Scouting Report: Isaiah George

Photo Credit: Luke Durda/OHL Images

Scouting Report written by Josh Tessler

Isaiah George is a 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospect, who hails from Oakville, Ontario. Before making his debut as a London Knight, he played U15 AAA and U16 AAA hockey for the Toronto Marlboros. During his time with the Marlboros, he played alongside a few 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospects including Paul Ludwinski (Kingston Frontenacs) and Kaiden Muir (USNTDP). In addition to playing for the Marlboros, he also had a very short stint with the OJHL’s Oakville Blades. George played in one 2019-2020 regular season game for the Blades and one game in the playoffs. 

George was drafted by the London Knights in the 2020 OHL Priority Selection Draft at pick #68 in round four. He was also selected at #76th overall (sixth round) in the 2020 USHL Futures Draft by the Tri-City Storm, but he preferred to play for London.

Since the OHL’s 2020-2021 season didn’t  take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, George made his Knights debut this season. In 67 games played this season, he recorded six goals and 17 assists. The majority of his assists were secondary 5v5 assists. 

Player Profile

D.O.B – February 15, 2004
Nationality – Canada
Draft Eligibility – 2022
Height –6’1″
Weight –194 lbs
Position – Defense
Handedness – Left

George’s Style Of Play

Offense

If you asked me to describe Isaiah George’s offensive game in two words, it would be “conservative creativity”. Throughout the course of my viewings, I noticed that George wants to be far more involved offensively and he wants to utilize his mobility to get himself space down low in the slot. But, George seems very cautious about pinching up and trying to work the cycle. In every shift that you see George carry or pass the puck to the slot to key up high and medium danger chances, there are two to three shifts in which he has a more relaxed approach. 

Not only does George like to weave through the opposition with his mobility, but he will also pinch up along the boards, push past traffic with his upper body strength and feather passes to the slot from the corner. George’s ability to drive down low is in large part due to his stick-handling reach. He has a solid wingspan that allows him to take up a lot of space with puck on his stick. His hands are quick too. George has the ability to move the puck quickly when facing pressure at the point, use his upper body to push past multiple attackers along the half-wall boards while at the same time extending his stick blade further out to ensure than an attacker won’t be able to catch up easily.  

You can also expect George to pinch up for pucks rolling around the corner boards. 

From a positional standpoint, George checks the boxes. George will move up to the perimeter line when he’s got a teammate behind the red line. He offers an open passing option. In situations in which the F1 gets stuck due to an aggressive backcheck and there is no one else around for support, George skates in at centered ice to provide his teammate with a passing option. 

When he has possession of the puck and is passing from the point, he likes to use bounce passes along the half-wall to a winger. That is rather effective as you can get the puck around an attacker if you don’t have a clean tape to tape lane to exploit when he is closing in on you. But, George does need to be more selective on when he uses bounce passes in the offensive zone. For instance, if there isn’t a ton of pressure and he can utilize his mobility / shiftiness to navigate away from the pressure, he shouldn’t look to complete a bounce pass. By bouncing the pass in situations in which George didn’t have traffic immediately in front of him, he slows the puck movement down. George is also giving away the passing route and that allows the attacker to skate up to the puck and trap possession. 

George does need to work on shot selection. When George has possession of the puck, but doesn’t feel like he has the confidence to shift around pressure and bring the puck up towards the perimeter and/or the slot, he will fire a shot on net from the point and it will be an easy save for the net-minder. The thing is I know that he has the ability to shift out and be dangerous with the puck on his stick. He has the tools.

While his shot selection needs more refinement, he does have a solid shot from range. Check out this clip against Kitchener. George pinches up towards the perimeter, gets into a jam with four Kitchener Rangers looking to box him in and he fires a quick shot low post. He knows that with multiple attackers closing in on him that he has to shoot low not high. If he shoots high, the shot might re-direct off the attacker’s stick if they are skating at the same pace.

Defense

George’s defensive positioning is quite good. When defending down low against non puck carrying attackers who are looking to net open ice in high and medium danger, he does a good job of staying aligned and standing in front of the attacker to ensure that a teammate behind the red line can’t pass to the attacker. He is a smart interior defender. 

When looking to take away space for an oppositional puck carrier, he is quick to coverage. Stays aligned with him as he skates with attacker in low danger. George lowers and widens himself to take up more space and then will use his reach to completely trap the attacker.

Another awesome clip of Isaiah George trapping an attacker with support his teammate, netting possession and then driving the rush up the ice. But, this time around, you can see how he can leverage his mobility and stick-handling to navigate around multiple attackers to create space for himself to skate. 

George uses his upper body strength well when defending. Does a good job of leaning into the puck carrying attacker with his shoulder in the corner and then he pokechecks to grab control of the puck. Behind the red line, George will look to shoulder check his opponents to cause puck disruption. 

George does need to work on where he should be when defending in 2-on-1s. He will give up slightly too much space for the non-puck carrying attackers. George struggles with identifying the best spot to be at when countering against the 2-on-1. Since he isn’t in a true centered position that allows for the non-puck carrying attacker to start to drift away more and get quality separation.

Defensive puck recoveries are no issue for George. If George needs to adjust to rapid changes in puck movement, he leverages his crossovers to get the necessary acceleration to get in front of the attacker and net possession of the puck. He has the foot speed to pick up pucks routinely.

When he has control of the puck, he typically looks to make a pass to a teammates in the neutral zone instead of bringing the puck up the ice himself. Just like in the offensive zone, he loves to utilize bounce passes. George will look to complete bounce passes off the boards to teammates who are further up along the boards when he has the forecheck right in front of him and no other passing lane. But, he tends to over use his bounce pass. My belief is that he doesn’t feel too confident in his long range passes as they typically are too powerful for his teammates to trap and a bounce pass will start to slow down after it makes contact with the boards.

When facing oncoming pressure and he is stuck behind the red line, he has shown that he can quickly get the puck out of his hands and up the boards to a winger. George will also look to utilize his upper body strength to push off of attackers when they are coming towards at speed. He pushes them with his shoulder and with the other arm he will complete one handed shovel passes to teammates further up the boards.

Transitional Play

When defending against the rush, George uses an active stick to take away space for the puck carrying attacker and force the attacker to dump the puck into the London zone. Yet, he doesn’t just use an active stick to take away space for puck carrying attackers. George will use his active stick to take away an opponent as a potential target for an opponent who has possession for the puck to pass towards. So, when he has to defend against multiple attackers in the neutral zone, he is well-aligned with the non-puck carrying attacker and puts pressure on him from the get-go. He also has an eye on the puck carrying attacker but he knows that the presence of his defensive partner will be enough to force the puck carrying attacker to dump the puck. 

Given his preference to complete a zone exit pass and get the puck out of his hands, he isn’t often carrying the puck from the defensive zone to the offensive zone. But, when he does carry the puck up the ice, he can rely on mobility and edges to dance around attackers. He will use his reach to push the puck away from attackers and keep it as secure as possible. 

When he doesn’t have possession of the puck but his teammates do, he has shown a desire to go jump into the neutral zone and look for open ice to establish passing lanes. But, he picks his moments. Usually it’s when his teammates don’t seem to be providing his puck carrying teammate with passing lanes to move the puck up the ice. That’s when George comes to the rescue. 

George will communicate with his defensive partners and let them know if they have a quality lane to use to get the puck into the offensive zone. For instance, I noticed in a game against the Barrie Colts the his defensive partner wasn’t aware of a bad Barrie line change after doubling back in the neutral zone. George noticed the bad line change and told his defensive partner to pass the puck to the open London winger at the offensive zone blue line. While George wasn’t in control of the puck in that situation, he is being a good on-ice leader and supporting his teammates with real-time feedback so that they can look to generate an odd man rush while the attackers are completing a line change. 

Skating

Throughout the scouting report, I’ve mentioned how George does a good job of leveraging his crossovers to net quality acceleration, but I haven’t done him enough justice. There is more to go. When looking to toe the blue line, he has quality lateral crossovers that allow him to shift from the boards to center ice at a quick pace. He does an excellent job of activating his speed right after completing a turn by deploying a few crossovers. When he looks to skate in a straight line, that is when he looks to integrate quality stride extensions. But, for the most part, he looks to keep himself moving with crossovers. 

From a posture perspective, George maintains solid posture when deploying stride extensions, edges and crossovers. He keeps his knees bent, good ankle flexion (knee aligned with the toe of his skate) and he is in a crouch position. Doesn’t hunch over. When completing turns, he leans on his edges to retain speed and then quickly looks to implement crossovers to build up the speed. George’s posture also allows him to be as mobile as possible and the bending of his knees nets him a lot of power in his initial skate push after completing a turn. 

Projection

Isaiah George has second pairing upside at the NHL level, but in order to get that point, he needs to push play more and more in the offensive zone. When pressure seems to be building up, George needs to use his mobility to buy himself separation and skate towards the slot. Sometimes he does it. Sometimes he doesn’t and instead opts to put a low danger shot on net. NHL teams are going to want more offensive creativity and he has the tools to give them the creativity that they desire. Ideally, we will see George continue to become confident in his ability to push play and run the cycle even more so in his DY+1. 

Latest Update

June 8, 2022

stats from InStat and EliteProspects

Prospect report written by Josh Tessler. If you would like to follow Josh on Twitter, his handle is @JoshTessler_.

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Mock 2022 NHL Draft

Photo Credit: Robert Lefebvre/OHL Images

Check out our Mock 2022 NHL Draft. Josh Tessler, Sebastian Jackson, Austin Garrett, Matthew Somma, Paul Zuk, Jordan Malette and Alex Appleyard drafted three rounds for each NHL team.

Scouting reports are hyperlinked.

Please Note: The draft order might be slightly different today towards the back end of the draft. That is because used the draft order as of May 24, 2022 for this mock. We didn’t have a time limit per pick since we are all working full time. For instance, the Edmonton Oilers are now drafting at #30th (as of June 5, 2022).

For Reference: Our Final Rankings can be found here.

First Round

#1 – Montréal Canadiens – Shane Wright (Center, Kingston) – Drafted By Josh Tessler

“A reasonable projection for Wright would be in the range of a low-end 1st line to a high-end 2nd line center, which to some may sound pessimistic in the context of 1st overall. Still, it is an essential piece to have on a successful team and is not easy to acquire. In addition, Shane will likely benefit from being paired with skilled wingers, who can allow Shane to focus on pushing play up ice to the offensive zone where his linemates can flourish. Finally, with his shot, he will surely be a continual threat on the powerplay, where he has consistently shown he can score from many angles and distances.” – Jordan Malette

#2 – New Jersey Devils – Logan Cooley (Center, USNTDP) – Drafted By Josh Tessler

“Cooley’s overall hockey IQ is ridiculously impressive, as he reads the game so well in all three zones of the ice, and can anticipate where the play is currently at, as well as where it’s headed with little to no difficulty. That trait proves to be invaluable when it comes to his playmaking ability, as he’s able to deliver passes where most of the other players on the ice cannot.” – Paul Zuk

#3 – Arizona Coyotes – Juraj Slafkovsky (Forward, TPS) – Drafted By Austin Garrett

“Slafkovsky can be a menace at the NHL level. His stick-handling reach and his play on the cycle makes him a threat down low. If he can broaden his game by working on his long range shot, that allows him to become a dual threat. But, even if he doesn’t become that dual threat offensively, he has the physicality and the reach to net pucks in puck battles and set up teammates in the slot. With that said, I can envision him being a top six contributor at the NHL level.” – Josh Tessler

#4 – Seattle Kraken – Matthew Savoie (Center, Winnipeg) – Drafted By Sebastian Jackson

“Savoie will be able to keep pace on any line and slow down or speed up his game to adjust to the play style of his linemates. His timing on passes and positioning makes him one of the stronger offensive players in this draft class and a potent scorer and playmaker whenever he’s on the ice.” – Matthew Somma

#5 – Philadelphia Flyers – David Jiříček (Right Handed Defense, HC Plzeñ) – Drafted By Alexander Appleyard

“He can be very aggressive and shove attackers down to the ice at net-front. Loves to play a physical game and deliver booming hits. He is well-rounded with his physicality. You will see him be physical at open ice, the half-wall and the corners. He won’t sit and wait till the perimeter. Instead, he will opt to play bumper car hockey near the blue line.” – Josh Tessler 

#6 – Columbus Blue Jackets (via Chicago) – Šimon Nemec (Right Handed Defense, HK Nitra) – Drafted By Alexander Appleyard

“When you watch Nemec, you notice just how dominant he is on the offensive blue-line. Nemec does a good job of toeing the line on the power play. He completes soft swift passes when distributing the puck at 5v5 or on the power play. Nemec uses deception to his advantage when distributing the puck. He likes to be deceptive and use body language. You will notice him raise his stick like he’s appearing to try a one-timer at the blue-line, but instead he distributes a pass and fools the attack. When looking to pass to the slot from the point, he’ll try to be deceptive and make the attackers believe he is looking to complete a wrist shot instead. He will sell it by using a wrist shot wind up.” – Josh Tessler

#7 – Ottawa Senators – Brad Lambert (Center, Lahti) – Drafted By Jordan Malette

“When it comes to puck movement, Lambert thinks two moves ahead. He will complete behind the back passes as he cuts to centered ice and a teammate comes rushing up the left half-wall. If he collects the puck off of a pass when he’s near the corner facing the blue line, he’ll skate towards the blue line, button hook, and throw a pass back to the corner. That brings the defender with him and opens up ice down low in the corner. Lambert is aware that with his excellent puck skills that he can lure defenders to him and open up lanes for his teammates.” – Josh Tessler

#8 – Detroit Red Wings – Cutter Gauthier (Left Wing, USNTDP) – Drafted By Paul Zuk

“If you’re an NHL Scout or Front Office member and you’re looking for players who play a complete 200-foot game and be extremely effective regardless of where they slot into the lineup, look no further than NTDP forward Cutter Gauthier.” – Paul Zuk

#9 – Buffalo Sabres – Frank Nazar (Right Wing, USNTDP) – Drafted By Austin Garrett

“Nazar is very creative with the puck on his stick, regardless of which zone the play is in. Defensively, he’s able to elude opponents by chipping the puck into open ice and working around the attacker to retrieve it. Alternatively, he’s quite good at utilizing bank passes to himself to keep the puck out of danger when under pressure. Offensively, Nazar can seemingly make something out of nothing with the puck on his stick. It’s not uncommon for him to have the puck with a man on him and dole out an accurate pass to a teammate cross-ice for a shot on goal.” – Paul Zuk

#10 – Anaheim Ducks – Joakim Kemell (Right Wing, JYP) – Drafted By Austin Garrett

“Kemell’s shot is his calling card and he seems to find the most success when shooting one-timers. He’s had quite a few highlight reel one-timer goals to start the season. His one-timer can be electric from both distance and from up close. Kemell can generate height on his one-timer from up close and will look to bend his knee and have the other knee lying down on the ice to provide enough power to generate one-timer top shelf goals in medium danger.” – Josh Tessler

#11 – San Jose Sharks – Jonathan Lekkerimäki (Right Wing, Djurgården) – Drafted By Josh Tessler

“He can be slippery and deceptive with his puck control when facing pressure. When he encounters traffic, he can be deceptive and quick by identifying teammates that are coming from behind him and then completing a quick drop pass. The goal is to get the puck into the hands of a teammate who is open and skating in his lane so the change in possession is seamless.” – Josh Tessler 

#12 – Columbus Blue Jackets – Danila Yurov (Right Wing, Magnitogorsk) – Drafted By Alex Appleyard

“Yurov will skate up the slot and looks to create openings for passing opportunities. He will present his stick blade out to indicate that he has identified a quality passing lane and that he is ready to receive possession of the puck. For the most part, Yurov loves to skate into the slot as he looks to key up scoring chances. When a forward takes his spot on the right side, he’ll skate up centered ice and crash the net looking for rebounds.” – Josh Tessler

#13 – New York Islanders – Noah Östlund (Center, Djurgården) – Drafted By Sebastian Jackson

“There is a lot to like about Östlund. His speed, playmaking and mobility makes him dangerous. Even when he doesn’t have the speed to get around attackers when defending, he has still found ways to cause plenty of disruption and kill rush attempts. But, the one area that I love is how deceptive he can be with his playmaking ability and his ability to make use of extremely tight passing lanes. He has a hunger for the puck and knows that he needs to get the puck to high danger areas to win. I’m confident that he will be a top six forward at the NHL level and the path to get there isn’t a very long one for Östlund given his skill-set.” – Josh Tessler 

#14 – Winnipeg Jets – Conor Geekie (Center, Winnipeg) – Drafted By Alex Appleyard

“Give Geekie space and he’ll make you pay. Take away a shooting lane and he’ll find a way to get the puck to his teammates for a goal. Geekie doesn’t always carry the puck in transition, nor is he the primary shooting option for Winnipeg. He has carved out a nice role for himself on the Ice that sees him receiving the puck upon entering the zone and making a play happen shortly afterwards.” – Matthew Somma

#15 – Vancouver Canucks – Kevin Korchinski (Left Handed Defense, Seattle) – Drafted By Matthew Somma

“Korchinski’s puck carrying is one of his biggest strengths. He’s one of two high end offensive defensemen in the WHL that are eligible for the draft, with the other being Denton Mateychuk. Whereas Mateychuk is an all out offensive defenseman that has to make the offense flow through him, Korchinski is more grounded and stable. He’s not going to be a fourth forward, but he’s a player that can help keep the offense going and open up space for both himself and his teammates. He’s a general when he’s on the ice. Korchinski will dictate the pace of play and assess every opportunity, choosing the best one. He’ll keep the cycle going and walk the blue line with a Joni Pitkanen level of smoothness. Over the course of the year, Korchinski’s puck playing has developed and has made him one of the best defensemen in the league in the offensive zone. He’s a gifted skater, and when you combine that with his puck skills, you get a defender that can consistently create space and offense.” – Matthew Somma

#16 – Buffalo Sabres (via Vegas) – Filip Mešár (RW, Poprad) – Drafted By Austin Garrett

“His puck manipulation skills allows him to rather deceptive as well. Mešár has many deceptive tactics in his tool box. He will manipulate you by playing the puck out in front of you, the attacker decides to attempt to extend his stick blade out and secure the puck, Mešár knows that he is looking for the puck in that spot, so he moves the puck towards him and slows down the attack. His puck manipulation allows him to net open ice and pass.” – Josh Tessler

#17 – Nashville Predators – Gleb Trikozov (Center/Right Wing, Omsk) – Drafted By Jordan Malette

“When I watch Trikozov, I come away entertained after each and every game. He reminds me so much of San Jose Sharks prospect Daniil Gushchin. Will he blow you away with his defensive play? There are times, but it’s not consistent. But, where he does shine is in the neutral and offensive zones. His stick-handling ability will improve and he will be a pain in the rear for attackers who struggle to defend against flashy stick-handling. Trikozov can carry his own line and has proven at the MHL level that he is slightly under matched. There are games where he doesn’t exert aggression and play tight to the vest hockey on the forecheck, but has shown that he has the speed and the capability to do so at the VHL level. ” – Josh Tessler

#18 – Dallas Stars – Denton Mateychuk (Left Handed Defense, Moose Jaw) – Drafted By Paul Zuk

“The hallmarks of Mateychuk’s offensive game are his hyper aggressive nature, passing vision and creativity, and ability to work himself off-the-puck into dangerous areas of the ice. He is able to identify his forwards quickly and then jump into the play to make himself an option to receive a pass for a controlled entry. Oftentimes he’s continuing to push play into the dangerous areas of the ice himself to generate a wrist shot or passing lane to find a teammate for a scoring chance.” – Austin Garrett

#19 – Los Angeles Kings – Issac Howard (Left Wing, USNTDP) – Drafted By Sebastian Jackson

“Howard has a lot of the fundamentals that I love and cherish. His speed is excellent and he can play a high-tempo competitive game, especially behind the red line and the corners. In addition, he does a great job of finding open ice in the slot and keeps himself well aligned with puck movement.” – Josh Tessler

#20 – Washington Capitals – Calle Odelius (Left Handed Defense, Djurgården) – Drafted By Matthew Somma

“In my opinion, Odelius’ floor is a second pairing defenseman at the NHL level. With his tool-set, he has proven that he can be a challenge in every zone with his vision and scanning abilities. As mentioned earlier, he reads puck movement well and knows just how many stride extensions it will take to get himself in position to defend. He can dictate what attackers do with the puck with his active stick. He can rely on his puck manipulation to garner enough space for him to escape pressure and net himself enough open ice to key up a quality passing lane leading to scoring opportunities. There is just so much in his game that will make him an asset at the next level.” – Josh Tessler 

#21 – Pittsburgh Penguins – Ivan Miroshnichenko (Left Wing, Omsk) – Drafted By Alex Appleyard

“From the perimeter, he will score top shelf wrist shot goals and will look to go blocker side. Since he is normally skating up the left side of the ice, he will look to go blocker side on most goaltenders (assuming that he is a facing a left handed goaltender or a right handed goaltender who gloves with his left hand). If he is looking to complete a one-timer, he will look to establish ice near net-front and go down on one knee to generate power for his shot.” – Josh Tessler 

#22 – Edmonton Oilers – Rutger McGroarty (Center, USNTDP) – Drafted By Matthew Somma

“The true definition of a power forward, McGroarty can utilize his large, powerful frame to muscle defenders off the puck, while at the same time regain possession and dish the puck off to a teammate. He is quite talented at making defenders commit turnovers in their own zone and has the skill and knowledge to make them pay the price for it.” – Paul Zuk

#23 – Anaheim Ducks (via Boston) – Liam Öhgren (Left Wing, Djurgården) – Drafted By Austin Garrett

“In terms of projection, Öhgren’s tool-kit will allow him to be impactful no matter what line he is on. He is a Swiss Army Knife. You can plug him on the top lines and use him to hunt pucks down low on the forecheck. He will get those pucks and wire passes to the slot to drive production. In certain situations, you could plug him in a third line checking role, but I do believe that will slow down his offensive production as the forwards that he is with more than likely won’t be capitalizing at the same rate as the forwards on the top two lines.” – Josh Tessler

#24 – St. Louis Blues – Jiří Kulich (Center, Karlovy Vary) – Drafted By Matthew Somma

“Honestly, the sky is the limit with Kulich. If he can become a far stronger skater and acquire a power stride, he can be even more dangerous. But, his ability to create ice for himself in all three zones makes him a true intriguing prospect at the draft. I could see second line upside as a center in the NHL or he could be deployed as a winger with an excellent playmaker on the top line. It just depends on how his development goes.” – Josh Tessler

#25 – New York Rangers – Marco Kasper (Center, Rögle) – Drafted By Paul Zuk

“He has everything that you want in a power forward. The grit, the decision making and the speed. Kasper has the potential to be a top six forward in the NHL and his grit will intrigue plenty of teams. If a NHL team is looking to obtain a well-rounded power forward who can be annoying in high danger situations with his reach, Kasper is the guy.” – Josh Tessler

#26 – Minnesota Wild – Pavel Mintyukov (Left Handed Defense, Saginaw) – Drafted By Paul Zuk 

“With Pavel Mintyukov’s size, raw tools (including puck skill and passing ability), four-way agility, and deceptive maneuvering around the blue line: it’s hard not to see a lottery selection on that assessment alone. There are not many players in this draft class that have the ability to operate in the offensive zone from the backend like Mintyukov can. Add in his ability to suffocate space and his mobility to keep a tight gap: he’s an attractive asset in the 2022 draft.” – Austin Garrett

#27 – Toronto Maple Leafs – Seamus Casey (Right Handed Defense, USNTDP) – Drafted By Sebastian Jackson

“There’s so much to work with from his skill, intelligence, and ability to use lateral and deceptive motions to create space and get by defenders. With Casey going to Michigan in 2022 and the graduation of Blankenburg and the exodus of Owen Power it’s going to open up a PP2 role behind Luke Hughes. Given Mel Pearson’s history of leaning into the strengths of is defenders and Casey getting 2-3 years of developing in a system that will adhere to his strengths: Casey is poised to flourish.” – Austin Garrett

#28 – Buffalo Sabres (via Florida) – Jagger Firkus (Center, Moose Jaw) – Drafted By Austin Garrett

“Firkus can be an effective top six forward in the NHL and will be a valued asset on special teams. With his shot release and range, he can score goals will ease and snag top shelf snipes. He does a great job of creating dangerous chances in the slot. With that said, you are getting quality production from him. His play in the defensive zone is not as robust as it is in the offensive zone, but if you pair him with the right defensive-minded forwards, he can be rather effective at the next level.” – Josh Tessler

#29 – Tampa Bay Lightning – Vladimir Grudinin (Left Handed Defense, CSKA Moscow) – Drafted By Matthew Somma

“Vladimir Grudinin is a reliable two-way defender, who will need to continue to build up upper body muscle to contend against tougher opponents in the VHL and KHL. He will also need to work on being more assertive and quicker to pucks, but he has shown at the KHL level that he can be a pain to get around. Grudinin will also need to work on developing a stronger inside game, but that might only come when he comes to North America. Even though there are areas which need continued development, I think there is a really good defensive prospect here in Grudinin. There is a smart (sorry… “Smaht”) defenseman in Grudinin who can use excellent skating and mobility to get open ice to facilitate puck movement and key up scoring chances. If things go right with his development, he should be a solid second pairing defenseman at the NHL level.” – Josh Tessler

#30 – Montréal Canadiens – Mattias Hävelid (Right Handed Defense, Linköping) – Drafted by Josh Tessler

“Mattias Hävelid’s offensive tool-kit and his shiftiness is an excellent combination. Hävelid is a great cycle facilitator and will look to pinch up with the puck to work the half-wall boards and see if he can net a seam pass to a teammate. His shot is solid and has had success with it from the point. But, it’s his mobility and shiftiness that make him very intriguing. He can shift and activate quickly to buy open ice in danger areas.” – Josh Tessler

#31 – Arizona Coyotes (via Carolina) – Sam Rinzel (Right Handed Defense, Chaska) – Drafted by Austin Garrett

“Sam Rinzel’s frame and wingspan allows him to be rather aggressive with his reach. He can utilize his reach to take away a lot of space and thus he can trap attackers with ease. When he has control of the puck, he will use his reach to push the puck up the ice at quality speed. He does need more refinement on his mobility to become slightly more shifty with his puck movement, but he can move well especially for his size.” – Josh Tessler

#32 – Arizona Coyotes (via Colorado) – Jimmy Snuggerud (Right Wing, USNTDP – Drafted by Austin Garrett

“Jimmy Snuggerud may not necessarily be talked about among the cream of the crop for NTDP forewards, but don’t let that fool you. Snuggerud is the son of former Sabres and Sharks forward Dave Snuggerud, and possesses one incredibly quick shot release. He has the ability to shoot from various ranges with lethal quickness and accuracy. He’s developed his two-way game immensely this season and it’s paying dividends. Snuggerud’s offensive abilities coupled with his steadily improving defensive and transitional play will make him a popular guy when the draft rolls around in July.” – Paul Zuk

Second & Third Round

33MontrealJoshAlexander SuzdalevHV71LWSweden
34ArizonaAustinLuca Del Bel BelluzMississaugaCCanada
35SeattleSebastianJack HughesNortheastern UniversityFUSA
36Arizona (via Philadelphia)AustinOwen PickeringSwift CurrentLHDCanada
37New JerseyJoshDavid GoyetteSudburyCCanada
38ChicagoJordanTy NelsonNorth BayRHDCanada
39OttawaJordanPaul LudwinskiKingstonCCanada
40DetroitPaulFilip BystedtLinköpingCSweden
41BuffaloAustinElias SalomonssonSkellefteåRHDSweden
42AnaheimAustinOwen BeckMississaugaCCanada
43Arizona (via San Jose)AustinNathan GaucherQuebecCCanada
44ColumbusAlexAdam SykoraNitraRW/LWSlovakia
45Arizona (via New York Islanders)AustinDevin KaplanUSNTDPFUSA
46Washington (via Winnipeg)MattMatyas SapovalivSaginawFCzech Republic
47Minnesota (via Vancouver)PaulLane HutsonUSNTDPLHDUSA
48VegasJordanDanny ZhilkinGuelphCCanada
49Seattle (via Nashville)SebastianJack DevineUniversity of DenverFUSA
50DallasPaulCole KnubleFargoRWUSA
51Los AngelesSebastianIlya KvochkoMagnitogorskCRussia
52Detroit (via Washington)PaulJoel JonssonMoraRWSweden
53Anaheim (via Pittsburgh)AustinRyan ChesleyUSNTDPRHDUSA
54Montreal (via Edmonton)JoshAlexander PelevinNovgorodLHDRussia
55BostonSebastianReid SchaeferSeattleLWCanada
56Winnipeg (via St. Louis)AlexJulian LutzMünchenFGermany
57Winnipeg (via New York Rangers)AlexAlexander PerevalovYaroslavlFRussia
58Chicago (via Minnesota)JordanChristian KyrouErieRHDCanada
59Seattle (via Toronto)SebastianSimon ForsmarkÖrebroLHDSweden
60Seattle (via Florida)SebastianJordan GustafsonSeattleFCanada
61Ottawa (via Tampa Bay)JordanIsaiah GeorgeLondonLHDCanada
62CalgaryPaulAdam IngramYoungstownCCanada
63CarolinaMattLian BichselLeksandsLHDSwitzerland
64New York Islanders (via Colorado)SebastianMikey MilneWinnipegLWCanada
65MontrealJoshMats LindgrenKamloopsLHDCanada
66ArizonaAustinTyler BrennanPrince GeorgeGCanada
67SeattleSebastianMatthew PoitrasGuelphCCanada
68PhiladelphiaAlexJani NymanIlvesLWFinland
69New JerseyJoshBeau JelsmaBarrieCCanada
70Carolina (via Chicago)MattRieger LorenzOkotoks (AJHL)CCanada
71OttawaJordanTristan LuneauGatineauRHDCanada
72DetroitPaulBrennan AliAvon Old Farms (USHS-CT)CUSA
73BuffaloAustinDylan JamesSioux CityLWCanada
74Montreal (via Anaheim)JoshAlexis GendronBlainville-BoisbriandCCanada
75San JoseJoshJere LassilaJYPCFinland
76Winnipeg (via Columbus)AlexLudwig PerssonFrölundaC/LWSweden
77New York IslandersSebastianHunter HaightBarrieCCanada
78Toronto (via Winnipeg)SebastianNoah WarrenGatineauRHDCanada
79VancouverMattMatthew SeminoffKamloopsRWCanada
80Chicago (via Vegas)JordanMarcus NguyenPortlandRWCanada
81NashvilleJordanJordan DumaisHalifaxRWCanada
82DallasPaulHudson ThorntonPrince GeorgeLHDCanada
83Nashville (via Los Angeles)JordanMichael FisherSt. Mark’s (USHS-MA)RHDUSA
84WashingtonMattTopi RönniTapparaCFinland
85Los Angeles (via Pittsburgh)SebastianJace WeirRed DeerRHDCanada
86Chicago (via Edmonton)JordanJakob NorénMODOLHDSweden
87Ottawa (via Boston)JordanSpencer SovaErieLHDCanada
88St. LouisMattBen HemmerlingEverettRWCanada
89Vegas (via New York Rangers)JordanKocha DelicSudburyCCanada
90MinnesotaPaulMitchell MartinKitchenerLWCanada
91Chicago (via Toronto)JordanTyler DukeUSNTDPLHDUSA
92FloridaMattQuinn FinleyMadisonFUSA
93Columbus (via Tampa)AlexMichael BuchingerGuelphLHDCanada
94Boston (via Calgary)SebastianTyson JugnauthWest Kelowna (BCHL)LHDCanada
95Montreal (via Carolina)JoshKasper KulonummiJokeritRHDFinland
96ColoradoAustinMarek HejdukUSNTDPFUSA

Scouting Report: Alexander Suzdalev

Photo Credit: HV71

Scouting Report written by Josh Tessler

Alexander Suzdalev is a 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospect and he plays for HV71. Suzdalev was born in Khabarovsk, Russia and moved to Sweden when his father Anatoly Suzdalev had signed a bandy contract with Swedish bandy club, Vetlanda Bandyklubb. Per a 2015 post on Laget.se, Anatoly had been playing for Yenisei (a Russian club) and left for Vetlanda before the 2011-2012 season. Suzdalev was seven years old when his father signed with Vetlanda. 

In his youth, Suzdalev played for Boro-Vetlanda HC. He played for them at the U16, J18 and J20 levels before joining HV71’s system in 2019-2020. This past season, he played the majority of the season at the J20 level, but did appear in five games for HV71 in the Allsvenskan. 

While born in Russia, Suzdalev holds dual citizenship (Swedish and Russian citizenship). Suzdalev has represented Sweden at the international level and was part of the Swedish U18 championship team at the 2022 IIHF U18 World Championships in Germany / Deutschland.

Suzdalev’s CHL rights are owned by the Regina Pats. The Pats had selected Suzdalev in the 2021 CHL Import Draft at pick #95 in the second round. 

Player Profile

D.O.B – March 5, 2004
Nationality – Sweden & Russia
Draft Eligibility – 2022
Height –6’2″
Weight –172 lbs
Position – Left Wing
Handedness – Left

Suzdalev’s Style Of Play

Offense

Suzdalev typically enters into the offensive zone as the F2 or the F3. As we will discuss later on in the transitional play section, his straight line speed prohibits him from moving the puck up the ice. There are shifts in which he does pick up right near the offensive blue line and complete a controlled zone entry, but it’s not consistent. 

When he doesn’t have possession of the puck in the offensive zone, Suzdalev alternates from supporting his center in the left corner when he is facing tight pressure from the attack and grabbing open ice at net-front.

Earlier on in the season, when on the forecheck, he would be more passive than assertive. He waited for the puck carrier to come to him before he cut in front of the puck carrier to disrupt puck movement. He wouldn’t go hunt in the dirty areas very often. But, over time throughout the season, he started to show that he was up for being slightly more aggressive on the forecheck. Towards the end of the season, he was skating to the corners and was highly effective at cutting inside and getting around defenders to loose pucks behind the red line.

Given his straight line speed issues, it’s apparent that he didn’t feel comfortable skating down low to the corners because the attacker would have plenty of time and space to collect the puck and navigate around him. At that point, Suzdalev would be out of position to defend against the rush. So, he took more of a passive role on the forecheck. 

After adopting a more aggressive style of forechecking, Suzdalev showed that he can leverage his reach to poke check especially in situations when he is slightly further back from the attacker. He can use his reach to stick lift and force the attacker to lose possession of the puck. Suzdalev also showed that he can be physical and would lean in with a shoulder check when he was well-aligned to an attacker. Even though Suzdalev has shown that he can effective at being aggressive on the forecheck, his skating will limit his effectiveness at the NHL level and thus he needs to develop a true power stride to be truly effective at forechecking. With a power stride, he could be far more aggressive in the corners and be a pain for opposing puck moving defenders. 

Suzdalev’s stick-handling allows him to net quality separation as he has great reach and can extend the puck well past the attacker’s stick blade. The only thing missing is his speed. I know that some fans feel that Suzdalev does not possess a strong interior game with the puck on his stick. At the moment, that is true, but if he develop a power stride, that will change quickly. In situations in which he has the puck in low danger, used his reach to navigate around the attacker, he struggles to keep enough separation from the attacker to drive inside. If he had the speed, he’d be able to truly separate from the attacker. 

In the below clip, you will see Suzdalev quickly shift the puck around the attacker when the attacker shifts over to him. While Suzdalev doesn’t have a lot of speed, he is very quick from a reactionary stand point. After doing so, you can see him struggle to net separation and thus he doesn’t try to continue to skate towards the slot. He deviates and ends up behind the red line. If he had the speed to create separation, he could create a give and go opportunity by passing behind the red line to his teammate, drive towards the slot and then collect a pass from his teammate after establishing open ice down low. Or he could leverage that speed to drive right past the attacker and then use his stick-handling reach to swing the puck around the defender at net-front.

When Suzdalev is behind the net and in possession of the puck, he will look to pass to the slot to an an open teammate. If he is in low danger along the half-wall boards and he struggles to get enough separation with his reach, he will look to complete tight passes underneath the attacker’s stick blade when he sees a teammate almost at net front. But, if he can get quality separation with his reach, he has shown that he can wire passes to teammates in the slot with ease. 

Suzdalev has shown on a consistent basis that if he can’t manufacture passing lanes to exploit and pressure becomes far too intimidating that he will double back. He won’t force the puck in. Since he doesn’t have the raw speed to get around pressure, he has to be far more conservative with the puck on his stick. 

When it comes to manufacturing scoring opportunities for himself and he doesn’t have possession of the puck, he looks to establish open ice in the slot when the attack is busy behind their own net. Suzdalev quietly sneaks into medium danger and provides his teammate at the red line an open passing option. After gaining possession of the puck off of a quality tape-to-tape pass, he doesn’t hold the puck on his stick for too long. Suzdalev has a quick release, good weight transfer as he shifts his chest above the knee for maximum power and has an open stick blade. With his shooting mechanics, he can generate height and power to be lethal in all shooting situations.

Defense

In the defensive zone, Suzdalev typically positions himself along the boards to collect an outlet pass from behind his net and then looks for a teammate skating towards the blue line. Then he quickly completes a pass to them. Given some of the speed issues that we talked about earlier on, Suzdalev’s approach is to retrieve the puck but quickly get the puck out of his hands to a teammate who is driving up the ice with speed.

While he does have a lot of success with his outlet passing, he does needs to be a bit more cautious when looking to complete a pass with an attacker maintaining stride for stride positioning. He will have an attacker right on him and fail to identify a quality lane to use and gives the puck right to the attacker in front of him. It’s a depth perception issue. He will try to pass between the legs when there is really no room at all. Suzdalev needs to work on identifying quality lanes to use when he starts to run out of space. Since he can’t manufacture separation with speed, he has to be more selective with his passing and thus he needs to be cautious about putting the puck in an area in which the attacker can easily swallow up possession of the puck.

In the rare situations in which Suzdalev is driving the bus and bringing the puck up the ice, he can use his reach to get by an attacker coming at him as he swings the puck around the attacker and it’s far enough that the attacker can’t get his stick blade in range.

Suzdalev’s defensive pressure can be very inconsistent. There are shifts in which he is implementing good pressure along the boards on a vulnerable attacker who has his back turned to Suzdalev. But, isn’t always engaged and putting up tight pressure along the half-wall boards. Given his speed issues, he can get beat by faster attackers as they will manage to use their speed to get quality separation. He needs to leverage his reach more and more to take away time and space when defending along the boards. At the point, he does use his reach to trap opposing defenders. As the season progressed, he started using more and more of an active stick to take away space for puck carrying attackers along the blue line. 

Transitional Play

In the neutral zone, Suzdalev is stronger with the puck on the stick versus when he is defending against oppositional puck movement. Given that Suzdalev has become slightly more aggressive with his forechecking and his skating stride hasn’t improved much over the course of the year, you will see Suzdalev often skating behind the rush. Even though he usually is skating behind the rush, he can leverage his reach when in range to stick lift and cause puck disruption.

When in control of the puck, if he collects possession of the puck before vacating the defensive zone and completes a zone exit or collects the puck off of a pass right near the defensive zone blue line in the neutral zone, Suzdalev has shown that he can complete excellent diagonal feed from the left side to his open right winger near the offensive zone blue line. He constantly looks to move the puck quickly after receiving the puck as he doesn’t have the separation speed. 

Similar to his approach in the offensive zone when he is in control of the puck and looking to push the puck up himself, should pressure become far too intimidating, he takes the safe approach by doubling back in the neutral zone. He button hooks and then looks for an open teammate on the other side of the zone, who has a better shot of bringing the puck into the offensive zone unharmed and then passes.  

Skating

As I’ve mentioned throughout this report, the one thing holding Suzdalev back from being a dominant winger up and down the ice is his speed. When Suzdalev is in stride, his skate extensions are rather short and he doesn’t have great posture. Suzdalev isn’t hunched over, but at the same time, he isn’t lowering his chest and bending his knees. There are many shifts in which Suzdalev will look to carry himself up the ice with his extensions and then he will decide to start gliding. Unfortunately, he already doesn’t have much power to drive himself up the ice and gliding eliminates whatever acceleration he was able to create. Ideally, Suzdalev will adopt a power stride and cut down on his gliding. If he can do so, you will see Suzdalev truly reach his potential of being a dominant power forward. He will be able to forecheck aggressively and use physical play to shut down the cycle in his own zone. 

It’s not just his straight line speed that needs to be improved upon though. His crossovers and edges need a bit more refinement too. His crossovers like his stride extensions are rather short and they simply don’t net good acceleration. So, when he deploy his edges, he can’t rely on his crossovers for activation after changing directions. 

Projection

Suzdalev has top six potential written all over him. He just needs to develop that power stride to get to the NHL level. If he doesn’t, I don’t believe he will make much of an impact at the NHL level as he speed will hinder his ability to bring the puck inside. He can leverage his quick decision making and excellent passing ability to get the puck out of his hands, but for Suzdalev to be an impact player, his speed will need far more refinement. While this might seem rather negative, it isn’t. There are plenty of prospects in this class that are very similar to Suzdalev. Luca Del Bel Belluz and Devin Kaplan come to mind. Both are prospects who are not the fastest skaters, but can be highly efficient at getting the puck to the teammate with more separation and more speed. Should all three prospects improve their speed, all three could be impact power forwards at the NHL level. So, the lesson is don’t sleep on Suzdalev nor Del Bel Belluz or Kaplan. The potential is there.

Latest Update

June 4, 2022

stats from InStat and EliteProspects

Prospect report written by Josh Tessler. If you would like to follow Josh on Twitter, his handle is @JoshTessler_.

Looking for other scouting reports? Check out the Prospects tab for our other scouting reports.

Need a scouting report on a particular prospect, contact us today!

Scouting Report: Calle Odelius

Photo Credit: Otto Marand / Djurgården

Scouting Report written by Josh Tessler

Calle Odelius is a 2022 NHL Draft eligible, who hails from Södertälje, Sweden and plays for Djurgården. 

Odelius isn’t the only one in his family playing competitive hockey. His brother, William Odelius is playing in the Brynäs system. He moved over to Brynäs after spending his youth with Södertälje. William Odelius is a 2024 NHL Draft eligible prospect.

In his youth, he played for the local club, Södertälje SK and he played alongside his Djurgården teammates, Jonathan Lekkerimäki and Noah Östlund. 

This past season, Odelius spent the majority of the time at the J20 level for Djurgården and was the highest scoring defenseman for the J20 club with 30 points in 43 games. In addition to his J20 play, he had a few short stints at the SHL level and represented Sweden internationally. Odelius was part of the Swedish championship team at the U18s in Germany.

Player Profile

D.O.B – May 30, 2004
Nationality – Sweden
Draft Eligibility – 2022
Height –6’0″
Weight –185 lbs
Position – Defense
Handedness – Left

Odelius’ Style Of Play

Offense

Calle Odelius handles pressure very nicely. He has excellent offensive escapability. When pinching up and facing pressure, he has good reach with the puck to extend the puck far enough away from the attacker that is applying vest-to-vest pressure. Check out this clip (the second tweet) of Odelius navigating around pressure with ease. Notice closely that the exact moment that the attacker skates in, Odelius takes off. Secures the puck and plays it along the boards. When the attacker extends his stick to go after the puck, that’s when Odelius is able to dance right by him.

Like his teammate Liam Öhgren, Odelius can be extremely manipulative with the puck on his stick. When securing the puck off of a pass along the blue-line and backing himself up towards the half-wall, he does a good job of implementing a few little subtle cradles to keep the attackers on their toes. After a few cradles from side to side, he will fake a shot, which mystifies the attacker and then Odelius skates out from the pressure. 

But, there are situations in which he simply feels like he can’t evade the pressure by pivoting out and puck manipulation won’t bail him out either. In those situations, he is quick with his decision making and quickly gets the puck out of his hands. He completes a quick pass to keep the cycle alive. It’s not always an average tape to tape pass. If he can’t net the slightest amount of separation to complete a pass, he will look to fire a saucer over the attacker’s stick.

What I really like about Odelius is his vision. He is very good at identifying passes that are coming towards him but are still too far out in front of him. He reads the trajectory of the pass and then skates into the pass. Not only does he skate into the pass, but it also means that he already activated his skates and he’s now collecting the puck on the move versus at a stand still position. At a stand still position, attackers can close in on him, so by skating into the pass it allows him to have the upper hand speed wise on potential pressure.

From a positional stand point, when there are tight puck battles down low behind the offensive zone red line, Odelius moves to the face-off circle on the border of medium danger to offer a passing option. He also displays good positioning along the blue line as he is constantly on his feet and keeping an eye on where the puck is incase he needs to begin to drop back into the neutral zone.

When it comes to his shot, he has had solid success with his shot in J20 play. All of his goals this season at 5v5 came from at least medium danger. He has scored on the move with wrist and snap shots. Odelius has good weight transfer on his shot and he can get quality power by pushing his weight towards his knee. When Odelius has open ice and a teammate gets a quality feed to him, he can be rather dangerous. Take a look at this goal (the second tweet/clip) against Mora from February. Skates into the zone, establishes open ice from the get go, collects a quality pass from Liam Öhgren and quickly shoots a bar down goal. 

While he does have an excellent shot, he does need to be a bit more cautious with his shot selection at times. There have been quite a few shifts in which he faces pressure while at the point and he still tries to force a shot through the lane when there is no chance of the shot making it through. 

Defense

Odelius is quite strong defensively and will look to implement quality pressure even in low danger areas. There have been numerous shifts in which Odelius looks to skate in towards the opponent’s stick shift to knock them off the puck by pushing into the stick shaft. He will also use shoulder checks and hip checks to create puck disruption.

When looking to toke away space and trap puck moving attackers in low danger and medium danger, Odelius will extend his stick blade out towards the puck. Odelius will use active stick to try to take away passing lanes when attackers are in low danger behind the red line, but the deployment needs to be slightly quicker. He has been burned by being slightly too slow with his active stick and attackers manage to wire a pass to the slot. I do like his active stick, but he just needs to be faster with it to truly counter oppositional puck movement. 

In the offensive section, I talked about Odelius’ vision and has ability to skate into passes intended for him but going slightly wide. In the defensive zone, he scans the ice surface well and can identify oppositional passing that he can skate into to intercept. He has had quite a bit of success skating into passes, claiming possession for the puck and then activates in order to bring the puck up the ice. 

When going for a loose puck and an attacker is skating in unison, Odelius does a good job of getting on the inside of the loose puck battle. By getting on the inside, he has a far better chance of picking up the loose puck and when he does he will usually fire a quick pass to a teammate to avoid being trapped by the attacker.

In situations in which he doesn’t have possession of the puck, but his teammate does behind the net and an attacker is skating towards that teammate, Odelius will leverage his quality crossovers to skate backwards towards the corner. By doing so, Odelius then offers an open passing lane for the teammate who is facing pressure at the net.

When he has the puck and doesn’t have a tremendous amount of pressure in front of him, he will look to wire stretch passes from the defensive zone to his forwards along the offensive zone blue line. Odelius consistently does a good job at identifying open teammates going east – west in the neutral zone and completing outlet feeds to them as zone exit passes. While a lot of his zone exit feeds and outlet passes tend to be stretch passes and tape to tape feeds, he will look to be deceptive with no-look behind the back passes. 

In situations in which he does have quality pressure in front of him, he looks to leverage his deception and manipulate attackers with his stick-handling to open up skating or passing lanes to exploit. When holds onto the puck behind his net, saw he had an attacker that was targeting him, he will shift to the puck to one side to force the attacker to go to that side. Immediately after doing so, he will then fire a pass behind him to get the puck completely away from danger and hopefully in the hands of an open teammate. In addition to raw puck movement and manipulating the attacker by drawing the puck to one side, Odelius will also use body language to manipulate attackers into thinking that Odelius is going in a direction, but Odelius then pivots out of it and has plenty of open ice. He will extend his knees out to one side and make the attacker believe that Odelius is committing to that side. Odelius will also utilize changes in pace and strategic movements to open up ice for himself. For instance, in the below clip, you will notice when Odelius is trying to shake off pressure after collecting a loose puck along the half-wall boards and an attacker starts to move near him, he slows down and then he strategically skates past the red line further out from the goaltender to draw the attacker in behind the red line. After pulling the attacker in, he pivots out from danger. 

But, it’s not just his deceptive style that he will leverage when looking to get the puck out of his hands and into the hands of a teammate. It’s all about quickness. I’ve seen Odelius observe an attacker coming right at him when he skating past the corner and completes a pass along the boards to a teammate further up the half-wall right before the attacker makes contact with Odelius. Odelius doesn’t take his time. He is quick.

Transitional Play

Odelius is quite strong defensively in the neutral zone and most of his success has to do with positioning. For instance, he will position himself in front of an opposing forward in the neutral zone and scans the ice to identify the opposing defender who has possession of the puck. When the defender attempts a stretch pass, Odelius uses his excellent scanning ability to track the trajectory of the puck to ensure that he is in position to net possession. 

In sequences where his defensive partner pinched up and is out of position and the opposition is driving the puck out of the zone, Odelius will drop back into the neutral zone. He looks to position himself in more of a centered role to be in the best spot to defend against a 2-on-1. 

Odelius does a good job of using his vision to scan puck movement and he reacts to quick adjustments made the opposition quite well. He also quickly identifies what he needs to do to himself in order to get into position to shut down the attack. If he is in a more centered position to start and the rush will be coming down the boards, he does a good job of assessing how much speed he needs to get in position in time. In situations in which the puck carrier deviate from the initial route, Odelius implements the necessary lateral crossovers to stay aligned.

Similar to his defensive play in his own zone, Odelius implements quality stick-handling reach when defending in the neutral zone to take up space. He will use an active stick in the neutral zone when defending the rush and will look to motion his stick blade to one side to get the attacker to move the puck in the other direction. By doing so, he can predict the attacker’s movements and that allows him to strip possession of the puck.

When his defensive partner has control of the puck, he stays aligned to his partner and ensures that he will remain parallel to the attacker as the attacker looks to move the puck into the offensive zone. His positioning provides his defensive partner with a lateral passing lane to use should the partner end up facing tight pressure.

If Odelius gains control of the puck off of a pass in the neutral zone, he usually looks to quickly get the puck out of his hands and into the hands of a teammate who is further along in the neutral zone. So, you will see Odelius complete a lot of one touch passes. He doesn’t want to dilly dally / waste time. 

When he has plenty of open ice and is flying from the defensive zone to the offensive zone, he does a good job blending his crossovers with lengthy stride extensions to ensure that he has the necessary speed to get into the offensive zone and avoid pressure / potential puck disruption. 

Skating

Like Djugården teammates and fellow draft eligible prospects, Noah Östlund, Liam Öhgren and Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Odelius has an excellent stride. It is lengthy and he can use it to acquire top speed especially in situations where he is slightly out of position. His posture and ankle flexion is in the prime spot to garner maximum speed. Odelius lowers his stance and his knee sits in tow with the toe of his skate. 

While Odelius does have lengthy skate extensions that allows him to get the necessary acceleration to stay aligned with puck movement, if he is reacting to a change in puck movement and he was pivoting out or making a turn, he struggles to activate and get quality acceleration. So, sometimes he is slow to loose puck battles as he couldn’t get a quality push off of a pivot, turn or rotation from backwards to forwards (or vice versa). It doesn’t seem to be an issue with leaning on edges to retain maximum speed as he usually does lean on his edges. Instead, it seems as if he isn’t rotation his hip fast enough off of the pivot. In order to keep the speed that you had before pivoting, you need a quick a hip rotation before going into stride. If your hips rotates too slowly, you’ve lost a lot of the momentum that you had. While it does seem to be an issue when he is going after loose puck or looking to put pressure on puck carriers, it doesn’t seem to be an issue when he is the one carrying the puck and deploying pivots to shake off pressure. 

While there are some acceleration issues that need to be worked on, when Odelius is skating with possession of the puck, he has excellent crossovers and stride extensions that he will use interchangeably to propel himself up the ice. 

Projection

In my opinion, Odelius’ floor is a second pairing defenseman at the NHL level. With his tool-set, he has proven that he can be a challenge in every zone with his vision and scanning abilities. As mentioned earlier, he reads puck movement well and knows just how many stride extensions it will take to get himself in position to defend. He can dictate what attackers do with the puck with his active stick. He can rely on his puck manipulation to garner enough space for him to escape pressure and net himself enough open ice to key up a quality passing lane leading to scoring opportunities. There is just so much in his game that will make him an asset at the next level. 

Latest Update

May 30, 2022

stats from InStat and EliteProspects

Prospect report written by Josh Tessler. If you would like to follow Josh on Twitter, his handle is @JoshTessler_.

Looking for other scouting reports? Check out the Prospects tab for our other scouting reports.

Need a scouting report on a particular prospect, contact us today!

Smaht Talk: Undah the Radah

Smaht Scouting’s Matthew Somma and Austin Garrett talk about several under the radar 2022 NHL Draft prospects including Jeremy Hanzel, Jacob Guévin, Zaccharya Wisdom, Ben Hemmerling, David Gucciardi, Marcus Nguyen and Zach Bookman. The duo also talks about their love for southern fast food.

If you would like to listen to this episode, you can find an embedded link from SoundCloud below. Our podcast can also be found on iTunes, Spotify and Google Podcasts.

Scouting Report: Danny Zhilkin

Photo Credit: Luke Durda/OHL Images

Scouting Report written by Paul Zuk

Danny (Daniil) Zhilkin is one of the top OHL players eligible for the 2022 NHL Entry Draft slated to take place this July in Montreal. Zhilkin is a dual citizen of both Russia and Canada, as he was born in Moscow, but moved to Ontario when he was ten years old. He moved to the Greater Toronto Area and played his youth hockey within the Burlington Minor Hockey Association.  

After playing with the Toronto Jr Canadiens AAA program for a few seasons, Zhilkin made the switch to the Toronto Marlboros U16 AAA team which plays in the GTHL. He enjoyed success in his first season with the Marlboros in 2018-19, tallying 43 goals and 37 assists for 80 points in 102 games across all competitions. Playing behind teammates Wyatt Johnston and Jack Beck, Zhilkin managed to catch the eye of the OHL, and was later selected 14th overall by the Guelph Storm in the 2019 OHL Draft.

Zhilkin played his rookie season in the OHL in 2019-20, scoring seven goals and eight assists for 15 points in 60 games, but unfortunately the remainder of his season, as well as the entire 2020-21 campaign was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was able to earn a role on Team Canada’s U18 team for the U18 Worlds in Texas, where he played up and down the lineup. He added two assists in seven games on his way to a gold medal, playing for one of the more notable U18 teams to ever play in the tournament.

The 2021-22 season was truly Zhilkin’s first full one in the OHL, and he didn’t seem to disappoint. He started the season on quite a tear, registering 15 points in the first 16 games off the hop. NHL Central Scouting raised his grade from a B to an A on their “Players to Watch” list shortly after. Zhilkin finished the season with 55 points in 65 games, but unfortunately the Storm were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in five games by the Soo Greyhounds, a series in which Zhilkin scored one goal and one assist for two points in 4 games played.

Player Profile

D.O.B – December 19, 2003
Nationality – Canada & Russia
Draft Eligibility – 2022
Height –6’2″
Weight –183 lbs
Position – Center
Handedness – Left

Zhilkin’s Style of Play

Zhilkin is a “do-it-all” style of player, meaning he can be relied upon to play in any area of the ice, in basically any situation that is presented. As his game has developed over the past few seasons, Zhilkin’s became much more dominant in all three zones of the ice and can be relied upon to play a 200ft game. One area of his game which scouts fall in love with, is his skillset in transition.

In transition, Zhilkin is just ridiculously talented and just a pleasure to watch, as his deceptiveness and nifty hands make it extremely hard for defenders to anticipate what he’s going to do with the puck. This keeps many defenders on their toes as they’re unsure of his next move. Zhilkin exploits this several times per game by accelerating into the offensive zone and putting his high hockey IQ to use. His zone entry and exit numbers are quite impressive to look at, especially after factoring in the traits in his gameplay mentioned above.

In the clip above, Zhilkin picks up the puck from Luka Profaca at his own blueline and skates up through the neutral zone into the attacking third of the ice. He sees teammate Matthew Papais cutting out wide from the middle lane and uses him to pick off the Attack defender to create space for himself. He’s able to shake off the defender for a step, spin around, and put his quick release to work, firing home the OT winner.

Let’s take a deeper look into the facets of Danny Zhilkin’s game:

Skating

While he may not be the most explosive player on the ice for the Storm, Zhilkin’s skating ability is not something to scoff at. The mechanics all seem to be present in his skating, and his long, powerful stride aids him in competing for pucks. He tends to keep a low center of gravity and a wider base to help him generate those powerful strides and can usually reach his maximum speed after just a couple.

Zhilkin can show very impressive bursts of speed when fully engaged in the play. When carrying the puck in transition, he can often burst out wide and fly past the opposing defender. He’s also able to use that built up speed to drive the net and create uncomfortable situations for opposing players and goalies.

Zhilkin does also have some impressive foot speed, which is noticeable when in transition. He can weave in and around defenders with ease and can even squeeze in an extra crossover or two to generate as much speed as possible when entering   the offensive zone.

Zhilkin’s edgework is average when compared to other NHL Draft eligibles coming out of the OHL, but he could use some work with his agility. With just a little more evasiveness, it will open up many more opportunities all over the ice for him to exploit opponents using his gifted offensive mind.

Offense

One aspect of Zhilkin’s offensive game is he has a knack for perfectly executing no-look plays. It seems as if he’s able to get a shot on net, or a pass directly on his teammate’s tape without looking several times a game. It’s clear that teams respect his offensive skill as he’s able to draw defenders on to himself by simply directing his head towards goal. Zhilkin uses this to his advantage as he can attract as many defenders as possible, then dish a beautiful pass to a teammate for a chance on goal.

In the clip above from the 2022 CHL TPG, Team Red recovers the puck down low in their own zone and starts the breakout. Shane Wright accepts a pass at their blueline and immediately dishes it off to Zhilkin. Zhilkin uses his powerful skating stride to break out wide to create separation between the defender and Wright by forcing the defender onto his body. Once he gets the defender to pinch over far enough, he’s able to dish a beautiful saucer pass to Wright who taps home the goal. Just awesome playmaking and execution from both players here.

Zhilkin likes to get pucks into high-danger areas, even if there isn’t a direct avenue he’s trying to exploit. He has no issue carrying the puck in the offensive zone and firing it on goal, often looking to generate a rebound in front, or trying to secure an obscure bounce in hopes it ends up in the back of the net.

When executing an offensive zone entry, Zhilkin utilizes his powerful stride and quick feet to catch defenders flat footed. He’s able to either carry the puck out wide with pace, or by cutting between the defenders and into the high slot area. While his shot is nothing to shrug off, he may just be an even better passer of the puck. Zhilkin’s vision on the ice and general hockey IQ is quite impressive and is more than capable of pulling off multiple “How did he see that?!” chances each game.

As mentioned above, Zhilkin does have one hell of a shot. He has an extremely quick release and isn’t afraid to fire the puck from just about anywhere that makes sense in the offensive zone. When he’s shooting from a distance, his main goal seems to be to generate a rebound in tight for his teammates to hopefully tuck home.

Defense

While Zhilkin’s defensive zone play isn’t necessarily why he’ll be sought after when the 2022 NHL Draft rolls around, he’s a sound defensive player when he’s on the ice. He’s positionally aware and can assist in covering off for his defensemen when they’re caught up ice, or in a puck battle along the boards.

When hemmed in their own zone either at even strength or on special teams, Zhilkin has zero issues sacrificing his body to block a shot and disrupt the opponent’s offensive zone setup. He’s also quite talented getting his body and stick into many areas to block passing lanes and disrupting the play. As he moves up in his career, Zhilkin’s ability to play in all situations effectively will reward him with more ice time for him to continue to develop.

However, Zhilkin’s overall defensive game could use some work. While he’s capable of winning draws and tying up the opposing center, it’s noticeable he can be caught watching the play at times. It could simply be chalked up to him overthinking in the defensive zone, but it should be something he looks to remove from his game as he transitions to the next level.

Another aspect Zhilkin may look to improve on is his consistency when backchecking and assisting his defenseman when they’re out of position. Zhilkin has showed he is extremely capable of doing this without hesitation, but he’s also shown he can be hit and miss with those abilities. Perhaps some more consistency in this aspect of his defensive zone skillset would benefit him.

Improvements

While Zhilkin has shown his ability to be dynamic in transition and shoot the puck incredibly well among other strong points of his game, there is still some work to be done to fine tune his game.

Offensively speaking, Zhilkin’s overall game is the most professional-ready area of his game. He has a firm grasp on pretty much every aspect, although, he may look to work on his accuracy when passing the puck in the offensive zone. This isn’t a knock on his passing skills, as mentioned above, they’re quite impressive. It’s more so just a suggestion on sharpening an already solid trait.

Defensively, Zhilkin has made strides in the past season to improve his overall defensive game and transform into a three-zone player. As mentioned above, he may look to work on his consistency when it comes to his ability to cover off for his defensemen, as well as his focus when hemmed in the defensive zone.

With just some minor tweaks in his game, he can certainly develop into a middle six forward who possesses an abundance of offensive skill but can also play that shutdown role that teams definitely covet.

Overall Outlook

When you look at most prospects in the 2022 NHL Draft coming out of the OHL, it’s clear that the lost season of 2020/21 hurt their development quite a bit. Danny Zhilkin is no exception to that rule. There’s quite a lot to like about the way he plays, but just like everyone else, there are kinks in his game which will need more time for him to work out.

His offensive talent is quite impressive, and for the most part, his vision on the ice and his hockey IQ will allow him to be successful at the next level. However, how successful he could potentially be hinges on how the rest of his game can develop. It seems unfair to call him a project, as it’s not his fault for losing an imperative season of development.

There’s a solid chance that Zhilkin could sneak into the tail end of the first round, depending on if a team falls in love with his game, and if they believe he can round out his overall game to their liking. If that doesn’t become the case, I think his wheelhouse for being selected lies somewhere between 50th and 65th overall in the second round.

Latest Update

May 28, 2022

stats from InStat and EliteProspects

Prospect report written by Paul Zuk. If you would like to follow Paul on Twitter, his handle is @paulzuk_81.

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A Look Into Our Draft Rankings: WHL

Photo Credit: Candice Ward / Calgary Hitmen

Post written by Matthew Somma

Nobody is going to agree wholeheartedly with a site’s draft list. Either a player is too high, too low, or left out entirely. Obviously, scouts are going to view players differently and there’s always going to be some disagreements whenever a list is posted. I had the idea to go through our list, look at all of the WHL (and some Junior A) players we ranked and provide some context for our rankings.

Matthew Savoie – 6th Overall

Savoie has some of the highest upside in this class and has shown flashes of brilliance this year. He might be one of the best pure offensive players in this draft class, but I’ve had concerns about his ability to attack the middle of the ice at the NHL level. His game is projectable and he should be a strong NHL player, but other players have risen above Savoie’s level, in my opinion. It’s entirely possible that Savoie becomes one of the top producing players from this draft class. In fact, I’d be willing to bet that he does. He’s a strong skater and has elite hockey sense, playmaking and scoring ability. Savoie commands your attention when he’s on the ice and can maintain his production under any level of pressure.

Kevin Korchinski – 13th Overall

Early on in the season, I would have laughed if you had told me that this is where I’d be ranking Korchinski. I didn’t like his game at all and was unable to see why scouts liked him so much. Now, I see a player that can run an offense both in transition and on the blue line. Korchinski is an excellent passer and skater that doesn’t sacrifice defensive responsibility. He’s able to dominate a shift better than most other defensemen in the WHL this season, regardless of their age. His game is projectable, and if he can continue to develop physically and defensively, he’s a near sure bet for a team’s top four. I would have been comfortable ranking Korchinski as high as 9th on our list, as I had him on a similar level as Simon Nemec. Ultimately, we went with Nemec and bumped Korchinski down a bit.

Denton Mateychuk – 16th Overall

I want Mateychuk to be an NHL player so badly. There aren’t many, if any, defensemen that play like he does. He’s a player that constantly seeks out offense and will go all-out every shift. Defense be damned, Mateychuk is going to find a way to turn a routine play into offense. Mateychuk is a unicorn. While most defensemen quarterback but ultimately dish the puck to a teammate, Mateychuk is the catalyst of his team’s offense. It’s almost as if Moose Jaw has a fourth forward on the ice whenever Mateychuk is out there. Mateychuk might be one of the most polarizing players in this draft class, in my opinion. You’re getting a player that is elite offensively, but at the same time, a player that struggles in his own end as well as with decision making when it comes to exit passes and pinches along the boards. Mateychuk could work in a high octane system, but there are very few teams that implement a system that will unlock Mateychuk’s full potential. I felt that ranking Mateychuk 16th is fair because even though his upside is much higher than Korchinski’s, Mateychuk’s game is far less projectable.

Jagger Firkus – 21st Overall

Firkus rose up my board rapidly this season. I love his offensive game and he’s one of the more potent goal scorers in this draft. His shot release is lethal and a threat from anywhere in the offensive zone, after all. I’ve seen a much more engaged player than I did early on this year, which has helped him up the draft board. Firkus is now an active forechecker and will pressure players in the defensive zone, something I didn’t see at all back in October. Firkus being the second WHL forward on our rankings may be a bit of a surprise given the fact that Conor Geekie hasn’t been ranked yet, but I see Firkus making more of an impact on a team’s second line than Geekie. Firkus isn’t perfect and will need some time to develop, but I felt that it was a no-brainer to rank him ahead of Geekie, especially given what I saw in the WHL playoffs.

Conor Geekie – 30th Overall

Out of all of the members of the Smaht staff, I might be the one that likes Geekie the most. That’s saying something, because I have major doubts about Geekie’s NHL upside and overall game. He doesn’t attack the middle of the ice, he’s not carrying the puck in transition, his skating is a liability and his defensive zone play is poor. That doesn’t scream top six center to me. I have concerns that Geekie won’t be as effective in the offensive zone once he leaves the WHL, too. He’s able to bully the WHL due to his size and strength, but once he graduates to the pros, that’ll no longer be the case. Yes, there’s a good chance that Geekie is an NHL player after three to four years. I just don’t believe that Geekie is a top six forward at the NHL level. Ultimately, I decided that Geekie was worth a selection in the 25-32 range, and we as a staff settled on 30. You’re likely getting a player that will play NHL games when you pick Geekie, and it’s a fairly safe pick if you’re okay with sacrificing upside.

Owen Pickering – 33rd Overall

Pickering is a late bloomer and I’m almost convinced that this ranking will come back to bite me in the future. My biggest concerns with Pickering were his passing and his overall play in transition and the offensive zone. Pickering’s passing is a weak point and he often turns the puck over because he is either unable to execute the pass or he has failed to see the defender in the lane. Pickering’s offensive game and play in transition are limited due to his passing being a weakness. Still, I’ve seen tangible growth from him this season and it’s hard to find a defenseman at his size that’s as smooth of a skater as Pickering is. If his passing ability doesn’t improve as much as I hope it will, Pickering is only going to be a third pairing defenseman at best. If he is able to round out his game, however, we’re looking at another potential top four defenseman at the NHL level. For the sheer potential, I had Pickering in a similar range to Geekie. I could have ranked him 25-35, and I wouldn’t argue if someone put him higher than 33rd.

Rieger Lorenz – 51st Overall

Lorenz has a great mix of size, speed and two way ability that makes him a solid prospect for this draft. I’ve loved watching Lorenz on the penalty kill this season and I’m seeing a player that could be ready for the NHL as soon as he finishes up at Denver. I’m unsure of Lorenz’s upside since he’s coming from the AJHL, but I could see him as a solid third line center capable of playing in all situations. The depth in this draft tapers off significantly after a while, so I felt that ranking Lorenz 51st would be fair since he has a solid projection as an NHL player.

Reid Schaefer – 55th Overall

I like Schaefer and Lorenz roughly the same. Schaefer is a more gifted goal scorer, and Lorenz is a little better defensively. Schaefer rose up my board significantly late in the season and in the WHL playoffs, too. I’ve watched Seattle closely this postseason and he has been one of their most dangerous forwards on a consistent basis. His size and skating make him a threat when he’s on the ice, and his shot release is near perfect. Schaefer has finally come into his own as a player, so I felt that ranking him a little higher than consensus was justified.

Mats Lindgren – 63rd Overall

Lindgren has a lot of potential as a passer in the offensive zone, and his skating is smooth and effortless, but I don’t like the rest of his game. He’s awful with exit passes and turns the puck over at an alarming rate. Defensively, he’s unable to knock players off of the puck and can’t get in the shooting or passing lanes and disrupt the play. He’s fairly one-dimensional and doesn’t inspire a ton of confidence. I liked Lindgren early on, but as the season went on, it became clear that teams could exploit his weaknesses with little difficulty. Lindgren’s offensive potential makes him worth a swing at this point in the draft, which is why I ranked him here. Lindgren’s upside isn’t as high as that of Korchinski or Mateychuk, and the flaws in his game are easier to exploit. I ranked Lindgren in the 61-80 tier and he wound up at 63 in our final rankings.

Matthew Seminoff – 67th Overall

Seminoff is a pest to play against and fits the bill of a bottom six energy forward. I see flashes of higher upside in his game, but my brain tells me that Seminoff likely peaks as a 30-35 point NHL player. My heart wants to believe that he can turn into a stronger offensive presence, but I don’t see enough elite skill in his game. He’s dependable, though, and will be an easy player to coach due to how hard he works in all three zones. Seminoff’s tenacity on the forecheck and play below the goal line made me comfortable ranking him anywhere from 60-70 in spite of his lower upside.

Mikey Milne – 73rd Overall

This was a ranking where I deferred to Josh and Austin. I like Milne, but I felt that my own personal biases got in the way a bit here. Milne is very close to being a double overage player for this draft, so I felt that at this point in his WHL career, he should be putting up these sorts of totals. Still, Milne’s game fits an NHL style and I could see a team taking him this high in the draft if they’re looking for an immediate boost to their prospect pool. Personally, I would have ranked Milne in the 100-128 range due to his age. No disrespect to the player, I just worry about overage players being a little overhyped in this draft due to a lack of viewings last year.

Jordan Gustafson – 74th Overall

Gustafson has bounced around on my board this year. He’s another talented goal scorer and is great on the forecheck, but his skating is average and his defensive zone play is shaky. Overall, I think we’re looking at a player with third line upside. I can understand why people are a little higher on Gustafson, especially now that I’ve seen him in the playoffs. Still, I felt that I hadn’t seen enough in my previous viewings of the player to justify a higher ranking.

Tyler Brennan – 76th Overall

Brennan is arguably the top goaltender in this draft class and has the potential to become a good 1b or backup at the NHL level. I don’t see him becoming a franchise goaltender due to his inability to truly steal games, but he’s a great technical goaltender with NHL size. This is probably the worst draft for goalies that I can remember, and Brennan hasn’t wowed me this year. Ultimately, I felt that teams could be better off picking Milne or Gustafson ahead of Brennan since it’s not likely that Brennan will be a high end goaltender. We’re splitting hairs with all three players, though, and I wouldn’t have argued if we decided to put Brennan above the other two.

Jace Weir – 78th Overall

Weir is a player that I’ve liked a lot this season. He’s different from the other WHL defenders on this list thus far in the sense that he’s more of a defensive defenseman who excels at zone exits and board battles. Weir plays a heavier game and uses his long stride to control a breakout and start the play for his teammates. He’s a little raw defensively and his one on one defending could use a lot of work, but there’s potential in his game. When I watch Weir play, I see a player with size, above average skating and hockey sense. He’s great at executing the first pass out of the zone and plays a physical, yet modern, style.

Ben Hemmerling – 81st Overall

I was a huge advocate for Hemmerling in our draft rankings meeting. He didn’t get a lot of ice time this season since he played on a deep Everett team, but when he got the opportunity, he was able to shine in the spotlight. Hemmerling’s upside is that of a top six forward, and even though he’s raw in a lot of areas, his potential as a playmaker is enticing. Hemmerling sees the ice at an elite level and is an excellent playmaker that can play with a ton of pace. He’s able to adapt on the fly and can make his teammates better. My biggest concern with Hemmerling isn’t his size, however. It’s his scoring. Hemmerling isn’t a finisher and I worry that he won’t be able to score at the NHL level. There are plenty of playmakers in the NHL, but all of them have the ability to put the puck in the net. I haven’t seen that from Hemmerling yet. I pushed for him ahead of one of my other favorites, Marcus Nguyen, because I’ve seen more consistent high-end skill this year.

Tyson Jugnauth – 82nd Overall

Jugnauth isn’t a player I’ve watched a ton, and the viewings that I do have of him have all been very different. In our rankings meeting, I deferred judgment to Austin since he has kept up with Jugnauth all year. My take on the player is that I see the skill and skating ability, but I don’t see a player that is always engaged when he’s on the ice.

Marcus Nguyen – 84th Overall

Marcus Nguyen is my absolute favorite prospect to watch when he’s on his game. Like Hemmerling, Nguyen’s ice time was limited on a deep team, so I had to do some projecting with this player. Watching Nguyen play is fascinating. You see the high end puck skills, playmaking and shooting that could make him a fantastic NHL player. He’s a quick skater that is able to beat you with a quick burst of acceleration right from the get go, making him a pain in transition. Nguyen can pick apart defenses and create turnovers, immediately turning it the other way to create a scoring chance. I feel that with an increase in ice time next year, Nguyen could be one of the top scorers on the Portland Winterhawks. He has a dynamic element that I don’t see in other WHL skaters, but his game is still very raw. Nguyen’s performance in the playoffs was poor to say the least, which doesn’t change how I view the player. It may make some NHL teams hesitant to draft him, though. Still, I’m very high on the player. 84th overall is a bold ranking but I believe that if Nguyen reaches his potential, he could be one of the steals of the draft.

Fraser Minten – 92nd Overall

Minten is likely a bottom six forward if he reaches the NHL, but he’s extremely coachable and can be played in a variety of situations. He’s often the product of great passes from Matthew Seminoff, and while he can score at the WHL level, I don’t see him being as much of a scoring threat at the NHL level. In reality, you’re looking at a center that can shut down the opposition. I’m a bit lower on Minten than the consensus, but not by much. I feel that if you’re drafting in the first two or three rounds, you should be drafting for high upside talent. Minten is a safe pick, but you can find a ton of players just like him in free agency.

Brayden Schuurman – 106th Overall

Credit where credit is due, Schuurman was one of the top players on an awful Victoria team this year. Schuurman’s good games are really good, but his bad games are really bad. He goes from being a dangerous player whenever he steps on the ice to being a liability in all three zones quickly. His play at the U18s wasn’t anything to write home about, but I wonder what he can do with better teammates. It seems that at times, Schuurman was guilty of trying to do too much since he was the best player on his line. I like the potential, but ultimately, I’m unsure of where Schuurman will be drafted.

Hudson Thornton – 118th Overall

Thornton is another player with high highs and low lows. He’s dangerous in the offensive zone and a capable quarterback on your power play, but his defensive zone play is atrocious. In all honesty, I’m not sure what to expect from Thornton. I wasn’t a fan in any of my viewings, but it’s hard to deny the offensive potential that he has. If his defensive zone play improves, there’s a good chance that Thornton becomes a top four defenseman based on the fact that he can quarterback a power play.

Brandon Lisowsky – 119th Overall

Lisowsky is another boom or bust player from the WHL. He’s a fantastic goal scorer with a shot that’s a threat from a solid range, but I don’t know if he’s going to be able to score at the NHL level. I felt that this year, Lisowsky was only able to get to the middle on a rush or on the power play, which is a concern.

Josh Filmon – 124th Overall

Filmon frustrates me in so many ways. His effort is inconsistent, he isn’t good defensively, he’s not the strongest player and it takes very little to knock him off the puck. I think there’s some merit in drafting him because when he’s on his game, he’s able to contribute offensively. But right now, this is a player that I haven’t liked at all this year.

Grayden Siepmann and Mathew Ward – Honorable Mentions

Siepmann nearly made it ahead of Filmon, but again, some of the team felt that Filmon was worth including in our rankings. I like Siepmann. There’s some real potential in his game and I feel that he’s worth taking in the later rounds of the draft. I see him more as a third pairing player that could see power play or PK time, but not a defender that I’d put any higher in the lineup. Ward’s ability to create offense from takeaways is impressive and there’s a lot to like about his game on the forecheck. The biggest question is his upside, however, because he hasn’t shown me that he can play at a high level on a consistent basis. There’s potential in his game, but not enough to make me feel comfortable ranking him at this moment.

I hope you all enjoyed reading through these explanations. I’m always available to answer your questions if you have any more about specific players. Feel free to shoot me a message on Twitter if you do have any questions!

Scouting Report: Liam Öhgren

Photo Credit: Otto Marand / Djurgården

Scouting Report written by Josh Tessler

Liam Öhgren is a 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospect, who hails from Stockholm, Sweden and is in the Djurgården system. Öhgren’s father, Andreas Öhgren had played Division 1 Swedish professional hockey in the 1990s. His brother, Noel Öhgren is a 2024 NHL Draft eligible prospect, who plays for Djurgården’s J18 club. In his youth, he played for Huddinge IK before joining the Djurgården organization in 2019. Since joining Djurgården, he has suited up for the club at the U16, J18, J20 and SHL level. 

This season, he split his time between the SHL and J20. He led the J20 club in points and was second in total points for J20 NHL Draft eligible prospects. Frölunda’s Ludwig Persson led all 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospects in J20 play with 61 total points. Three points more than Öhgren.

On the international stage, Öhgren has suited up for Sweden at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and at the U18 World Junior Championships in Germany. His Hlinka Gretzky performance was quite strong and he managed to record four goals and three assists in five tournament games. He was also very impactful for Sweden at the U18s and his nine points in six games helped to secure gold for Sweden.

Player Profile

D.O.B – January 28, 2004
Nationality – Sweden
Draft Eligibility – 2022
Height –6’1″
Weight –187 lbs
Position – LW
Handedness – Left

Öhgren’s Style Of Play

Offense

Öhgren’s reach is what makes him so good offensively. On the puck and off the puck. When he doesn’t have possession of the puck, he uses his reach well on the forecheck to successfully secure possession of the puck with a well-timed poke check. If he and an attacker are vying for a loose puck, he has the frame and the reach to grab possession of the puck if he is slightly further behind the attacker. It also allows him to get to the puck faster than his attacker. On the flip side, when he has possession of the puck, he uses his reach to swing the puck around attackers to secure the puck when he is trying to skate around an attacker to get to open ice. His reach allows him to stretch out puck placement and thus he can stretch the puck out a bit more when facing heavy pressure. 

Not only does he possess excellent reach, but he is also equipped with excellent skating ability as well. I’ll touch on his skating more in the skating section, but it is worth noting that with his straight line speed, he can get to loose pucks at a good pace when going north-south. If he is a slightly behind the attacker on the way to the loose puck, he uses his excellent stride extensions to garner enough speed to get aligned with the attacker.

His straight line speed also allows him to create separation when he has possession of the puck and is looking to generate some passing lanes to utilize, but he has an attacker at his hip. With that speed, he generates quality passing lanes to dangerous areas and quickly makes use of them. 

But, he doesn’t just have speed and reach in his tool belt when looking to generate puck separation, he will also use his frame to win possession of the puck. In situations where he doesn’t have clean possession of the puck and he has to go in rather tight quarters due to pressure, he can use his upper body strength to force his way to the puck and push attackers away.

The other tool in his tool kit that makes him extremely intriguing is his body language. Öhgren can use his body language to manufacture skating lanes for himself when in low danger areas. He will play the puck to his side as if he intends to shoot and then quickly cradles the puck from side to side and then skates around the attacker with ease as the attacker is anticipating a shot and not further puck movement. When skating into the slot with possession of the puck, he will use his body language to make it look like he is about to shoot which means that the goaltender is facing him and not Öhgren’s teammate at the backdoor. Then Öhgren will wire passes to the backdoor and look to catch the goaltender off guard.

When in control of the puck, Öhgren is a very quick decision maker. He will generate a lot of one-touch tape to tape feeds. At the NHL level, you need to be quick on your feet. If you aren’t quick on your feet, you will never be able to survive at the NHL level. You have to analyze on the fly. Öhgren analyzes on the fly. He also is quick on his feet. For instance, he when getting himself into position to generate a passing lane, he completed a tight 180 degree turn on a dime. At that point, he threw off the attacker in front of him that didn’t predict that Öhgren was going to turn, so he completed a lateral pass cleanly. Öhgren has a slick backhand pass in his arsenal and has generated many scoring chances using it. Check out the clip of him wiring a backhand feed to Noah Östlund in the slot. It’s quick. I’m telling you he is quick. Plus, he doesn’t need that much space to get the pass off cleanly. Ok, I’ll stop, so you can finally watch the clip.

As mentioned above, he doesn’t need a tremendous amount of room to get a pass off. For instance, he will look to pass until the attacker’s stick shaft (under the triangle) to teammates if he can’t net open ice to get the pass off through a truly open lane. That’s led to assists like the one below. 

What makes Öhgren highly intriguing is his ability to net possession of a loose pucks and then quickly wire passes to dangerous areas. He’s shown that his ability on the forecheck can lead to instant success. For instance, I’ve watched him win possession of the puck in the corner and then he completes centered passes that lead to quality one-timer shots down low. 

When on the forecheck, he has the speed and the active stick to target puck carriers along the boards. His active stick allows him to dictate where the attack goes with the puck. If he extends his stick to the right side, the attack goes left. He uses that to his advantage as that allows him to figure out what their next move and then he traps them. In situations where Öhgren is following the attacker, he will use his stick to tap the opponent’s stick shaft to intimidate and put pressure on the attacker in an attempt to slow them down. But, Öhgren doesn’t just target puck carrying attackers. He goes after non-puck carrying attackers too. Blindsides them by skating right behind them. When they collect a pass from their defenseman, Öhgren is there to cut them off. 

From a goal scoring perspective, he will consistently put himself in a spot to succeed by utilizing his foot speed to generate separation that allow him to create quality passing lanes for his teammates to use. He has had success in low, medium and high danger ares. With attackers right on him, he still finds a lane to attempt wrist shots through. Pivots out and finds space. Just like his passing decision making, he is quick with his shooting decision making as well. Öhgren scans the ice quickly. He has understanding of his options and he doesn’t wait too long before he strikes. Not only is he quick with his shot, but he also has quality weight transfer that allows him to get a lot of power behind his shot. His weight transfer makes his one-timers difficult to stop. At net-front, he leverages his reach to shift the puck around the goaltender’s pad quickly in order to score a tip-in goal. His reach allows him to find a gap quickly.

Defense

In the offensive section, I raved about his reach. There is more coming. 

His reach defensively makes him a pain to navigate around. His reach allows him to extend his stick out and take up quite a bit of room. Not only does his reach take up a look of room, but he also will use an active stick to manipulate where attackers go with the puck. He gives you the lane that he wants you to use. Öhgren extends his stick out towards center ice to force you to play to the boards.

When he is carrying the puck, facing an attacker head on and he wants to skate around the attacker to the right, but still manage to position the puck away from the attacker when cradling the puck to the new direction, he relies on his excellent reach to position the puck far enough out so that the attacker can’t steal possession. His reach allows him to create space for himself and paves the way for quality zone exits.

His vision and scanning ability comes in handy when he is surveying an attacker who is looking to complete a pass. With his vision, he can see an attacker passing and react to it by skating up to it with excellent lengthy skate extensions to generate quality speed, intercepts possession and then continues to lean on his excellent skate extensions to maintain speed as he brings the puck up the ice. 

While he does have excellent vision and reaction timing, there are instances in which he  gets caught puck watching and allows attackers to enter the slot when both defensemen are tied up. He should have dropped back to stay on the attacker. Even though there are instances that pop up in which he gets caught puck watching, as long as the attacker isn’t too far away, he can bail himself out with his straight line speed.

The other area in which I would like to see further improvement is his skating activation when looks to ignite the necessary speed to get himself in position to pick up the loose puck. His reaction timing and activation can be slow especially when completing a turn and he has to quickly react to puck movement. Öhgren is far stronger north-south than he is east-west.

Transitional Play

Öhgren is excellent with the puck on his stick in the neutral zone. He loves to manipulate attackers by extending the puck towards them and pulling them in closer and closer. When they start to come towards him, he moves the puck in a different direction to catch them off guard. In situations in which the attacker stays glued to him at open ice, he will shift the puck with one hand to avoid traffic in the neutral zone.

In those situations in which he either completely runs out of real estate or he sees a teammate coming into the zone with speed, he will look to move the puck. Öhgren looks to deceptive drop passes to get the puck to his teammate who is coming in with speed. 

But, he doesn’t just complete deceptive drop passes that allow Djurgården to maintain possession and keep the transition alive. There have been plenty of sequences in which he sees the zone exit through. For instance, he will skate up and pass to a teammate along the boards when he hits a road block at center ice. After moving the puck to a teammate, the pressure starts to move away from Öhgren and then he will gain separation to create a passing lane that will allow him to collect the puck again off of a pass from his teammate. 

Öhgren will utilize his straight line speed consistently to find open ice in the neutral zone and create lateral passing options for his teammates should they get in a situation in which they simply can’t move the puck up the ice. His straight line speed will also pave the way for quality stretch passes from his defensemen. 

Öhgren is defensively responsible when facing the rush. He will drop back for a defender playing too far up when there is a change in possession. Öhgren does an excellent job of using his stick to cause puck disruption. If he sees that an attacker is watching the puck as he controls it and seems very vulnerable, that’s when he strikes with a well-timed poke check. While a lot of wingers typically have a wait and see approach with defending the rush, Öhgren is extremely aggressive with his poke checking from the moment he gets into position in the neutral zone. He looks to cancel out oppositional zone exits and he thrives doing so.

Skating

Öhgren does an excellent job acquiring speed. He leans on his crossovers to do so. He consistently deploys lengthy crossovers to pick up speed. Öhgren’s crossovers allow him to net the necessary speed to get in position on the forecheck and allows him to generate the necessary speed in all three zones to get to loose pucks. When skating backwards, his crossovers allow him to gain enough acceleration to quickly skate from the defensive zone slot to the blue line to provide an outlet for his puck carrying defenseman.

When you dissect his straight line skating, you will notice that he has an excellent stride length that allows him to hunt for the puck and steal possession and he will use it to net separation when looking to create passing lanes. He maintains good lowered posture and has excellent ankle flexion. But, what I love about Öhgren is that he can spot the puck, determine how far he is and then he processes how many length skate extensions he needs to take before shortening up his extensions. He doesn’t over skate the puck by doing so. 

He does a good job of blending crossovers and straight line stride extensions to get up to maximum speed. When activating his stride extensions from a stand still position, he implements a crossover and then gets a good push off of that initial crossover before using skate extensions to get himself to full speed. Even though he used a crossover initially when activating, he still will look to leverage crossovers when he needs a bit more momentum in his stride. With his speed on crossovers and skate extensions, he just needs a few of each in order to get enough space to beat the attacker to loose pucks on the forecheck in J20 play. Once he gets enough speed, he glides in and captures possession. 

The area of his skating that needs a bit more refinement is his edges and activating off of a pivot. He does lean on edges to retain speed, but he struggles with adding speed off of the pivot. Ideally, he needs to be quicker when reacting to an attacker pivoting out and changing direction. He ends up completing a delayed turn and the attacker netted separation away from Öhgren. His activation challenges will also hurt his ability to grab a hold of loose pucks when puck movement alters and he has to react to it right after completing a turn.

Projection

Former Smaht Scouting Swedish scout, Mikael Holm is a big fan of Öhgren and has said repeatedly that Öhgren reminds him of Zach Hyman. I can definitely see it and he is spot on. Like Hyman, Öhgren plays an excellent two-way game that is translatable at the NHL level. With his speed and skill, I don’t think there will be a long wait before he is playing at the NHL level. He probably needs at least one season in the Allsvenskan before he is ready to make the jump. 

In terms of projection, Öhgren’s tool-kit will allow him to be impactful no matter what line he is on. He is a Swiss Army Knife. You can plug him on the top lines and use him to hunt pucks down low on the forecheck. He will get those pucks and wire passes to the slot to drive production. In certain situations, you could plug him in a third line checking role, but I do believe that will slow down his offensive production as the forwards that he is with more than likely won’t be capitalizing at the same rate as the forwards on the top two lines.

Latest Update

May 26, 2022

stats from InStat and EliteProspects

Prospect report written by Josh Tessler. If you would like to follow Josh on Twitter, his handle is @JoshTessler_.

Looking for other scouting reports? Check out the Prospects tab for our other scouting reports.

Need a scouting report on a particular prospect, contact us today!

Final 2022 NHL Draft Rankings

Photo Credit: Robert Lefebvre/OHL Images

Alexander Appleyard, Paul Zuk, Sebastian Jackson, Matthew Somma, Austin Garrett, Jordan Malette and Josh Tessler combined their draft rankings and put together the official Smaht Scouting 2022 NHL Draft Final Rankings.

The rankings are below. We are working on 2022 NHL Draft scouting reports and once they are completed, we will hyperlink the reports on the rankings.

RankingPlayerTeamPositionNationality
1Shane WrightKingstonCCanada
2Logan CooleyUSNTDPCUSA
3David JiříčekPlzenRHDCzech Republic
4Juraj SlafkovskyTPSFSlovakia
5Brad LambertLahtiCFinland
6Matthew SavoieWinnipegCCanada
7Frank NazarUSNTDPRWUSA
8Gleb TrikozovOmskFRussia
9Šimon NemecHK NitraRHDSlovakia
10Noah ÖstlundDjurgårdenCSweden
11Filip MešárPopradRWSlovakia
12Joakim KemellJYPFFinland
13Kevin KorchinskiSeattleLHDCanada
14Jonathan LekkerimäkiDjurgårdenRWSweden
15Jiří KulichKarlovy VaryFCzech Republic
16Denton MateychukMoose JawLHDCanada
17Calle OdeliusDjurgårdenLHDSweden
18Cutter GauthierUSNTDPLWUSA
19Liam ÖhgrenDjurgårdenFSweden
20Rutger McGroartyUSNTDPCUSA
21Jagger FirkusMoose JawFCanada
22Vladimir GrudininCSKA MoscowLHDRussia
23Issac HowardUSNTDPLWUSA
24Danila YurovMagnitogorskFRussia
25Seamus CaseyUSNTDPRHDUSA
26Pavel MintyukovSaginawLHDRussia
27Mattias HävelidLinköpingRHDSweden
28Ivan MiroshnichenkoOmskLWRussia
29Lane HutsonUSNTDPLHDUSA
30Conor GeekieWinnipegCCanada
31Marco KasperRögleCAustria
32David GoyetteSudburyCCanada
33Owen PickeringSwift CurrentLHDCanada
34Jack HughesNortheastern UniversityFUSA
35Ty NelsonNorth BayRHDCanada
36Devin KaplanUSNTDPFUSA
37Alexander SuzdalevHV71LWSweden
38Elias SalomonssonSkellefteåRHDSweden
39Filip BystedtLinköpingCSweden
40Adam SýkoraNitraRW/LWSlovakia
41Owen BeckMississaugaCCanada
42Jimmy SnuggerudUSNTDPFUSA
43Sam RinzelChaska (USHS-MN)RHDUSA
44Luca Del Bel BelluzMississaugaCCanada
45Paul LudwinskiKingstonCCanada
46Joel JonssonMoraRWSweden
47Lian BichselLeksandsLHDSwitzerland
48Jani NymanIlvesLWFinland
49Julian LutzMünchenFGermany
50Matyas SapovalivSaginawFCzech Republic
51Rieger LorenzOkotoks (AJHL)CCanada
52Cole KnubleFargoRWUSA
53Danny ZhilkinGuelphCCanada / Russia
54Dylan JamesSioux CityLWCanada
55Reid SchaeferSeattleLWCanada
56Adam IngramYoungstownCCanada
57Christian KyrouErieRHDCanada
58Nathan GaucherQuebecCCanada
59Isaiah GeorgeLondonLHDCanada
60Alexander PelevinNovgorodLHDRussia
61Simon ForsmarkÖrebroLHDSweden
62Jack DevineUniversity of DenverFUSA
63Mats LindgrenKamloopsLHDCanada
64Ilya KvochkoMagnitogorskCRussia
65Beau JelsmaBarrieCCanada
66Brennan AliAvon Old Farms (USHS-CT)CUSA
67Matthew SeminoffKamloopsRWCanada
68Topi RönniTapparaCFinland
69Ludwig PerssonFrölundaC/LWSweden
70Michael FisherSt. Mark’s SchoolRHDUSA
71Tristan LuneauGatineauRHDCanada
72Ryan ChesleyUSNTDPRHDUSA
73Mikey MilneWinnipegLWCanada
74Jordan GustafsonSeattleFCanada
75Matthew PoitrasGuelphCCanada
76Tyler BrennanPrince GeorgeGCanada
77Quinn FinleyMadisonFUSA
78Jace WeirRed DeerRHDCanada
79Jere LassilaJYPCFinland
80Hunter HaightBarrieCCanada
81Ben HemmerlingEverettC/LWCanada
82Tyson JugnauthWest KelownaLHDCanada
83Aleksanteri KaskimäkiHIFKCFinland
84Marcus NguyenPortlandRWCanada
85Connor KurthDubuqueFUSA
86Alexis GendronBlainville-BoisbriandCCanada
87Noah WarrenGatineauRHDCanada
88Tyler DukeUSNTDPLHDUSA
89Marek HejdukUSNTDPFUSA
90Cole SpicerUSNTDPFUSA
91Zam PlanteChicagoFUSA
92Fraser MintenKamloopsFCanada
93Topias LeinonenJYPGFinland
94Jordan DumaisHalifaxRWCanada
95Gavin HayesFlintRWUSA
96Kasper KulonummiJokeritRHDFinland
97Jake KarabelaGuelphCCanada
98Lukas GustafssonChicagoLHDUSA
99Jeremy WilmerTri-City (USHL)CUSA
100Miko MatikkaJokeritRWFinland
101Alexander PerevalovYaroslavlFRussia
102Jakob NorénMODOLHDSweden
103Jiri TichacekKladnoLHDCzech Republic
104Fabian WagnerLinköpingRWSweden
105Cruz LuciusUSNTDPFUSA
106Brayden SchuurmanVictoriaCCanada
107Cameron LundGreen BayCUSA
108Bryce McConnell-BarkerSault Ste. MarieCCanada
109Jérémy LangloisCape BretonLHDCanada
110Domenic DiVincentiisNorth BayGCanada
111Maveric LamoureuxDrummondvilleRHDCanada
112Nicholas MoldenhauerChicagoFCanada
113Ryan GreeneGreen BayCCanada
114Spencer SovaErieLHDCanada
115Pano FimisNiagaraCCanada
116Daniil DavydovDynamo MoscowCRussia
117Mitchell MartinKitchenerLWCanada
118Hudson ThorntonPrince GeorgeLHDCanada
119Brandon LisowskySaskatoonFCanada
120Oskar AsplundAlmtunaLHDSweden
121Ryan HealeySioux FallsRHDUSA
122Cedrick GuindonOwen SoundCCanada
123Niklas KokkoKärpätGFinland
124Josh FilmonSwift CurrentRWCanada
125Jacob GuévinMuskegonRHDCanada
126Vinzenz RohrerOttawaRWAustria
127Servác PetrovskyOwen SoundCSlovakia
128Zaccharya WisdomCedar RapidsRWCanada
HMDavid GucciardiMichigan State UniversityLHDCanada
HMZach BookmanBrooksRHDUSA
HMOtto HokkanenSaiPaCFinland
HMFilip NordbergSödertäljeLHDSweden
HMKocha DelicSudburyCCanada
HMAlexander SmolinMagnitogorskGRussia
HMGrayden SiepmannCalgaryRHDCanada
HMMatthew WardSwift CurrentFCanada
HMIsac BornFrölundaC/WSweden
HMJackson DorringtonDes MoinesLHDUSA
HMAvery HayesHamiltonC/RWUSA
HMMichael BuchingerGuelphLHDCanada
HMLeighton CarruthersRouyn-NorandaCCanada

Scouting Report: Jonathan Lekkerimäki

Photo Credit: Otto Marand / Djurgården

Scouting Report written by Josh Tessler

Jonathan Lekkerimäki is a 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospect, who plays in the Djurgården system. Lekkerimäki grew up in the Stockholm suburb of Huddinge and played youth hockey for the local club, Flemingsbergs IK. After playing for the local club, he ended up playing U16 hockey for Södertälje SK alongside his current Djurgården teammates, Calle Odelius and Noah Östlund. After his 2018-2019 campaign with Södertälje, he made the move to the Djurgården U16 club. Since joining Djurgården, he has played for them at the U16, J18, J20 and SHL levels. 

This season, he made his SHL debut and split his time between the SHL club and J20 club. Lekkerimäki managed to produce very nicely at 5v5 at the SHL and J20 levels. More than half of his points in the SHL were at 5v5 and same can be said for his J20 points. 

Not only did he suit up for Djurgården this season, but he also played for Sweden at the international level in multiple tournaments including the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and the IIHF U18 World Championships (which Sweden won). At the U18s, he recorded the most assists and points. Lekkerimäki was also named to the U18 WJC All-Star Team alongside fellow 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospects Jiri Kulich, Logan Cooley, Lane Hutson, Tomas Hamara and Hugo Hävelid. 

Lekkerimäki recently signed a two year extension with Djurgården and will more than likely suit up for them in the Allsvenskan next season. 

Player Profile

D.O.B – July 24, 2004
Nationality – Sweden
Draft Eligibility – 2022
Height –5’11″
Weight –172 lbs
Position – Right Wing
Handedness – Right

Lekkerimäki’s Style Of Play

Offense

In the offensive zone, Lekkerimäki is very good at finding open space for himself down low in front of the goaltender. He scans the ice and can quickly identify the areas that are not manned. When he gets into position in the slot and has an open passing lane for his teammate with the puck to exploit, Lekkerimäki is vocal and communicates by tapping his stick on the ice multiple times to get the attention of his teammate. Should his position no longer become a viable option for his teammate to exploit with a pass, he rotates his positioning quickly and stays on his toes looking for a new passing lane for his teammate to use.

But, what I really like about Lekkerimäki’s ability to find open ice is that he does a good job of identifying attackers who are puck watching and knows that they are vulnerable to keeping pace with him should he activate and skate from the half-wall to the slot to generate a passing lane. Lekkerimäki takes advantage of the defensive mistake and provides his teammate behind the net with a quality a lane to exploit. Check out the clip below in which he does just that, but later on in the shift he also identifies just how close the pressure is to him along the half-wall when has possession of the puck and managed to navigate out of danger by pushing the puck underneath the attacker’s stick blade.

He can be slippery and deceptive with his puck control when facing pressure. When he encounters traffic, he can be deceptive and quick by identifying teammates that are coming from behind him and then completing a quick drop pass. The goal is to get the puck into the hands of a teammate who is open and skating in his lane so the change in possession is seamless. Take a look at the below clip in which Lekkerimäki encounters traffic as he skates towards the slot and completes deceptive drop pass to Liam Öhgren to get the puck to a teammate who isn’t facing tight pressure. It leads to a Liam Öhgren backhand pass to the slot to find Noah Östlund.

On the subject of generating space from an attacker, when he gets to the boards with possession of the puck and he spots the back check, he positions his body as if he is going to go left towards the blue line, but pivots out quickly to go right towards the corner. Not only does he net separation by confusing the attacker into thinking that he was going to go in certain direction and then goes towards the opposite direction, but he keeps the puck on his stick when pivoting out and doesn’t bobble possession. 

He is an underrated forechecker. When most people talk about Lekkerimäki, they immediately rave about his shot and his stick-handling and his forechecking doesn’t get enough attention. He can generate good stride extension length to skate hard after loose pucks. If he sees that his teammate is slightly out of position and an attacker picks up possession and looks to skate into the neutral zone, Lekkerimäki shifts over and uses quality stride extensions to catch up to the attacker. In the corners, you can expect him to get physical. He will hip check in the corner when he sees an attacker controlling the puck who is vulnerable as his back is turned.

Next up, let’s talk about Lekkerimäki’s shot. He has quality mechanics. Good weight transfer. Quick release. Open stick blade. Everything that I look for. But, what makes Lekkerimäki dynamic is his ability to deliver a quick release shot on the rush and gets height on the shot. His shot off the rush is quite good, but he does need to address his accuracy. Lekkerimäki seems to be very in-consistent with his accuracy off the rush. While that might sound like a negative, you shouldn’t take it as one. The fact that he is able to get pucks on net off of the rush and pick corners has been a joy. His accuracy will improve over time and most of the time it has to do with how far the puck is away from Lekkerimäki’s body. But, I just love that he is trying to shoot off the rush especially since he possesses such a quick release. In addition to his quick release and shot off the rush, his stick-handling ability will prove it’s worth in the NHL when he is trying to generate space for himself to shoot. With that said, I do want to see him use stick-handling more and more before attempting shots from distance with an attacker right on him. For instance, there are shifts in which Lekkerimäki felt that he didn’t have any options with an attacker closing in on him, so he took a shot and hoped to get it on net. I just want to see him use his stick-handling with his outstanding vision to identify how much space he has in front of him with the attacker closing in on him and choosing the best moment to pivot out instead of taking a shot. Even though he does need to work on shot selection, if he has an open shooting lane and he is at the border between medium / low danger, but he still has a teammate in the slot at the backdoor, he will look to pass the puck to net front.

In terms of goal production and upside, Lekkerimäki has shown that he score goals in multiple fashions. He can score one-timers in the slot. But, he will also identify teammates struggling to get a shot off down low and who are facing tight pressure quickly, skate towards them and bail them out. Once he identifies them, he has the straight line speed with his skate extensions to get to the doorstep fast. It allows him to get quality tip-in goals. His stick-handling also gives him the ability to draw goaltenders to one side, quickly move the puck to the other side and then score. Also, he has done a great job of getting open ice in the neutral zone at the blue line, netting possession of the puck off of an outlet pass and then score on a breakaway and/or 2 – on – 1s. 

He doesn’t produce a lot of primary assists, but he has had some nifty ones this season. When he skates near the net, in medium danger and facing tight traffic, he won’t force a shot. Instead, he looks for a tight gap to exploit. Additionally, if he can’t find a passing lane, he will wrap around the net with the puck and try to see if he can net separation to get a passing lane. 

Defense

Lekkerimäki keeps good pace on the back-check at the SHL level. His ability to generate quality straight line extensions allows him to muster up enough speed to get vest to vest with the attacker and that has allowed him to shut down attackers in J20 play. But, in the SHL, he will appear to be slightly slower on the back-check. He gets in range of the puck carrying attacker, but is still one step away from putting enough pressure to stop the attacker from moving closer to the net.  

Lekkerimäki does implement good pressure along the blue line when defending the point, good active stick, extends his stick blade towards the puck, doesn’t force a change in possession but it is annoying. He can be very mobile. Lekkerimäki can swivel his hips and activate into stride quickly. He will lower and widen himself at the point to take up more space in an effort to force the attacker to dump the puck. In certain situations, Lekkerimäki will position his the shaft of his stick on the ice to take away passing lanes at the point. 

While he does do a good job of using his stick to take away opportunities for the attack, he doesn’t have a lot of reach with his stick. With that said, when defending at centered ice in the slot, he will extend out his stick at the perimeter, but he doesn’t take away enough space to keep the attacker out of the slot. Thankfully, Lekkerimäki’s speed and pivots allow him to stay close to the attacker, but if the attacker has the upper body strength to push past him, he doesn’t have to reach to poke-check from a slight distance as a plan B. 

He tracks the puck well. Lekkerimäki identifies when attackers are trying to complete passes and he can assess based on the trajectory if he is in range to intercept it. If he spots a pass that he can get his hands on, he does a good job at determining the right moment to skate into the pass in order to disrupt the pass / intercept it.

When looking to get involved in the rush, you can usually find Lekkerimäki in the neutral zone looking for open space at the offensive zone blue line to net so that his teammates can find outlet passes to him. But, if he does net possession of the puck in the defensive zone, in most situations he will collect possession of the puck when he drops to the hashmarks in the face-off circle. He moves to the hashmarks to net possession of pucks when they become loose along the half-wall. When he is in control of the puck, he can struggle with puck security when facing tough pressure as he doesn’t have the necessary reach to navigate the puck around the tight pressure. Lekkerimäki will need to acquire the upper body strength and continue to grow in order to develop his stick-handling reach. In situations in which he has enough open space to work, he can complete long range passes to teammates at center ice including saucer feeds.

Transitional Play

Lekkerimäki can be rather reliable in the neutral zone when facing the rush. When at the boards and working against an attacker with a similar frame, Lekkerimäki is able to sandwich the puck carrying attacker. At open ice, Lekkerimäki will implement vest to vest pressure at open ice while the attackers are skating up ice with the puck. But, as we discusses earlier, he doesn’t have the upper body strength in SHL play to contend for bobbled pucks in a tight battle. If he is facing an attacker of bigger size, he will struggle to secure possession of the puck as the attacker’s can leverage their upper body strength to push Lekkerimäki away from the puck. 

Earlier I mentioned that Lekkerimäki will look to grab open ice at the offensive blue line to create outlet pass lanes for his defensemen to use and I felt compelled to bring it up again. His ability to create quality stretch pass lanes has been fruitful in creating plenty of scoring chances. His determination to establish open ice in the neutral zone shift-in and shift-out has led to breakaways and quality 2 – on – 1 s.

In situations where he is in control of the puck and not looking to establish open ice for an outlet feed, he has shown that the can stick-handle through rather tight pressure. Lekkerimäki will look to cradle the puck underneath the attacker’s stick (triangle), so that Lekkerimäki can cut around the defender even when there isn’t much room to breath. He will sometimes bobble control of the puck, but I love that in situations where he can’t get any open space that he tries to go underneath the triangle. Even if he bobbles the puck, I like he is using his stick-handling resources to try to navigate around pressure and get into the offensive zone.  

Skating

Lekkerimäki has excellent ankle flexion as his knee cap is consistently aligned with the toe of his skate. His ankle flexion and his lowered posture (knees bent) allows him to generate quality straight line speed. When he looks to go into stride, he starts off his stride with a crossover. After the initial few lengthy crossovers, he deploys a shortened skate extension, but over time he lengthens his extension. With his excellent skating mechanics, he has shown that he can generate and maintain quality speed through crossovers and straight line speed to ensure that he has the necessary speed to get back into the neutral zone towards the defensive zone blue line when an attacker has the puck on his stick and Lekkerimäki is behind the rush. In tight battles for loose pucks, he can rely on his crossovers to give him some edge if he slightly further back from the attacker (like a DRS boost for those F1 fans). When making turns, he does a good job of leaning on his edges to retain the speed that the had prior to making the turn and he can also add to the speed after completing turn by utilizing quality crossovers and lengthy skate extensions to get into gear.

Projection

Given Lekkerimäki’s ability to find open ice in the slot and in the neutral zone to key up passing lanes, he constantly puts himself in the position to succeed offensively. His shot off the rush and shot in a standstill position allows him to capitalize when he has the puck on his stick. There is a lot to like about Lekkerimäki’s offensive game and the fact that he can use utilize quality stick-handling to get out of sticky situations only increases his value.

From a defensive perspective, there are areas that he needs to work on especially with upper body strength to increase his reach and fend off bigger competitors. But, he has the speed to get to loose pucks before his competitors do even in situations where he doesn’t seem to have the upper hand. All-in-all, I feel confident that the NHL team who drafts Lekkerimäki is netting a top six forward, who will be defensively responsible and at the same time generate top six point totals.

After publishing this report, I had been asked by a few people on whether or not I would potentially line Lekkerimäki at center at the next level. I get why teams would try to experiment with him at center, but I have a few issues that I think would prevent him from being a center. His reach. Until he can acquire quality off-puck reach, he will face challenges defending in the slot. Same issue behind the red line. Also, I don’t think his playmaking ability is consistent enough in which I’d feel entirely comfortable with him at center at the NHL level. If he can grow into his size and be a bit more consistent with his playmaking, you could potentially put him at center. But, until we see Lekkerimäki address what I had mentioned above, I would leave him at wing. 

Latest Update

May 7, 2022

stats from InStat and EliteProspects

Prospect report written by Josh Tessler. If you would like to follow Josh on Twitter, his handle is @JoshTessler_.

Looking for other scouting reports? Check out the Prospects tab for our other scouting reports.

Need a scouting report on a particular prospect, contact us today!