Prospect Info: Blues 2023-2024 Prospect Thread

[ezcreepin]

Yeah, but having size helps

I'm just saying that if a guy like McDavid (just gimme a sec), Nuge, Trocheck, Keller, Fiala, Scheifele, etc can all find success with their frames, then I have confidence Dvorsky will too. Just with any rookie, it might take him a season or two, but his weight and frame shouldn't ever be an issue (skill aside).

 

[ChicagoBlues]

I think we get a little too worked up over the physical aspect of a prospect. Like it's definitely something that should be noted, but there are lots of small guys and players his size that do extraordinarily well. I think it's more so about learning how to play to players, learning how to use body position, pinning guys along the boards, using deceiving body moves to elude defenders. I'm not necessarily concerned about his weight or gaining physical strength, I'm more worried about how well and quickly he can adapt to using his current frame to his advantage on the offensive and defensive side.

Yes, of course. I'm totally on board with your thinking.

The thing with Dvo is that he is not small and will only get bigger. Unless he goes all Benjamin Button.

 

[ezcreepin]

Yes, of course. I'm totally on board with your thinking.

The thing with Dvo is that he is not small and will only get bigger. Unless he goes all Benjamin Button.

Btw not saying that you specifically are saying he NEEDS to get bigger, but some posters (whether still currently active here or not) will say that he absolutely has to get stronger to succeed. While it's beneficial for him to gain more strength, there's plenty big sample size to say he could lose 15 pounds and still be a really good player. I think his drive, skill set, and defensive awareness as a young player is what will set him apart from other players in his draft class and hopefully he will realize that potential much much sooner than we expect.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Btw not saying that you specifically are saying he NEEDS to get bigger, but some posters (whether still currently active here or not) will say that he absolutely has to get stronger to succeed. While it's beneficial for him to gain more strength, there's plenty big sample size to say he could lose 15 pounds and still be a really good player. I think his drive, skill set, and defensive awareness as a young player is what will set him apart from other players in his draft class and hopefully he will realize that potential much much sooner than we expect.

I totally agree that he doesn't necessarily need to gain size and strength. My only point is that it is going to happen anyway.

But to your counterpoint, I think it is refreshing that there are loads of talented sub-5'11" players in the NHL. It's exciting and gives smaller guys an opportunity to demonstrate their intelligence and athleticism. It's pretty cool.

5'10", 190# with great skating and smarts is a common modern-day NHL body type.

 

[ezcreepin]

I totally agree that he doesn't necessarily need to gain size and strength. My only point is that it is going to happen anyway.

But to your counterpoint, I think it is refreshing that there are loads of talented sub-5'11" players in the NHL. It's exciting and gives smaller guys an opportunity to demonstrate their intelligence and athleticism. It's pretty cool.

5'10", 190# with great skating and smarts is a common modern-day NHL body type.

I do enjoy the amount of skill that's in the game today, MacKinnon, Point, Hughes, Aho, Kucherov are all lots of fun to watch and I'm glad you don't have to fish for massive guys anymore to adhere to NHL unwritten rules, but I do enjoy huge hits by big bruisers. I hated watching the Blues play against the 2010s Jets because of the giant players they had, but watching Byfuglien smash people was also enjoyable. That 2019 Blues team was a perfect mix of skilled, hardworking, borderline bad hitting guys that made watching them really fun.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

I think Army is focusing on players with high compete levels in the recent drafts. Im hoping Snuggy fits this mold too to go along with Dvorsky, Stenberg and Pakarcik. I liked Bolduc and Dean’s work ethics this year too. They look like keepers to me.

Makes sense and I agree. It's something that's been noticeably missing from the team once our hard-nosed players like Steen, O'Reilly, Barbashev and others began exiting.

I'm thrilled with how last year's draft class is looking. The compete level of most of those players is noticeable. It's also something that stood out with Bolduc in camp this year where it felt like a switch was flipped from him being tentative to grinding out a good season that didn't exactly look like it was going to shape up how he wanted it to. Same with Dean, as you said. Horrible start to the season but he kept working and had a fantastic end to it with Springfield.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

I do enjoy the amount of skill that's in the game today, MacKinnon, Point, Hughes, Aho, Kucherov are all lots of fun to watch and I'm glad you don't have to fish for massive guys anymore to adhere to NHL unwritten rules, but I do enjoy huge hits by big bruisers. I hated watching the Blues play against the 2010s Jets because of the giant players they had, but watching Byfuglien smash people was also enjoyable. That 2019 Blues team was a perfect mix of skilled, hardworking, borderline bad hitting guys that made watching them really fun.

There have always been great skaters in the NHL, but I’d venture to guess that great skating is at its highest premium nowadays.

The smaller guys succeed mostly because of their smarts and exceptional, elusive skating.

Today, I see more Denis Savard types than Wilsonian Troubadors. ERod is a great example of being small, but smart and elusive. P Kane as well.

 

[Blueston]

Not that is a surprise, but Sudbury making moves that seem to indicate dvo won’t be headed back there. I think we all expect him to be in St. Louis or Springfield or both next year.

 

[Mike Liut]

Not that is a surprise, but Sudbury making moves that seem to indicate dvo won’t be headed back there. I think we all expect him to be in St. Louis or Springfield or both next year.

Good

 

[DatDude44]

Not that is a surprise, but Sudbury making moves that seem to indicate dvo won’t be headed back there. I think we all expect him to be in St. Louis or Springfield or both next year.

To think we could’ve had the Dvo-Musty duo

 

[kudla]

Dvorsky also has room for physical growth. He turns 19 in a couple weeks, is 6'1" and around 200lbs. I expect he'll gain another inch and have an average playing weight somewhere between 205-210. He just needs to improve his skating a little bit.

Dvorsky has been this height for a good few years now.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Dvorsky has been this height for a good few years now.

Cool! Thanks for letting us know. Much appreciated.

 

[kimzey59]

To think we could’ve had the Dvo-Musty duo

I don't have any regrets about taking Stenberg.
I think he'll end up being the better player.

 

[razor ray]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1798447006471389549

 

[Eldon Reid]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1798447006471389549

Kinda crazy to see how much we have moved up in couple years since Thomas & Kyrou graduated. We were near the bottom and in couple years we have moved up. It goes to show how well the scouting is for the Blues (it also doesn't hurt having 3 1st round picks either).

 

[DatDude44]

I don't have any regrets about taking Stenberg.
I think he'll end up being the better player.

I like Stenberg too.

Luv musty tho. And it would’ve just been cool to see two of our top prospects shred the O together

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

Kinda crazy to see how much we have moved up in couple years since Thomas & Kyrou graduated. We were near the bottom and in couple years we have moved up. It goes to show how well the scouting is for the Blues (it also doesn't hurt having 3 1st round picks either).

It certainly helped that Army had a quick-trigger to get that kind of draft capital prior to last offseason to make it all possible instead of trying to squeeze blood out of a turnip with the last core.

 

[Celtic Note]

Kinda crazy to see how much we have moved up in couple years since Thomas & Kyrou graduated. We were near the bottom and in couple years we have moved up. It goes to show how well the scouting is for the Blues (it also doesn't hurt having 3 1st round picks either).

I agree it’s great that we have moved up. The scouting department has done a nice job and Army gave them extra ammo.

15 is still middle of the pack, so there is still significant room for improvement and I would argue that it’s improvement we have to make.

 

[BadgersandBlues]

Adding the equivalent of four 1st round picks last year sure helped

 

[Brian39]

I agree it’s great that we have moved up. The scouting department has done a nice job and Army gave them extra ammo.

15 is still middle of the pack, so there is still significant room for improvement and I would argue that it’s improvement we have to make.

I don't disagree with this assessment and I very much agree that the prospect pool alone isn't good enough to view the organization as a future contender.

However, when I look at the full organizational picture, I'm more optimistic about our 'long term plan' as being more than simply middle of the pack.

Neighbours and Hofer graduated from the prospect pool this year and I view nboth of them as being guys that could be part of a future core. The summer poll of this board last year saw them finish as our 3rd and 6th ranked prospects. Neighbours very much exceeded expectations this year and Hofer at least met expectations.

Thomas is far removed from being a prospect, but he's still only 24 and is a legit 1C under contract for 7 more years (on a deal that expires when he is still just 31 years old). You can expect him to still be a 1C on whatever reasonable timeline you're planning for. Not many teams with a top end prospect pool can say that they don't have to worry about any of those prospects developing into a 1C. Thomas at his current age/contract is a massive organizational piece at this stage of the re-whatever.

Kyrou is a bit older, but he should still be a legit Cup-caliber top 6 scoring winger on whatever timeline you're talking about. Not nearly the importance of Thomas, but still a nice piece in addition to the prospects.

Parayko might start declining before the window re-opens, but I think he will still be a nice 2nd pair vet pretty deep in to that contract.

There is still plenty of work to do. We are not simply in 'wait for development' territory. But when I look at the full picture, I'm much more concerned about dead money in the short/medium term than I am collecting enough talent in the long term.

 

[Celtic Note]

I don't disagree with this assessment and I very much agree that the prospect pool alone isn't good enough to view the organization as a future contender.

However, when I look at the full organizational picture, I'm more optimistic about our 'long term plan' as being more than simply middle of the pack.

Neighbours and Hofer graduated from the prospect pool this year and I view nboth of them as being guys that could be part of a future core. The summer poll of this board last year saw them finish as our 3rd and 6th ranked prospects. Neighbours very much exceeded expectations this year and Hofer at least met expectations.

Thomas is far removed from being a prospect, but he's still only 24 and is a legit 1C under contract for 7 more years (on a deal that expires when he is still just 31 years old). You can expect him to still be a 1C on whatever reasonable timeline you're planning for. Not many teams with a top end prospect pool can say that they don't have to worry about any of those prospects developing into a 1C. Thomas at his current age/contract is a massive organizational piece at this stage of the re-whatever.

Kyrou is a bit older, but he should still be a legit Cup-caliber top 6 scoring winger on whatever timeline you're talking about. Not nearly the importance of Thomas, but still a nice piece in addition to the prospects.

Parayko might start declining before the window re-opens, but I think he will still be a nice 2nd pair vet pretty deep in to that contract.

There is still plenty of work to do. We are not simply in 'wait for development' territory. But when I look at the full picture, I'm much more concerned about dead money in the short/medium term than I am collecting enough talent in the long term.

I don’t disagree with any of this, but on the prospect front, I would like to see more elite prospect talent. I think we need it. One reason being that we could use a next level player or two. The other being that if we can’t draft what we need, we will need a stocked cupboard to trade for it without depleting it. The guys we have presumptively penciled in to future rosters might just be guys we have to trade to fill our positional voids.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1798447006471389549

Tanner Dickinson?

 

[stl76]

Tanner Dickinson?

Yeah, I’d have several guys above him (Particularly Paul Fischer) but other than that it’s not bad TBH. We can quibble about the order, but I think they at least got the other 9 players correct…which is more than I can say about most other rankings of our prospect pool I can remember

 

[STL fan in MN]

Yeah, I’d have several guys above him (Particularly Paul Fischer) but other than that it’s not bad TBH. We can quibble about the order, but I think they at least got the other 9 players correct…which is more than I can say about most other rankings of our prospect pool I can remember

Agreed.

I’m lower on Buchinger so I’d have both Fischer and Burns in there over Buchinger and Dickinson but it’s at least a respectable list. Better than Wheeler’s that had Noah Beck in there anyway.

 

[Blueston]

I don’t disagree with any of this, but on the prospect front, I would like to see more elite prospect talent. I think we need it. One reason being that we could use a next level player or two. The other being that if we can’t draft what we need, we will need a stocked cupboard to trade for it without depleting it. The guys we have presumptively penciled in to future rosters might just be guys we have to trade to fill our positional voids.

which is why we need to harvest prospects from buchy, saad, faulk, and whomever else isn't gonna be here when we are ready to contend.