WJHC 2015 Toronto/Montreal - Players to watch

[chippa13 1844]

One bad outing doesn't ruin a guy's draft status. Eichel is leading the NCAA in scoring as a true freshman. He will go top 2.

[grnmtnvt 18]

Going #3-4 isn't ruining his draft status, just acknowledging that other players played better and there's good competition. Easy case for Hanifin going #2 given how he played and how he's played at BU. To be fair, it wasn't one bad outing, he had multiple bad outings, or at least uninspired and disinterested games. Scouts pay attention to moments when you are playing teams you should easily beat and how you respond if you're a presumptive top-2 pick. Hanifin and Milano (although already drafted) were both much more consistent and interested parties for Team USA.

One bad outing doesn't ruin a guy's draft status. Eichel is leading the NCAA in scoring as a true freshman. He will go top 2.

Bowey reminds me of a bigger and more physically imposing version of Drew Doughty type D. He will be fun to watch for the Caps.

I agree Nurse is good, but did you pay attention to Madison Bowey from Canada? #4...he is another big physical D man with cannon snapshots...the last game against Denmark, it looked like they moved Bowey to the first defensive pair with #7 Moressy...then the moved Nurse to the second pair with #6 Theodore...

[grnmtnvt 18]

No surprise, the Russians are the sleeper team. They looked really dominant against a solid Swedish. The Rangers have a solid 4th-round pick in that Shesterkin kid in net. Love seeing players like that come out of nowhere. Plus, the Rangers got Duclair in the 4th too.

[fcalog 58]

No surprise, the Russians are the sleeper team. They looked really dominant against a solid Swedish. The Rangers have a solid 4th-round pick in that Shesterkin kid in net. Love seeing players like that come out of nowhere. Plus, the Rangers got Duclair in the 4th too.

Duclair third

[Neal 41]

A friend of mine who follows the draft and eligible players closely calls the WJC "the tournament of small sample sizes". You really shouldn't pay too much attention to how a player plays in the handful of games in this tournament. Can you use it to supplement your impression? Sure, but you shouldn't be doing something like passing over Eichel because to your eyes he isn't engaged enough or isn't playing a physical enough game. The kid is putting up somewhere near 2 PPG in college at 17. That compares nicely to the best players ever to come out of college.

If my team has the opportunity to draft Eichel, I hope the only question they ask is whether McDavid is still available. If not, grab Eichel.

The Canada vs Russia game has to be a dream match up for the Canadian television ratings. You could argue that the US is a better rival now, but a Canada vs Russia game always seems to raise interest and passion.

[grnmtnvt 18]

No one is saying that he will drop out of a top-5 position, but there's no doubt that a solid world junior can definitely help vault a player when there's stiff competition in a draft year. The scouting world is watching this tournament closely. And if we are going the limited sample size route, he's played 16 college games (at 18) on a decidedly stacked BU team that is trouncing Hockey East. Saying someone is anywhere near the best player to come out of a league ever after 16 games at that level, is hockey propaganda. The 5 so-so (I say this so-so with regards to someone spoken of as a potential #1, he was excellent) games in this tournament balanced with 16 in college make for two very different portraits of a player, not one that screams guaranteed lock for #2 and competitor for #1.

[bagsbie 8]

I agree with grnmtnvt on Eichel that this WJC wasn't his best outing but he is still going #2 overall, in my opinion. I watched him play at BU a few times already and the kid is legit. In the October game against Merrimack College, for instance, he was phenomenal! In Eichel's post-game interview after the US lost to Russia you could tell that he wasn't satisfied with his performance overall but, hopefully, it'd just ignite more fire in his belly to be better.

McDavid, however, played like a solid #1 overall pick: the kid has no flaws in his game and never coasts or takes a shift off.

[chippa13 1844]

I play with a guy who does lines in the NCAA and he's been on the ice with Eichel a few times. "Man among boys" is how he describes his play. This kid is making college players 3-4-5 years his senior look silly.

[IPv6Freely 2093]

IMO this was the best moment of the entire tournament (besides Canada winning gold of course):

Denis Godla got a heck of an ovation, and a similar one when they won Bronze. I know I was definitely rooting for Slovakia!

[grnmtnvt 18]

Agree. Much respect to the Slovak team. I think it's only the second time they've received a medal. I love seeing more and more junior programs seeing success. Godla was beyond impressive in the second Canadian game. The Danes have made huge leaps too. I'm all for as much competition as possible.

IMO this was the best moment of the entire tournament (besides Canada winning gold of course):

Denis Godla got a heck of an ovation, and a similar one when they won Bronze. I know I was definitely rooting for Slovakia!

[grnmtnvt 18]

To be fair, 'man among boys' is used all of the time when describing exceptional talent in all sports and has been used to describe many, MANY hockey prospects. I've seen a few of his BU games and he's exceptional at beating up on weaker opponents and using his skill to beat, albeit older players, but unquestionably inferior opponents. Anyone who has watched a good amount of D1 hockey knows there's an enormous gap in talent from team to team within a division (BU vs Maine/NH this year) and between the 18-19 year old stars who are drafted and kids that are 22-23 and undrafted and can't crack an ECHL lineup. That is not a knock on D1 hockey, just the reality of player development and the fact he's only played 16 games at this level makes me wonder if BEST EVER is a little premature.

I'm not denying the kids exceptional skill-set, not for a second. But, I've seen some trends in his play that don't overly impress me and given a competitive draft year, I personally would be more interested in taking a player like Hanifin or even Kylington ahead of him, given what I see as a much more mature and well rounded game out of those two.

I play with a guy who does lines in the NCAA and he's been on the ice with Eichel a few times. "Man among boys" is how he describes his play. This kid is making college players 3-4-5 years his senior look silly.

[IPv6Freely 2093]

Would definitely still take McDavid first overall, no question.

[chippa13 1844]

The team that passes on Eichel at number two will likely have a new GM or director of scouting by the next summer. Remember, he was slotted at number 2 BEFORE he played a second of college hockey. He has been on the radar for years and his play at BU has done nothing to diminish that. For what its worth, Craig Button agrees.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=747318

[Stewie 721]

The draft isn't always about what someone shows in a particular tournament or season also, it's about what teams see as ones potential for further development, and fitting needs as well. Sure if a team needs defense badly, they might look at Hanifin, but if your looking at guys with potential and guys you can develop into stars in this league, I'm taking Eichel second

[grnmtnvt 18]

I guarantee no GM will lose their job because they decided to take (Hanifin) a 6'3 205 pound smooth-skating D who can both score and shutdown top opponents, with potential to be a franchise D and play 25+ min regularly. Those kind of D are the kind you build a franchise around- the kid easily deserves to be in the conversation for #2. His game is ready to play an NHL-style system IMO. I'm not convinced Eichel's game would be nearly as effective against NHL-calibre D. That perimeter game against a Weber, Keith, Suter, or Pietrangelo wouldn't workout well.

Where someone is slotted BEFORE they step onto the ice in the top league for their age bracket, doesn't add much for me. In the 5 games I saw at the WJHC and the 5 I've seen at BU, I'm not nearly as blown away as the hockey media, nor as convinced of the 'consensus' about him. It will be an interesting draft- I don't think anything is guaranteed.

The draft isn't always about what someone shows in a particular tournament or season also, it's about what teams see as ones potential for further development, and fitting needs as well. Sure if a team needs defense badly, they might look at Hanifin, but if your looking at guys with potential and guys you can develop into stars in this league, I'm taking Eichel second

It's impossible to know in any reliable way who has more potential or ceiling at this age, particularly between prospects drafted so closely in order. It's not like Hanifin is expected to go in the 4th round, he's almost a consensus 3rd. The difference between a 4th overall and 9th is miniscule.

It's fun to see teams get to showcase players that would most likely go unknown or under the radar, except for the most diehard draft fans. Bjorkstrand and Ehlers were excellent for Denmark and really put the Danish program into the spotlight. And Lars Eller's younger brother Mads was very solid and is draft-eligible this year. Doubt he's a first-round pick, but could be interesting.