2023 NHL draft rankings

[Eleven]

On 6/2/2023 at 9:12 AM, LGR4GM said:

This draft has average depth at best. Depth refers to how many NHL players we would expect to get out of this draft and the average is about 50ish. The 2023 draft looks good to outsiders because of the talent in the top 3-4 but once you clear that it becomes exceedingly average and IMPO it is a lesser draft than 2019 which had an exceptionally strong depth. 

What I am saying is this draft is average. We shouldn't be concerned with using an asset like the 13th overall pick wisely in a trade. Same goes for pick 39 and 45. It isn't like because Bedard is around we can expect to get Brayden Point at 39 because DEPTH!, instead it is pretty normal talent wise once you hit that 4/5th pick. 

I would be much happier trading the 13th pick for a player than I would be trading a defenseman for another first-round pick.  I don't mind moving 13OA at all.

[French Collection]

1 hour ago, Curt said:

I’ve been checking out some options for defensemen in rounds 2-4, because Sabres have picks 39, 45, 86, and 109.  Some RHD who caught my eye were:

Tom Willander

Oliver Bonk

Hunter Brzustewicz

Maxim Strbak

Cameron Allen

Aran Minnetian 

Andrew Gibson

Dylan MacKinnon

Gavin McCarthy

Anyone have strong opinions about any of these guys?

Willander was good at the U18s, probably the best of this bunch.
Bonk could sneak into the first round. He is a good all around Dman.

I think MacKinnon had a good playoff run which would raise his profile.

Another guy for this group is Lukas Dragicevic. He may go first round but could drop to the second. He is a converted forward who is all offense. He was a point per game in the WHL but is suspect playing actual D. Riverboat gambler is how I see him, I prefer the more well rounded type. If the Sabres didn’t have Dahlin and Power I would want a guy like that as a PP QB.

Allen has fallen from a first rounder in the fall to maybe the third or later now.

[Curt]

30 minutes ago, French Collection said:

Willander was good at the U18s, probably the best of this bunch.
Bonk could sneak into the first round. He is a good all around Dman.

I think MacKinnon had a good playoff run which would raise his profile.

Another guy for this group is Lukas Dragicevic. He may go first round but could drop to the second. He is a converted forward who is all offense. He was a point per game in the WHL but is suspect playing actual D. Riverboat gambler is how I see him, I prefer the more well rounded type. If the Sabres didn’t have Dahlin and Power I would want a guy like that as a PP QB.

Allen has fallen from a first rounder in the fall to maybe the third or later now.

Purposely omitted Dragicevic for the exact reasons you listed.  I’m looking for guys with complimentary, not overlapping, skills to Dahlin and Power.

[Marvin]

3 hours ago, Curt said:

I’ve been checking out some options for defensemen in rounds 2-4, because Sabres have picks 39, 45, 86, and 109.  Some RHD who caught my eye were:

Tom Willander

Oliver Bonk

Hunter Brzustewicz

Maxim Strbak

Cameron Allen

Aran Minnetian 

Andrew Gibson

Dylan MacKinnon

Gavin McCarthy

Anyone have strong opinions about any of these guys?

@LGR4GM and the rest of the draftniks: could we have a compilation of ratings for the above players?

[French Collection]

2 hours ago, Marvin said:

@LGR4GM and the rest of the draftniks: could we have a compilation of ratings for the above players?

I am tracking mock draft lists but am mainly concerned with potential first rounders. I have 21 lists so far but most of these guys are not on it.

This site was provided to this board earlier by @Brawndo I think.  I used it to target the above players.

https://piyer97.shinyapps.io/NHLDraft2023/

 

Willander 33.3

Allen 36.2

Bonk 37

Strbak 42.1

Brzustewicz 42.4

Minnetian 55.9

McCarthy 61.7

Gibson 68.7

MacKinnon 86.2

Dragicevic is a RHD that is all offense. His rating is 31.1

Another RHD that was not on the above list is Beau Akey at 50.7. He was the #1 Dman for Barrie of the OHL until Brandt Clarke was sent down by the LAK. His numbers fell off after January.

 

Edited June 4, 2023 by French Collection

[Crusader1969]

On 6/4/2023 at 1:39 PM, Curt said:

I’ve been checking out some options for defensemen in rounds 2-4, because Sabres have picks 39, 45, 86, and 109.  Some RHD who caught my eye were:

Tom Willander

Oliver Bonk

Hunter Brzustewicz

Maxim Strbak

Cameron Allen

Aran Minnetian 

Andrew Gibson

Dylan MacKinnon

Gavin McCarthy

Anyone have strong opinions about any of these guys?

not sure this is a strong opinion or not but I think you need to look at Willander at pick 13 not 39.

 

 

[JohnC]

For those who are draftniks, if Ryan Johnson was in this draft class would he be a lower first round or upper second round pick?

[LGR4GM]

On 6/4/2023 at 1:39 PM, Curt said:

I’ve been checking out some options for defensemen in rounds 2-4, because Sabres have picks 39, 45, 86, and 109.  Some RHD who caught my eye were:

Tom Willander

Oliver Bonk

Hunter Brzustewicz

Maxim Strbak

Cameron Allen

Aran Minnetian 

Andrew Gibson

Dylan MacKinnon

Gavin McCarthy

Anyone have strong opinions about any of these guys?

 

22 hours ago, Marvin said:

@LGR4GM and the rest of the draftniks: could we have a compilation of ratings for the above players?

Willander won't be available in the 2nd round. There is a very small outside chance he isn't available at 13 actually. Most likely scenario for him is the 16-24 range and anything after 24 seems highly unlikely. 

Oliver Bonk, good shutdown defender but the industry as a whole is higher on him than I am. He is a medicore skater and his solutions for problems isn't good. If you just want someone who can breakup a play or get the puck back, sure you can take him but I would not draft him higher than 45 and realistically view him more favorably in the 3rd. He will almost certainly go late first or early 2nd. 

Hunter Brzustewicz, old for the class and inconsistent. You might get a good puck mover with decent gap control or you are getting a good puck mover who is a liability. Late 2nd early 3rd is most likely for him but I don't love him. 

Maxim Strbak, I generally like Stbak and if his skating improves he could be very good (#4 on a good team). He has some creative elements and his defensive zone play is very sound. I don't have a good feel on where he will go but my guess is the 2nd round with a small chance of slipping into the 3rd that is probably unlikely given his size. 6'2" 198lbs

Cameron Allen, what's 5'11" and was once considered a sure fire top 15 pick? Inconsistent is the #1 word used with him this year. Idk what his deal was but he was on a bad team for most of it and just feels like the mental side of things really impacted him. At this point, he is a bit of a reclamation project. Most having him sliding into 2nd half of round 2 or 1st half of round 3. For Buffalo, I think you will have safer options at 45 and I wouldn't take him at 39. 

Aram Minnetian, is fine but in a boring sort of way. I would probably take him over some others above but he doesn't do anything fancy. Haven't done a lot on him to be truthful. 

Andrew Gibson, he's like bigger Bonk with slightly better skating but worse hands. He is a poor mans Samuelsson but I think his IQ is actually better than some give him credit for. The thing is, he's probably a 3rd pairing guy at best with maybe occasional 2nd pairing minutes. He will never run your pp or put up more than 15pts a season. I see him ranked as high as 51 which seems like a bet on his size more than his skills. His size does matter because of how he plays but idk, I think at 45 I would look for someone with more upside. 

Dylan MacKinnon, what is Rasmus Ristolainen without the offense? This guy. If you want him I would be willing to wait until the 3rd at the earliest and the 4th is a better place IMPO. Good skating and has some skill, physical when he can be, but man oh man do I question his decision making. 

Gavin McCarthy, he is super young with a june 2 bday and he got injured in, January I think, something like that. He intrigues me as a 3rd round guy but idk if I could be convinced to take him at 45. Highest ranking is 60 and I think that feels fine for him. He has some creativity and he tries stuff but I think his skating holds him back in terms of short area quickness and agility. Still there are tools in his box and he could pan out to be a #4 but that is a tough projection. 

 

Names not mentioned that you should be looking at:

Carter Sotheran, the big 6'3" RHD with a late June bday is fun. I like him at 45 for sure even if maybe that could be a hair early. The issue is skating, not so much his agility but more his explosiveness (lack thereof) that holds him back. Still I would probably take him over Bonk just because I think there is more upside for the transition game that all NHL teams play. If he gets his skating cleaned up (watch some highlights, it isn't bad just needs work) than you might have a #4 guy. 

Matthew Mania, this 6' RHD ranked 7th in the OHL for even strength points on defense. That isn't for draft eligible ppl that is for every defender in the OHL (learned this from a draft guide today). Basically this is a player with a tool box stuffed full that needs refinement refinement refinement. Just started looking at him but highlights are really fun. If you don't like risky defenders who turn stuff over though, look away. My guess is he could be there in the 3rd or 4th or 5th round, really hard to narrow that down. 

Beau Akey, 6' RHD and good. I love this kid and if he slides to 39, punch Bill Armstrong in the face to get to the podium. Guy should have got off the stage faster. Now why do I like him? Well his defensive game is solid and he uses excellent edges and an active stick to disrupt and shutdown plays. He is reasonably physical but could be more so. I think his ability to win pucks back and start up ice is really good from what I have seen. I worry that the brain hasn't caught up to the hands yet but he shows a lot of tools off that he sometimes can't quite use fully. Either way if I am sitting around at 39 and every other player discussed above is available with the exception of Wallinder, I am taking Akey. I like his skating and his d-zone that much as well as his ability to move up ice which is a must at the NHL level. He has a chance to go anywhere from 30-50 IMPO depending on how teams view that skillset. 

 

Anyways I have 3 draft guides to continue plodding through as well as whatever I dig up online so good times. 

 

[LGR4GM]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

For those who are draftniks, if Ryan Johnson was in this draft class would he be a lower first round or upper second round pick?

Like Ryan Johnson now or Ryan Johnson when he was drafted? 

Now he would be somewhere in the 20s I would guess. He has good skating, efficiently breaks up plays, can transition up ice, and has average size. Smart 2-way defender that has a chance to be a 2nd pairing guy if paired with someone who has more offense. Looking at a consolidated draft list I would put him around 26-30ish. 

Can't really say on back in the day to now because I don't remember and I wasn't as high on him as the Sabres.  In 2019 there were and are forwards who have to this point been better. 

 

Why do you ask?

[Flashsabre]

47 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

 

Willander won't be available in the 2nd round. There is a very small outside chance he isn't available at 13 actually. Most likely scenario for him is the 16-24 range and anything after 24 seems highly unlikely. 

Oliver Bonk, good shutdown defender but the industry as a whole is higher on him than I am. He is a medicore skater and his solutions for problems isn't good. If you just want someone who can breakup a play or get the puck back, sure you can take him but I would not draft him higher than 45 and realistically view him more favorably in the 3rd. He will almost certainly go late first or early 2nd. 

Hunter Brzustewicz, old for the class and inconsistent. You might get a good puck mover with decent gap control or you are getting a good puck mover who is a liability. Late 2nd early 3rd is most likely for him but I don't love him. 

Maxim Strbak, I generally like Stbak and if his skating improves he could be very good (#4 on a good team). He has some creative elements and his defensive zone play is very sound. I don't have a good feel on where he will go but my guess is the 2nd round with a small chance of slipping into the 3rd that is probably unlikely given his size. 6'2" 198lbs

Cameron Allen, what's 5'11" and was once considered a sure fire top 15 pick? Inconsistent is the #1 word used with him this year. Idk what his deal was but he was on a bad team for most of it and just feels like the mental side of things really impacted him. At this point, he is a bit of a reclamation project. Most having him sliding into 2nd half of round 2 or 1st half of round 3. For Buffalo, I think you will have safer options at 45 and I wouldn't take him at 39. 

Aram Minnetian, is fine but in a boring sort of way. I would probably take him over some others above but he doesn't do anything fancy. Haven't done a lot on him to be truthful. 

Andrew Gibson, he's like bigger Bonk with slightly better skating but worse hands. He is a poor mans Samuelsson but I think his IQ is actually better than some give him credit for. The thing is, he's probably a 3rd pairing guy at best with maybe occasional 2nd pairing minutes. He will never run your pp or put up more than 15pts a season. I see him ranked as high as 51 which seems like a bet on his size more than his skills. His size does matter because of how he plays but idk, I think at 45 I would look for someone with more upside. 

Dylan MacKinnon, what is Rasmus Ristolainen without the offense? This guy. If you want him I would be willing to wait until the 3rd at the earliest and the 4th is a better place IMPO. Good skating and has some skill, physical when he can be, but man oh man do I question his decision making. 

Gavin McCarthy, he is super young with a june 2 bday and he got injured in, January I think, something like that. He intrigues me as a 3rd round guy but idk if I could be convinced to take him at 45. Highest ranking is 60 and I think that feels fine for him. He has some creativity and he tries stuff but I think his skating holds him back in terms of short area quickness and agility. Still there are tools in his box and he could pan out to be a #4 but that is a tough projection. 

 

Names not mentioned that you should be looking at:

Carter Sotheran, the big 6'3" RHD with a late June bday is fun. I like him at 45 for sure even if maybe that could be a hair early. The issue is skating, not so much his agility but more his explosiveness (lack thereof) that holds him back. Still I would probably take him over Bonk just because I think there is more upside for the transition game that all NHL teams play. If he gets his skating cleaned up (watch some highlights, it isn't bad just needs work) than you might have a #4 guy. 

Matthew Mania, this 6' RHD ranked 7th in the OHL for even strength points on defense. That isn't for draft eligible ppl that is for every defender in the OHL (learned this from a draft guide today). Basically this is a player with a tool box stuffed full that needs refinement refinement refinement. Just started looking at him but highlights are really fun. If you don't like risky defenders who turn stuff over though, look away. My guess is he could be there in the 3rd or 4th or 5th round, really hard to narrow that down. 

Beau Akey, 6' RHD and good. I love this kid and if he slides to 39, punch Bill Armstrong in the face to get to the podium. Guy should have got off the stage faster. Now why do I like him? Well his defensive game is solid and he uses excellent edges and an active stick to disrupt and shutdown plays. He is reasonably physical but could be more so. I think his ability to win pucks back and start up ice is really good from what I have seen. I worry that the brain hasn't caught up to the hands yet but he shows a lot of tools off that he sometimes can't quite use fully. Either way if I am sitting around at 39 and every other player discussed above is available with the exception of Wallinder, I am taking Akey. I like his skating and his d-zone that much as well as his ability to move up ice which is a must at the NHL level. He has a chance to go anywhere from 30-50 IMPO depending on how teams view that skillset. 

 

Anyways I have 3 draft guides to continue plodding through as well as whatever I dig up online so good times. 

 

With Akey, he was Barrie’s top dman and then Brandt Clarke got sent down and took the spot so Akey’s final counting numbers aren’t as good as they could have been. Might push him down a bit further then where he should be taken.

[DarthEbriate]

If you have the opportunity to draft someone with the last name Mania...  Do it.

Edited June 5, 2023 by DarthEbriate

[French Collection]

Tony Ferrari from The Hockey News top 100.

https://thehockeynews.com/news/ferraris-2023-nhl-draft-rankings-the-final-cut

Yahoo top 100 list from THN’s Ian Kennedy

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/nhl-draft-2023-prospect-rankings-bedard-fantilli-michkov-151638078.html

 

Edited June 5, 2023 by French Collection

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

Like Ryan Johnson now or Ryan Johnson when he was drafted? 

Now he would be somewhere in the 20s I would guess. He has good skating, efficiently breaks up plays, can transition up ice, and has average size. Smart 2-way defender that has a chance to be a 2nd pairing guy if paired with someone who has more offense. Looking at a consolidated draft list I would put him around 26-30ish. 

Can't really say on back in the day to now because I don't remember and I wasn't as high on him as the Sabres.  In 2019 there were and are forwards who have to this point been better. 

 

Why do you ask?

My inquiry was on how he would be ranked in this year's draft after his college career. I was simply interested on how he would rank in this year's draft class. Your response was very informative. Thank you. 

Another question regarding Johnson. It seems his style of play in many ways matches the way Joki plays the position. Is that an accurate description? 

[Flashsabre]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

My inquiry was on how he would be ranked in this year's draft after his college career. I was simply interested on how he would rank in this year's draft class. Your response was very informative. Thank you. 

Another question regarding Johnson. It seems his style of play in many ways matches the way Joki plays the position. Is that an accurate description? 

Not really. Johnson’s skating is elite. He is more defensively inclined. He uses his feet and brain to break up plays and angle off attackers. He is not a thumper. He can move the puck up ice. 

Best case scenario is he is Muel like but rather then size and body he uses brains and feet to make strong defensive plays.

[JohnC]

22 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

Not really. Johnson’s skating is elite. He is more defensively inclined. He uses his feet and brain to break up plays and angle off attackers. He is not a thumper. He can move the puck up ice. 

Best case scenario is he is Muel like but rather then size and body he uses brains and feet to make strong defensive plays.

A couple of other posters, @Brawndo and @LGR4GM, stated that some evaluators consider him to have second pairing caliber of ability. Even if he turns out to be a third pairing player, that would be terrific. The next issue is how long will it take him to play in the NHL? Maybe next year or the year after. 

[Flashsabre]

35 minutes ago, JohnC said:

A couple of other posters, @Brawndo and @LGR4GM, stated that some evaluators consider him to have second pairing caliber of ability. Even if he turns out to be a third pairing player, that would be terrific. The next issue is how long will it take him to play in the NHL? Maybe next year or the year after. 

Every player is different. My expectation is he starts in Rochester and by the new year could be looking at NHL time. He has played 4 years of college hockey so he has had development time.

Depending how he develops and adjusts to the pro game he could slot in beside Power long term.

A lot will depend on what they decide to do this offseason on the backend. If they get a legit 4th dman I see a spot at 3rd pairing LD be open and him being in the mix. 

[JohnC]

10 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

Every player is different. My expectation is he starts in Rochester and by the new year could be looking at NHL time. He has played 4 years of college hockey so he has had development time.

Depending how he develops and adjusts to the pro game he could slot in beside Power long term.

A lot will depend on what they decide to do this offseason on the backend. If they get a legit 4th dman I see a spot at 3rd pairing LD be open and him being in the mix. 

If another defender is brought in, even a 4/5 defenseman, and you then include Johnson to the group shortly after, you can see the making of a good unit that also has some depth to it. Samuelsson should get better and Power, based on what he showed last season, should become an anchor defender who although very young will be one of the better defenders in the league. I like Joki more than most because I do see more upside to his game. But even if he is moved down to the third pairing the unit would be upgraded. 

[LGR4GM]

My recommended draft guide: I often say that Elite Prospects (EP) Rinkside is a worthwhile subscription and I stick to that. They rank 136 prospects and then have hundreds more that they have at least scouted in the last year. I like the game reports the best because I like to see if I can find a really good and really bad report to see what the player is like on off nights and how often they happen.

Anyways, I will say that for me at #13 it comes down to 2 things, do the Sabres want to add size to an otherwise average prospect group (Kulich, Östlund, Rosen are all average size forwards in terms of height) and the second is do they believe Gabe Perrault can fix his skating? If you think you can fix Perrault's skating and you aren't worried that all your recent forward picks are basically some variation of 5'11" and 6' with the exception of Savoie, then I would take Perrault because the only part of his game I question is his skating. The rest of what he does is brilliant and he is fully aware he isn't strong enough. In April his USDP coach talked about how he stayed late and did extra in the weight room, he's added about 25lbs since last year and still needs to add another 25lbs or more. Perrault is 5'11" 165lb LW.

Now if Buffalo looks at their prospect pool and thinks, okay we want the high end skill but we need someone who can actually go into a board battle and win routinely than I would look at Barlow or Wood or Ritchie. 

Colby Barlow, 6'1" 187lbs LW, concerns me because I do agree with scouts that his game is very mature and I just don't see a lot of runway left. He is like the opposite of Jack Quinn in that he is pretty well developed physically and mentally in his game approach. He reminds me of lesser Alex Tuch in that he has that physical side with soft hands and a stout frame at 6'1" 187lbs. He goes to the dirty areas and has a nice shot (I think it might be his best asset) and he works all over the ice. If you want safe this is your guy, he is all but guaranteed to be a 3rd line winger who can operate on your second pp at worst. At best, 25-30g scorer who might not drive a line but playing with a guy like Cozens would be exceedingly complimentary to him. 

Matthew Wood, 6'3" 190lbs RW/C, concerns me because woof do I dislike his skating. I am not Corey Pronman here talking that he can't skate in a straight line fast enough so booo, I mean that his agility and first 3 steps (I care most about a players power generation in 3 strides than just straight line speed) are mediocre at best. Now we can all sit here and think, well he is big and in college so that is why but he was at the U18s and he doesn't even look good against his peers in terms of skating. Sure he put up NUMBERS (7g, 7a) at the u18s but my concern is that with all his other skills he won't be able to utilize them when the game picks up speed. His playmaking is nice but again, skating is meh all around. 

Calum Ritchie, 6'2" 187lbs C/RW, imagine if the two players above had a baby and that baby was Calum Ritchie. His shot is slightly less than Barlow's, his skating is better than Wood, his playmaking is less creative than Wood's but then Ritchie can stickhandle while skating and Wood cannot. I think he has more development room than Barlow and could overtake him because of that. Defensively, he's pretty good. He reminds me a lot of JJP in terms of how he tends to have fewer deceptions in his rush patterns but because he is strong enough and has soft enough hands it tends to work just fine. I think his overall hockey sense is high though and that will allow him to overtake Wood in terms of playmaking if he hasn't quite done it yet. Honestly he is just a solid player who goes 200ft and can win battles, identify the outlet, make that pass, support the play, create space, and otherwise contribute to a teams middle 6. Will he be Alex Tuch or Dylan Cozens? No, I think that is a lofty expectation but he could be a 60pt winger (I think he works better at wing, I am trying to remember him losing a 1v1 on the wall and can't really) that plays on your 2nd pp and your #1 pk. I think he needs another 2 years of juniors though. One last thing, +/- is really only useful when looking at a team because he shows how a teams ES goal differential works. Ritchie was on a bad team. Sure Oshawa made the playoffs but they weren't very good. Out of all the players on his team that played at least 50 games, there's only 1 with a better +/- and if you look at the playoffs, Ritchie is 1 of 2 guys that played in all 5 games to not have a - differential. What does this tell us, he is defensively very solid at Even. I think on a better team his point totals would have reflected his abilities more. 

 

[Flashsabre]

Wow

some hypothetical fun. If Michkov makes it to 10 you have St. Louis at 10, Van at 11 and Arizona with their 2nd pick at 12.

Do they cal St. Louis and say they will take Parayko’s contract but you have to flip #10 and 13. There would have to be more pieces involved.

If he makes it to #11 do they offer to take Myers contract to flip from 11 to 13.

If a potential superstar is sitting in striking distance you have to make a try for him.

Edited June 6, 2023 by Flashsabre

[LGR4GM]

 

 

[Curt]

5 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

My recommended draft guide: I often say that Elite Prospects (EP) Rinkside is a worthwhile subscription and I stick to that. They rank 136 prospects and then have hundreds more that they have at least scouted in the last year. I like the game reports the best because I like to see if I can find a really good and really bad report to see what the player is like on off nights and how often they happen.

Anyways, I will say that for me at #13 it comes down to 2 things, do the Sabres want to add size to an otherwise average prospect group (Kulich, Östlund, Rosen are all average size forwards in terms of height) and the second is do they believe Gabe Perrault can fix his skating? If you think you can fix Perrault's skating and you aren't worried that all your recent forward picks are basically some variation of 5'11" and 6' with the exception of Savoie, then I would take Perrault because the only part of his game I question is his skating. The rest of what he does is brilliant and he is fully aware he isn't strong enough. In April his USDP coach talked about how he stayed late and did extra in the weight room, he's added about 25lbs since last year and still needs to add another 25lbs or more. Perrault is 5'11" 165lb LW.

Now if Buffalo looks at their prospect pool and thinks, okay we want the high end skill but we need someone who can actually go into a board battle and win routinely than I would look at Barlow or Wood or Ritchie. 

Colby Barlow, 6'1" 187lbs LW, concerns me because I do agree with scouts that his game is very mature and I just don't see a lot of runway left. He is like the opposite of Jack Quinn in that he is pretty well developed physically and mentally in his game approach. He reminds me of lesser Alex Tuch in that he has that physical side with soft hands and a stout frame at 6'1" 187lbs. He goes to the dirty areas and has a nice shot (I think it might be his best asset) and he works all over the ice. If you want safe this is your guy, he is all but guaranteed to be a 3rd line winger who can operate on your second pp at worst. At best, 25-30g scorer who might not drive a line but playing with a guy like Cozens would be exceedingly complimentary to him. 

Matthew Wood, 6'3" 190lbs RW/C, concerns me because woof do I dislike his skating. I am not Corey Pronman here talking that he can't skate in a straight line fast enough so booo, I mean that his agility and first 3 steps (I care most about a players power generation in 3 strides than just straight line speed) are mediocre at best. Now we can all sit here and think, well he is big and in college so that is why but he was at the U18s and he doesn't even look good against his peers in terms of skating. Sure he put up NUMBERS (7g, 7a) at the u18s but my concern is that with all his other skills he won't be able to utilize them when the game picks up speed. His playmaking is nice but again, skating is meh all around. 

Calum Ritchie, 6'2" 187lbs C/RW, imagine if the two players above had a baby and that baby was Calum Ritchie. His shot is slightly less than Barlow's, his skating is better than Wood, his playmaking is less creative than Wood's but then Ritchie can stickhandle while skating and Wood cannot. I think he has more development room than Barlow and could overtake him because of that. Defensively, he's pretty good. He reminds me a lot of JJP in terms of how he tends to have fewer deceptions in his rush patterns but because he is strong enough and has soft enough hands it tends to work just fine. I think his overall hockey sense is high though and that will allow him to overtake Wood in terms of playmaking if he hasn't quite done it yet. Honestly he is just a solid player who goes 200ft and can win battles, identify the outlet, make that pass, support the play, create space, and otherwise contribute to a teams middle 6. Will he be Alex Tuch or Dylan Cozens? No, I think that is a lofty expectation but he could be a 60pt winger (I think he works better at wing, I am trying to remember him losing a 1v1 on the wall and can't really) that plays on your 2nd pp and your #1 pk. I think he needs another 2 years of juniors though. One last thing, +/- is really only useful when looking at a team because he shows how a teams ES goal differential works. Ritchie was on a bad team. Sure Oshawa made the playoffs but they weren't very good. Out of all the players on his team that played at least 50 games, there's only 1 with a better +/- and if you look at the playoffs, Ritchie is 1 of 2 guys that played in all 5 games to not have a - differential. What does this tell us, he is defensively very solid at Even. I think on a better team his point totals would have reflected his abilities more. 

 

Thanks for the break downs!

I just wanted to add that even if the Sabres wanted to put an emphasis picking physically strong players, there are even more forward possibilities at 13OA.

Specifically, I’m thinking of Ryan Leonard, Dalibor Dvorsky, Nate Danielson, and Samuel Honzek.

How do you see these guys stacking up versus Wood, Barlow, and Ritchie?

[LGR4GM]

Just now, Curt said:

Thanks for the break downs!

I just wanted to add that even if the Sabres wanted to put an emphasis picking physically strong players, there are even more forward possibilities at 13OA.

Specifically, I’m thinking of Ryan Leonard, Dalibor Dvorsky, Nate Danielson, and Samuel Honzek.

How do you see these guys stacking up versus Wood, Barlow, and Ritchie?

I don't think Leonard or Dvorsky will be available at 13.

[Curt]

23 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

I don't think Leonard or Dvorsky will be available at 13.

Sure.  If I had to guess, I’d agree, but I would have said the same about Savoie being there at 9.  Sometimes weird stuff just happens.  It’s reasonably possible that one of them is there at 13.

[Flashsabre]

NHLe ratings for last year’s draft class. How much stock to put in it? I don’t know but it is just cool to see Kulich and Savoie at 1 and 3.

[Curt]

35 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

NHLe ratings for last year’s draft class. How much stock to put in it? I don’t know but it is just cool to see Kulich and Savoie at 1 and 3.

I don’t understand the chart.

what are the numbers inside the bars, and what does cumulative NHLe mean?