Prospect Info: [2024 - 21st] Michael Hage, Chicago Steel (USHL), Committed to U of Michigan

[tazsub3]

There's wisdom in what you say.

The moving up in the draft in what at the time was a bit of a vacuum of not knowing who would be available when they picked was a bit puzzling. Sometimes things just work out. Hage has been nothing but impressive in the Prospects Tournament and his first two games at Michigan. His skating ability and offensive vision are eye opening. I earlier stated that Hage reminds me of a bigger Barzal.

Of the three other players you mentioned, I can only comment positively on Vannacker. I never was impressed with Greentree as he has heavy feet which I think will limit his ultimate effectiveness at the NHL level and I haven't seen enough of Hemming to advance an informed opinion. But in my following of Florian Xhekaj's progress with the Bulldogs, I had a chance to watch Vannacker play at least 30 games.

Before the draft, I stated that Vannacker was one of very few players that I would move up for . Vannacker is fast and highly skilled and projects to be a top six forward. I think a lot of teams were sleeping on this player and the fact that he fell near to the bottom of the first round confirmed my belief. The fact that Vannacker was able to be so effective while playing with a damaged shoulder that needed surgical repair made his performance even more impressive.

I think Hughes' failure to again move up in the draft to be in a position to take Vannacker was a missed opportunity. But the fortuitous opportunity to be in a position to draft both Demidov and Hage has a real chance to make the 2024 draft a franchise altering event.

Sometimes its better to be lucky than good.

Well said however the smarter you work , the more luck goes your side .

 

[Goldthorpe]

PPG would be an awesome freshman season. Anything above that and we are talking about top 10 pick production.

So PPG or bust. Got it. Expectations = set.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Well said however the smarter you work , the more luck goes your side .

I think they moved up to 21 because that was the best they could do. And that probably enabled them to set up a trade if Hage was taken.

 

[jaffy27]

He's a zone entry demon. Still baffled he fell to 21st, but I won't complain lol!

Pastrnak fell to like 25…sometimes you gotta get lucky!

 

[KevSkillz4]

Pastrnak fell to like 25…sometimes you gotta get lucky!

Yess. Sometimes teams draft elite talent in late 1st round. If he continue like that, no doubt, Hage have potential to become very special.

Only 2 NCAA game, but we already see his high offensive talent.

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

There's wisdom in what you say.

The moving up in the draft in what at the time was a bit of a vacuum of not knowing who would be available when they picked was a bit puzzling. Sometimes things just work out. Hage has been nothing but impressive in the Prospects Tournament and his first two games at Michigan. His skating ability and offensive vision are eye opening. I earlier stated that Hage reminds me of a bigger Barzal.

Of the three other players you mentioned, I can only comment positively on Vannacker. I never was impressed with Greentree as he has heavy feet which I think will limit his ultimate effectiveness at the NHL level and I haven't seen enough of Hemming to advance an informed opinion. But in my following of Florian Xhekaj's progress with the Bulldogs, I had a chance to watch Vannacker play at least 30 games.

Before the draft, I stated that Vannacker was one of the very few players that I would have moved up for. Vannacker is fast and highly skilled and projects to be a top six forward. I think a lot of teams were sleeping on this player and the fact that he fell near to the bottom of the first round confirmed my belief. The fact that Vannacker was able to be so effective while playing with a damaged shoulder that needed surgical repair made his performance even more impressive.

I think Hughes' failure to again move up in the draft to be in a position to take Vannacker was a missed opportunity. But the fortuitous opportunity to be in a position to draft both Demidov and Hage has a real chance to make the 2024 draft a franchise altering event.

Sometimes its better to be lucky than good.

You put way too much stock in skating when IQ is an order of magnitude more important. Skating is nice, don't get me wrong but there are tons of examples of elite players who were not great skaters and some of them quite bad skaters. There are zero elite players with low hockey IQ.....

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

I think they moved up to 21 because that was the best they could do. And that probably enabled them to set up a trade if Hage was taken.

Hughes already confirmed that the move to 21 was intended to be a step closer to another trade up into the teens as they did not expect Hage to be there. He felt incredibly fortunate to still get him despite not being able to move up any further.

 

[Miller Time]

You put way too much stock in skating when IQ is an order of magnitude more important. Skating is nice, don't get me wrong but there are tons of examples of elite players who were not great skaters and some of them quite bad skaters. There are zero elite players with low hockey IQ.....

What about Josh Ander...oh, I see what you mean

 

[SlafySZN]

 

[LaP]

There's wisdom in what you say.

The moving up in the draft in what at the time was a bit of a vacuum of not knowing who would be available when they picked was a bit puzzling. Sometimes things just work out. Hage has been nothing but impressive in the Prospects Tournament and his first two games at Michigan. His skating ability and offensive vision are eye opening. I earlier stated that Hage reminds me of a bigger Barzal.

There's was lot of depth in this draft. For sure someone good would be avalaible at 20. At 26 it was far less certain as it was starting to be out of the draft's depth. If Hage was not available another guy would have been like Eiserman or Solberg.

 

[zzoo]

Some of us here have said that Hutson and Caufield were a real steal, can we say the same thing to Hage ? Or Hage isn't as comparable to Hutson and Caufield ?

 

[WeThreeKings]

Some of us here have said that Hutson and Caufield were a real steal, can we say the same thing to Hage ? Or Hage isn't as comparable to Hutson and Caufield ?

Hage had top 15 buzz going into draft day.. so yes, he could be a steal.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

There's was lot of depth in this draft. For sure someone good would be avalaible at 20. At 26 it was far less certain as it was starting to be out of the draft's depth. If Hage was not available another guy would have been like Eiserman or Solberg.

The question is was the move up made with the idea of securing Hage or were there a number of players that Hughes had targeted and who he would have been happy to draft. It was a rather imprecise approach for a man who has been highly detailed in his approach to acquiring futures.

Ultimately, Hage fell to the Canadiens ( like Demidov did at 5 OA). If Hage turns out to be the best of the lot that Hughes had targeted and believed would be available, then indeed, fortune again smiled on this franchise.

At times it is better to be lucky than good. Much better.

 

[morhilane]

The question is was the move up made with the idea of securing Hage or were there a number of players that Hughes had targeted and who he would have been happy to draft. It was a rather imprecise approach for a man who has been highly detailed in his approach to acquiring futures.

Ultimately, Hage fell to the Canadiens ( like Demidov did at 5 OA). If Hage turns out to be the best of the lot that Hughes had targeted and believed would be available, then indeed, fortune again smiled on this franchise.

At times it is better to be lucky than good. Much better.

They did the move up to secure Hage, it's directly mentioned in the draft video. They might have had interest in a few other players, but Hughes also had a deal to move the pick if they didn't like their options left at 21.

 

[yianik]

There's wisdom in what you say.

The moving up in the draft in what at the time was a bit of a vacuum of not knowing who would be available when they picked was a bit puzzling. Sometimes things just work out. Hage has been nothing but impressive in the Prospects Tournament and his first two games at Michigan. His skating ability and offensive vision are eye opening. I earlier stated that Hage reminds me of a bigger Barzal.

Of the three other players you mentioned, I can only comment positively on Vannacker. I never was impressed with Greentree as he has heavy feet which I think will limit his ultimate effectiveness at the NHL level and I haven't seen enough of Hemming to advance an informed opinion. But in my following of Florian Xhekaj's progress with the Bulldogs, I had a chance to watch Vannacker play at least 30 games.

Before the draft, I stated that Vannacker was one of the very few players that I would have moved up for. Vannacker is fast and highly skilled and projects to be a top six forward. I think a lot of teams were sleeping on this player and the fact that he fell near to the bottom of the first round confirmed my belief. The fact that Vannacker was able to be so effective while playing with a damaged shoulder that needed surgical repair made his performance even more impressive.

I think Hughes' failure to again move up in the draft to be in a position to take Vannacker was a missed opportunity. But the fortuitous opportunity to be in a position to draft both Demidov and Hage has a real chance to make the 2024 draft a franchise altering event.

Sometimes its better to be lucky than good.

And it's always better to be both, though I think one often follows the other

 

[LaP]

The question is was the move up made with the idea of securing Hage or were there a number of players that Hughes had targeted and who he would have been happy to draft. It was a rather imprecise approach for a man who has been highly detailed in his approach to acquiring futures.

Ultimately, Hage fell to the Canadiens ( like Demidov did at 5 OA). If Hage turns out to be the best of the lot that Hughes had targeted and believed would be available, then indeed, fortune again smiled on this franchise.

At times it is better to be lucky than good. Much better.

Pretty sure there was 2 or 3 prospects on their list that they wanted at 21 but they were not certain was going to be available at 26. Don't think you make that trade if there's just one guy on your list.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Pretty sure there was 2 or 3 prospects on their list that they wanted at 21 but they were not certain was going to be available at 26. Don't think you make that trade if there's just one guy on your list.

It would be interesting to know which player they rated higher than Hage in that range.

 

[Trabdy2]

I imagine they probably had their sights set on Hage, or maybe Boisvert, when they moved up.

That draft video they released in the summer seems to show there was a lot of chatter in their room about moving up to get a chance at Hage. It makes sense how they'd be targeting a potential Top 6 center because it's currently a position we need some prospect depth.

 

[LaP]

It would be interesting to know which player they rated higher than Hage in that range.

No sure if they rated anyone higher. Going from the video about the draft it looks like Hage was the guy they targeted. But obviously they edited out any discussion about any plan B which i'm almost certain they had.

So PPG or bust. Got it. Expectations = set.

Why set your expectation so low? 50G 100 Points or bust.

 

[Sorinth]

The question is was the move up made with the idea of securing Hage or were there a number of players that Hughes had targeted and who he would have been happy to draft. It was a rather imprecise approach for a man who has been highly detailed in his approach to acquiring futures.

Ultimately, Hage fell to the Canadiens ( like Demidov did at 5 OA). If Hage turns out to be the best of the lot that Hughes had targeted and believed would be available, then indeed, fortune again smiled on this franchise.

At times it is better to be lucky than good. Much better.

The draft video covered a lot of this. There was a group of prospects that they liked and felt would be available at the trade up spot. Hage was the cream of that crop, but they didn't really think he would drop that far, I can't remember the odds Bobrov gave but it was something 10% or 20% chance of Hage being available at the spot. They also mentioned by making the trade it gives them a better chance of moving up again into a range where they could secure Hage. The way draft day unfolded it's clear that they tried to move up but couldn't find a deal, and either the group of players they liked got taken leaving Hage as the only one left that they wanted to draft at that spot or the deal was a too good to pass up when talking that unamed group but not good enough if Hage was still available.

As for it being an imprecise approach I would disagree. Hughes had talked before about how they can't just accumulate picks. So even without knowing precisely who was available you are still following a general philosophy of quality over quantity. It makes perfect sense to move up in the draft as early as possible, you not only increase the odds of getting the better player, you make it easier on yourself if you want to move up again. What makes less sense is a team wanting to move down days before the draft, when moving down you benefit from waiting just in case there's a player you really like that drops.