With significantly more of the junior season complete, I can update two players the model raises above the others. There is also some scouting on both these D prospects. .
As I have mentioned in the draft thread, Joni Jurmo is getting quite a bit of attention. Steve K. at The Draft Analyst is really high on the big Finn:
Jurmo has everything you would want in a potential top-pairing defenseman. He is an effortless skater with a long, clean stride who doesn’t buckle under the first sign of pressure. When it comes to the breakout, Jurmo utilizes quick thinking and a series of deceptive moves to either peel away from a forechecker or trap him with a bank pass. At 6-foot-3, 190 pounds, Jurmo can be an intimidating presence as he powers through the zone at top speed. His decision making with the puck is more clean than it is creative, but he has excellent vision and will delay in the offensive zone to open up a line for either a hard shot or an on-the-tape seam pass. And good luck trying to dance around him in a one-on-one scenario — Jurmo closes on rushing forwards in a hurry and will neutralize an entry attempt with either a strong body check or well-timed stick-on-puck.
The one d-man who scores even higher in PSF is Ronan Seeley. While I am not familiar with Alex Taxman at Future Scope, he makes Seeley sound like a possible 3rd round steal:
Seeley is your prototypical puck moving defenseman. He’s a strong skater, with great mobility in transition. Seeley’s also able to keep pretty tight gaps with his skating, and it’s rare for him to get beat straight up. He’s not overly physical in his own end, but most of the time he doesn’t need to be. He would rather win a board battle with his stick than by trying to body the other guy out.
HockeyProspect.com has similar comments:
Ronan is a very good skater and can rush the puck up ice with speed consistently. He is excellent on puck retrieval making smart, quick decisions and will take the hit to make the play. Pretty explosive backwards skating too and will use it to close down opponents who are on a ten or two o’clock angle on the rush rather than turning and chasing forward.
I am pleased that the two highest scorers in the model are having their skills verified by the eye test. My hope is both hear their names called by the Canes.