C Will Smith - San Jose Sharks , NHL(2023, 4th, SJS)
- Thread starter GermanSpitfire
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Ryan Van Horne
aka Scribe
Here's some more equivalency numbers from a different source, focusing on all the top prospects for the 2023 draft.
Postulates
Registered User
- Jun 7, 2022
- 410
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Osakahaus
Chillin' on Fuji
- May 28, 2021
- 8,480
- 4,150
Postulates
Registered User
- Jun 7, 2022
- 410
- 277
Lou Bloom
Registered User
- Oct 14, 2020
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- 1,998
Maybe I've just caught the wrong games of him but I've been underwhelmed every time I've seen him play. His defense and motor are questionable and even offensively he's more of a connector of play rather than a driver of play. He undoubtedly is a very skilled player with very good instincts offensively but I've been more impressed by Oliver Moore anytime I watch the U18s.
KevSkillz4
Registered User
- Apr 11, 2016
- 8,109
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I still have Dvorsky at 5, but Will Smith is easily a top 5 talent in this draft. If Habs can draft him at 5-6 range, that will be amazing.
Anaheim4ever
Registered User
- Jun 15, 2017
- 9,243
- 5,849
Anaheim will draft him at #5 or #6 after the lottery screws them over.
He will be known as the Fresh Prince of Anaheim who has a nasty SLAP shot.
He will be known as the Fresh Prince of Anaheim who has a nasty SLAP shot.
Ryan Van Horne
aka Scribe
Not an unreasonable take. I know some who think Moore is the best prospect on the team. They do have different styles, that's for sure.
Interestingly, the latest Bob McKenzie list has a pretty flattering comment about Smith, who is No. 6.
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SlafySZN
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- May 21, 2022
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I don’t really agree for the defensive side, i think he’s pretty good. His motor does seems a little low but because he has such high IQ i see it as he’s always in the best spots and knows where to be at all times so it looks like he is not working as hard but it’s not the case.
Lavar Ball
Neva Lost
All due respect to Smith but highest IQ in the draft is without a doubt Michkov IMO. Smith is up there though
Very very cerebral player which means his bust risk is much lower than most.
Lots of scout pegging this guy to be the smartest ICE-Q player in this draft class but his motor and explosiveness is average at best.
Lots of scout pegging this guy to be the smartest ICE-Q player in this draft class but his motor and explosiveness is average at best.
Yeah, just from a quick look at the "top all time" numbers, I would have guessed it's a bit low on USHL production, and a bit high on Liiga production.
Liiga especially stands out, the Liiga players here are basically universally super-disappointing if you go by NHLe:
- Granlund (6th best draft year NHLe of any prospect since 2004)
- Kakko (10th)
- Laine (12th)
- Pulju (25th)
- Kemell (31st)
- Lundell (33rd)
Obviously too early to say how good Kemell and Lundell end up, but likely nowhere remotely close to the 30ish best player drafted from 2004-2022. Having the 33rd best NHLe over 19 drafts means that Lundell would rank 1.7th place in an average draft by NHLe, somewhere between 1st and 2nd overall, and he and Kemell were nowhere close to 2nd overall picks in their draft years.
Kakko, Laine and Pulju are the only ones drafted around where their NHLe suggests (Kakko and Laine have ~1st overall NHLe and were taken 2nd, Pulju ~1st-2nd overall NHLe and take 4th), but they've all been disappointing picks (Laine a bit disappointing, Kakko/Pulju very disappointing).
Will be interesting to see if this analysis agrees, over a larger sample size:
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Ryan Van Horne
aka Scribe
This is what I love about scouting and draft prospects. There is rarely unanimity and even the comment in the McKenzie column is hedged. It just says "many scouts" -- not all.
Lavar Ball
Neva Lost
True. And I shouldn't say "without a doubt", It's just when I watch Michkov he is always a step ahead of everyone else, he's got brains like I almost haven't seen before in a prospect. But McKenzie's scouts know a lot more about these guys than me
Ryan Van Horne
aka Scribe
I'm sure if more scouts were able to watch Michkov live this year, they might offer a different view. I know all the teams have scouts in Russia, but there hasn't been as many viewings of him as there usually would be.
I took note of the comparison Craig Button made to Soviet great Valeri Kharlamov, who was so talented and so smart Team Canada had no antidote for him in the 1972 Summit Series -- that is until Bobby Clarke fractured a bone in Kharlamov's ankle with a two-handed slash in Game 6. Kharlamov missed Game 7 of the series and returned for Game 8, but wasn't nearly as effective.
BTW, Serge Savard said Kharlamov was one of the top five players of all time.
Hat trick (including OT winner) + assist tonight vs Dubuque.
Gaylord Q Tinkledink
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- Apr 29, 2018
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Would be beyond legendary if he walks up and slaps the GM that selects him telling him to keep his name out his mouth
Goon42
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- Apr 12, 2013
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wow so funny i bet no one has ever made that joke before
Ryan Van Horne
aka Scribe
I think the mods need to make everyone who makes that joke go back and read every previous post that made that joke just so they can see how unoriginal it is.
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Lavar Ball
Neva Lost
How do we think Smith compares to Cooley as a prospect? I think most people agree the top four this year would all have gone 1OA last year, but where do we think Smith would have fallen?
Generally in the 5-8 Range IMO. I think Cooley and Smith have different skill sets. One is a pure dynamic offensive dyno and the other is more of a 2 way C. I have him in the same group with Dlvorsky, Benson and Cristall
MichaelFarrell
Registered User
I like Cooley’s game more than Smith’s.
Both have great talent. Smith can be a bit inconsistent with his effort. When I watched Cooley play last year, he looked every bit like a top pick every game he played. Cooley has an absolute phenomenal motor and is always trying to make a play.
Smith is a player with phenomenal skill. But, Cooley is just a better play driver at this point. Cooley is the type of center that truly amplifies his teammates. Will Smith is able to drive play, but sometimes relies too much on his linemates.
That being said, it’s close in terms of who is the better player. Both have great speed, skill, and passing ability.
Just looking at their draft years. I’d draft these players in this order:
1. Logan Cooley
2. Will Smith
3. Ryan Leonard
4. Frank Nazar
5. Oliver Moore
6. Lane Hutson
7. Cutter Gauthier
8. Gabe Perreault
9. Seamus Casey
10. Rutger McGroarty
I know this is kinda off topic but what makes you put Leonard over Nazar and Moore? Other's I can understand.
