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Prospect Info: 2020 NHL Entry Draft Thread

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crassbonanza said:
Fairly or not, I don't know why everyone is shocked that Byfield received some criticism after his WJC showing. He did not have a great tourney in his draft year and at that point Laf clearly separated himself and Stutzle gained some ground. Byfield is younger so he has a built in excuse(Laf was only slightly younger at the last WJC and put up similar points), but it was not a good showing at all in the main prospect tourney.
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It isn't shocking. The WJC will vault players and it will also really drop players. Like, I've always loved Kaliyev but he had a good WJC and now he seems to be much higher in everyone's eyes while Turcotte has fallen after his weak tourney. Zegras has received the similar WJC bump. I'm guilty of it to a degree: we all are. For armchair scouts, it is the most exposure many of us will get to these players. I remember in the 2006 or '07 tourney, Steve Downie was all the rage as this physical guy with skill. PPG. Then you've got James Neal going scoreless in six games. They were roughly the same age. Who are you taking when it comes to their NHL careers?

You are right though that he has the youth excuse but it is fair to have wanted more out of him: not necessarily on the scoresheet but just in general. That being said, it is pretty good for an August birthday 17 year old to make the U20 team for Canada and I'd expect him to be very impressive at next years. It is also a testament to his OHL play and potential that his international play up to this point hasn't taken him out of consideration for #2OA: that's how silly his ceiling is.
 
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crassbonanza said:
Fairly or not, I don't know why everyone is shocked that Byfield received some criticism after his WJC showing. He did not have a great tourney in his draft year and at that point Laf clearly separated himself and Stutzle gained some ground. Byfield is younger so he has a built in excuse(Laf was only slightly younger at the last WJC and put up similar points), but it was not a good showing at all in the main prospect tourney.
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To me, it's not so much that Byfield was criticized for his play. However, there's a very different narrative when Lafreniere had an underwhelming WJC as a 17 year-old versus Byfield.

An article dedicated to Lafreniere having a "big game" after scoring a goal: Alexis LaFreniere Responds With Big Game Against Czech Republic
Keep in mind that Lafreniere went scoreless in a 14-0 win against Denmark to start the tourney.

Lafreniere joining Crosby and McDavid as being the sixth 17 year-old to join Team Canada's WJC team: Lafreniere looks to join Crosby, McDavid in exclusive World Junior group

The Toronto Sun saying one of the reasons Canada lost in 2019, "THEY DIDN’T GIVE THE KID A CHANCE": TRAIKOS: 7 reasons why Team Canada stumbled at world juniors

Even when Lafreniere was criticized for his mediocre WJC at the time, people were quick to defend him.

I'm not denying that Byfield has had underwhelming performances on the big stage. I just feel he is being punished for it more compared to others.
 
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King'sPawn said:
To me, it's not so much that Byfield was criticized for his play. However, there's a very different narrative when Lafreniere had an underwhelming WJC as a 17 year-old versus Byfield.

An article dedicated to Lafreniere having a "big game" after scoring a goal: Alexis LaFreniere Responds With Big Game Against Czech Republic
Keep in mind that Lafreniere went scoreless in a 14-0 win against Denmark to start the tourney.

Lafreniere joining Crosby and McDavid as being the sixth 17 year-old to join Team Canada's WJC team: Lafreniere looks to join Crosby, McDavid in exclusive World Junior group

The Toronto Sun saying one of the reasons Canada lost in 2019, "THEY DIDN’T GIVE THE KID A CHANCE": TRAIKOS: 7 reasons why Team Canada stumbled at world juniors

Even when Lafreniere was criticized for his mediocre WJC at the time, people were quick to defend him.

I'm not denying that Byfield has had underwhelming performances on the big stage. I just feel he is being punished for it more compared to others.
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Again, whether it is fair or not people are going to view your D-2 WJC differently than your D-1 WJC. Also, I seem to remember a lot of people on here ripping Laf after his pointless 14-0 game and calling him a bust.

Honestly, I really haven't seen all that much criticism of QB other than some scouts saying that Stutzle may be the 2nd best prospect and I don't think it is fair to Stutzle to say that is only because people are criticizing QB.
 
When I watched Byfield in the WJ's I saw a kid that wasn't given a lot of opportunity and was uncomfortable in the role he was given. But it's not like he didn't stand out. When he was on the ice it wasn't very difficult to tell that he had a ton of potential. You could see the skill and obvious physical talent it just didn't amount to much.

The way hockey prospects are ranked is very unique to other Major sports in NA. I'm basketball, football, or baseball there is a major focus on natural physical talent. Hockey for whatever reason largely overlooks that.

The best pitcher in the NCAA won't get picked early if at all if he throws 85. The best basketball player in the NCAA won't get drafted if he's not very explosive and lacks size. The best college football player might not get picked if he lacks high end physical talent.

In Byfield you are looking at a kid that might be the very best physical talent in the entire NHL when he gets there (especially now that Ovies getting older lol) And he's basically the youngest prospect in the draft, AND he's one of the most productive at lower levels.

Don't overthink it, he's going to go to the NHL and be a better athlete than basically everyone in that league too. The upside is just way to high to pass up on.
 
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Rusty Batch said:
When I watched Byfield in the WJ's I saw a kid that wasn't given a lot of opportunity and was uncomfortable in the role he was given. But it's not like he didn't stand out. When he was on the ice it wasn't very difficult to tell that he had a ton of potential. You could see the skill and obvious physical talent it just didn't amount to much.

The way hockey prospects are ranked is very unique to other Major sports in NA. I'm basketball, football, or baseball there is a major focus on natural physical talent. Hockey for whatever reason largely overlooks that.

The best pitcher in the NCAA won't get picked early if at all if he throws 85. The best basketball player in the NCAA won't get drafted if he's not very explosive and lacks size. The best college football player might not get picked if he lacks high end physical talent.

In Byfield you are looking at a kid that might be the very best physical talent in the entire NHL when he gets there (especially now that Ovies getting older lol) And he's basically the youngest prospect in the draft, AND he's one of the most productive at lower levels.

Don't overthink it, he's going to go to the NHL and be a better athlete than basically everyone in that league too. The upside is just way to high to pass up on.
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I think it is partly because there is really no physical trait that directly lends someone to being a great hockey player unlike most of other sports you listed. You have guys ranging in height from Gerbe to Chara. You have strength ranging from Gaudreau to MacDermid. Maybe skating is the one attribute that can be argued, but even that is questionable. I don't think anyone would ever accuse Gretzky of being a top notch athlete, but he was the greatest to ever play.
 
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crassbonanza said:
I think it is partly because there is really no physical trait that directly lends someone to being a great hockey player unlike most of other sports you listed. You have guys ranging in height from Gerbe to Chara. You have strength ranging from Gaudreau to MacDermid. Maybe skating is the one attribute that can be argued, but even that is questionable. I don't think anyone would ever accuse Gretzky of being a top notch athlete, but he was the greatest to ever play.
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I'm talking about overall physical talent. Speed, Power, and combine that with the fine motor skills to have great hands. Think Ovechkin he's faster, is better at generating power and also has the fine motor skills to have great hands.

Chara also is unique in this aspect. Actually most elite players are. McDavid, Matthews, Eichel, etc... If they lag a bit in one area they tend to more than make up for it athletically in other areas.
 
And just to add to that. I believe your overall Hockey IQ is still probably the most important talent to have. But that is not always the easiest thing to figure out when looking at a prospect. Which is why most sports focus on the real obvious physical talents.
 
In the 2019 WJC, Lafreniere got 8:15 of ice time on average, his highest 14-0 game was against Denmark, where he got 14:14, but went scoreless.

In 2020 WJC, Byfield got 8:41 of ice time on average, his highest being the 6-0 Loss against Russia at 12:56. If you want to find his weaknesses, watch highlights of that game. On goal #3 and #6, there is lack of defensive awareness. He needed to put more defensive pressure on the open centerman/goal scorer. Notably, he also played 11:40 in the 4-3 win against USA, where he was a +2 against a stacked Team USA.

WJC 2020 Byfield is only 53 days (less than 2 months) older than 2019 WJC Lafreniere. Their ages and performances are very similar. He did not have a disappointing WJC if you factor that in. Im putting my money that he has a dominate WJC next year, if he is there.

Also remember, Quinton Byfield was considered a contender for #1 overall up all the until that gold game for Canada, where Lafreniere really dominated. But to compare 2020 Lafreniere to 2020 Byfield is not fair, considering Lafreniere is 312 days (or about 10 months) older than Byfield.

Aatu Raty (top tier 2021 prospect) played for Finland and had 3 points. He is only 34 days younger than Byfield, got more ice time, and no one considered his performance bad.
 
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Rusty Batch said:
I'm talking about overall physical talent. Speed, Power, and combine that with the fine motor skills to have great hands. Think Ovechkin he's faster, is better at generating power and also has the fine motor skills to have great hands.

Chara also is unique in this aspect. Actually most elite players are. McDavid, Matthews, Eichel, etc... If they lag a bit in one area they tend to more than make up for it athletically in other areas.
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Stutzle has the best hands and skating in the draft and his ability to make plays at top speed is extremely impressive. That is why some scouts believe he has the highest potential of anyone in the draft. For me I am going to be extremely happy with whoever we choose, but I feel like some people are off the mark when they are saying this is a no brainer selection. I just find it weird how people are ripping on Stutzle so hard; calling him streudle, knocking him for his shot, saying that the only way he could be possibly be considered at number 2 is some sort of Canadian conspiracy.
 
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Raccoon Jesus said:
I'm not as sure he has as some others are.

He's playing in a league whose defense is as messy as juniors. He's an elite playmaker and forechecker with a motor, but he's got a muffin shot and only scored 7 goals against third-rate goalies. He's got more to learn than people are giving him credit for. I'm not sure he'll be able to dance NHL defenders who want to plow through him as easily as he will DEL defenders who are swinging their sticks around where Tim just was. And he goes hard to the net, which I love, but again easy against buttersoft defenders. Anyone touting Stutzle as more of a sure thing are overlooking a lot of questions on purpose.
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Racoon, this is some exceptional stereotyping.:confused:

I prefer Byfield over Stützle too. He did not have a lot to work with @ Sudbury and still put up elite numbers with a combo of size, speed en great hands. That’s a recipe for succes 9 out of 10 times.
 
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crassbonanza said:
Stutzle has the best hands and skating in the draft and his ability to make plays at top speed is extremely impressive. That is why some scouts believe he has the highest potential of anyone in the draft. For me I am going to be extremely happy with whoever we choose, but I feel like some people are off the mark when they are saying this is a no brainer selection. I just find it weird how people are ripping on Stutzle so hard; calling him streudle, knocking him for his shot, saying that the only way he could be possibly be considered at number 2 is some sort of Canadian conspiracy.
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Stutzle is awesome. But I think we all realize that Byfield is a much better athlete than anyone in this draft. And elite for the NHL.
 
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bland said:
Stützle fits the current organization best, but Byfield could change it.
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The last time the Kings started to build and eventually rolled to three Western Conference Finals, and two Stanley Cups in three years, they changed the organization.

I would be interested in your thoughts as to why Stutzle fits the current organization better than Byfield. I see Byfield as a great fit.
 
crassbonanza said:
I think it is partly because there is really no physical trait that directly lends someone to being a great hockey player unlike most of other sports you listed. You have guys ranging in height from Gerbe to Chara. You have strength ranging from Gaudreau to MacDermid. Maybe skating is the one attribute that can be argued, but even that is questionable. I don't think anyone would ever accuse Gretzky of being a top notch athlete, but he was the greatest to ever play.
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KINGS17 said:
The last time the Kings started to build and eventually rolled to three Western Conference Finals, and two Stanley Cups in three years, they changed the organization.

I would be interested in your thoughts as to why Stutzle fits the current organization better than Byfield. I see Byfield as a great fit.
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As always, bland can explain himself more sophisticated than I can.

But I interpret it as Stutzle having more of an immediate benefit while benefiting the organization long-term, while Byfield would have a much greater impact on the organization if he plays to his potential.
 
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KINGS17 said:
The last time the Kings started to build and eventually rolled to three Western Conference Finals, and two Stanley Cups in three years, they changed the organization.

I would be interested in your thoughts as to why Stutzle fits the current organization better than Byfield. I see Byfield as a great fit.
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Stützle's skill set will make the existing prospects more effective. That kind of vision and skating will open up all kinds of time and space for shot-first wingers like Kaliyev and Fagemo. I am not quite as high on Kaliyev as the consensus around here, I think his approach to the game is more about waiting and jumping in at the right moment as opposed to creating on his own, and I can't think of a better "type" of player to maximize his potential than a Stützle.

I see Stützle working the defense into the attack off of the cycle far, far more effectively than Byfield. I see Stützle creating more opportunities for his linemates than Byfield.

I see Byfield having the potential to be able to break down defenses on his own, leaving time and space for wingers to work their own magic. On the rush, forget about it, Byfield is a one man wrecking crew. But, in against set coverages, I don't think he will have as much of the ability to produce.

I see Stützle leading the team to produce more within tight defense, but Byfield needing to break coverages to thrive.
 
Take it for what it's worth. It's only one game but you see a lot of potential and you can see a lot of things both players need to work on. But that goes with every prospect. I'm down with whoever we get I trust that Blake's crew will pick the right player.



 
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