Anybody got any info on Jack Finley? 6’5 right handed centre. One of the youngest players in the draft and already noted for his polished defensive play. He’s almost PPG for Spokane and the son of former NHL’er Jeff Finley. Could be a target for one of our 2nds
Here is a clip of him:
I don't know a ton about him but from what I have seen I am not overly excited about him as a prospect. Finley could get drafted in the 2nd to 3rd round. If we are targeting a big forward from the WHL who has intriguing upside I much prefer Matthew Rempe who is more likely to go in rounds 4 to 7. Here is a quick comparison of the two based on some of the numbers:
Jack Finely C 6'5 205 lbs (he has also been listed at 6'6)
DOB: 2002-09-02
2019-2020: 54 GP 17 G 35 A 52 PTS 108 SOG 646 FOW 1216 FOA
2018-2019: 63 GP 9 G 10 A 19 PTS 71 SOG 364 FOW 686 FOA
He is on the Spokane Chiefs, ranked 7th overall in the league, and on his team he is ranked 3rd for points and 4th for goals.
WHL Network
Matthew Rempe C 6'8 205 lbs (he has also been listed at 6'8.5)
DOB: 2002-06-29
2019-2020: 40 GP 10 G 18 A 28 PTS 71 SOG 254 FOW 551 FOA
He is on the Seattle Thunderbirds, ranked 16th in the league, where he is ranked 7th in both goals and points on his team. He missed a chunk of games to start the season but his points per game and goals per game are right up near the top of his team.
WHL Network
Finley has the better faceoff win percentage (53.1% to 46.1%). There shooting percentage is comparable (Finely: 15.7% vs Rempe: 14.1%) so if Rempe had comparable SOG he could only be a few goals off. It is worth noting that Rempe is in his first season in the WHL and so far he is performing better than Finley's first full season in the WHL.
Here is a clip of Rempe:
I think there is value in the fact that Rempe could likely be available in a later round than Finley and as a consequence we could get more value for our pick. But even if it came to choosing between those two in the same round I prefer Rempe. From what I know at this point Rempe is 3 inches taller, has more offensive creativity, is more physically imposing/intimidating and potentially is faster.
Maybe Finley is better than I am giving him credit for but I am not fully convinced he has high upside and I have yet to read any reports raving about his upside or advocating for why he should be ranked higher. If you come across anything on him, I would be interested to learn more and to find out what is his big selling point.
You also mentioned that he could be a target with one of our 2nd round picks. You may want to consider whether he is a better option than other big forwards that could be available in the 2nd or 3rd round like: Jaromir Pytlik (6'3 196 lbs), Will Cuylle (6'2 201 lbs), Carson Bantle (6'4 201 lbs), Dylan Peterson (6'4 190 lbs), Egor Sokolov (6'4 240 lbs), Brandon Coe (6'3 205 lbs), Maxim Groshev (6'2 194 lbs), Sam Colangelo (6'2 205 lbs), Luke Tuch (6'2 203 lbs), Carsen Richels (6'3 209 lbs), Maxim Beryozkin (6'2 201 lbs)