With a solid influx of youth coming up the ranks, Carolina has continued to build it's ranks through the draft, and a few good trades. The likes of Eric Staal, Jeff Skinner, Zac Dalpe and Zach Boychuk boast a solid core of centers to add to the likes of Justin Faulk and Brian Dumoulin in the system ready to take up their mantle on the blueline. Cam Ward is obviously the go-to guy in net for the Hurricanes going forward.
"With the twelfth pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, Carolina is very proud to select, from Northeastern University... Jamie Oleksiak."
At 6'7, 240 lbs., Oleksiak is hard to miss when on the ice. Considered something of a long term project, Oleksiak boasts a rare combination of size and skating; two very coveted pieces of an NHL defenseman.
History has shown most 'big defensemen' to be mostly made up of lousy skaters with very little offensive skill. However teams always get lucky and find the next Zdeno Chara, Chris Pronger or Tyler Myers.
Oleksiak is a fluid skater with long strides, and good agility. He gets up and down the ice surface very well for a big man, and jumps into the play offensively when he feels it's safe to do so. His foot work is a tad weak, and he finds difficulty changing direction on the pivot, but this should be fixable, with a good coach and some hard work.
The Toronto native's size allows him a long reach defensively as well as using it physically for the
big hit. Defensively he is as sound as they come, using his reach and active stick to take away passing lanes and shooting opportunities.
Oleksiak has above average hockey IQ and decision making, rarely caught out of position.
Offensively, Oleksiak has some good skill. A heavy point shot with a good first pass allow him to be used in some offensive situations.
Some would call him a stay-at-home type, but he has the tools to become a two-way defenseman with coaching and development. He'll never be a top scoring defender, but a defensively sound blueliner with some offensive upside is always on team's radar.
Taken Previously...
1. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
2. Gabriel Landeskog
3. Jonathan Huberdeau
4. Dougie Hamilton
5. Adam Larsson
6. Sean Couturier
7. Ryan Strome
8. Ryan Murphy
9. Duncan Siemens
10. Mark McNeill
11. Nathan Beaulieu
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Follow me on Twitter: @BrianHuddle.
Like Me on Facebook: Brian Huddle.
Email: [email protected] 
Join the Discussion:
»