C/RW Anthony Romani - North Bay Batallion, OHL (2024, 162nd, VAN)

[VanJack]

The sad fact is that when a player sails through his first year of draft eligibility without being drafted, he automatically slides down the board in year two, whether it's deserved or not.

But Romani missed the 2023 draft by only a couple of months, and played last season as an 18 year old, basically the same age as most others in the 2024 draft class.

I guess if nothing else, he'll be playing next season and beyond with a chip on his shoulder--trying to prove to everyone that he should have been drafted a lot higher. And he'll be motivated to have a big year next season. But hard to see how he can improve on a 58 goal, 111 point campaign.

 

[Warh1ppy]

Someone walk me through this kid. He is 18 but it is/was his 2nd year of eligibility?

He missed or was passed over last years draft? Are we talking missed because he was buried behind great players, or because he just sucked? Or did he miss the draft by a few weeks or was it significant amounts of time?

Whatever the case, he then posts insane numbers this year comparable only to some crazy names. Only the 4th player to score 55+ in the OHL under the age of 19 in the last 20 years, the other 3 were taken 1st overall

I always like taking a look at later draft picks post draft just to see if a team picked up some unheralded gem and this kids numbers just stuck out like a neon sign.

So what is ti with him? 18 yars old, 2nd year of eligibility, crazy numbers for an 18 year old yet taken in the 6th round?

Is he a terrilbe skater? Terrible hockey IQ? Unteachable? If there's anyone with more info on this kid I'd love to know

 

[wetcoast]

Someone walk me through this kid. He is 18 but it is/was his 2nd year of eligibility?

He missed or was passed over last years draft? Are we talking missed because he was buried behind great players, or because he just sucked? Or did he miss the draft by a few weeks or was it significant amounts of time?

Whatever the case, he then posts insane numbers this year comparable only to some crazy names. Only the 4th player to score 55+ in the OHL under the age of 19 in the last 20 years, the other 3 were taken 1st overall

I always like taking a look at later draft picks post draft just to see if a team picked up some unheralded gem and this kids numbers just stuck out like a neon sign.

So what is ti with him? 18 yars old, 2nd year of eligibility, crazy numbers for an 18 year old yet taken in the 6th round?

Is he a terrilbe skater? Terrible hockey IQ? Unteachable? If there's anyone with more info on this kid I'd love to know

If only there were a 3 page thread with some of that information eh?

Or scouting reports?

Anthony Romani- 2024 NHL Draft Prospect Profile - The Hockey Writers NHL Entry Draft Latest News, Analysis & More

After not being selected in the 2023 NHL Draft, Anthony Romani has put many on notice with a breakout season heading into the 2024 NHL Draft.

thehockeywriters.com

Anthony Romani

July 2024- Romani has been drafted by Vancouver in the sixth round, 162nd overall. Keith Duggan April 2024 - Romani's production this year is a great case study in how much of a difference translatable skill can make at the junior level. Passed over in the 2023 NHL Draft due to his defensive...

dobberprospects.com

 

[thrillhous]

If only there were a 3 page thread with some of that information eh?

Or scouting reports?

Anthony Romani- 2024 NHL Draft Prospect Profile - The Hockey Writers NHL Entry Draft Latest News, Analysis & More

After not being selected in the 2023 NHL Draft, Anthony Romani has put many on notice with a breakout season heading into the 2024 NHL Draft.

thehockeywriters.com

Anthony Romani

July 2024- Romani has been drafted by Vancouver in the sixth round, 162nd overall. Keith Duggan April 2024 - Romani's production this year is a great case study in how much of a difference translatable skill can make at the junior level. Passed over in the 2023 NHL Draft due to his defensive...

dobberprospects.com

The dobberprospects page refers to him as an “overager”. Pretty sad that the writer doesn’t even know what overager means in CHL hockey.

 

[wetcoast]

The dobberprospects page refers to him as an “overager”. Pretty sad that the writer doesn’t even know what overager means in CHL hockey.

I'm pretty sure that was in reference to his draft status this year.

 

[thrillhous]

I'm pretty sure that was in reference to his draft status this year.

Even if that’s what he meant he should know that overager has a particular meaning when referencing a CHL player and instead state that he was passed over in his first year of eligibility in 2023 or something like that. I’ve seen people on this site say (about a player that was actually drafted in their first year of eligibility) that a player put up a big season “as an overager” when referencing the player’s D+1 season.

 

[LemonSauceD]

Someone walk me through this kid. He is 18 but it is/was his 2nd year of eligibility?

He missed or was passed over last years draft? Are we talking missed because he was buried behind great players, or because he just sucked? Or did he miss the draft by a few weeks or was it significant amounts of time?

Whatever the case, he then posts insane numbers this year comparable only to some crazy names. Only the 4th player to score 55+ in the OHL under the age of 19 in the last 20 years, the other 3 were taken 1st overall

I always like taking a look at later draft picks post draft just to see if a team picked up some unheralded gem and this kids numbers just stuck out like a neon sign.

So what is ti with him? 18 yars old, 2nd year of eligibility, crazy numbers for an 18 year old yet taken in the 6th round?

Is he a terrilbe skater? Terrible hockey IQ? Unteachable? If there's anyone with more info on this kid I'd love to know

He was a 17 year old stuck behind a much older NB team in his draft year playing predominantly in the bottom 6 but despite his minutes he was actually a pretty decent producer relative to his ice time. He would’ve been one of the youngest players drafted in 2023.

His IQ is by far one of his strongest attributes. Skating isn’t exactly the strongest but isn’t terrible. He drives play and has a heavy shot.

A huge factor of him being taken so late is simply because he had “overager” over his head despite only being 2 months an overager. I thought he was going to go in the 2nd, maybe 3rd round and I had completely assumed he was already taken and had to do a double take if this was the same guy we took with our 6th rounder.

Like if he was born in September or October, he would literally be a 1st round pick. He outproduced/outperformed guys like Sennecke, Greentree, Basha, Howe and plethora of other 18 year olds (including others across different leagues) who are only a couple months younger than Romani.

For reference, Catton who is only 5 months younger taken 8th OA, put up 5 more points and 6 goals less than Romani. This isn’t like Romani being a full year older or anything, literally 5 months. I won’t even delve into Sennecke lmao

 

[Warh1ppy]

If only there were a 3 page thread with some of that information eh?

Or scouting reports?

Anthony Romani- 2024 NHL Draft Prospect Profile - The Hockey Writers NHL Entry Draft Latest News, Analysis & More

After not being selected in the 2023 NHL Draft, Anthony Romani has put many on notice with a breakout season heading into the 2024 NHL Draft.

thehockeywriters.com

Anthony Romani

July 2024- Romani has been drafted by Vancouver in the sixth round, 162nd overall. Keith Duggan April 2024 - Romani's production this year is a great case study in how much of a difference translatable skill can make at the junior level. Passed over in the 2023 NHL Draft due to his defensive...

dobberprospects.com

Pretty generic though to just call him an overager when that isn't entirely accurate outside of the basic definition though no?

it appears as though we're talking barely 2 months from being drafted earlier. But this years draft saw Lindstrom who is less than 6 months younger go 4th overall. Sennecke who is less than 6 months younger went 3rd. Demidov less than 5 months younger went 5th.

Knowing what this means in regards to being an overager who was passed over and finding out that a few months would have put him in another draft entirely is critical when finding out exactly why he was passed over.

Besides, those same scouting reports had people like Yakupov as a #1 overall pick. Hughes as barely a top 10 pick. Puljujarvi as a top 3.

Sometimes people who have watched on forums have a slightly more honest less click baity approach to explaining things, like how a guy who is barely 5 months older than the 5th overall pick this year was passed over last year, considered an overager this year yet still as an 18 year old is only one of 4 players in the last 20 years under the age of 19 to put up 55+ goals on the OHL (while the other 3 before him went 1st overall Tavares/Stamkos/Kane)

Now, I am not saying this kid is either of the above in any fashion; just saying it makes a person question the how and they why of his draft position vs production and to see if anyone else has a more credible point of view on things.

 

[Warh1ppy]

He was a 17 year old stuck behind a much older NB team in his draft year playing predominantly in the bottom 6 but despite his minutes he was actually a pretty decent producer relative to his ice time. He would’ve been one of the youngest players drafted in 2023.

His IQ is by far one of his strongest attributes. Skating isn’t exactly the strongest but isn’t terrible. He drives play and has a heavy shot.

A huge factor of him being taken so late is simply because he had “overager” over his head despite only being 2 months an overager. I thought he was going to go in the 2nd, maybe 3rd round and I had completely assumed he was already taken and had to do a double take if this was the same guy we took with our 6th rounder.

Like if he was born in September or October, he would literally be a 1st round pick. He outproduced/outperformed guys like Sennecke, Greentree, Basha, Howe and plethora of other 18 year olds (including others across different leagues) who are only a couple months younger than Romani.

For reference, Catton who is only 5 months younger taken 8th OA, put up 5 more points and 6 goals less than Romani. This isn’t like Romani being a full year older or anything, literally 5 months. I won’t even delve into Sennecke lmao

Appreciate the heads up.

Skating is one of those things that can actually be taught. So he's really only a few months younger than a handful of top 10 picks taken this year. But his production and goal scoring for the OHL are borderline elite for his age.

Patty Kane was 17 when he was drafted and taken by the Hawks but was only 2.5 months younger than Romani in comparison to their ages when they were drafted. Stamkos was drafted at 18 and put up less points than Romani (but played 7 less games) Tavares was drafted at 18 as well.

Is this kid an actual gem or a make work project? Like besides skating what are his actual detriments? His underlying numbers look incredible honestly and it seems super weird that a kid at his age and production should fall so low over a measly 2.5 months

 

[LemonSauceD]

Appreciate the heads up.

Skating is one of those things that can actually be taught. So he's really only a few months younger than a handful of top 10 picks taken this year. But his production and goal scoring for the OHL are borderline elite for his age.

Patty Kane was 17 when he was drafted and taken by the Hawks but was only 2.5 months younger than Romani in comparison to their ages when they were drafted. Stamkos was drafted at 18 and put up less points than Romani (but played 7 less games) Tavares was drafted at 18 as well.

Is this kid an actual gem or a make work project? Like besides skating what are his actual detriments? His underlying numbers look incredible honestly and it seems super weird that a kid at his age and production should fall so low over a measly 2.5 months

Romani will be interesting to follow next year just cause there’s little to compare his circumstance to. I really can’t find a close comparable in recent memory. Even guys like Garland and Mangiapane who were much older overagers had obvious flaws (size + quality of league + attitude) that made them unattractive and didn’t put up the kind of goal scoring Romani did as an 18 year old (although Garland did have 129pts in his 18/19y season before being drafted).

I have no clue what his season will look like. He has no real glaring issues or hinderances that would’ve suggested him being a 6th round choice in his 2nd year of draft eligibility was obvious or a given unlike the names above.

 

[Peasy]

He was a 17 year old stuck behind a much older NB team in his draft year playing predominantly in the bottom 6 but despite his minutes he was actually a pretty decent producer relative to his ice time. He would’ve been one of the youngest players drafted in 2023.

His IQ is by far one of his strongest attributes. Skating isn’t exactly the strongest but isn’t terrible. He drives play and has a heavy shot.

A huge factor of him being taken so late is simply because he had “overager” over his head despite only being 2 months an overager. I thought he was going to go in the 2nd, maybe 3rd round and I had completely assumed he was already taken and had to do a double take if this was the same guy we took with our 6th rounder.

Like if he was born in September or October, he would literally be a 1st round pick. He outproduced/outperformed guys like Sennecke, Greentree, Basha, Howe and plethora of other 18 year olds (including others across different leagues) who are only a couple months younger than Romani.

For reference, Catton who is only 5 months younger taken 8th OA, put up 5 more points and 6 goals less than Romani. This isn’t like Romani being a full year older or anything, literally 5 months. I won’t even delve into Sennecke lmao

There are plenty of examples of overagers being taken in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd round etc. Hell, several overages went much higher than Romani last draft. Just look at Becher, he was a d+2 and went 3rd round.

Not going to talk on Romani because I've never watched him. But I cant imagine the big reason he went 6th round is because it was his d+1 year.

Nucks themselves even took 2 players in rounds 3 and 4 before taking him. Theres clearly something that teams arent that big of a fan of when it comes to him/his game.

 

[wetcoast]

Even if that’s what he meant he should know that overager has a particular meaning when referencing a CHL player and instead state that he was passed over in his first year of eligibility in 2023 or something like that. I’ve seen people on this site say (about a player that was actually drafted in their first year of eligibility) that a player put up a big season “as an overager” when referencing the player’s D+1 season.

Fair enough but Romani remains a really good bet for where he was taken.

 

[LemonSauceD]

There are plenty of examples of overagers being taken in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd round etc. Hell, several overages went much higher than Romani last draft. Just look at Becher, he was a d+2 and went 3rd round.

huge difference between an overager in Romani’a case vs a guy like Becher who is 20 years old

 

[Warh1ppy]

So in essence, this boy is a project that will be a wait and see with some kind of darling underlying analytics.

Been a while since any team in the league drafted a true "where the hell did this guy come from" outside of the 3rd round who wasn't a goalie.

Maybe Weegar, Arvidsson? Probably the best I can think of are Bratt and Kaprizov in the last 10 years or so.