Continuing my series of “Prospect Talk,” comes the start of the Canadian swing going through the OHL, WHL and QMJHL. Now you might notice that this list focuses on the Canadian and American players in the league and not the import players, you would be correct, they are a part of their countries article. Links down below.
The 2013 draft while one of the deeper we’ve seen had one big issue. It was by far the weakest OHL crop we’ve seen in maybe a decade. The OHL and closely followed by the WHL are the largest providers of NHL draft picks on a year by year basis, yet in 2013 while the QMJHL enjoyed its best draft in years the OHL was quiet. Outside of the top talent and picks like Monahan, Nurse, Horvat, Domi, Zadorov and maybe even Rychel if you want to split hairs, the depth that is usually so strong took a massive dive. This season is expected to be a very strong and deep representation of the OHL, especially in the first round.
2014
Aaron Ekblad : The first ever defenseman and second ever player to be granted exceptional status is expected to be the first pick from the OHL and the first defenseman. The 6’4 216lb 17 year old was named the Captain of the rebuilding Barrie Colts and his leadership has really become a major strength after captaining both the U17 team and Ivan Hlinka squad. He has been one of the best defenders in the OHL this season and has 6 goals and 13 points in 15 games so far good for fifth in the league. He’s expected to be a top-pairing two-way defenseman that can do it all in all three zones.
Michael Dal Colle : Dal Colle is the classic fast riser (See Duchene and Seguin in their respective drafts), the 6’2 centre was considered more of a 10-20 range guy to start the year and now he’s pushing into the top-10 and continues to grow as a player. With 9 goals and 23 points which is tops for the Oshawa Generals he sits 11th overall in the scoring race. He has a lot of filling out to do and is extremely lanky. Could be a surprise pick when all is said and done.
Roland McKeown : The second best defender in the draft after Ekblad, McKeown doesn’t have as much hype nor the sheer raw tools that Ekblad possesses, but he’s excellent in his own right. He’s a strong two-way defender with more of a focus on his defensive prowess. He’s not the most physical guy out there, but he lays the body well when he needs to and prefers to use his excellent positioning to stifle forwards. He has a very strong shot and can move the puck fairly well, but in the NHL he’s not expected to be a massive point producer. He’s a league best +23. Expect to see him in the top-10.
Samuel Bennett and
Spencer Watson : We’ve seen a number of duos going high recently, you have your MacKinnon-Drouin, Horvat-Domi, Yakupov-Galchenyuk, Huberdeau-Phillips and so on, Bennett-Watson is the next expected duo to go in the first. Bennett is expected to go much higher than Watson and he’s been one of the better centres in the league with 10 goals and 22 points in 14 games. He’s a really fast centre who likes to play physical and throw his weight around on the forecheck. Watson on the other hand is expected to go in the later first round 25-30. The 5’10 winger is one of those pure goal scorers who finds a way, whether it’s a shot off the rush, being around the net or a one-timer on the PP. He was the star of the Ivan Hlinka tournament leading the tournament in scoring with 5 goals and 10 points.
Brendan Perlini : The biggest story of the young OHL season for draft eligible players. 17 year old Perlini was pegged at the beginning of the year as a 20-50 range player, known for his great one-timer and finishing ability…well he’s evolved and it’s getting scary. He and Toronto prospect Carter Verhaeghe have formed the second deadliest duo after McDavid/Brown, Perlini sits second in the OHL in scoring with 13 goals and 29 points in 15 games. He’s quickly rising through the ranks with his exceptional play. He’s not the best passer, but he seems to be improving that side of his game, though he should be looked at more as a pure finisher. He’s getting early comps to Patrick Marleau.
Anthony DeAngelo : The most talented offensive defender in this draft outside of maybe Julius Honka in the WHL or Jack Dougherty in the USHL, DeAngelo has continuously proven he is a PP wizard and overcomes his size issues with pure skill. He leads the Sarnia Sting in points with 22 in 14 games which coincidentally is the highest of any defenseman in the OHL. Now he obviously has issues defensively, but like Ryan Murphy, Derrick Pouliot and Ryan Ellis before him, he’s too skilled to have those problems overcome him being drafted high with a lot of potential. Some think he will slip, but trends with this kind of defenseman says he will stay around the 10-15 range for an ambitious team.
Robbie Fabbri : A big part of the world beating Guelph Storm is Robbie Fabbri who has played very well in a mixture of 1A/1B centre roles. He’s considered a two-way centre with a lot of drive that really thrives off creating turnovers and causing odd man rushes. In 16 games he has 7 goals and 20 points, though like I mentioned earlier it’s the attention to detail in his own end that is really making the case for him being a very strong possibility in the first round. His only problem is that he is only 5’10 and as a centre that raises alarms, though with an advanced defensive game and a love of back checking you can’t go wrong with him.
Alex Nedeljkovic : The American born goalie is one of the top goalie prospects this draft, a draft noted for having a bit of a “meh” goalie market in this early moment. Last season he was the backup for the Whalers though he ended up taking over the reins in the playoffs. While he had a rough Ivan Hlinka, his play for the Whalers has been strong so far. He has a 3.43GAA and .910sv% which sounds like nothing special, but he’s been one of the better goalies in the O.
Notables with a shot at the first round :
Nick Ritchie (Peterborough, 5-50…ya I know big disparities),
Matthew Mistele (Plymouth, 20-30 but falling),
Jared McCann (Sault St. Marie, 25-35),
Blake Clarke (North Bay, 30-40) and
Josh Ho-Sang (Windsor, 20-30)
2015
Connor McDavid : Who else? The third player to be given exceptional status and the reigning OHL Rookie of the Year is the consensus “Next Big Thing.” The dynamic centre has elite player written all over him and he continues to dominate in the OHL despite his age. He sits in sixth overall in scoring with 5 goals and 28 points in 15 games, more impressive by the fact that he had a very slow start. U18 MVP at 15 and a serious threat to make the U20 team this year (he won’t because HC would rather take a goon or something). Not much else to say other than…the Buffalo Sabres are proud to select…
Travis Konecny : The undersized centre (5’10) has been strong in his rookie season tying for third on the 67’s in points with 13 and scoring 6 goals. He’s a talented centre who is known more for his playmaking abilities. He was the first overall selection in the 2013 OHL Draft and is second cousins to Bo Horvat. Expected around the 10-20 range.
Dante Salituro : Extremely undersized, yet extremely skilled. The 5’8 winger is pure offense all the time. He’s got magic hands and great wheels. He had a strong rookie campaign last season with 44 points on the dreadful 67’s and has started well with 5 goals and 13 points. He’s known as a bit of a pest and one thing he needs to change is taking selfish penalties. His size will hurt him, but the skill is there.
Dylan Strome : The middle brother in the ultra-talented Strome clan. Strome like his older brother Ryan was a very high pick in the OHL draft, is of similar size and possesses similar offensive instincts. Playing second fiddle to McDavid in Eerie, Strome has 8 points in the first 15 games of his rookie season and is well on pace to keep up with his brothers first season, if not surpass it. A lot of skill and playmaking ability, though he does lack at least currently a little bit of that fight Ryan has. He needs to put his 6’2 frame to work in hitting and he would be a really can’t miss guy. He’s expected to compete for a top-5 selection.
2016
Sean Day : The Belgian born, Singapore living, American system using…Canadian…is another player getting early looks at being a potential franchise guy. I know, it says a lot when a 15 year old defenseman is not only playing well in the OHL, but growing every game. He’s 6’2 215 already and is a highly talented two-way defender with excellent offensive instincts. Day represents that package everybody wants and hopes for in a defender, amazing skating, great size, the willingness to use that size and advanced hockey sense. He has 2 goals and 6 assists in his first 16 games for the Steelheads.
Obviously these aren’t all the players and every game brings changes, just a little taste of the next few drafts from the OHL. You’ll notice that no foreign players (other than Americans as they fall under the OHL Draft policy usually), this is because I have them in their countries list. Links
here and
here to Sweden and Russia.
Thanks for reading.
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