It’s prospect time. I love prospects and junior hockey sometimes more than the actual NHL. This is just a small write-up on some of the Coyotes better prospects and how they’re doing.
Brandon Gormley: Brandon Gormley is on the mend after suffering a foot injury in a game played on Feb. 4 in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Gormley, a defenseman for the Shawinigan Cataractes, suffered the injury by sliding into the boards feet-first early in the game against the Saint John Sea Dogs. Gormley stayed in the game. After the game it was determined he would be sidelined for four to six weeks. That’s the bad news for Gormley.
The good news is he wasn’t seriously injured later in the same game when an opponent’s skate cut his throat. According to The Guardian, Gormley dived to knock the puck from Sea Dogs forward Charlie Coyle’s stick, and Coyle’s skate came up and accidentally struck Gormley in the throat, narrowly missing his jugular. Gormley was quickly taken to a local hospital where he received two stitches. It was a pretty crappy game for Gormley and might jeopardize his availability for the QMJHL playoffs where the Cataractes are hosting the Memorial Cup.
Aside from the crazy injury, Gormley has had a great year. He won the WJC Best Defenseman award along with most goals (3) and points (6) in the tournament. He was over a PPG in Moncton before the trade with 27 points in 26 games and with Shawinigan he had 5 assists in 9 games before the injury. His two-way game is excellent as is his skating.
The injury bug is still very worrisome, though, and he’s never played a full season in any league he’s played in. His healthiest being 2008 where he played 62 games. He’ll be in the AHL next season.
David Rundblad: Acquired in the Turris trade, Rundblad is another highly touted defenseman whose claim to fame was being declared the best prospect outside North America in the summer following his ridiculous year in Sweden. Since being acquired he was sent down to the Portland Pirates, despite having 2 assists in 2 games with the big club. He definitely needs to adjust to the smaller rinks as his timing was often poor. In the AHL he has been fantastic. He’s the PP QB and already has 10 points (6 goals) in 13 games. He’s getting played in all situations including the PK and seems to be growing a lot of confidence. The 21 year old was always considered to be a very “raw” prospect, but the high end skill is there, he just needs to put it all together.
Connor Murphy: Another defenseman with a high ceiling yet has struggled through injuries. He made the choice of moving to the OHL to help speed up his development, joining the list of US defectors. He missed half the season due to injury but since returning has looked great for the Sting. He has 5 goals and 13 points in 21 games and hasn’t had the usual slow adjustment period that many face. His skating is excellent for his size (6’3) and his shot is NHL caliber already. He’s a guy if healthy that will be the cornerstone of the Stings defense.
Mark Visentin: After that dreadful start Visentin has found his A game again following his solid showing at the WJC’s. Unlike last year he wasn’t the scapegoat. Since returning to the OHL he’s been on fire. He leads the OHL in GAA at 2.08, leads in shutouts with 10 and is 6th in sv% with .922 (Though only 1 goalie has played more games of those). His tenth shutout is an OHL record passing Len Broderick and Glenn Hall for most in a single season. He has become the first goalie since 1957 to get 10 shutouts in a season in the OHL. Since finding his game the IceDogs are back to looking like OHL Championship contenders. He’s a battler and I can’t wait to see how he does in the playoffs.
Lucas Lessio: I’m not sure there is a more frustrating player to watch in the OHL. He has so much skill and the size to be a power forward, yet he’s so inconsistent. When he’s on he’s a star, when he’s not he’s a floating liability. All that aside he’s looking at beating his career highs and has 26 goals and 47 points in 53 games. The 7th overall pick of the 2009 OHL priority draft hasn’t lived up to his hype.
Chris Brown: He’s a guy who fell down a lot last year on the prospect lists of many. In his third and perhaps final season with the University of Michigan he has played pretty well. He’s developed into a decent two-way center. He’s strong on the draws and has some grit to his game, but his offensive skills are average. His 11 goals and 27 points in 29 games are tied for tops on his team. He’ll likely be a third liner down the road.
Michael Stone: The 21 year old got his first taste of the NHL on Saturday and has really grown this year in the AHL. He’s found confidence in his shot and has added strength so that he doesn’t get muscled off the puck. He has 9 goals and 22 points in 51 games for the Pirates and is the third highest scoring defenseman in the AHL that are under 23. He’s not physical and there are some worries as to the role he will play in the NHL…but all in all he can likely be a good 5/6 guy who plays some PP minutes.
Maxim Goncharov: Speaking of frustrating…His development seems to have stalled this year. He has a rocket of a shot but just isn’t using it much. Not sure if that is because he has lost a lot of PP time or if it’s something else. All in all he isn’t having a very good year and the 22 year old is inconsistent in effort at the best of times. He’s falling down the rungs of the organization and with just 1 goal and 6 points in 35 games, he can only blame himself.
With this draft being very weak in terms of skilled forwards past the obvious top-4 (Yakupov, Grigorenko, Galchenyuk and Forsberg), I can see yet again the Coyotes drafting a defenseman if they keep their first round pick. At some point they’ll have to make some difficult choices with all the young talent coming in while the cupboards remain barren of scoring talent. Here comes one of Griffin Reinhart, Cody Ceci, Slater Koekkoek, Matt Finn, Jordan Schmaltz or Ludvig Bystrom!
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.
Thanks for reading.
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