Well, the U18's are just about done and we are nearing draft lottery day, and since @Frk It is slacking at his job by not posting this thread yet I decided to.
Who are YOUR top prospects of the 2022?
My top 32:
Name
Pos
League
1
Shane Wright
C
OHL
2
Juraj Slafkovsky
LW
Liiga
3
Matthew Savoie
C
WHL
4
Ivan Miroshnichenko
LW
VHL
5
David Jiricek
RD
Czech Extraliga
6
Danila Yurov
LW
KHL
7
Marco Kasper
C
SHL
8
Filip Mesar
LW/C
Slovak Extraliga
9
Simon Nemec
RD
Slovak Extraliga
10
Frank Nazar
C/RW
USHL
11
Logan Cooley
C
USHL
12
Cutter Gauthier
LW/C
USHL
13
Joakim Kemell
RW
Liiga
14
Conor Geekie
C
USHL
15
Liam Ohgren
C
SHL/J20
16
Jonathan Lekkerimaki
RW
SHL/J20
17
Calle Odelius
LD
SHL/J20
18
Nathan Gaucher
C/W
QMJHL
19
Pavel Mintyukov
RD
OHL
20
Lian Bichsel
D
SHL
21
Kevin Korchinski
RD
WHL
22
Luca DelBelBelluz
C
OHL
23
David Goyette
C
OHL
24
Julian Lutz
LW
DEL
25
Brad Lambert
W/C
Liiga
26
Seamus Casey
RD
USHL
27
Rutgar McGroarty
RW
USHL
28
Tristan Luneau
RD
QMJHL
29
Noah Warren
RD
QMJHL
30
Danny Zhilkin
C
OHL
31
Isaac Howard
LW
USHL
32
Owen Pickering
LD
WHL
I'll add my 2nd and 3rd rounds after a bit more research. It was honestly kind of tough going from 20 to 32 for this draft.
How close is the black book to where players have actually been picked? I've read it in the past and I just didn't agree with some of the rankings and reviews of some higher rated/drafted players.
And you can post yours now but post an updated version later.
Take this with a boulder of salt. While I've seen most of the guys on this list multiple times, a handful of these takes are based a little too heavily on Twitter highlights and opinions I've read or heard from various sources around the internet. Players lumped in tiers are basically on the same level for me. You could push me in any direction on those guys. Also note that this is a personal ranking and not a mock draft.
LW Juraj Slafkovský
LC Logan Cooley
LC Marco Kasper
---
RC Shane Wright
LC Cutter Gauthier
LD Pavel Mintyukov
RD Šimon Nemec
LD Lian Bichsel
LC Noah Östlund
RW Jonathan Lekkerimäki
---
RC Matthew Savoie
RW Joakim Kemell
RD David Jiříček
LC Jiří Kulich
LC Danila Yurov
RC Frank Nazar Ⅲ
RW Jimmy Snuggerud
RC Conor Geekie
LW Liam Öhgren
LD Kevin Korchinski
--
LD Owen Pickering
RC Filip Mešár
RW Adam Sykora
RD Ryan Chesley
LC Danny Zhilkin
LD Calle Odelius
RC Nathan Gaucher
RC Gleb Trikozov
LW Matyáš Šapovaliv
RD Elias Salomonsson
LC Rutger McGroarty
--
RW Nikita Grebyonkin
LC Luca Del Bel Belluz
LW Ivan Miroshnichenko
LW Isaac "Ike" Howard
LD Denton Mateychuk
RC Brad Lambert
RW Devin Kaplan
RC Vinzenz Rohrer
LW Kirill Dolzhenkov
LW Viktor Neuchev
GT Topias Leinonen
LD Lane Hutson
RW Jagger Firkus
--
LW Jani Nyman
LC Paul Ludwinski
LW Julian Lutz
RD Sam Rinzel
LC Rieger Lorenz
LC Topi Rönni
LC David Goyette
RC Owen Beck
LD Artyom Duda
LD Arseni Koromyslov
RD Tristan Luneau
LD Vladimir Grudinin
LD Tomas Hamara
LW Samuel Savoie
--
LC Cedrick Guindon
RD Maveric Lamoureux
LD Mats Lindgren
LD Alexander Pelevin
RC Liam Arnsby
LC Ilya Kvochko
HM: RD Seamus Casey, RW Vasili Dronyk, RD Michael Fisher, RW Maddox Fleming, LD Simon Forsmark, LW Jordan Gustafson, RW Linus Hemström, LW Jack Hughes, LC Jake Karabela, LC Aleksanteri Kaskimäki, RD Christian Kyrou, LD Kasper Larsen, LW Brandon Lisowsky, RW Cruz Lucius, RD Michael Mastrodomenico, LW Adam Měchura, RC Logan Morrison, RD Ty Nelson, LW Alexander Perevalov, LC Ludwig Persson, RC Matthew Poitras, LC Markus Vidicek
*updated: 2022.05.05 - Matthew Savoie ↑, Joakim Kemell ↑, Gleb Trikozov ↓
***updated: 2022.05.22 - Cutter Gauthier ↑, Ivan Miroshnichenko ↑, Juraj Slafkovsky ↑
****updated: 2022.06.03 - Owen Beck ↑, Denton Mateychuk ↑, Sam Rinzel ↓
*****updated: 2022.07.06 - Lane Hutson ↑, Luca Del Bel Belluz ↑, Aleksanteri Kaskimäki ↓
I'm pretty proud of how I've improved my ability to evaluate this year I feel like. Still just a fan obviously, but I made a conscious effort to actually watch games instead of just highlights. Here's my top 32.
1. Shane Wright
2. Logan Cooley
3. Matthew Savoie
4. Juraj Slafkovsky
5. David Jiricek
6. Joakim Kemell
7. Frank Nazar
8. Danila Yurov
9. Simon Nemec
10. Marco Kasper
11. Conor Geekie
12. Ivan Miroshnichenko
13. Rutger McGroarty
14. Jiri Kulich
15. Cutter Gauthier
16. Filip Mesar
17. David Goyette
18. Gleb Trikozov
19. Jonathan Lekkerimaki
20. Pavel Mintyukov
21. Calle Odelius
22. Liam Ohgren
23. Isaac Howard
24. Noah Ostlund
25. Denton Mateychuk
26. Brad Lambert
27. Owen Pickering
28. Seamus Casey
29. Ty Nelson
30. Alexander Perevalov
31. Kevin Korchinski
32. Jimmy Snuggerud
HM: Lane Hutson, Danny Zhilkin, Lian Bichsel, Luca Del Bel Belluz
Well, the U18's are just about done and we are nearing draft lottery day, and since @Frk It is slacking at his job by not posting this thread yet I decided to.
Who are YOUR top prospects of the 2022?
My top 32:
Name
Pos
League
1
Shane Wright
C
OHL
2
Juraj Slafkovsky
LW
Liiga
3
Matthew Savoie
C
WHL
4
Ivan Miroshnichenko
LW
VHL
5
David Jiricek
RD
Czech Extraliga
6
Danila Yurov
LW
KHL
7
Marco Kasper
C
SHL
8
Filip Mesar
LW/C
Slovak Extraliga
9
Simon Nemec
RD
Slovak Extraliga
10
Frank Nazar
C/RW
USHL
11
Logan Cooley
C
USHL
12
Cutter Gauthier
LW/C
USHL
13
Joakim Kemell
RW
Liiga
14
Conor Geekie
C
USHL
15
Liam Ohgren
C
SHL/J20
16
Jonathan Lekkerimaki
RW
SHL/J20
17
Calle Odelius
LD
SHL/J20
18
Nathan Gaucher
C/W
QMJHL
19
Pavel Mintyukov
RD
OHL
20
Lian Bichsel
D
SHL
21
Kevin Korchinski
RD
WHL
22
Luca DelBelBelluz
C
OHL
23
David Goyette
C
OHL
24
Julian Lutz
LW
DEL
25
Brad Lambert
W/C
Liiga
26
Seamus Casey
RD
USHL
27
Rutgar McGroarty
RW
USHL
28
Tristan Luneau
RD
QMJHL
29
Noah Warren
RD
QMJHL
30
Danny Zhilkin
C
OHL
31
Isaac Howard
LW
USHL
32
Owen Pickering
LD
WHL
I'll add my 2nd and 3rd rounds after a bit more research. It was honestly kind of tough going from 20 to 32 for this draft.
Using Nick's as a base, I'm just going to bold the names I think hit and Italicize the names I think flop. My rankings are always only based on name recognition and feeling of "star". Never scientific
1. Shane Wright 2. Logan Cooley 3. Matthew Savoie 4. Juraj Slafkovsky 5. David Jiricek 6. Joakim Kemell
7. Frank Nazar
8. Danila Yurov
9. Simon Nemec 10. Marco Kasper
11. Conor Geekie 12. Ivan Miroshnichenko
13. Rutger McGroarty
14. Jiri Kulich
15. Cutter Gauthier
16. Filip Mesar
17. David Goyette
18. Gleb Trikozov
19. Jonathan Lekkerimaki 20. Pavel Mintyukov
21. Calle Odelius 22. Liam Ohgren
23. Isaac Howard 24. Noah Ostlund 25. Denton Mateychuk 26. Brad Lambert 27. Owen Pickering 28. Seamus Casey
29. Ty Nelson 30. Alexander Perevalov
31. Kevin Korchinski
32. Jimmy Snuggerud
E: When I say name recognition, I mean that I can imagine a story in ESPN written about them. Like, he's got to be a f***ing star for them to write about Rutger McGroarty.
They're a major gamble, but the guy has skill on par with Andrei Svechnikov. His D-1 and his Hlinka were really impressive.
I know a lot of people were saying, "But he's not scoring right now!" when looking at his season so far.
Well...that's because he was playing with his cancer not being diagnosed at that time. I'd bet a healthy Miroshnichenko would be giving Wright a run for his money as #1 overall. I chose to rank him as if it's not a factor.
Well, the U18's are just about done and we are nearing draft lottery day, and since @Frk It is slacking at his job by not posting this thread yet I decided to.
Who are YOUR top prospects of the 2022?
My top 32:
Name
Pos
League
1
Shane Wright
C
OHL
2
Juraj Slafkovsky
LW
Liiga
3
Matthew Savoie
C
WHL
4
Ivan Miroshnichenko
LW
VHL
5
David Jiricek
RD
Czech Extraliga
6
Danila Yurov
LW
KHL
7
Marco Kasper
C
SHL
8
Filip Mesar
LW/C
Slovak Extraliga
9
Simon Nemec
RD
Slovak Extraliga
10
Frank Nazar
C/RW
USHL
11
Logan Cooley
C
USHL
12
Cutter Gauthier
LW/C
USHL
13
Joakim Kemell
RW
Liiga
14
Conor Geekie
C
USHL
15
Liam Ohgren
C
SHL/J20
16
Jonathan Lekkerimaki
RW
SHL/J20
17
Calle Odelius
LD
SHL/J20
18
Nathan Gaucher
C/W
QMJHL
19
Pavel Mintyukov
RD
OHL
20
Lian Bichsel
D
SHL
21
Kevin Korchinski
RD
WHL
22
Luca DelBelBelluz
C
OHL
23
David Goyette
C
OHL
24
Julian Lutz
LW
DEL
25
Brad Lambert
W/C
Liiga
26
Seamus Casey
RD
USHL
27
Rutgar McGroarty
RW
USHL
28
Tristan Luneau
RD
QMJHL
29
Noah Warren
RD
QMJHL
30
Danny Zhilkin
C
OHL
31
Isaac Howard
LW
USHL
32
Owen Pickering
LD
WHL
I'll add my 2nd and 3rd rounds after a bit more research. It was honestly kind of tough going from 20 to 32 for this draft.
I haven't seen much of him yet. I'd like to do some more diving into his clips and scouting reports before I rank him. It seems like his rankings go from #14 overall to #66. That's a crazy variance. Gleb Trikozov at eliteprospects.com
I haven't seen much of him yet. I'd like to do some more diving into his clips and scouting reports before I rank him. It seems like his rankings go from #14 overall to #66. That's a crazy variance. Gleb Trikozov at eliteprospects.com
My list is based on some limited viewings as well as my prospect model. I also consider league play to be significantly more important than international. International results are fun, but should always be taken with a grain of salt.
This year I've revamped my prospect model. The updated model is a logistic regression model which outputs the probability a player will make it to the NHL. Each prospect is given a probability of reaching "Elite", "1st Line", "2nd Line", "3rd Line", & "4th Line" roles by age 27 for F and "Elite", "1st Pair", "2nd Pair", & "3rd Pair" for D. These probabilities are then used to produce an expected value stat, which in this case is an expected cap hit. I also used some other relevant stats to help determine their placement, but a large portion of the list was created using the model.
For the draft itself I really like it up to about the mid 40s and then there is a steep drop off. I'm not in love with a ton of prospects outside of the top tiers. As well, what matters is the tiers and not the rankings themselves. I think outside of the Russians you can make an argument for almost any of them within tiers. That being said, we've seen a number of Russian prospects get signed recently so I'm thinking there's a chance the high profile ones still go quite high.
Tier
Rank
Player
Position
League
Draft Year
1
1
Shane Wright
C
OHL
DY
2
2
Simon Nemec
D
Slovak
DY
3
3
Logan Cooley
C
USHL
DY
4
4
David Jiricek
D
Czech
DY
4
5
Matthew Savoie
C
WHL
DY
4
6
Juraj Slafkovsky
W
Liiga
DY
4
7
Frank Nazar
C
USHL
DY
4
8
Gleb Trikozov
F
MHL
DY
4
9
Brad Lambert
C
Liiga
DY
4
10
Danila Yurov
F
MHL
DY
5
11
Denton Mateychuk
D
WHL
DY
5
12
Kevin Korchinski
D
WHL
DY
5
13
Joakim Kemell
W
Liiga
DY
5
14
Jordan Dumais
F
QMJHL
DY
5
15
Liam Ohgren
F
SuperElit
DY
5
16
Jiri Kulich
C
Czech
DY
5
17
Seamus Casey
D
USHL
DY
5
18
Filip Mesar
C
Slovak
DY
5
19
Isaac Howard
F
USHL
DY
5
20
Pavel Mintyukov
D
OHL
DY
5
21
Conor Geekie
C
WHL
DY
6
22
Marco Kasper
F
SHL
DY
6
23
Ty Nelson
D
OHL
DY
6
24
Jagger Firkus
W
WHL
DY
6
25
Cutter Gauthier
F
USHL
DY
6
26
Jonathan Lekkerimaki
F
SHL
DY
6
27
Rutger McGroarty
F
USHL
DY
6
28
Alexander Perevalov
F
MHL
DY
6
29
Vladimir Grudinin
D
MHL
DY
6
30
Lane Hutson
D
USHL
DY
6
31
Noah Ostlund
F
SuperElit
DY
7
32
Luca DelBelBelluz
C
OHL
DY
7
33
Jani Nyman
W
Liiga
DY
7
34
David Goyette
C
OHL
DY
7
35
Jimmy Snuggerud
F
USHL
DY
7
36
Ivan Miroshnichenko
F
VHL
DY
7
37
Christian Kyrou
D
OHL
DY
7
38
Lian Bichsel
D
SuperElit
DY
7
39
Adam Syokra
W
Slovak
DY
7
40
Julian Lutz
F
DEL
DY
7
41
Mattias Havelid
D
SuperElit
DY
7
42
Matyas Sapovaliv
F
OHL
DY
7
43
Hugo Havelid
G
SuperElit
DY
7
44
Ryan Chesley
D
USHL
DY
8
45
Nicholas Moldenhauer
F
USHL
DY
8
46
Jérémy Langlois
D
QMJHL
DY
8
47
Adam Ingram
F
USHL
DY
8
48
Jack Hughes
F
NCAA
DY
8
49
Ludwig Persson
F
SuperElit
DY
8
50
Elias Salomonsson
D
SuperElit
DY
8
51
Michael Buchinger
D
OHL
DY
8
52
Viktor Neuchev
F
MHL
DY
8
53
Artyom Duda
D
MHL
DY
8
54
Tristan Luneau
D
QMJHL
DY
8
55
Servac Petrovsky
F
OHL
DY
8
56
Alexander Suzdalev
F
SuperElit
DY
8
57
Nick Malik
G
Liiga
DY+2
8
58
Nathan Gaucher
F
QMJHL
DY
8
59
Owen Pickering
D
WHL
DY
9
60
Aleksanteri Kaskimaki
C
Liiga
DY
9
61
Niks Fenenko
D
QMJHL
DY
9
62
Otto Salin
D
Liiga
DY
9
63
Simon Forsmark
D
SuperElit
DY
9
64
Jake Furlong
D
QMJHL
DY
9
65
Maveric Lamoureux
D
QMJHL
DY
9
66
Filip Bystedt
F
SuperElit
DY
9
67
Noah Warren
D
QMJHL
DY
9
68
Markus Vidicek
F
QMJHL
DY
9
69
Mats Lindgren
D
WHL
DY
9
70
Hudson Thornton
D
WHL
DY
9
71
Ilya Ivantsov
F
VHL
DY+1
9
72
Calle Odelius
D
SuperElit
DY
9
73
Tomas Hamara
D
Liiga
DY
9
74
Tucker Robertson
F
OHL
DY+1
10
75
Elmeri Laakso
D
Liiga
DY
10
76
Dylan James
F
USHL
DY
10
77
Alex Sotek
F
Liiga
DY
10
78
Ilya Kvochko
F
MHL
DY
10
79
Kirill Kudryavtsev
D
OHL
DY
10
80
Raul Yakupov
F
MHL
DY
10
81
Logan Morrison
F
OHL
DY+2
10
82
Rodwin Dionicio
D
OHL
DY
10
83
Reid Schaefer
W
WHL
DY
10
84
Danny Zhilkin
F
OHL
DY
10
85
David Spacek
D
QMJHL
DY+1
10
86
Ben King
F
WHL
DY+2
10
87
Jordan Gustafson
C
WHL
DY
10
88
Danil Aimurzin
C
VHL
DY+2
10
89
Joel Jonsson
W
SuperElit
DY
HM: Luke Mittelstadt, D, DY+1; Zakhar Vinogradov, G, DY+1; Michal Gut, C, DY+2, Jeremy Wilmer, W, DY+1
Some things to note on my list:
1. Jordan Dumais. He is one of the most under rated players in the draft. He has one of the highest likelihoods of becoming a top 6 player and is constantly ranked in the 70s. I know he's small and his skating isn't elite, but he is someone I'd be willing to swing for the fences on.
2. The WHL dmen. Korchinski & Mateychuk are both two of the premier offensive dmen in this draft; I wouldn't be shocked if either of the two became the best defenceman from this class. If Mateychuk was a little bit bigger I think he'd be in my top 10.
3. The Russians. What Trikozov did as an U18 in the MHL was incredible. He had one of the best U18 seasons of all time while playing far less minutes than some of those ahead of him. He is my favorite prospect in the draft and someone I'd love to snag should he fall in the draft; if not for the current political issues he would be #5 on my board. Yurov was no slouch either and while he didn't produce in the KHL his MHL numbers were outstanding. I'd have liked to have seen him at the WJC, but his MHL numbers are enough for him to stay in my top 10. Without the political issues he'd be my 8th on my board
4. The Goalies. This draft is lacking any sort of can't miss goalie prospect, but there are still 2 interesting ones. Hugo Havelid may have had the best U18 tourney possible for his draft stock and it really solidified his position in my mind as the best goalie in the draft. While he is small his numbers and play speak for themselves. Nick Malik is my #2 ranked goalie. He was outstanding this year in the Liiga as a DY+2 and had a season worthy of being a top 90 pick.
My list is based on some limited viewings as well as my prospect model. I also consider league play to be significantly more important than international. International results are fun, but should always be taken with a grain of salt.
This year I've revamped my prospect model. The updated model is a logistic regression model which outputs the probability a player will make it to the NHL. Each prospect is given a probability of reaching "Elite", "1st Line", "2nd Line", "3rd Line", & "4th Line" roles by age 27 for F and "Elite", "1st Pair", "2nd Pair", & "3rd Pair" for D. These probabilities are then used to produce an expected value stat, which in this case is an expected cap hit. I also used some other relevant stats to help determine their placement, but a large portion of the list was created using the model.
For the draft itself I really like it up to about the mid 40s and then there is a steep drop off. I'm not in love with a ton of prospects outside of the top tiers. As well, what matters is the tiers and not the rankings themselves. I think outside of the Russians you can make an argument for almost any of them within tiers. That being said, we've seen a number of Russian prospects get signed recently so I'm thinking there's a chance the high profile ones still go quite high.
Tier
Rank
Player
Position
League
Draft Year
1
1
Shane Wright
C
OHL
DY
2
2
Simon Nemec
D
Slovak
DY
3
3
Logan Cooley
C
USHL
DY
4
4
David Jiricek
D
Czech
DY
4
5
Matthew Savoie
C
WHL
DY
4
6
Juraj Slafkovsky
W
Liiga
DY
4
7
Frank Nazar
C
USHL
DY
4
8
Gleb Trikozov
F
MHL
DY
4
9
Brad Lambert
C
Liiga
DY
4
10
Danila Yurov
F
MHL
DY
5
11
Denton Mateychuk
D
WHL
DY
5
12
Kevin Korchinski
D
WHL
DY
5
13
Joakim Kemell
W
Liiga
DY
5
14
Jordan Dumais
F
QMJHL
DY
5
15
Liam Ohgren
F
SuperElit
DY
5
16
Jiri Kulich
C
Czech
DY
5
17
Seamus Casey
D
USHL
DY
5
18
Filip Mesar
C
Slovak
DY
5
19
Isaac Howard
F
USHL
DY
5
20
Pavel Mintyukov
D
OHL
DY
5
21
Conor Geekie
C
WHL
DY
6
22
Marco Kasper
F
SHL
DY
6
23
Ty Nelson
D
OHL
DY
6
24
Jagger Firkus
W
WHL
DY
6
25
Cutter Gauthier
F
USHL
DY
6
26
Jonathan Lekkerimaki
F
SHL
DY
6
27
Rutger McGroarty
F
USHL
DY
6
28
Alexander Perevalov
F
MHL
DY
6
29
Vladimir Grudinin
D
MHL
DY
6
30
Lane Hutson
D
USHL
DY
6
31
Noah Ostlund
F
SuperElit
DY
7
32
Luca DelBelBelluz
C
OHL
DY
7
33
Jani Nyman
W
Liiga
DY
7
34
David Goyette
C
OHL
DY
7
35
Jimmy Snuggerud
F
USHL
DY
7
36
Ivan Miroshnichenko
F
VHL
DY
7
37
Christian Kyrou
D
OHL
DY
7
38
Lian Bichsel
D
SuperElit
DY
7
39
Adam Syokra
W
Slovak
DY
7
40
Julian Lutz
F
DEL
DY
7
41
Mattias Havelid
D
SuperElit
DY
7
42
Matyas Sapovaliv
F
OHL
DY
7
43
Hugo Havelid
G
SuperElit
DY
7
44
Ryan Chesley
D
USHL
DY
8
45
Nicholas Moldenhauer
F
USHL
DY
8
46
Jérémy Langlois
D
QMJHL
DY
8
47
Adam Ingram
F
USHL
DY
8
48
Jack Hughes
F
NCAA
DY
8
49
Ludwig Persson
F
SuperElit
DY
8
50
Elias Salomonsson
D
SuperElit
DY
8
51
Michael Buchinger
D
OHL
DY
8
52
Viktor Neuchev
F
MHL
DY
8
53
Artyom Duda
D
MHL
DY
8
54
Tristan Luneau
D
QMJHL
DY
8
55
Servac Petrovsky
F
OHL
DY
8
56
Alexander Suzdalev
F
SuperElit
DY
8
57
Nick Malik
G
Liiga
DY+2
8
58
Nathan Gaucher
F
QMJHL
DY
8
59
Owen Pickering
D
WHL
DY
9
60
Aleksanteri Kaskimaki
C
Liiga
DY
9
61
Niks Fenenko
D
QMJHL
DY
9
62
Otto Salin
D
Liiga
DY
9
63
Simon Forsmark
D
SuperElit
DY
9
64
Jake Furlong
D
QMJHL
DY
9
65
Maveric Lamoureux
D
QMJHL
DY
9
66
Filip Bystedt
F
SuperElit
DY
9
67
Noah Warren
D
QMJHL
DY
9
68
Markus Vidicek
F
QMJHL
DY
9
69
Mats Lindgren
D
WHL
DY
9
70
Hudson Thornton
D
WHL
DY
9
71
Ilya Ivantsov
F
VHL
DY+1
9
72
Calle Odelius
D
SuperElit
DY
9
73
Tomas Hamara
D
Liiga
DY
9
74
Tucker Robertson
F
OHL
DY+1
10
75
Elmeri Laakso
D
Liiga
DY
10
76
Dylan James
F
USHL
DY
10
77
Alex Sotek
F
Liiga
DY
10
78
Ilya Kvochko
F
MHL
DY
10
79
Kirill Kudryavtsev
D
OHL
DY
10
80
Raul Yakupov
F
MHL
DY
10
81
Logan Morrison
F
OHL
DY+2
10
82
Rodwin Dionicio
D
OHL
DY
10
83
Reid Schaefer
W
WHL
DY
10
84
Danny Zhilkin
F
OHL
DY
10
85
David Spacek
D
QMJHL
DY+1
10
86
Ben King
F
WHL
DY+2
10
87
Jordan Gustafson
C
WHL
DY
10
88
Danil Aimurzin
C
VHL
DY+2
10
89
Joel Jonsson
W
SuperElit
DY
HM: Luke Mittelstadt, D, DY+1; Zakhar Vinogradov, G, DY+1; Michal Gut, C, DY+2, Jeremy Wilmer, W, DY+1
Some things to note on my list:
1. Jordan Dumais. He is one of the most under rated players in the draft. He has one of the highest likelihoods of becoming a top 6 player and is constantly ranked in the 70s. I know he's small and his skating isn't elite, but he is someone I'd be willing to swing for the fences on.
2. The WHL dmen. Korchinski & Mateychuk are both two of the premier offensive dmen in this draft; I wouldn't be shocked if either of the two became the best defenceman from this class. If Mateychuk was a little bit bigger I think he'd be in my top 10.
3. The Russians. What Trikozov did as an U18 in the MHL was incredible. He had one of the best U18 seasons of all time while playing far less minutes than some of those ahead of him. He is my favorite prospect in the draft and someone I'd love to snag should he fall in the draft; if not for the current political issues he would be #5 on my board. Yurov was no slouch either and while he didn't produce in the KHL his MHL numbers were outstanding. I'd have liked to have seen him at the WJC, but his MHL numbers are enough for him to stay in my top 10. Without the political issues he'd be my 8th on my board
4. The Goalies. This draft is lacking any sort of can't miss goalie prospect, but there are still 2 interesting ones. Hugo Havelid may have had the best U18 tourney possible for his draft stock and it really solidified his position in my mind as the best goalie in the draft. While he is small his numbers and play speak for themselves. Nick Malik is my #2 ranked goalie. He was outstanding this year in the Liiga as a DY+2 and had a season worthy of being a top 90 pick.
I didn't feel as though I really needed to directly control for league difficulty. Each league had their own self-contained model, meaning that I only used data from within that league to produce the outputs. In my mind the logistic regression already controls for difficulty because the response variable is "Did the player make it to the NHL?". A league that produces fewer NHLers will generally only give higher probability of success to prospects that have had exceptional performances.
In order to create a model that I felt was robust enough the league must have had 10 years of data and a sufficient number of players make it to the NHL. This meant that certain league such as the MHL didn't have enough player level data to be properly trained and leagues that don't produce a ton of NHL talent weren't used, such as the Jr. A leagues in Canada.
I could probably approach it from a different way and have the leagues themselves act as variables in the regression. This is my 1st attempt so I'm sure there are improvements that I can make as time goes on.
My list is based on some limited viewings as well as my prospect model. I also consider league play to be significantly more important than international. International results are fun, but should always be taken with a grain of salt.
This year I've revamped my prospect model. The updated model is a logistic regression model which outputs the probability a player will make it to the NHL. Each prospect is given a probability of reaching "Elite", "1st Line", "2nd Line", "3rd Line", & "4th Line" roles by age 27 for F and "Elite", "1st Pair", "2nd Pair", & "3rd Pair" for D. These probabilities are then used to produce an expected value stat, which in this case is an expected cap hit. I also used some other relevant stats to help determine their placement, but a large portion of the list was created using the model.
For the draft itself I really like it up to about the mid 40s and then there is a steep drop off. I'm not in love with a ton of prospects outside of the top tiers. As well, what matters is the tiers and not the rankings themselves. I think outside of the Russians you can make an argument for almost any of them within tiers. That being said, we've seen a number of Russian prospects get signed recently so I'm thinking there's a chance the high profile ones still go quite high.
Tier
Rank
Player
Position
League
Draft Year
1
1
Shane Wright
C
OHL
DY
2
2
Simon Nemec
D
Slovak
DY
3
3
Logan Cooley
C
USHL
DY
4
4
David Jiricek
D
Czech
DY
4
5
Matthew Savoie
C
WHL
DY
4
6
Juraj Slafkovsky
W
Liiga
DY
4
7
Frank Nazar
C
USHL
DY
4
8
Gleb Trikozov
F
MHL
DY
4
9
Brad Lambert
C
Liiga
DY
4
10
Danila Yurov
F
MHL
DY
5
11
Denton Mateychuk
D
WHL
DY
5
12
Kevin Korchinski
D
WHL
DY
5
13
Joakim Kemell
W
Liiga
DY
5
14
Jordan Dumais
F
QMJHL
DY
5
15
Liam Ohgren
F
SuperElit
DY
5
16
Jiri Kulich
C
Czech
DY
5
17
Seamus Casey
D
USHL
DY
5
18
Filip Mesar
C
Slovak
DY
5
19
Isaac Howard
F
USHL
DY
5
20
Pavel Mintyukov
D
OHL
DY
5
21
Conor Geekie
C
WHL
DY
6
22
Marco Kasper
F
SHL
DY
6
23
Ty Nelson
D
OHL
DY
6
24
Jagger Firkus
W
WHL
DY
6
25
Cutter Gauthier
F
USHL
DY
6
26
Jonathan Lekkerimaki
F
SHL
DY
6
27
Rutger McGroarty
F
USHL
DY
6
28
Alexander Perevalov
F
MHL
DY
6
29
Vladimir Grudinin
D
MHL
DY
6
30
Lane Hutson
D
USHL
DY
6
31
Noah Ostlund
F
SuperElit
DY
7
32
Luca DelBelBelluz
C
OHL
DY
7
33
Jani Nyman
W
Liiga
DY
7
34
David Goyette
C
OHL
DY
7
35
Jimmy Snuggerud
F
USHL
DY
7
36
Ivan Miroshnichenko
F
VHL
DY
7
37
Christian Kyrou
D
OHL
DY
7
38
Lian Bichsel
D
SuperElit
DY
7
39
Adam Syokra
W
Slovak
DY
7
40
Julian Lutz
F
DEL
DY
7
41
Mattias Havelid
D
SuperElit
DY
7
42
Matyas Sapovaliv
F
OHL
DY
7
43
Hugo Havelid
G
SuperElit
DY
7
44
Ryan Chesley
D
USHL
DY
8
45
Nicholas Moldenhauer
F
USHL
DY
8
46
Jérémy Langlois
D
QMJHL
DY
8
47
Adam Ingram
F
USHL
DY
8
48
Jack Hughes
F
NCAA
DY
8
49
Ludwig Persson
F
SuperElit
DY
8
50
Elias Salomonsson
D
SuperElit
DY
8
51
Michael Buchinger
D
OHL
DY
8
52
Viktor Neuchev
F
MHL
DY
8
53
Artyom Duda
D
MHL
DY
8
54
Tristan Luneau
D
QMJHL
DY
8
55
Servac Petrovsky
F
OHL
DY
8
56
Alexander Suzdalev
F
SuperElit
DY
8
57
Nick Malik
G
Liiga
DY+2
8
58
Nathan Gaucher
F
QMJHL
DY
8
59
Owen Pickering
D
WHL
DY
9
60
Aleksanteri Kaskimaki
C
Liiga
DY
9
61
Niks Fenenko
D
QMJHL
DY
9
62
Otto Salin
D
Liiga
DY
9
63
Simon Forsmark
D
SuperElit
DY
9
64
Jake Furlong
D
QMJHL
DY
9
65
Maveric Lamoureux
D
QMJHL
DY
9
66
Filip Bystedt
F
SuperElit
DY
9
67
Noah Warren
D
QMJHL
DY
9
68
Markus Vidicek
F
QMJHL
DY
9
69
Mats Lindgren
D
WHL
DY
9
70
Hudson Thornton
D
WHL
DY
9
71
Ilya Ivantsov
F
VHL
DY+1
9
72
Calle Odelius
D
SuperElit
DY
9
73
Tomas Hamara
D
Liiga
DY
9
74
Tucker Robertson
F
OHL
DY+1
10
75
Elmeri Laakso
D
Liiga
DY
10
76
Dylan James
F
USHL
DY
10
77
Alex Sotek
F
Liiga
DY
10
78
Ilya Kvochko
F
MHL
DY
10
79
Kirill Kudryavtsev
D
OHL
DY
10
80
Raul Yakupov
F
MHL
DY
10
81
Logan Morrison
F
OHL
DY+2
10
82
Rodwin Dionicio
D
OHL
DY
10
83
Reid Schaefer
W
WHL
DY
10
84
Danny Zhilkin
F
OHL
DY
10
85
David Spacek
D
QMJHL
DY+1
10
86
Ben King
F
WHL
DY+2
10
87
Jordan Gustafson
C
WHL
DY
10
88
Danil Aimurzin
C
VHL
DY+2
10
89
Joel Jonsson
W
SuperElit
DY
HM: Luke Mittelstadt, D, DY+1; Zakhar Vinogradov, G, DY+1; Michal Gut, C, DY+2, Jeremy Wilmer, W, DY+1
Some things to note on my list:
1. Jordan Dumais. He is one of the most under rated players in the draft. He has one of the highest likelihoods of becoming a top 6 player and is constantly ranked in the 70s. I know he's small and his skating isn't elite, but he is someone I'd be willing to swing for the fences on.
2. The WHL dmen. Korchinski & Mateychuk are both two of the premier offensive dmen in this draft; I wouldn't be shocked if either of the two became the best defenceman from this class. If Mateychuk was a little bit bigger I think he'd be in my top 10.
3. The Russians. What Trikozov did as an U18 in the MHL was incredible. He had one of the best U18 seasons of all time while playing far less minutes than some of those ahead of him. He is my favorite prospect in the draft and someone I'd love to snag should he fall in the draft; if not for the current political issues he would be #5 on my board. Yurov was no slouch either and while he didn't produce in the KHL his MHL numbers were outstanding. I'd have liked to have seen him at the WJC, but his MHL numbers are enough for him to stay in my top 10. Without the political issues he'd be my 8th on my board
4. The Goalies. This draft is lacking any sort of can't miss goalie prospect, but there are still 2 interesting ones. Hugo Havelid may have had the best U18 tourney possible for his draft stock and it really solidified his position in my mind as the best goalie in the draft. While he is small his numbers and play speak for themselves. Nick Malik is my #2 ranked goalie. He was outstanding this year in the Liiga as a DY+2 and had a season worthy of being a top 90 pick.
The rankings aren't fully based off the model. What I've found is that prospect models are excellent at helping you avoid the land mines of a draft and preventing reaches. They're an excellent first step, but there is always nuance required when creating your list. It's why I don't have Beck, Guindon, or McConnell-Barker ranked. I think that they'll likely be top 60 or top 90 picks and I don't see them having that sort of value.
The nuance is needed because the model outputs still need to be interpreted. The model grades Brett MacLean very highly, but it doesn't know that he played a ton of minutes with John Tavares. However, it also correctly identified that Gudbranson likely doesn't put up the value you would normally expect from a 3rd overall pick.
Lambert actually grades out pretty well because he's playing in the Liiga. Not at a top 10 level, but clearly still a 1st round talent. By just playing in a pro league in his draft year a player's probability of making it to the NHL increases significantly.
The rankings aren't fully based off the model. What I've found is that prospect models are excellent at helping you avoid the land mines of a draft and preventing reaches. They're an excellent first step, but there is always nuance required when creating your list. It's why I don't have Beck, Guindon, or McConnell-Barker ranked. I think that they'll likely be top 60 or top 90 picks and I don't see them having that sort of value.
The nuance is needed because the model outputs still need to be interpreted. The model grades Brett MacLean very highly, but it doesn't know that he played a ton of minutes with John Tavares. However, it also correctly identified that Gudbranson likely doesn't put up the value you would normally expect from a 3rd overall pick.
Lambert actually grades out pretty well because he's playing in the Liiga. Not at a top 10 level, but clearly still a 1st round talent. By just playing in a pro league in his draft year a player's probability of making it to the NHL increases significantly.
I guess that's in the eye of the beholder. I would say yes there is immense value in it. Nobody has ever said it's an all or nothing approach when using models. I see tremendous value in having a tool that can help check traditional scouting's biases and avoid reaching for players that may not have the upside the pick warrants. I know that the model would significantly disagree with some of the picks the Wings made in the 2013 to 2017 period.
I'm not advocating for a model only approach. I believe the ideal approach is one that blends both model based tools and traditional scouting. Both complement each other extremely well and are able to assess the blindspots/biases that the other has. There's no silver bullet when it comes to drafting. Using a combination of all the tools at one's disposal is not a bad thing.
I'm not advocating for a model only approach. I believe the ideal approach is one that blends both model based tools and traditional scouting. Both complement each other extremely well and are able to assess the blindspots/biases that the other has.
Thanks for providing an overview of your model. I think once you get past the first two rounds (or maybe top 75 players or so) a model is much more helpful. Scouts likely see the top prospects numerous times and can, if they are willing to be self-critical, identify "blindspots" about a prospect. That likely doesn't happen when a prospect is viewed much less.
I have developed a model that identifies D prospects generally ranked outside the top 50. It doesn't identify every prospect who is available in the 3rr/4th/ round who will eventually make the NHL. But it does increase the probability significantly. I really try not to use my "eye test" to override the model, because in all honesty I can't see what makes a D prospect successful.
Some prospects the model identified in the past three drafts who look to be "steals": Jordan Spence, Henry Thrun, Zac Jones, Ronan Seeley, Guillaume Richard. Of course, it also identified Ryan Siedem who didn't get drafted at all and Simon Lundmark and Samuel Bolduc who look like they might stall in the AHL.
Thanks for providing an overview of your model. I think once you get past the first two rounds (or maybe top 75 players or so) a model is much more helpful. Scouts likely see the top prospects numerous times and can, if they are willing to be self-critical, identify "blindspots" about a prospect. That likely doesn't happen when a prospect is viewed much less.
I have developed a model that identifies D prospects generally ranked outside the top 50. It doesn't identify every prospect who is available in the 3rr/4th/ round who will eventually make the NHL. But it does increase the probability significantly. I really try not to use my "eye test" to override the model, because in all honesty I can't see what makes a D prospect successful.
Some prospects the model identified in the past three drafts who look to be "steals": Jordan Spence, Henry Thrun, Zac Jones, Ronan Seeley, Guillaume Richard. Of course, it also identified Ryan Siedem who didn't get drafted at all and Simon Lundmark and Samuel Bolduc who look like they might stall in the AHL.
No problem, I'm always happy to share. It's something I'm passionate about because I think it can provide a competitive advantage. I totally agree about the top 2 rounds comment as well. I think once you start to see who is "falling" according to the model you can target them as potential value picks.
I think traditional scouting can still help for the later rounds. A player does need to have a certain skating level or mobility to succeed at higher levels and traditional scouting can also add some context to the players role. I think you're also right that for the blended system to be effective you need to have a scouting group that is okay with having to be self-critical and admit they have their own biases.
I'd be curious to see how are models differ in evaluating defenceman. This model was quite high on those that you listed, it also thought someone like Durzi was draft worthy a year before they were drafted.
I guess that's in the eye of the beholder. I would say yes there is immense value in it. Nobody has ever said it's an all or nothing approach when using models. I see tremendous value in having a tool that can help check traditional scouting's biases and avoid reaching for players that may not have the upside the pick warrants. I know that the model would significantly disagree with some of the picks the Wings made in the 2013 to 2017 period.
I'm not advocating for a model only approach. I believe the ideal approach is one that blends both model based tools and traditional scouting. Both complement each other extremely well and are able to assess the blindspots/biases that the other has. There's no silver bullet when it comes to drafting. Using a combination of all the tools at one's disposal is not a bad thing.
Thanks for providing an overview of your model. I think once you get past the first two rounds (or maybe top 75 players or so) a model is much more helpful. Scouts likely see the top prospects numerous times and can, if they are willing to be self-critical, identify "blindspots" about a prospect. That likely doesn't happen when a prospect is viewed much less.
There might be something to that. I have found it very interesting to see these RAS scores that are used now in the NFL draft and how some teams seem to value that and others not.
I didn't have a moldel (really wasn't even following the draft) in Durzi's draft year or his D+1. The first year was 2019 and it was overly simple--I have added "scouting" particular to skating in that I incorporate the skating ratings from HockepProspect.com. As @Frk It mentions, I also try to calibrate for league, but in a very minimal way.
How close is the black book to where players have actually been picked? I've read it in the past and I just didn't agree with some of the rankings and reviews of some higher rated/drafted players.
And you can post yours now but post an updated version later.
Blackbook doesn't attempt to pick where players will actually be drafted, but instead projects their long term view of the prospects. They end up with some "hot takes" at times because of that - they don't look so crazy a year or two later many times. I personally think they are the best of the bunch on projectability.
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