Prospect Info: 2024 Offseason Prospect Rankings #14

[Scoresberg]

Vote for the best prospect.

1. Tanner Molendyk (35.5%)
2. Zachary L'Heureux (53.5%)
3. Joakim Kemell (62.1%)
4. Matthew Wood (46.4%)
5. Fedor Svechkov (65.5%)
6. Yegor Surin (89.3%)
7. David Edström (33.3%)
8. Andrew Gibson (56.7%)
9. Ryan Ufko (67.6%)
10. Teddy Stiga (60.0%)
11. Aiden Fink (36.0%)
12. Reid Schaefer (34.8%)
13. Semyon Chistyakov (52.4%)
14.
15.

Click to read more...

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

I voted Lind. He seems like the kind of scrappy guy who will battle hard at every step to eventually find a 4th line job. I don't think he has the skills of a L'Heureux, but if he can fill out a little bit and isn't sort of a perma-ectomorph, he may be able to survive as a bottom line disturber, like a Cousins. It will probably take him 4 more full seasons. So there's lots of time to find out if he can do more.

It goes to show the value of a 2nd round pick, though. You don't normally actually get Webers or Josis with those picks, we've been very spoiled. Instead, we would normally get Linds and Nilssons, and they don't even rate as significant members of our prospect list, despite using #43 and 46 picks on them. I suppose we'd have been more excited to see flashier offensive numbers like Heidts, but he had those numbers even on draft day, and our staff felt like Lind and Nilsson were the better picks for the long run.

 

[PREDy 4 the Cup]

Has anyone seen the numbers Sward is putting up?!

Graham Sward - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Graham Sward, 2003-09-12 Langley, BC, CAN Canada. Most recently in the undefined with Wenatchee Wild. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

Wow!

 

[Scoresberg]

Has anyone seen the numbers Sward is putting up?!

Graham Sward - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Graham Sward, 2003-09-12 Langley, BC, CAN Canada. Most recently in the undefined with Wenatchee Wild. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

Wow!

Not our prospect anymore, if that's what you mean.

 

[PREDy 4 the Cup]

Not our prospect anymore, if that's what you mean.

He’s not ours anymore??

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

Has anyone seen the numbers Sward is putting up?!

Graham Sward - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Graham Sward, 2003-09-12 Langley, BC, CAN Canada. Most recently in the undefined with Wenatchee Wild. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

Wow!

Remember the big year Tomas Slovak put up on a loaded Mem Cup team? I think the fact that we bailed on Sward in the trade for Hanzel, and then Colorado didn't even sign him speaks volumes. In the rookie games last year, he didn't seem quick enough to translate that junior production.

I think I heard he has a camp invite from Winnipeg this year, so maybe he will catch on there on a minor league deal in the ECHL or something, who knows. Slovak had a long pro career in Europe, but it's interesting that he never again really put up points. I wonder if Sward will be able to possibly reinvent himself a little along those lines? He has size, so if he doesn't really have the skills/speed to sustain those junior numbers as a pro, does he possibly have the IQ to change his game up a little and utilize his other assets?

But yes, even Matier is a better prospect!

He’s not ours anymore??

You should just go ahead and get excited about Jeremy Hanzel. He put up good numbers too.

 

[wmupreds]

Speaking of Hanzel, it seems like he should be in the poll, no? I at least remember seeing Avs fans that were pretty high on him.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

Speaking of Hanzel, it seems like he should be in the poll, no? I at least remember seeing Avs fans that were pretty high on him.

He was certainly a more prominent player on that Mem Cup drive in Seattle than Prokop was? Schaefer was there too. I'm not sure Colorado has a very deep prospect group, though... but he certainly had the big playoff in his final junior-aged season that got him drafted, plus another big year last year in the post-mortem wreckage of the Seattle team as an overager.

Colorado liked him enough to sign him to a contract. The Ads fans didn't seem to think he showed much in his end of season cameo? I sort of don't think he's a "top 20" candidate for us, anyway. But maybe he works his way into that if he beats out Matier and Prokop in Milwaukee this year? He's LD instead. But still, I think all 3 of those guys are in the same sort of category. Still vying for AHL time, still under contract, still technically "prospects". But on the list outside our top 20? For now.

 

[PREDy 4 the Cup]

Remember the big year Tomas Slovak put up on a loaded Mem Cup team? I think the fact that we bailed on Sward in the trade for Hanzel, and then Colorado didn't even sign him speaks volumes. In the rookie games last year, he didn't seem quick enough to translate that junior production.

I think I heard he has a camp invite from Winnipeg this year, so maybe he will catch on there on a minor league deal in the ECHL or something, who knows. Slovak had a long pro career in Europe, but it's interesting that he never again really put up points. I wonder if Sward will be able to possibly reinvent himself a little along those lines? He has size, so if he doesn't really have the skills/speed to sustain those junior numbers as a pro, does he possibly have the IQ to change his game up a little and utilize his other assets?

But yes, even Matier is a better prospect!


You should just go ahead and get excited about Jeremy Hanzel. He put up good numbers too.

I don’t understand I’m sorry. We just drafted award in 2022, he had a big year last year with over 80 points.
We don’t own his rights anymore? Why not? Sorry if I seem silly here I just don’t understand. If someone can explain to me please I’d appreciate it.

Edit:

Oh I see now. Bad trade lol

https://thehockeynews.com/whl/latest-news/graham-sward-and-jeremy-hanzel-traded-for-each-other-at-the-nhl-level

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

I don’t understand I’m sorry. We just drafted award in 2022, he had a big year last year with over 80 points.
We don’t own his rights anymore? Why not? Sorry if I seem silly here I just don’t understand. If someone can explain to me please I’d appreciate it.

Edit:

Oh I see now. Bad trade lol

https://thehockeynews.com/whl/latest-news/graham-sward-and-jeremy-hanzel-traded-for-each-other-at-the-nhl-level

Well the trade was Trenin for 3rd. Probably we wanted a 2nd. But maybe they didn't have one, or balked. So instead we got a signed/better prospect (Hanzel) in exchange for a guy we had no intention of signing/keeping (Sward) to help bridge the gap.

If it's a bad trade, it's only because we got a lesser pick for Trenin than we wanted. Hanzel is considered a better prospect than Sward. Which is to say, Hanzel is at least the bare minimum of a "prospect", while Sward simply isn't a prospect at all.

 

[PREDy 4 the Cup]

Well the trade was Trenin for 3rd. Probably we wanted a 2nd. But maybe they didn't have one, or balked. So instead we got a signed/better prospect (Hanzel) in exchange for a guy we had no intention of signing/keeping (Sward) to help bridge the gap.

If it's a bad trade, it's only because we got a lesser pick for Trenin than we wanted. Hanzel is considered a better prospect than Sward. Which is to say, Hanzel is at least the bare minimum of a "prospect", while Sward simply isn't a prospect at all.

I mean maybe at the time he was considered minimally better but right now in this present day I take Sward 9/10 times over Hanzel. I don’t understand how he is not considered a prospect when he’s younger by about 7 months and better…. Sward also has 3 inches on him.

Both defensemen in whl last season:

Sward had 81 points in 66 games
Hanzel had 60 points in 66 games


This makes the trenin trade worse for us imo, should have left it at the 3rd…

 

[wmupreds]

The Avs didn't sign Sward either, for whatever that's worth. In the end we're talking about late round picks, both of which likely won't turn into anything really.

 

[PredsV82]

I mean maybe at the time he was considered minimally better but right now in this present day I take Sward 9/10 times over Hanzel. I don’t understand how he is not considered a prospect when he’s younger by about 7 months and better…. Sward also has 3 inches on him.

Both defensemen in whl last season:

Sward had 81 points in 66 games
Hanzel had 60 points in 66 games


This makes the trenin trade worse for us imo, should have left it at the 3rd…

Really? The fact that you think our dead end prospect was marginally better than their dead end prospect makes this somehow a "worse" deal? That's just silly

 

[PREDy 4 the Cup]

Really? The fact that you think our dead end prospect was marginally better than their dead end prospect makes this somehow a "worse" deal? That's just silly

Maybe you didn’t read my reasons but I don’t think sward is a dead end prospect judging by his play especially last season.

We should probably get Muzzatti on this list, he’s looking solid and he’s a monster of a man too, potential mccarron replacement

 

[PredsV82]

Maybe you didn’t read my reasons but I don’t think sward is a dead end prospect judging by his play especially last season.

We should probably get Muzzatti on this list, he’s looking solid and he’s a monster of a man too, potential mccarron replacement

He had a good season as an overager in junior, a man playing against kids. Did you not see that the Avs didn't think enough of Sward to give him a contract? He's the definition of a dead end prospect. He's too old for junior. He's going to try to get an AHL deal, maybe.

 

[PREDy 4 the Cup]

He had a good season as an overager in junior, a man playing against kids. Did you not see that the Avs didn't think enough of Sward to give him a contract? He's the definition of a dead end prospect. He's too old for junior. He's going to try to get an AHL deal, maybe.

It’s funny because a lot of yall were so high on Burke when he was a “man playing against kids” as well and he was a toss in for askarov deal lol.

All I am saying is over 80 points and well over ppg is impressive for a defender. Maybe he’s a nobody that goes nowhere but he’s at least doing better than Hanzel lol

Ufko was doing good in minors playing against “kids” at same age as well and look how high he’s getting ranked around here?

 

[herzausstein]

I liked Sward as a prospect but feel him vs Hanzel was fairly close to a wash. Hanzel was already under contract at the time too and able to go help MIL. I dont know why Sward hasnt gotten a contract somewhere tbh. Figured he is atleast worth a flier from someone

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

Did we ever hear what Burke's injury was last year? I know the main concern with him was skating, so if it was something which affected that and made it an even bigger problem, it could help explain why he faltered so badly last season? I wouldn't say anybody was overly high on him... he ended up at #18 on our ranking list. But still, he was signed at 19, turned 20 a few weeks later, that's still not an overager, just a graduating junior. And part of his story was Covid, how he was a guy who maybe turned a corner during his Covid down time, and went from a complete nobody to a 50-goal scorer in the OHL, so flashing some signs of potentially having a significant late-blooming trajectory change due to a newly discovered work ethic and dedication.

Anyway, we were excited at the start of last year about Sward's early scoring exploits too. And the prospect that Wenatchee would have a really high-powered offense that would allow him to sustain that. I'm not sure why they blew it up with Savoie and Geekie? But Sward still produced well even after. I wasn't too impressed with him in the rookie games, I think he sat out at least one, but looked tentative/non-descript as far as I can recall? Anyway, NHL scouts have a consensus that he wasn't worth signing to a contract. They aren't just sleeping on guys very often and he had the visibility of being drafted, and the opportunity of getting a look from Colorado scouts too, and nobody signed him even after they let him walk. Maybe he can earn an AHL deal in the Jets organization, maybe not, but one has to realize things are not looking up for him atm.

I think with Hanzel, you also have to consider his 60 pts in the context of the team he was on. Both Sward and Hanzel ended up being the leading overall scorers on their teams last season. But the highest-scoring forward on Seattle had 41 pts. That team was blown up completely after the Memorial Cup run. And it was really that run which got Hanzel drafted, the +70, the playoff scoring. There were a lot of other big names on D on that team in the Mem Cup year too, he wasn't just getting opportunity sort of "by default" as perhaps Sward was.

It's pretty clear the Nashville Predators think Hanzel is a better prospect. Even if not a very notable one, so I'm not too sure why one would just read last year's overager stats alone and declare an opposing view? Players who have big points as overagers in junior hockey rarely amount to anything. (Because of course, legitimate NHL prospects are rarely left playing an overage year in junior.)