He's a zone entry demon. Still baffled he fell to 21st, but I won't complain lol!
I think that that one specific attribute, the ability to gain the zone with possession, has become one of the most important ones for our scouting staff since new management took over three years ago. At least when it comes to high picks.
And as a matter of fact, if we look at all of our picks in the top two rounds in that span, basically all the players we've drafted do share that common trait.
In 2022, we've gotten Slaf, Mesar, Beck, and Hutson as first or second-round picks, all guys who can enter the zone with possession either by sustaining checks with size and/or using speed/misdirection to squeak through holes in coverage.
Reinbacher in 2023, although a lot less "puck-dependent", is very good at "legging-it out" if he has no other option and entering into the zone with possession of the puck so he also fits that mold.
Then we come to 2024, with both Demidov and Hage also exhibiting that same quality.
So yeah, I really don't know if our scouting staff will keep that same emphasis in the future, or if they might not change that gameplan a little bit with future picks.
But since rush offense has become one of the main ways to produce 5-on-5 offense at the NHL level with the changes to the defensive systems and less reliance on zone defense vs. man-to-man, I think that maybe our scouting staff is right in targetting that specific skillset in the players that they invest heavy draft capital on.
As for Hage himself, well, I liked his first game better from a purely defensive and off-puck perspective but he was still more than fine in this one. Just, he really needs to get stronger and bulk up out there and it was especially evident in his last game.