Prospect Info: 2015 NHL Entry Draft Thread | It's The Final Countdown: TODAY!

[McQuixote]

Meloche at 6 is interesting. Like Werenski, he's a July '97 birthday, and he's the most physical d-men in that top 10. Wouldn't take him at 16 but I'd be interested at 33 for sure.

Man, that Redline report is tantalizing as heck. 2 of those please.

 

[Game 8]

The more I see what's out there (Talbot/Lehner/etc) the more I want to hang onto the picks.

If we walk away with McDavid, Roy, Larsson, Dunn and Guhle we are laughing.

Roy will be a mistake at 16 I'm not sold on him at all. The more I look at the reviews the more he doesn't belong in the first round.

 

[Jepprey]

Roy will be a mistake at 16 I'm not sold on him at all. The more I look at the reviews the more he doesn't belong in the first round.

I actually like Roy. He was on a bad team and still stood out as one of the best defenders in the Q. He's got the puck skills and hockey IQ to be an NHLer.

 

[Seachd]

Roy will be a mistake at 16 I'm not sold on him at all. The more I look at the reviews the more he doesn't belong in the first round.

Red Line seems to like him:

After those two, the next duo consists of Jeremy Roy and Zach Werenski. Though consensus has Werenski ahead, at Red Line we give the slight edge to Roy. Opinion is divided on Roy, who is not that big or physical, but we believe he has a very special "It" factor and will be an even better pro than a junior. He is the best pure puckhandler and passer in the bunch, and showed his toughness and determination playing through a broken wrist early in the season. Roy is a dynamic player both in transition and on the power play, and we love his passion and instincts all over the ice.

Everyone seems to have him as an easy first rounder.

 

[Trafalgar Sadge Law]

Roy will be a mistake at 16 I'm not sold on him at all. The more I look at the reviews the more he doesn't belong in the first round.

Roy has flaws in his game for sure, but if he didn't he'd be a top 5 pick, not a mid first rounder. His hockey IQ is off the charts good both offensively and defensively, top 5 in the draft amongst defenders in both aspects. Sure he's not the greatest skater nor the most physically dominant guy, but its not like he's Alex Plante or David Musil slow and he doesn't shy away from physical play. I lean towards Svechnikov myself but would be very happy to walk away with J Roy at 16.

 

[Trafalgar Sadge Law]

I see the early parts of the draft as falling into four tiers.

Tier 1. McDavid, Eichel
Tier 2. Strome, Marner, Hanifin
Tier 3. Barzal, Provorov, Werenski, Zacha, Crouse, Rantanan, Meier, Connor
Tier 4. Roy, Svechnikov, Zboril, Eriksson, Konecny, Guryanov

If the 57th pick lets you jump up a tier then I'd be all for it, otherwise its probably just better to pick at 16.

IMO, drop Eriksson and add Chabot and Merkley to tier 4. Eriksson just doesn't seem to have the playmaking capability to be anything more than an elite third liner IMO.

 

[Jumptheshark]

now that the silly playoffs are over now we can have the silliness of the draft, rumours and crazy offers

 

[tinfish]

I'd be happy with J Roy at 16. He's the best RD in the draft and he won't be there at 33. I'd then take one of N Juulsen, or N Meloche at 33. We need some good young RD in our system.

We have McDavid and Draisaitl on their way to go along with Eberle, Hall, RNH, and Yakupov. Not to mention guys like Lander, Pitlick, Chase, Yakimov, and Slepyshev. The cupboards are overflowing with young forwards.

 

[Burnt Biscuits]

Red Line seems to like him:

After those two, the next duo consists of Jeremy Roy and Zach Werenski. Though consensus has Werenski ahead, at Red Line we give the slight edge to Roy. Opinion is divided on Roy, who is not that big or physical, but we believe he has a very special "It" factor and will be an even better pro than a junior. He is the best pure puckhandler and passer in the bunch, and showed his toughness and determination playing through a broken wrist early in the season. Roy is a dynamic player both in transition and on the power play, and we love his passion and instincts all over the ice.

Everyone seems to have him as an easy first rounder.

The scouts Bob McKenzie polled have him at 29th overall, so that's clearly borderline 1st rounder territory. Central scouting has him as the 23rd North American skater, so when you include European skaters and goalies that should be flirting with being outside of 1st rounder territory, though honestly not much respect for central scouting rankings. Craig Button has him at 27th on his final list, there are a lot of independent rankings and scouting services that have him as a mid-1st rounder, but there is clearly a pretty big divergence of opinion on the player. Future considerations has him at 13 and their review of him is pretty glowing, the scout they quoted said he loved him and he might of been the best defenseman he's seen all year.

Here are some free scouting reports I found on the internet:

“An offensively gifted defenseman who is solid in the defensive zone…has a real smooth stride and is pretty mobile…very mature game with strong positioning and smart with the puck…tough to separate from it as he has a heavy stick…makes terrific passes and rarely has anything intercepted…has a good point shot as well and he gets it on net…has the vision and creativity to QB a PP…solid defensively, using his smarts and his strong stick to break up plays and take away chances…uses his strength on defense to play physically down low and contain his man…used in all situations…a big presence on the ice and slows down the play when the puck is on his stick. (August 2014)â€

“Elite skating defender who is compact-sized but whose offensive prowess and skating burst is giant-sized. An aggressive attacker who also uses his acceleration, powerful leg drive, and stick to get back in position after the puck goes back in transition. He plays fairly physical and handles attackers and the front and has decent gap control and stays with attackers. His true strength is his as a dynamic attacker and puck carrier who understands the tempo and can slow down the play but also feels in an instant that window to aggressively explode the zone with either an aggressive pass or even by going straight into the slot and letting the puck fly. Very solid puck handler who is strong on his carries but also precision-like in his outlets and st-ups.â€

 

[Game 8]

The scouts Bob McKenzie polled have him at 29th overall, so that's clearly borderline 1st rounder territory. Central scouting has him as the 23rd North American skater, so when you include European skaters and goalies that should be flirting with being outside of 1st rounder territory, though honestly not much respect for central scouting rankings. Craig Button has him at 27th on his final list, there are a lot of independent rankings and scouting services that have him as a mid-1st rounder, but there is clearly a pretty big divergence of opinion on the player. Future considerations has him at 13 and their review of him is pretty glowing, the scout they quoted said he loved him and he might of been the best defenseman he's seen all year.

Here are some free scouting reports I found on the internet:

Some of the other names being passed around here would be much safer. Slow skating D from the Q are a gamble. I think Future Considerations has him in the third round. There I could see taking the chance!

 

[Fourier]

Roy has flaws in his game for sure, but if he didn't he'd be a top 5 pick, not a mid first rounder. His hockey IQ is off the charts good both offensively and defensively, top 5 in the draft amongst defenders in both aspects. Sure he's not the greatest skater nor the most physically dominant guy, but its not like he's Alex Plante or David Musil slow and he doesn't shy away from physical play. I lean towards Svechnikov myself but would be very happy to walk away with J Roy at 16.

I think Roy is very good. I may be wrong about this but I think he played much of the year with some nagging injuries as well. I'd prefer a guy like Svechnikov at 16 but Roy is of interest if he did fall to the 2nd for sure and I would not be overly upset at 16.

 

[HeavyHitter99]

Some of the other names being passed around here would be much safer. Slow skating D from the Q are a gamble. I think Future Considerations has him in the third round. There I could see taking the chance!

He isn't slow at all just not an amazing skater... fc has him at 13. If he falls past 25 then someone will get an amazing steal.

 

[CornKicker]

Roy will be a mistake at 16 I'm not sold on him at all. The more I look at the reviews the more he doesn't belong in the first round.

have you seen him play? he was unreal at teh u18's completely dominating the ice when he was on. terrific skater on the big ice as well.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

I doubt Roy falls to the 2nd round...Redline loves him, and says his hockey IQ is off the charts

plus, he played injured which could've hurt his stock

Skating is a little bit of an issue as he's not fast but he's the best offensive defenceman in the draft, according to Redline and is gritty as hell

 

[Canovin]

I wouldn't be opposed to taking Roy at 16 if it means taking Guryanov at 33.

 

[HeavyHitter99]

have you seen him play? he was unreal at teh u18's completely dominating the ice when he was on. terrific skater on the big ice as well.

He obviously hasn't watched him

 

[Zaddy]

Honestly, the more I watch Roy the less I like him. He's probably a late 1st rounder for me now. I just think he has a series of issues to adress in order to become an impact NHL d-man. Right now I see him more as a bottom-four d-man that can play the PP. For a guy his size his skating is just not good enough. His lateral mobility is fine but his acceleration and top-end speed is lacking quite a bit. He's not very strong on the puck and doesn't seem to be too successful in board battles. Adding to that I think he is only OK defensively right now. The thing he excels at is play in the offensive zone where he uses his hockey IQ and puck skills to make things happen for his team. That's fine at the junior and AHL level but for him to make an impact on the NHL level he does have a lot to work on and for me it's a questionmark if he really can improve his skating and strength enough to be that guy. And I think that's where the big divide in the scouting community is, whether you believe he's capable of that or not.

 

[s7ark]

Skating appears to be the only reason Roy isn't considered a top 10 pick. Skating can be improved. I have no issues with taking Roy at 16 if we can't trade the pick for a D.

 

[doulos]

Skating appears to be the only reason Roy isn't considered a top 10 pick. Skating can be improved. I have no issues with taking Roy at 16 if we can't trade the pick for a D.

Skating is always a red flag for me, but you're right. A guy like Corey Perry fell quite far due to his poor skating and he turned out alright I guess...

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

Skating is always a red flag for me, but you're right. A guy like Corey Perry fell quite far due to his poor skating and he turned out alright I guess...

it's different for forward then d-men IMO...if you're considered a "puck-mover" I think you gotta be able to skate good...especially if you're not as big like Roy

maybe he makes up for it with his IQ and vision but skating is a legit concern

anyways, I'd be livid if we passed on Roy, Zboril, Svechnikov for Samsonov

 

[doulos]

it's different for forward then d-men IMO...if you're considered a "puck-mover" I think you gotta be able to skate good...especially if you're not as big like Roy

maybe he makes up for it with his IQ and vision but skating is a legit concern

anyways, I'd be livid if we passed on Roy, Zboril, Svechnikov for Samsonov

There may be something to that. I am sure there's someone out there who has research on how blueliners labelled as bad skaters have fared over the years.

 

[Game 8]

He obviously hasn't watched him

I have not seen him live. His skating is ranked 3/5 which is good, not great! Why would we take an average skating mid sized defenseman at 16th overall? There are far better prospects both offensive and defensive who will be available. Bpa with the team theme in mind which I would say is speed. If his playmaking ability doesnt translate into success at the next level he wont make it. If a defenseman is projected to be offensive and is a great skater more times than not they just turn into a good defenseman with a first pass once they make the NHL. In short no backup plan with this guy, and thats a pretty valuable pick to take that kind of chance! IMHO

 

[lakai17]

Samsonov or Svech.

I can not believe the hfoil scouts not wanting to take a goalie first round. What people don't realize is that Samsonov is on another tier compared to the rest of the goaltenders in this draft.

Build around McDavid and a reliable goaltender. The Tampa Bay mould currently.

 

[Zaddy]

Samsonov or Svech.

I can not believe the hfoil scouts not wanting to take a goalie first round. What people don't realize is that Samsonov is on another tier compared to the rest of the goaltenders in this draft.

Build around McDavid and a reliable goaltender. The Tampa Bay mould.

That's an empty statement in itself. Just because he is (supposedly) better than the rest doesn't mean he is worthy of a 1st round selection.

EDIT: Also, "The Tampa mold", well let me tell you, they got their starting goalie for Cory freaking Conacher. No need to spend a 1st rounder when you can find them much cheaper through trade.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

Samsonov or Svech.

I can not believe the hfoil scouts not wanting to take a goalie first round. What people don't realize is that Samsonov is on another tier compared to the rest of the goaltenders in this draft.

Build around McDavid and a reliable goaltender. The Tampa Bay mould currently.

goaltenders at 18 are far from reliable