C Bo Horvat (2013, 9th overall, Vancouver)

[Thegame]

I agree with what most people have said. Going back to jrs would be the best thing for his development and playing in the World Juniors.

That being said if he doesn't develop into atleast a 50 point 2 way center I will be disappointed considering we traded Schneider for him.

 

[Hansen]

I think Horvat is the next Steve Yzerman.


No I don't

 

[NHL Dude 120]

As an Ottawa Fan it would have been nice to have Bo on the Sens, but for the love of god send him back to juniors, give him a few games if he earns them then maybe 6 games then send him back to London. A great developmental tool he sees what it takes to play in the NHL, and he'll be playing in the memorial Cup and perhaps play in the WJC. I'll make sure to watch Him when Ottawa and London play each other at home. Just promise to quid pro qo us and keep Sens fans updated on Curtis Lazar.

 

[CanaFan]

As an Ottawa Fan it would have been nice to have Bo on the Sens, but for the love of god send him back to juniors, give him a few games if he earns them then maybe 6 games then send him back to London. A great developmental tool he sees what it takes to play in the NHL, and he'll be playing in the memorial Cup and perhaps play in the WJC. I'll make sure to watch Him when Ottawa and London play each other at home. Just promise to quid pro qo us and keep Sens fans updated on Curtis Lazar.

Fair deal. I get tickets a handful of Giants games each year and outside of Tigers games to see Shinkaruk, I could def plan to watch the Oil Kings when they are through town.

 

[Virtanen2Horvat]

I wouldn't rush the guy I mean hey let him play in the pre-season but I think he should play in the OHL for a good 1-2 years and then bring him and Shinkaruk along with Jensen in and they run the 3rd line maybe Hansen instead who knows.

Sedin-Sedin-Burrows
Jensen-Kesler-Kassian
Shinkaruk-Horvat-Hansen
Sestito-Guance-Weise

Also Horvat = Patrice Bergeron lite
Shinkaruk = Parise or some Patty Kane

 

[NHL Dude 120]

Fair deal. I get tickets a handful of Giants games each year and outside of Tigers games to see Shinkaruk, I could def plan to watch the Oil Kings when they are through town.

Thanks lets hope both Bo and Curtis meet up in the Memorial Cup.

 

[Hardyvan123]

Do you guys think he could crack the 3rd line this year on Vancouver and what's his upside?

I have a gut feeling that he cracks the 3rd line opening night, if he stays or not is up to his play though.

Upside is a slightly lesser version of Toews and maybe a better goal scorer and not as physical.

Solid top 6 guy and very good in playoffs.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

I have a gut feeling that he cracks the 3rd line opening night, if he stays or not is up to his play though.

Upside is a slightly lesser version of Toews and maybe a better goal scorer and not as physical.

Solid top 6 guy and very good in playoffs.

I wouldn't mind seeing Horvat get a few games in the NHL this year...I think he should be decent enough at camp that they'll give him a shot at NHL ice...probably more as a 'treat' than an 'audition' for the full year.

re his upside - if he ended up like toews i'd be nothing but happy for the guy - i don't think that's what his upside is b/c i don't think toews is a great comparison. i think horvat's ceiling projects to be better defensively and grittier than toews - however, i don't think he has toews' offensive upside.

i think style-of-play-wise...guys like bergeron, richards, even kesler are better comparisons.

as an aside, what do people think of landeskog comparisons re horvat - someone (off this board) mentioned that to me recently - thing can change in the future...but i think landeskog was, at the same age, much better offensively than horvat - but other than that, i don't hate the comparison.

 

[FOurteenS inCisOr]

Some of these projections are absolutely laughable. Kids with Horvat's offensive production in their draft year on a team that good don't become high-end #2C's. (http://www.coppernblue.com/2013/6/18/4431126/bo-horvat-draft-comparables).

Yes, I get that everyone loves his defensive game and intangibles and grit and whatever, but here's a newsflash for you: Chris Tierney played the toughs in London. And Horvat struggled to score away from Domi. Ryan O'Reilly is Horvat's high-end upside. I think he's more likely to be a Brandon Sutter caliber of player than a Mike Richards.




And as I type, here it comes. You do realize that Jarret Stoll has been a pretty consistent 50 point player over his career, right? Saying Horvat's downside is Stoll is hilarious. And then I see you think that his upside is Patrice Bergeron, a top-10 forward in the league, and I just don't know what to say except poor kid. Canucks fans will overhype him to the max and then when he becomes a respectable player and not Patrice Bergeron, they'll backtrack. Like Kassian.

Horvat didn't play much with Domi.

And Kassian just turned 22—it's not unreasonable to think he'll continue to improve.

 

[Hansen]

I wouldn't mind seeing Horvat get a few games in the NHL this year...I think he should be decent enough at camp that they'll give him a shot at NHL ice...probably more as a 'treat' than an 'audition' for the full year.

re his upside - if he ended up like toews i'd be nothing but happy for the guy - i don't think that's what his upside is b/c i don't think toews is a great comparison. i think horvat's ceiling projects to be better defensively and grittier than toews - however, i don't think he has toews' offensive upside.

i think style-of-play-wise...guys like bergeron, richards, even kesler are better comparisons.

as an aside, what do people think of landeskog comparisons re horvat - someone (off this board) mentioned that to me recently - thing can change in the future...but i think landeskog was, at the same age, much better offensively than horvat - but other than that, i don't hate the comparison.

Not gonna lie, that realization made me drool a little. Landeskog is my favourite of the young players in the league right now (not on the Canucks) and if you take his draft year ppg he's got 3 more goals than Horvat and a number more assists for about 10-15 more points in 10 or so less games. So there is a gap, but I think if you take Horvat's excellent second half (when he got those new skates?) and extrapolate that average it might be a bit closer.

Still though, I think Landeskog's high end offensive upside is a good portion higher than Horvat's but the similarities are there.

 

[WonderTwinsUnite]

Not gonna lie, that realization made me drool a little. Landeskog is my favourite of the young players in the league right now (not on the Canucks) and if you take his draft year ppg he's got 3 more goals than Horvat and a number more assists for about 10-15 more points in 10 or so less games. So there is a gap, but I think if you take Horvat's excellent second half (when he got those new skates?) and extrapolate that average it might be a bit closer.

Still though, I think Landeskog's high end offensive upside is a good portion higher than Horvat's but the similarities are there.

Plus, Landeskog's 17 year old season (the one before his draft year), he only had 46 points in 61 games (compared to Horvat's 61 in 67), so it might be closer than people think. Not saying they're equal, but comparable.

 

[Virtanen2Horvat]

I wouldn't mind seeing Horvat get a few games in the NHL this year...I think he should be decent enough at camp that they'll give him a shot at NHL ice...probably more as a 'treat' than an 'audition' for the full year.

re his upside - if he ended up like toews i'd be nothing but happy for the guy - i don't think that's what his upside is b/c i don't think toews is a great comparison. i think horvat's ceiling projects to be better defensively and grittier than toews - however, i don't think he has toews' offensive upside.

i think style-of-play-wise...guys like bergeron, richards, even kesler are better comparisons.

as an aside, what do people think of landeskog comparisons re horvat - someone (off this board) mentioned that to me recently - thing can change in the future...but i think landeskog was, at the same age, much better offensively than horvat - but other than that, i don't hate the comparison.

Yeah I wouldn't mind him playing a little bit in the NHL but there is no way I would give him a full year I think he needs to work and develop in the OHL.

 

[Pip]

Horvat imo could be the Richards we see now; 50 pts two way force.

This is what I hope Horvat becomes. Those types of players are extremely valuable

 

[Love]

Damning Horvat's upside based on statistics(especially ones cherry picked by Copper 'n Blue) is ridiculous.

The kid obviously has offensive talent.


And if you're really hung up on statistics, who other than Horvat scored 40 goals in a 60 game stretch in this draft? Mantha is probably the only one not named MacKinnon or Drouin.

That is just crazy. But why did his offense pick up so fast and so drastically? Did he get new linemates or just "broke out" offensively?

 

[aresknights]

He was the league PO MVP and led the team in Gs. That was a huge chunk of his goals ( almost half) in that 60 game stretch.

He was getting matched up playing against other teams top dogs, therefore getting more ice in the POs. Dale just kept trusting him and throwing him out- dzone draws, PK, PP. in the last 40 reg season games I'd guess he had just over 20Gs and In approx 20 PO games he had just under.
He's been very consistent In His improvement under Dale and got rewarded.

That and he thrives in big games.


I think his production was less a result of new linemates (everyone who played with Bo looked better for it) and more a result of himself and the PT.

During the reg season Dale liked to match up but not anything like in the POs where he went with his best more oft.

 

[blankall]

Horvat is no the solution to Vancouver's problems. They don't need a developing offensive player in their bottom six. They need physical play.

Bo Horvat has size but will need a couple of years to develop strengh-wise. Horvat has the potential to become a very solid 2nd line player, but he's not there yet.

 

[WetcoastOrca]

He was the league PO MVP and led the team in Gs. That was a huge chunk of his goals ( almost half) in that 60 game stretch.

He was getting matched up playing against other teams top dogs, therefore getting more ice in the POs. Dale just kept trusting him and throwing him out- dzone draws, PK, PP. in the last 40 reg season games I'd guess he had just over 20Gs and In approx 20 PO games he had just under.
He's been very consistent In His improvement under Dale and got rewarded.

That and he thrives in big games.


I think his production was less a result of new linemates (everyone who played with Bo looked better for it) and more a result of himself and the PT.

During the reg season Dale liked to match up but not anything like in the POs where he went with his best more oft.

Thanks for that.
It sounds like he is a player who comes up big when it counts. I will have to catch some Knights' games this year. And of course see him at camp and at the WJC's.
Really excited to see his development next year. Cheers!

 

[turkulad]

Would seem like a foolish thing to move him up since there's a Jordan Schroeder, a Brendan Gaunce and a bunch of 3rd/4th line capable or at least prospectively suitable guys like Brad Richardson, Mike Santorelli, Kellan Lain ahead of him.. just let him dominate the junior ranks next year, get the U20 experiences, learn more offensive game, and come back next year. It's not like the team is in a hurry to get him up.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

tbh, i don't get why canucks fans are so anxious to move gaunce up at this point, either. it's not like he's been even close to dominant at the junior level. i wouldn't even call him further ahead of horvat at this point.

 

[Love]

tbh, i don't get why canucks fans are so anxious to move gaunce up at this point, either. it's not like he's been even close to dominant at the junior level. i wouldn't even call him further ahead of horvat at this point.

I guess its because Gaunce is bigger, older and was the best defensive forward in the OHL last year, but to an extent I agree with you. I think Schroeder is more ready than any of them, and will likely get the 3C spot to start the year.

 

[HockeySauce]

Horvat will be back in London next year. Let him finish his Junior career, and I could see him stepping into Vancouver's top-9.

As for his upside, I'm not as sold on his offensive upside as some other Knight's fans. I think he can be above-average offensively in the NHL, but not great. I see him topping out at 50ish points, while playing a gritty and quality two-way game.

Mike Richards isn't a great comparison for him, as Horvat's a better skater and IMO Mike Richards has better hockey IQ, but in terms of what they'll bring to the table, it's kind of similar.

 

[Pip]

tbh, i don't get why canucks fans are so anxious to move gaunce up at this point, either. it's not like he's been even close to dominant at the junior level. i wouldn't even call him further ahead of horvat at this point.

Personally, I believe Gaunce's offensive upside is fairly limited, so he may have learned all that he needs at the CHL level. I have much higher hopes for Horvat and thus would rather him to have a full, dominant year for the Knights before coming up to the big club.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

Horvat will be back in London next year. Let him finish his Junior career, and I could see him stepping into Vancouver's top-9.

As for his upside, I'm not as sold on his offensive upside as some other Knight's fans. I think he can be above-average offensively in the NHL, but not great. I see him topping out at 50ish points, while playing a gritty and quality two-way game.

Mike Richards isn't a great comparison for him, as Horvat's a better skater and IMO Mike Richards has better hockey IQ, but in terms of what they'll bring to the table, it's kind of similar.

well, he has two years left of junior...and it's possible he'll be ready after only one...if he can take a step forward offensively and just work on his overall game. the fact his size is good will help him.

i agree he should go back to london next year...like i said before, i don't really say how being in vancouver right away would help his development.

 

[Bleach Clean]

Personally, I believe Gaunce's offensive upside is fairly limited, so he may have learned all that he needs at the CHL level. I have much higher hopes for Horvat and thus would rather him to have a full, dominant year for the Knights before coming up to the big club.

I'm higher on Gaunce's upside. At the CHL level, he's gotten away with playing a passive offensive game. That needs to change. When he gets to the AHL, he'll be forced to be more direct, which will help him. For now, it's ok that he continues to go PPG and above on the Bulls. He can still learn to carry more of the offense while down there.

What do people think about Horvat's size? I see the Richards comparisons, but isn't Horvat already bigger? If he's 211 lbs now (listed on some sites, 203 lbs at the combine), odds are he will be 215-220 lbs in the pros. That is a distinct size advantage in the comparison. Although I do agree, Richards seems craftier offensively.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

I'm higher on Gaunce's upside. At the CHL level, he's gotten away with playing a passive offensive game. That needs to change. When he gets to the AHL, he'll be forced to be more direct, which will help him. For now, it's ok that he continues to go PPG and above on the Bulls. He can still learn to carry more of the offense while down there.

What do people think about Horvat's size? I see the Richards comparisons, but isn't Horvat already bigger? If he's 211 lbs now (listed on some sites, 203 lbs at the combine), odds are he will be 215-220 lbs in the pros. That is a distinct size advantage in the comparison. Although I do agree, Richards seems craftier offensively.

yeah, i think horvat is currently taller and heavier than richards...and will probably get bigger at least a bit. he reminds me of....