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C Sam Steel - Regina Pats, WHL (2016, 30th, ANA)

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I'd love to hear an in-depth report on Steel. He's probably one of the top ranked guys I know the least about. Watched him at the Hlinkas where he was good but nothing that screamed top15. Looked pretty small too. What makes him a higher ranked pick than other players with his size and production like Dillon Dubé, Adam Mascherin and Will Bitten? Better hockey IQ?
 
He's scoring at just a one point per game clip and he's small. Why is he a projected top 15-30 pick? Usually guys of his size are only 1st round picks if they have a much higher level of production. Guys of his level of production are usually much bigger if they are projected as 1st round picks. So what's the deal here? He must be the best defensive forward and best skater in his draft class? Is his dad 6'4 and his mom 5'11 with both having had huge growth spurts in college?

I get that Regina is not an offensive powerhouse but there are only 9 WHL teams with more than three additional goals scored. So they're right up there with the middle of the pack (albeit on the lower end).

So what's the story, here? Left over hype from being super star in lower levels of hockey?
 
rt said:
He's scoring at just a one point per game clip and he's small. Why is he a projected top 15-30 pick? Usually guys of his size are only 1st round picks if they have a much higher level of production. Guys of his level of production are usually much bigger if they are projected as 1st round picks. So what's the deal here? He must be the best defensive forward and best skater in his draft class? Is his dad 6'4 and his mom 5'11 with both having had huge growth spurts in college?

I get that Regina is not an offensive powerhouse but there are only 9 WHL teams with more than three additional goals scored. So they're right up there with the middle of the pack (albeit on the lower end).

So what's the story, here? Left over hype from being super star in lower levels of hockey?
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He isn't THAT small(5'11 180) but he's falling in the rankings because he's underperformed so far. He was expected to be a top 10 pick because of his vision, skating and IQ. There's still time for him to be more consistent with his efforts.
 
rt said:
He's scoring at just a one point per game clip and he's small. Why is he a projected top 15-30 pick? Usually guys of his size are only 1st round picks if they have a much higher level of production. Guys of his level of production are usually much bigger if they are projected as 1st round picks. So what's the deal here? He must be the best defensive forward and best skater in his draft class? Is his dad 6'4 and his mom 5'11 with both having had huge growth spurts in college?

I get that Regina is not an offensive powerhouse but there are only 9 WHL teams with more than three additional goals scored. So they're right up there with the middle of the pack (albeit on the lower end).

So what's the story, here? Left over hype from being super star in lower levels of hockey?
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He is very smart, he's very skilled, and he is performing entirely reasonably on a team that can only best be described as mediocre. In my eyes he has the highest hockey IQ of all draft-eligible WHL players this year. Rarely makes mistakes out there and when you couple all of these things together (IQ, skill, competitiveness, pedigree) you are left with a first rounder. Considering that the vast majority of 15-30th ov picks become marginal-avg. players in the NHL, I don't understand your not understanding his ranking in that area. No one is saying he will be a star, but he's a PPG on a pretty average team and does that while offering a ton of other things (can run a PP, will be on a team's first PK unit, is a very strong producer at 5 v 5)

I appreciate that you are asking an open and pointed question about his play as opposed to passing judgement without actively watching him, but there's really no question in my mind that Steel should slot into this year's first round, barring some catastrophic injury in the latter half of the season. Hopefully Seph and/or RS can chime in as I may have missed some relevant points here.
 
I should mention I've never seen him play. So he's got very high hockey IQ, his skating is a plus but not elite and you mentioned 1st unit PK potential for the NHL. Being that he plays in the Dub and for a team that isn't exactly offensively dynamic, his production plus other factors justifies the early ranking. I can see that. Makes sense. Still, at his size and his production level, he's not a "typical" first round pick. Nice to know he has atypical qualities that justify it.

So let's talk about another player who's "on paper" qualities look maybe top ten and definitely top 15 but is rarely ranked there.

Why the hell does Jake Bean not get more love? I've never watched him play, but his stat line for a draft eligible WHL defenseman is incredible.

89gp 20g 56a 76p +24 22PIM

And he's 6'1 and a lanky 170lbs, so he's still got some maturing and rounding out to do, but the frame is there. I mean, it's not like he's an OHL. This is the low scoring Dub. He's the 2nd leading D scorer in the whole damned league this year with 38gp 15g 22a 37p. The Calgary Hitmen have 40GF right now. He's got 15 of them. And was in on 37 of the 40. That's nuts for a draft eligible D.

Yet I never see him ranked before spot 12th, or so. And frequently after spot 18ish.

What's the deal?
 
rt said:
I should mention I've never seen him play. So he's got very high hockey IQ, his skating is a plus but not elite and you mentioned 1st unit PK potential for the NHL. Being that he plays in the Dub and for a team that isn't exactly offensively dynamic, his production plus other factors justifies the early ranking. I can see that. Makes sense. Still, at his size and his production level, he's not a "typical" first round pick. Nice to know he has atypical qualities that justify it.

So let's talk about another player who's "on paper" qualities look maybe top ten and definitely top 15 but is rarely ranked there.

Why the hell does Jake Bean not get more love? I've never watched him play, but his stat line for a draft eligible WHL defenseman is incredible.

89gp 20g 56a 76p +24 22PIM

And he's 6'1 and a lanky 170lbs, so he's still got some maturing and rounding out to do, but the frame is there. I mean, it's not like he's an OHL. This is the low scoring Dub. He's the 2nd leading D scorer in the whole damned league this year with 38gp 15g 22a 37p. The Calgary Hitmen have 40GF right now. He's got 15 of them. And was in on 37 of the 40. That's nuts for a draft eligible D.

Yet I never see him ranked before spot 12th, or so. And frequently after spot 18ish.

What's the deal?
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Sam's got some great wheels, quite frankly he just looks like he has all the tools. I question his overall toughness, he's not like a Benson who will fight back, but otherwise he's definitely a better player than the numbers indicate.

That being said, we've seen this happen where cerebral playmaking centers will be around PPG in the WHL but drop. So while some of us might still see him as a 1st rounder, he's far from a lock.

Jake Bean is an interesting case, because I personally have him mid-2nd round. He's like the opposite of Steel, he gets the points and a lot of them but I'm not sold on how he's doing it. He's not a great skater, his overall mobility isn't great and in today's NHL you really need to be a good skater (or at least a mobile one) in order to find success as an average sized defenseman. I've heard questions about his ability to process the play, because he can make some boneheaded decisions at times. Last year he was largely a product of Sanheim, and while this year he's been much improved in terms of his all-round ability, he's still very much a project player who needs to get better in a lot of areas before he can be considered a great prospect.

That being said, if he pieces it together he'll be a great pick. With his production and potential you can't say no. So I can understand how some people might have him in the 1st round. And it's not like he hasn't been productive in Sanheim's absence, so who knows? Either he'll make me look very stupid, or he'll fail to really take that next step into being a dominant two-way threat in the Dub.
 
zjh said:
Steel won't be a first round pick
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I respect your opinion and knowledge of the W but literally every major scouting service has him listed as a first rounder. Care to elaborate? What W players do you see going ahead of him, save for Benson?
 
foxygen said:
I respect your opinion and knowledge of the W but literally every major scouting service has him listed as a first rounder. Care to elaborate? What W players do you see going ahead of him, save for Benson?
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Hasn't showed he can succeed in the middle of the ice. Him and Clague will likely be waiting until day 2. They have stuck along long enough due to name factor, but there are tons of better options. IMO Bean, Dube, Hart, Hajek, Howden are all right there, if not ahead of Steel. Just what my eyes tell me.
 
The Draft Analyst profile: C Sam Steel



A power play specialist with a penchant for delivering in the clutch, Steel has a very good shot that he wires hard off the pass or off his back foot. He simply doesn’t use it enough, but he gets a mulligan when you consider he uses common sense more than constantly deferring to the shot or pass on first impulse. He plays in all situations and can be groomed as a realistic two-way option for the pivot.
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http://www.thedraftanalyst.com/prospects/draft-profile-sam-steel/

Highly-underrated prospect. We had this ranked as a first rounder from the get-go. Sick hands from in close and pro-level finishing skills, albeit on a playmaking center.

I don't think he has top-line upside, but he'll flourish on a deep team and provide top-6 depth.
 
Numz said:
Any update?

No longer see him on any list for first round.
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Sam Steel was last ranked 22nd on DraftBuzz Hockey's February list.

While he has dropped from his original preliminary ranking in June 2015, he has remained a top 30 prospect for each published 2016 NHL Draft ranking this year by DraftBuzz.
 
Sick hands and vision. Elite passing, great scoring, good skating. That kind of skills can even climb around the 20th.
 
76 said:
Sick hands and vision. Elite passing, great scoring, good skating. That kind of skills can even climb around the 20th.
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20th yikes! Tyler Ennis was much better at the same age! Sam doesn't have the speed or elite hand skill... I think at best his upside is a third liner. With his size he is going to have to continue to round out his game to be able to compete at the next level. He makes the plays you expect him to make... he rarely makes the WOW plays that you like to see for a guy under 6 feet.
 
76 said:
Sick hands and vision. Elite passing, great scoring, good skating. That kind of skills can even climb around the 20th.
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He isn't exactly a great scorer. 26 even strength goals in his first 150 games, compared to Nolan Patrick at 55. Comparables are dude in 147 games at 42, howden at 33. Eberle had 42, Schenn 45, vitranen 39, hawryluk 44, Gabrielle 41, reinhart 45, debrusk 41. Harkens had 25, Gawdin 24.
Steel has a lot of total assists, 92, Barzal had 131, Patrick had 85, howden 75, harkins 86, reinhart 83, dube 82
Steel will probably go higher than expected, due to paddocks connections. He is an intriguing prospect. Skilled but maybe been a bit soft, and not huge either. No doubt he can pass, but hasn't proven to be a great scorer yet...will go between 22 and 35 is my guess
 
I had Steel as a 4th round type. Simply don't get the hype here at all.

Small, slow, non-dynamic vanilla player.

Nice hands on the PP and good vision but to me he projects as a second line AHL center. Linden Vey type player.
 
MS said:
I had Steel as a 4th round type. Simply don't get the hype here at all.

Small, slow, non-dynamic vanilla player.

Nice hands on the PP and good vision but to me he projects as a second line AHL center. Linden Vey type player.
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Maybe you're thinking of someone else? Steel has some decent wheels.
 
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