Prospect Info: 2022 31st Overall Pick | LW Isaac Howard

[EmptyNetAssassin]

I hope this kid is ready soon, we need some top 6 help.

 

[The Macho King]

70% odds to play in the NHL seems kinda low no? That was according to “The atlantic” graphic.

Seems pretty high to me honestly?

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

...play his freshman season at Minnesota-Duluth. He said he could turn pro after one or two seasons there.

Not really that surprising if that is the plan assuming all goes well. Usually these 1st round guys like Sanderson, Brisson, Turcotte, Zegras, Boldy, York, Knight, Caufield, etc only stay a season or 2 in college before signing.

 

[DCruickshank]

A year or two playing for Owen Sound in the OHL will do wonders for his development...hope this is were Tampa decides to send him...

 

[DrMartinVanNostrand]

Seems pretty high to me honestly?

Well, lets not risk conflating "odds to play in the NHL" with "odds of doing anything in the NHL". I would imagine the success rate of 31st overall picks this century reaching the NHL is around 70% or so, but the percentage of them who amounted to legitimate NHL players is below 50%.

 

[HanTykje]

I hope this kid is ready soon, we need some top 6 help.

Or they trade him like Nolan Foote?
Hope TB can mold this kid to something great

 

[EmptyNetAssassin]

Or they trade him like Nolan Foote?
Hope TB can mold this kid to something great

That was a great deal for us and helped us get back to back cups.

 

[Pierre Larouche]

People are already hating on this kid because he dared to go off the hockey cliché script and had some fun in an interview. For as much as hockey fans bitch about players' lack of personality, they are insanely terrified whenever anyone shows even a tiny bit of it.

Love the pick.

I think everyone likes those who go off script and are truthful and candid. That's different than sounding like an egotistical jock type of athlete. I felt Howard came off like this and was disappointed.

 

[Point21]

 

[ultra63]

Hopefully he's not DeAngelo lite

 

[bigdaddio]

Get him to the NHL. That's either 2 minutes or a stern look.

 

[Steazy Doo]

Anyone watching Howard? How has his year gone so far?

 

[Point21]

Anyone watching Howard? How has his year gone so far?

hit the usual learning curve of going to college level hockey. only has 1 goal and 6 points in 16 games. didnt make the USA WJC roster. hoping it sets a fire under him and he starts showing the skill we all know he has

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

I'm not really concerned with his low offensive numbers. As a member of the US NTDP they play a lot of D1 programs besides USHL teams throughout their season. Last year he played against 19 college teams, 5 of them which went on to the NCAA tournament (Michigan, Minnesota, Notre Dame, North Dakota, and Michigan Tech). In those 19 games (as a 17 year old) he scored 10 goals, 11 assists, and 21 points

Game by game results:

Spoiler

10/2 - Michigan State: 0pts
10/3 - Notre Dame: 1g + 1a
10/15 - Northern Michigan: 1a
10/16 - Michigan Tech: 0pts
10/23 - Cornell - 0pts
10/24 - Mercyhurst: 0pts
11/5 - Adrian College: 2g + 1a
11/24 - Adrian College: 1g + 1a
11/26 - Buffalo State: 1g
12/2 - Wisconsin: 1g + 1a
12/11 - Boston University: 0pts
12/12 - Merrimack: 2a
12/29 - Augsburg University: 1g
1/1 - North Dakota: 1g
1/3 - Minnesota: 0pts
1/21 - Lake Superior: 0pts
2/2 - Michigan: 1g + 2a
3/4 - Providence: 1g + 1a
3/9 - U. of Alaska: 1a

We know he has all the offensive talent in the world, but every scouting report also says that the rest of his game is lacking. I believe he's stated before that that's why he picked UMD, because he believes they put players in the NHL, and could help develop him and round out his game. I haven't seen any of his games this year, just highlights, but I would guess that there's a difference playing for Scott Sandelin who coached the Bulldogs to back to back national titles in 2018 and 2019, than playing with the US U-18 team. So same level of opponents, but different level of commitment to learning how to play a more NHL-like game.

 

[LTIR Trickery]

They're 8-10-0 @ UMD I wouldn't worry too much at this point, I thought they had a decent amount of roster turnover but I haven't kept up with CAWLIDGE HAWKEY in a minute.

 

[Point21]

 

[Stormbreaker]

 

[Point21]

Honestly the best thing for him.

 

[Felonious Python]

I was wondering about this yesterday.

What makes this so interesting is that only a few years ago, this would have never happened. Howard committed to UMD, and he was going to have to ride or die with them.

The other option would have been to go to the USHL for a year, and then join another school, which is basically unheard of for a recent first round pick.

Michigan State has been very active on the transfer portal, picking up four players.

 

[Point21]

 

[These Are The Days]

Yeah this is definitely better because I cannot comprehend how Howard scored so little at the college level like that. I cannot remark to the coaching he got but Howard's release is borderline Stamkosian and for a guy who outscored the 3rd pick in the draft on the same team in the same draft year, there had to be some sort of disconnect somewhere

 

[LTIR Trickery]

Yeah this is definitely better because I cannot comprehend how Howard scored so little at the college level like that. I cannot remark to the coaching he got but Howard's release is borderline Stamkosian and for a guy who outscored the 3rd pick in the draft on the same team in the same draft year, there had to be some sort of disconnect somewhere

Guys don't often score a ton at the college level though, its not like the OHL where guys are putting up crazy numbers. A PPG player in college is pretty damn good, for example. That said yeah, hoped to see more out of him but UMD was kinda ass last year.

 

[Point21]

 

[Felonious Python]

Well, that's anticlimactic.

He could have held the hockey world's attention for weeks.

 

[ultra63]

Well, that's anticlimactic.

He could have held the hockey world's attention for weeks.

BUMP Isaac Howard: It’s hard to call a player who is arguably his organization’s top prospect a quote-unquote riser, but in Howard’s case it applies. After a difficult freshman year at Minnesota-Duluth, Howard hit the transfer portal and now has points in 12 of his first 14 games at Michigan State. The Lightning need him to hit, so his bounce-back season is a big step forward. He looks like a first-rounder again and will be in the mix to make Team USA’s world juniors roster. — Scott Wheelerhttps://theathletic.com/5071668/2023/11/20/nhl-prospect-pipeline-top-risers?source=user-shared-article