Prospect Info: 2023 14th Overall - Brayden Yager

[HandshakeLine]

I gotta admit, I got a chuckle out of him being sold as a possible bargain store Vinnie Trochek in that write-up.

Not a bad pick, like I said, one I definitely see the upside and logic behind. I just wish we'd been able to move up like 4 spots or so.

 

[Empoleon8771]

I gotta admit, I got a chuckle out of him being sold as a possible bargain store Vinnie Trochek in that write-up.

Not a bad pick, like I said, one I definitely see the upside and logic behind. I just wish we'd been able to move up like 4 spots or so.

To be fair, Trocheck has had a really good career as a 2C.

I think that upside for Yager seems pretty reasonable, either a great complementary top-6 winger like Konecny or a good 2C like Trocheck. Really curious to see if he can boom any more, there were certainly expectations for him to do that.

 

[HandshakeLine]

To be fair, Trocheck has had a really good career as a 2C.

I think that upside for Yager seems pretty reasonable, either a great complementary top-6 winger like Konecny or a good 2C like Trocheck. Really curious to see if he can boom any more, there were certainly expectations for him to do that.

Agreed, I just thought after the Trocheck Debate it was really funny that we drafted a guy who could be a younger non-Pittsburgh version of him.

 

[Ragamuffin Gunner]

He seems like he could be a good pick. He won't help Sid or Geno so I don't really care that much right now.

 

[Josey Wales]

Any truth to the idea Dubas let the prior staff make the pick?

They are the ones who did all the preparing of course Dubas would final say, but he didn't do all the scouting

 

[OtherThingsILike]

On The Athletic, Scott Wheeler lists us as an 'Overtime Winner' for Day 1, which means that he believes he thinks we did well with where we were slotted, even if we didn't pick the exact player(s) he would have.

 

[Ragamuffin Gunner]

Also, if he was going to keep the pick, IMO he should have traded down in the 1st and tried to pick up a 2nd. Detroit, Chicago and Seattle all have multiple 2nds and a 1st before Perreault was picked. Would have been nice.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

It’s weird Pronman makes the Konecny comp. Didn’t get the black book but Hockey prospect didn’t love his compete right? Those guys typically dont just make shit up.

 

[Jag68Sid87]

Centers who have a defensive conscience and are smart overall, who are coming from the CHL, stand a better chance to move quickly through a system than others, imo. This guy seems to be the perfect mix of readiness and upside for this team at this time. As has been mentioned, the center prospect pool is barren for the most part. Poulin, Broz...and then not much, imo. Yager should be a part of the post-HOFers squad, no doubt. But there is little doubt in my mind that he is going to play with 87 and 71, too.

Keep in mind, both Patrice Bergeron and Ryan O'Reilly shocked the NHL scouting community when they made the opening night lineups of Boston and Colorado, respectively. And both guys were SECOND-round picks. More recently, Owen Beck was drafted by the Canadiens last year and he too was a second-round pick. Right-shooting center, like Yager. And he nearly made the Habs. He was sent back to junior as a final cut.

Not saying he is going to play in 2023-24. But nine games could be a possibility. And, since Jeff Carter has one more season left and is the likely fourth-line center this coming season, Yager could and should be targeting Carter's roster spot for 2024-25.

A lot of this will be determined by our No. 3 center. We know it will not be David Kampf (phew). Is O'Reilly an option? Are we going after a younger player (Roslovic? Morgan Geekie? Alex Turcotte?), or are they going for a former Leaf (Kerfoot? Acciari?).

Bottom line, this prospect pool is weak. A good prospect should LOVE being drafted by a team with a weak prospect pool. Yager is now in a very good position to succeed.

Is he the top dog and heir apparent to the HOFers? Probably not. But this is why you keep your first-round picks moving forward. Take another stab at it next year. And of course, you can also take Shohei Ohtani-like swings in the draft today, too. You never know when/where the next Henrik Zetterberg or Nikita Kucherov will emerge.

 

[HandshakeLine]

I would love for Yager to shock everyone and make the roster, but there's like 8.5 million in deadweight ahead of him.

 

[WickedWrister]

Centers who have a defensive conscience and are smart overall, who are coming from the CHL, stand a better chance to move quickly through a system than others, imo. This guy seems to be the perfect mix of readiness and upside for this team at this time. As has been mentioned, the center prospect pool is barren for the most part. Poulin, Broz...and then not much, imo. Yager should be a part of the post-HOFers squad, no doubt. But there is little doubt in my mind that he is going to play with 87 and 71, too.

Keep in mind, both Patrice Bergeron and Ryan O'Reilly shocked the NHL scouting community when they made the opening night lineups of Boston and Colorado, respectively. And both guys were SECOND-round picks. More recently, Owen Beck was drafted by the Canadiens last year and he too was a second-round pick. Right-shooting center, like Yager. And he nearly made the Habs. He was sent back to junior as a final cut.

Not saying he is going to play in 2023-24. But nine games could be a possibility. And, since Jeff Carter has one more season left and is the likely fourth-line center this coming season, Yager could and should be targeting Carter's roster spot for 2024-25.

A lot of this will be determined by our No. 3 center. We know it will not be David Kampf (phew). Is O'Reilly an option? Are we going after a younger player (Roslovic? Morgan Geekie? Alex Turcotte?), or are they going for a former Leaf (Kerfoot? Acciari?).

Bottom line, this prospect pool is weak. A good prospect should LOVE being drafted by a team with a weak prospect pool. Yager is now in a very good position to succeed.

Is he the top dog and heir apparent to the HOFers? Probably not. But this is why you keep your first-round picks moving forward. Take another stab at it next year. And of course, you can also take Shohei Ohtani-like swings in the draft today, too. You never know when/where the next Henrik Zetterberg or Nikita Kucherov will emerge.

I would be shocked if he even got 9 games this year... he's 165 lbs. Thats a recipe for injury.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

Is he AHL eligible in ‘24-25? He technically has 3 full WHL seasons under his belt, heading into his 4th this year.

 

[Jag68Sid87]

I would be shocked if he even got 9 games this year... he's 165 lbs. Thats a recipe for injury.

Today he is 165. We don't play today.

 

[Jacob]

Is he AHL eligible in ‘24-25? He technically has 3 full WHL seasons under his belt, heading into his 4th this year.

I don't think that first season counts as a full year, since he won ROY the next year.

 

[Randy Butternubs]

On the fly scorer, with a nasty shot and is already NHL ready defensively.

McCann is a good comparison.

As already pointed out, EP compares him to Reilly Smith.

EP also ranks his passing and physicality the lowest, but still at an NHL average.

 

[Lust for Life]

As already pointed out, EP compares him to Reilly Smith.

EP also ranks his passing and physicality the lowest, but still at an NHL average.

If Yager pans out as a 50-60 point guy with great PK I'll be excited as hell.

 

[Jag68Sid87]

It is about the age of the player, right? Yager is 18. He has to play two more seasons in the WHL. When he is 20 he will be finishing his junior career.

He would only be allowed to play at age 19 if he had exceptional status, which means he would have played a full WHL season at age 15. He did not.

That is the give and take about drafting CHLers. You get the player to training camp right away (good), but you have to send him back to junior hockey for two years or keep him around with the big league squad (not ideal).

 

[Jag68Sid87]

As already pointed out, EP compares him to Reilly Smith.

EP also ranks his passing and physicality the lowest, but still at an NHL average.

Looks like he really improved his passing/playmaking last season. He had 50 assists in 67 games in the regular season, and 10 in 10 in the WHL playoffs. Unless his wingers were Mark Recchi and Jarome Iginla, that is pretty good.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Looks like he really improved his passing/playmaking last season. He had 50 assists in 67 games in the regular season, and 10 in 10 in the WHL playoffs. Unless his wingers were Mark Recchi and Jarome Iginla, that is pretty good.

Yeah from what I've read, he was knocked for his lack of playmaking before 2022-2023 and made a focused effort to improve it.

It's why I think he has the potential to boom. His goal scoring took a step back a bit last year, but if his goal scoring can progress and he can maintain his playmaking talents? That's a potential 100 point player in the WHL. A 100 point player in the WHL with his all around game is a really damn good prospect IMO.

 

[McGroarty2]

It is about the age of the player, right? Yager is 18. He has to play two more seasons in the WHL. When he is 20 he will be finishing his junior career.

He would only be allowed to play at age 19 if he had exceptional status, which means he would have played a full WHL season at age 15. He did not.

That is the give and take about drafting CHLers. You get the player to training camp right away (good), but you have to send him back to junior hockey for two years or keep him around with the big league squad (not ideal).

Yager is 18 1/2

 

[Randy Butternubs]

Comparing assist totals aren't always helpful in gauging if passing/playmaking has improved but it's something. 24 Power Play Assists last season (48% of total). I mean, they're still assists.

Puustinen's assists have also gone up in WBS but I wouldn't necessarily say his playmaking has improved.

I'd have to watch him play to make a judgment. Maybe I'll have more time this coming season to tune in to WHL games.

 

[Jag68Sid87]

Yager is 18 1/2

I don't think that matters. When 2023 ends, he is still 18. When 2024 ends, he will be 19.

Comparing assist totals aren't always helpful in gauging if passing/playmaking has improved but it's something. 24 Power Play Assists last season (48% of total). I mean, they're still assists.

Puustinen's assists have also gone up in WBS but I wouldn't necessarily say his playmaking has improved.

I'd have to watch him play to make a judgment. Maybe I'll have more time this coming season to tune in to WHL games.

I get that, but it is always good when a prospect puts up points. Yeah they do not always translate, and guys who don't early can become huge point producers later on, etc.

But it is not like his playmaking should make or break his NHL chances. More like it only enhances them.

 

[The Old Master]

Centers who have a defensive conscience and are smart overall, who are coming from the CHL, stand a better chance to move quickly through a system than others, imo. This guy seems to be the perfect mix of readiness and upside for this team at this time. As has been mentioned, the center prospect pool is barren for the most part. Poulin, Broz...and then not much, imo. Yager should be a part of the post-HOFers squad, no doubt. But there is little doubt in my mind that he is going to play with 87 and 71, too.

Keep in mind, both Patrice Bergeron and Ryan O'Reilly shocked the NHL scouting community when they made the opening night lineups of Boston and Colorado, respectively. And both guys were SECOND-round picks. More recently, Owen Beck was drafted by the Canadiens last year and he too was a second-round pick. Right-shooting center, like Yager. And he nearly made the Habs. He was sent back to junior as a final cut.

Not saying he is going to play in 2023-24. But nine games could be a possibility. And, since Jeff Carter has one more season left and is the likely fourth-line center this coming season, Yager could and should be targeting Carter's roster spot for 2024-25.

A lot of this will be determined by our No. 3 center. We know it will not be David Kampf (phew). Is O'Reilly an option? Are we going after a younger player (Roslovic? Morgan Geekie? Alex Turcotte?), or are they going for a former Leaf (Kerfoot? Acciari?).

Bottom line, this prospect pool is weak. A good prospect should LOVE being drafted by a team with a weak prospect pool. Yager is now in a very good position to succeed.

Is he the top dog and heir apparent to the HOFers? Probably not. But this is why you keep your first-round picks moving forward. Take another stab at it next year. And of course, you can also take Shohei Ohtani-like swings in the draft today, too. You never know when/where the next Henrik Zetterberg or Nikita Kucherov will emerge.

if the kid works as hard this year as he did last, i wouldn't write him off on anything.

 

[McGroarty2]

I don't think that matters. When 2023 ends, he is still 18. When 2024 ends, he will be 19.


I get that, but it is always good when a prospect puts up points. Yeah they do not always translate, and guys who don't early can become huge point producers later on, etc.

But it is not like his playmaking should make or break his NHL chances. More like it only enhances them.

It was a joke, like when kids say "I'm 7 1/2."

 

[SEALBound]

Puustinen-Yager-Broz
Belliveau-Pickering
Blomqvist

Our future starting lineup is shaping up...nice.