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2024 CHL Import DRAFT

Trav said:
Well the Blades GM just said in their press release that Lewandowski hasn't committed yet and that he wanted to try the DEL route first so so see what happens with him I guess. Maybe a year from now he'll come over? Curious to see how that goes.
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That could definitely be an option for him. If he doesn't get the kind of ice time and opportunity that helps his development, he could try the CHL next year.
Not many German prospects make the jump in their draft year and succeed.
 
Wintersun said:
They're going to be above average this year and are lining up to go for it in a year. Really not a mess in Shawinigan. The only mess was how they managed their euros to start last year, but that's all it is.
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Exactly. That was quite the shitshow though.
 
Bubbles said:
Really interesting pick by Spokane with Asanali Sarkenov. Huge kid that scored a hat trick against Canada at the U18.
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Will be interesting to see how he can adjust to the WHL. His numbers in the MHL were awful and he didn’t look great except for the three goals against Canada either. But there’s no doubt he can be a good fit for them.
 
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Wintersun said:
They're going to be above average this year and are lining up to go for it in a year. Really not a mess in Shawinigan. The only mess was how they managed their euros to start last year, but that's all it is.
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TBH Barbashev was a huge disappointment both in Shawinigan and Rimouski last year. Shawinigan probably expected him to have a monster year but it didn’t happen.
 
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pgfan66 said:
Will be interesting to see how he can adjust to the WHL. His numbers in the MHL were awful and he didn’t look great except for the three goals against Canada either. But there’s no doubt he can be a good fit for them.
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I know nothing other than that game really. If he skates on Catton's line he could raise some eyebrows.
 
I'm pretty surprised how many Finns are getting picked by the WHL now. Before u hardly saw any. Has hockey development in Finland changed at all over there? People would often say that with the style of living there being good, players didn't have to go anywhere.

Got Markus Loponen and Kasper Pikkarainen who sound promising and their WHL teams think their reporting.
 
Hinterland said:
So out of Switzerland I think that Schenk and Sansonnens are locks to commit. Pekar and Steiner are likely. Bosson, Cjunskis and Pedrotti are the wild cards. I have no idea. Bosson could definitely help Drummondville but I thought would be playing SL next season. Pedrotti is a kid I didn't even have on my list for this import draft. 07 late birthday. Played mostly U17 last season. Not NHL draft eligible until 2026. Harijs Cjunskis is another head scratcher. Very surprising picks. I'm not sure if those two have what it takes to play CHL next season. It's definitely a step up from the Swiss U20 elite league.
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I am mostly interested in Schenk and Steiner from a Swiss perspective. They are definitely the best two Swiss 07 born forwards at this point. But that is not saying much in itself since its a weaker birth year again. I think both have the potential to be drafted but both have some siginificant question marks attached to them. With Schenk its his skating and his motor. I feel his skating has been negativeley impacted by him growing a lot in the last few seasons. So I think its possible to see a lot of improvement since he has now probably hit his adult height.

Steiner isnt the biggest player other then that I havent seen any glaring weaknesses to his game. But I have seen him a lot less than Schenk. I think he less likely to commit too. I don't think he is that far of the first squad in Davos. They have a couple of of aging forwards on the roster in Ambühl and Wieser that will have to be replaced sooner rather than later. So its definitely not out of the question that he could get a spot there in the forseeable future. Maybe not next season but maybe the year after that.

Pedrotti was probably scouted on Elite Prospects. Its no secret that some teams that cant afford european scouts actually do that. One of the few 07 born players who had already played in the U20 league, put up a couple of points, late birthday. He never really caught my eye in the international games that I saw, but hey why not give it a try.

Sasonnens will probably do well defensively in the CHL but I don't see him developing an offensive touch there. If he really wants to give the NHL career a shot (who doesnt at that age?) he should go for it. Otherwise he might stay as well in Switzerland and wait for a fulltime spot to open up in Fribourg. Maybe force a loan to an SL team.

I am kind of dissapointed that the goalie Birchler wasnt selected. He is a prospect with some potential and very good height. I really liked what he did on weak U16 and U17 national teams when he was shelled like its World War One. But since he hasnt played a full U20 season yet, he might become a candidate for next years import draft.

In general I really lowered my expectations for our guys having a smooth transition to the CHL. Pretty much every prospect in recent memory struggled big time in their rookie season. And even though I was never that high on Ponzetto and particularly not on Forget their seasons were still super underwhelming last year. So in regard to the draft that would certainly be an advantage for Steiner who isnt eligible until 2026. Overall I wouldn't be shocked if no one of the 07 class gets picked either. I dont think any of those guys are on the level of Jamiro Reber at the same age for starters. On the other hand they don't have the same size issues as him either...
 
Speyer said:
I am mostly interested in Schenk and Steiner from a Swiss perspective. They are definitely the best two Swiss 07 born forwards at this point. But that is not saying much in itself since its a weaker birth year again. I think both have the potential to be drafted but both have some siginificant question marks attached to them. With Schenk its his skating and his motor. I feel his skating has been negativeley impacted by him growing a lot in the last few seasons. So I think its possible to see a lot of improvement since he has now probably hit his adult height.

Steiner isnt the biggest player other then that I havent seen any glaring weaknesses to his game. But I have seen him a lot less than Schenk. I think he less likely to commit too. I don't think he is that far of the first squad in Davos. They have a couple of of aging forwards on the roster in Ambühl and Wieser that will have to be replaced sooner rather than later. So its definitely not out of the question that he could get a spot there in the forseeable future. Maybe not next season but maybe the year after that.

Pedrotti was probably scouted on Elite Prospects. Its no secret that some teams that cant afford european scouts actually do that. One of the few 07 born players who had already played in the U20 league, put up a couple of points, late birthday. He never really caught my eye in the international games that I saw, but hey why not give it a try.

Sasonnens will probably do well defensively in the CHL but I don't see him developing an offensive touch there. If he really wants to give the NHL career a shot (who doesnt at that age?) he should go for it. Otherwise he might stay as well in Switzerland and wait for a fulltime spot to open up in Fribourg. Maybe force a loan to an SL team.

I am kind of dissapointed that the goalie Birchler wasnt selected. He is a prospect with some potential and very good height. I really liked what he did on weak U16 and U17 national teams when he was shelled like its World War One. But since he hasnt played a full U20 season yet, he might become a candidate for next years import draft.

In general I really lowered my expectations for our guys having a smooth transition to the CHL. Pretty much every prospect in recent memory struggled big time in their rookie season. And even though I was never that high on Ponzetto and particularly not on Forget their seasons were still super underwhelming last year. So in regard to the draft that would certainly be an advantage for Steiner who isnt eligible until 2026. Overall I wouldn't be shocked if no one of the 07 class gets picked either. I dont think any of those guys are on the level of Jamiro Reber at the same age for starters. On the other hand they don't have the same size issues as him either...
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I'm sure Steiner would get NL time if he stays. Unlikely to make the team out of camp but he'd get games down the road. Not sure if that's enough for him to stay. I think he's gonna commit. He needs a chance to play Center and big minutes at a higher level than the U20 elite league. He could afford to stay since he's not NHL draft eligible until 2026 but I think he's good enough to play CHL and earn a respectable role over the course of this season already.

Sansonnens has signed a multi year deal in Lausanne despite essentially being offered NL games in Fribourg. He's not waiting to get games in Fribourg...he's gonna commit and play for a Memorial Cup with Rimouski. Brilliant opportunity for him and I think he has untapped potential and he's gonna have to show it and produce offense if he wants to earn an ELC. Fast, mobile and dynamic skater for thr big kid he is. Pretty decent hands and shot as well. He's a project but a good one.

Ponzetto was underwhelming but I think he got hurt in the later stages of the season just about when he found his mojo after getting picked up by Bathurst. Not sure if it would have been enough to stay in the league but the injury was definitely bad timing. We also saw at the WJC that he clearly wasn't healthy.

Forget's season was underwhelming overall, too... but his finish was mighty strong. Earned a spot on the topline and kept it during playoffs. I expect him to play topline plus special teams next season as well. The same goes for Körbler.
 
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Hinterland said:
I'm sure Steiner would get NL time if he stays. Unlikely to make the team out of camp but he'd get games down the road. Not sure if that's enough for him to stay. I think he's gonna commit. He needs a chance to play Center and big minutes at a higher level than the U20 elite league. He could afford to stay since he's not NHL draft eligible until 2026 but I think he's good enough to play CHL and earn a respectable role over the course of this season already.

Sansonnens has signed a multi year deal in Lausanne despite essentially being offered NL games in Fribourg. He's not waiting to get games in Fribourg...he's gonna commit and play for a Memorial Cup with Rimouski. Brilliant opportunity for him and I think he has untapped potential and he's gonna have to show it and produce offense if he wants to earn an ELC. Fast, mobile and dynamic skater for thr big kid he is. Pretty decent hands and shot as well. He's a project but a good one.

Ponzetto was underwhelming but I think he got hurt in the later stages of the season just about when he found his mojo after getting picked up by Bathurst. Not sure if it would have been enough to stay in the league but the injury was definitely bad timing. We also saw at the WJC that he clearly wasn't healthy.

Forget's season was underwhelming overall, too... but his finish was mighty strong. Earned a spot on the topline and kept it during playoffs. I expect him to play topline plus special teams next season as well. The same goes for Körbler.
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Forget will likely play on the 4th line this season.
 
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Speyer said:
I am mostly interested in Schenk and Steiner from a Swiss perspective. They are definitely the best two Swiss 07 born forwards at this point. But that is not saying much in itself since its a weaker birth year again. I think both have the potential to be drafted but both have some siginificant question marks attached to them. With Schenk its his skating and his motor. I feel his skating has been negativeley impacted by him growing a lot in the last few seasons. So I think its possible to see a lot of improvement since he has now probably hit his adult height.

Steiner isnt the biggest player other then that I havent seen any glaring weaknesses to his game. But I have seen him a lot less than Schenk. I think he less likely to commit too. I don't think he is that far of the first squad in Davos. They have a couple of of aging forwards on the roster in Ambühl and Wieser that will have to be replaced sooner rather than later. So its definitely not out of the question that he could get a spot there in the forseeable future. Maybe not next season but maybe the year after that.

Pedrotti was probably scouted on Elite Prospects. Its no secret that some teams that cant afford european scouts actually do that. One of the few 07 born players who had already played in the U20 league, put up a couple of points, late birthday. He never really caught my eye in the international games that I saw, but hey why not give it a try.

Sasonnens will probably do well defensively in the CHL but I don't see him developing an offensive touch there. If he really wants to give the NHL career a shot (who doesnt at that age?) he should go for it. Otherwise he might stay as well in Switzerland and wait for a fulltime spot to open up in Fribourg. Maybe force a loan to an SL team.

I am kind of dissapointed that the goalie Birchler wasnt selected. He is a prospect with some potential and very good height. I really liked what he did on weak U16 and U17 national teams when he was shelled like its World War One. But since he hasnt played a full U20 season yet, he might become a candidate for next years import draft.

In general I really lowered my expectations for our guys having a smooth transition to the CHL. Pretty much every prospect in recent memory struggled big time in their rookie season. And even though I was never that high on Ponzetto and particularly not on Forget their seasons were still super underwhelming last year. So in regard to the draft that would certainly be an advantage for Steiner who isnt eligible until 2026. Overall I wouldn't be shocked if no one of the 07 class gets picked either. I dont think any of those guys are on the level of Jamiro Reber at the same age for starters. On the other hand they don't have the same size issues as him either...
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I’ve heard Steiner and Schenk will both report. I’m much more hopeful for Schenk. He has top-six center upside in the CHL. Steiner, to me, looks like a third-line energy guy.
 
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pgfan66 said:
I’ve heard Steiner and Schenk will both report. I’m much more hopeful for Steiner. He has top-six center upside in the CHL. Steiner, to me, looks like a third-line energy guy.
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Steiner will attack on all fronts apparently, to quote an old downfall meme. If he can actually mulitply himself it should at least increase his draft chances, as he could fill two spots in the lineup but would need to be paid only once :D
 
Speyer said:
Steiner will attack on all fronts apparently, to quote an old downfall meme. If he can actually mulitply himself it should at least increase his draft chances, as he could fill two spots in the lineup but would need to be paid only once :D
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Oops. Fixed.
 
pgfan66 said:
I’ve heard Steiner and Schenk will both report. I’m much more hopeful for Schenk. He has top-six center upside in the CHL. Steiner, to me, looks like a third-line energy guy.
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Schenk should get decent linemates in SJ.
 
Like every year in late June/early July, the SIHF was conducting fitness tests at the national sports center in Magglingen. They invited 44 kids born in 07 and Elia Pedrotti wasn't one of them...meaning he almost certainly won't even be considered for the upcoming Hlinka Gretzky tournament. Make of it whatever you want but that's how much of a head scratcher this pick (and the one of his Latvian teammate Harijs Cjunskis) was.

I don't always agree with the SIHF's roster selections but if you're not even on their radar it's usually not a good sign.
 
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pgfan66 said:
I’ve heard Steiner and Schenk will both report. I’m much more hopeful for Schenk. He has top-six center upside in the CHL. Steiner, to me, looks like a third-line energy guy.
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Pretty much confirms Steiner is gonna report.

Regarding Steiner vs Schenk I think there's little doubt that Steiner is the better player right now. If I want a player who can help me now I'm picking Steiner over Schenk every day of the week. Steiner is younger as well and trending better. Schenk is still a decent prospect in his own right though and may even have higher upside. Is he gonna reach that during his CHL years? It remains to be seen. I think he's a project.
 
S E P H said:
Most of Suisse are German speakers, with very few speaking French or Italian. I do think the language plays a part in it, but Quebec is very oriented towards the European style of culture both in its cities and environment.
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Statistically, every 4th Swiss kid is a native French speaker. In hockey probably more. In this year's CHL draft, Steiner and Schenk are German speakers, Bosson and Sansonnens are French speakers, Pedrotti Italian. However, French is mandatory in school pretty early. Many Swiss prospects are pretty fluent in French even if they're native German or Italian speakers.

The only problem is that the Québec "French" has very little in common with European French. I understand exactly shit myself.
 
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