 61 assists and 69 total points, good for third in league scoring. No other defenseman has come close to touching his numbers in the CHL this season.

“The way he touches the puck, the way he distributes it, it’s elite at this level,” a scout said. “This is Brandt Clarke-level dominance.”
https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/wh...er-brzustewicz

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752891579927572618

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752909490167423205

FC's & CP's Vickers:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752873754231980219

[GioforPM]

Bruce eh?

Wayne? Banner? Lee? Springsteen? Willis? Great White Shark?

[Heavy Jack]

Bruce, there it is!?

[FanIn80]

Brzustewicz: Whoa, baby. This is a bit of a surprise. Brzustewicz profiles extremely well for a right-handed defenseman in his draft-plus-one season. The 2023 third-round pick doesn’t just lead all OHL defenders in scoring this year; he’s third in the entire league, regardless of position, with 69 points in 47 games. At 6′ even, Brzustewicz (pronounced brew-STEV-itch) certainly isn’t the biggest guy out there, but he’s a mobile and creative defender with excellent production. He’s a big get for a Flames team that needs a lot of help on the blue line going forward.

https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/gr...ificant-assets

[Icon]

I'm going with Brewsky.

[cral12]

More on pronounciation:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752875046966530550

Lol

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752919223477694596

Scorp:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752909815293313236

Freeway:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752917297893982696

And from more colleagues:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752874422170751281

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752874962774310928

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752877332128256212

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752873060988821602

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752872300582740367

From behind enemy lines:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752878687283003571

Oh, he also likes Legos fwiw, apparently

[cral12]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1752876358546645000

***
From few wks back:

CHL notebook: Canucks prospect Brzustewicz shining in OHL
NHL.com's Adam Kimmelman
Just how remarkable a season is Vancouver Canucks defenseman prospect Hunter Brzustewicz having?

"The 19-year-old, selected in the third round (No. 75) of the 2023 NHL Draft, leads the OHL with 60 points (seven goals, 53 assists) in 38 games for Kitchener. Only one defenseman has ever led the OHL in scoring, Bryan Fogarty with 155 points (47 goals, 108 assists) in 1988-89 for Niagara Falls. The last defenseman to finish in the top five was Ryan Ellis, who was fifth with 101 points (24 goals, 77 assists) with Windsor in 2010-11."

"He's really made strides with shooting the puck more, getting a little bit more velocity on his shots, getting pucks to the net, having more of a shot mentality," said Mike Komisarek, who works in player development for the Canucks. "I think when you're a passer and that's your kind of first threat, people almost allow you to shoot and they start taking away the pass. So, he's become more well-rounded in that aspect."
https://www.nhl.com/news/chl-noteboo...tewicz-shining

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

Is that one tweeter sure about the "not offensively dynamic" part?

Cauuse he's kind of looking to be just that. Up with the likes of Hughes, Fox, Hamilton, etc.

[Macho0978]

Thanks for this! I was looking for his pre-draft rankings this morning!

So basically, was a top 50 prospect from last draft that was said to have 50 1st round caliber players. He looks to be the key player in the deal.

[renny]

Sounds like he could be a Kylington type, that's not bad, you can teach someone to play defence, offense not so much.

[Macho0978]

Originally Posted by renny

Sounds like he could be a Kylington type, that's not bad, you can teach someone to play defence, offense not so much.

I'm thinking Adam Fox here

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

I consider him a late 1st type of pick given pre-draft rankings and his current D+1 season.

Kuzmenko, two late 1sts, a 3rd (Jurmo), and a 4th that could become another 3rd.

[Puppet Guy]

The Frightenstein fans of CP shall know him as...BRUCIE!:

[Macho0978]

Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent

I consider him a late 1st type of pick given pre-draft rankings and his current D+1 season.

Kuzmenko, two late 1sts, a 3rd (Jurmo), and a 4th that could become another 3rd.

That how I look at it. He was 75th in a strong draft, ranked around top 50 who is having a huge draft +1 season. Doubt he falls to the 3rd if they redrafted the 2023 draft. Has to be considered 1st round equivalent at this point.

[TheScorpion]

I think this guy is really exciting.

[Macho0978]

If Kuzmenko turns it around, Conroy keeps adding assets and hit home runs on buy low guys. What else do you want from a GM?

Oh yeah, refuses to just dish out bad contracts too

[renny]

Originally Posted by Macho0978

I'm thinking Adam Fox here

That would be pretty incredible!

[JonDuke]

As someone with an similarly long and difficult (Polish) last name, I'm excited to see a few jerseys with "wicz"
This kid looks crazy exiting.

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

Originally Posted by Macho0978

If Kuzmenko turns it around, Conroy keeps adding assets and hit home runs on buy low guys. What else do you want from a GM?

Oh yeah, refuses to just dish out bad contracts too

If Brad continued here, you could bet there would be another costly mistake or two made in the same time that Conroy's been GM.

Conroy's patience has paid off very nicely, as well as holding the line with contract talks.

For as calculated as Brad came across, he was also a bit impulsive and was enamored with more than a few questionable players.

[Wastedyouth]

Um, not to be excited about him, but he's 19 and scoring at a ridiculous rate in the OHL. Only 18 points are on the PP.

You shouldn't not be excited about this kid, he's unreal.