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Prospect Info: CBJ Prospect Thread XI

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FromChaos22

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Jan 10, 2008
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thebus88 said:
I think the real question with Mateychuk-Jiricek, individually and as a pair, is WHEN not IF. I really think Mateychuk is better and really looked just as much if not more ready than Jiricek during preseason. I think injuries should be just as much of a concern with Jiricek as it is with Denton.

Mateychuk needs some upper body strength and Jiricek needs some lower body strength and we’re good to go. The way Mateychuk plays and controls the game as a “puck mover”, I could see him leading the D in minutes as soon as next year. Plays completely different than Werenski, like a smaller and BETTER Provorov. Other than Fantilli, I’m more excited about him than any other CBJ player moving forward.
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Does Mateychuk for sure have the higher offensive potential?
 

cbjthrowaway

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Jul 4, 2020
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this probably got posted a few days ago, but there's an EP rinkside writeup about players standing out in liiga, and oiva keskinen got a pretty big shoutout. here's an excerpt:
Keskinen has the potential to emerge as a real dual-threat centre in the next few years. He was among the most dangerous power play weapons at the U20 level last season, capable of finishing plays with his one-timer from the half wall or by picking corners with a heavy outside leg wrister. While he's only scored twice this season, the expectation is that his goal-scoring pace will ramp up eventually.

Keskinen's puck skills and playmaking vision are also projectable tools, even to the NHL. While the skating stride has a few quirks, he can be surprisingly quick in bursts and his agility continues to improve.

He's also clearly taken his defensive duties more seriously as he's moved up to Liiga, constantly spending a lot of energy to tracking his man. As of result, he's one of the few Tappara forwards with a positive shot share at 5-on-5. Look for him to fill one of the top-nine centre spots for Finland at the World Juniors.
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stevo61

stevo61

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Jul 5, 2011
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majormajor said:
I still haven't heard any reason why Keskinen wasn't taken before the 7th round.
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Probably just boils down to not many GMs/scouting staffs are as comfortable drafting overagers as ours is. That and do many players even get drafted out of that U20 league?

Just checked a couple articles about overagers to watch last draft and noone had him
 

tunnelvision

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Jul 31, 2021
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Michigan Magic said:
Dumais... 2G, 1A (13-14-27 in 10 games)
Pinelli... Hat Trick 2nd this season (14-5-19 in 14 games)
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Apparently Dumais was a highlight reel machine last night. Great patience and dangles on the first goal, incredibly well-timed pass on Cataford's goal and then the patented zero wind-up snipe on his second of the night. Just astonishing offensive instincts.





Pinelli's goals were great too and that stat line is impressive. For some reason he still doesn't excite me as much as other high-scoring prospects. He's looked so small and soft in the action I've seen (preseason and last year).
 
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tunnelvision

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stevo61 said:
Mateychuk is so fun to watch. On the PK doing his thing and recognizing the penalty is almost over so rushes the puck up ice and creates a prime chance for a teammate. I dont know what the fancy transitions numbers say but for my eyes hes absolutely elite at moving the puck forward either through skating or finding a man in stride
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Just finished watching MJ's last four games. They're really milking everything out of Mateychuk's final junior season, he must be playing well over 30 minutes every game. It's amazing that he's never seemed to be out of gas, even with his minutes and active playing style.

A joy to watch but he isn't perfect. Could be shooting even more for my liking, he still tends to overpass from quality scoring chances/areas. That suggests he still doesn't trust his shooting skills enough. Quicker and more consistent puck handling would help him.

I noticed less defensive issues than last year. He's clearly faster and stronger than most junior players he plays against, so he often breaks up plays in NZ with ease and manages to wrestle pucks away from corner battles. Last night he made a bad pinch after an OZ faceoff which lead to a 2v1 and a goal against. I'm not too worried about that type of stuff however, because like most bad defensive plays I've seen from him, it wasn't a result of lack of effort or totally boneheaded decision. It just showed how much he wants to make an impact every shift.

In the past I've been critical of his shot and pass blocking abilities but I don't recall seeing anything too alarming in that regard in those 4 games so maybe there's been some improvement.
 
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koteka

koteka

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Jan 1, 2017
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Double-Shift Lasse said:
I admit I watched the video hoping I would disagree with you - but I don't.
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You know when the coach is out with some PeeWees and they are screwing around and a kid steals the puck from the coach and starts talking trash? Dumais looks like the coach the next time he gets the puck and he actual tries to beat the kid.
 
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Michigan Magic said:
Dumais is one of the best prospects nobody knows about. He not really talked about outside of CBJ circles.
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I don't think it's that, I just think most people are under the impression that his game won't translate. If he was 6ft 180 he'd be getting mentioned with Bedard.
 
thebus88

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FromChaos22 said:
Does Mateychuk for sure have the higher offensive potential?
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Just to answer this, I think yes, but, they are seemingly quite different players. Both “stylistically” and what their “ceilings” top out at in the NHL. I also think they mesh VERY WELL as a pair long term.

Jiricek may very well end up with better GOAL scoring numbers, as his (heavy) shot (from the point/distance) will always be a strength and something he will have over Mateychuk. Then again, having a hard shot and an effective shot are not the same thing, but, Jiricek seems to be good at both of these and he will only get better. Depends what type of “weapon” you are looking for really.

Mateychuk, while not having a “heavy” shot, still seems to be able to get shots through and on net very well, along with having EXCELLENT puck movement/passing skills and skating ability that doesn’t really get much better, other than TOP NHL players.

5 on 5 is where I think the (main) impact of Mateychuk, and offensive impact/production will come from. His skating ability and way he reads the game will be a MAJOR asset in transition, and I can see him putting up huge assist numbers, along with a varying amount of goals depending on his usage and finishing ability. The way he skates and thinks the game, he will get plenty of scoring chances near the net where he will not have to “overpower” the goalie.

And to be clear, he isn’t a Boqvist level offensive minded player, where he seemingly doesn’t know where to be defensively and/or realizes it too late, and then gets out positioned or outmuscled when he gets there. He’s smart and knows where to be and what to do defensively. Literally better than Jiricek defensively.
 
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