D Haoxi (Simon) Wang - Oshawa Generals, OHL (2025 Draft)

[Briser la glace]

Here his first game in the OHL.

 

[Briser la glace]

 

[Hinterland]

Top15? Really? I think that would require one heck of a 2025.
Yes, you can't teach size and Wang is clearly a good skater. Still, at this point he's far from a complete or well rounded player and one heck of a project. Being big doesn't mean you go top15 in an NHL draft. Performance matters as well and Wang so far hasn't performed. Talent is there, performance is not. Even Lian Bichsel didn't go top15 despite cracking SHL Leksands in his draft season. Silayev did go top15 but he was a regular for KHL Nizhny Novgorod all draft season long.
Wang, as we speak, isn't even close from Bichsel or Silayev kinda level. The upside may be there but we're talking different worlds here. Wang would get eaten alive playing vs men. Wang so far failed to crack an OHL lineup in his draft season. The one game he played he frankly just wasn't good. I watched the game vs Ottawa and he was struggling. He was bad enough to not get another chance since. He's gonna be one of the younger players available but he has to crack the Generals (or find another place to play at a higher level) if he even wants to get drafted. I'm not saying he can't play in the NHL eventually but at this point he's a project at best and top15 seems like one heck of a stretch. We'll see. But he'd probably have to dominate the OHL if he wants to go top15.

 

[Briser la glace]

Top15? Really? I think that would require one heck of a 2025.
Yes, you can't teach size and Wang is clearly a good skater. Still, at this point he's far from a complete or well rounded player and one heck of a project. Being big doesn't mean you go top15 in an NHL draft. Performance matters as well and Wang so far hasn't performed. Talent is there, performance is not. Even Lian Bichsel didn't go top15 despite cracking SHL Leksands in his draft season. Silayev did go top15 but he was a regular for KHL Nizhny Novgorod all draft season long.
Wang, as we speak, isn't even close from Bichsel or Silayev kinda level. The upside may be there but we're talking different worlds here. Wang would get eaten alive playing vs men. Wang so far failed to crack an OHL lineup in his draft season. The one game he played he frankly just wasn't good. I watched the game vs Ottawa and he was struggling. He was bad enough to not get another chance since. He's gonna be one of the younger players available but he has to crack the Generals (or find another place to play at a higher level) if he even wants to get drafted. I'm not saying he can't play in the NHL eventually but at this point he's a project at best and top15 seems like one heck of a stretch. We'll see. But he'd probably have to dominate the OHL if he wants to go top15.

I agree 100% with you, but it's just a bold prediction made 6 months before the draft, let's not take it too seriously

 

[Hinterland]

I agree 100% with you, but it's just a bold prediction made 6 months before the draft, let's not take it too seriously

We'll see. But Wang has to play in the OHL. If he doesn't get the chance in Oshawa I wonder if he may be involved in a trade. He'd be a valuable asset in trades. Oshawa was bad early on but Ritchie turned the team around single handedly and they've been on a roll since. For as long as Ritchie is healthy I think it would make sense for them to go all in this season.

 

[FourQuarters]

I support the kid, but I also think getting drafted too high is not good for his career.

 

[Albatros]

An interesting project for sure, but if I'm drafting 16th overall and want size in my defense then why would I pick this guy and not Mrtka who has a higher floor and shoots right? On the left Smith might also still be available. It will be very hard to justify him compared to the BPA anywhere in the first round. If he's still available in the 3rd I'd absolutely consider using my pick though.

 

[StreetHawk]

An interesting project for sure, but if I'm drafting 16th overall and want size in my defense then why would I pick this guy and not Mrtka who has a higher floor and shoots right? On the left Smith might also still be available. It will be very hard to justify him compared to the BPA anywhere in the first round. If he's still available in the 3rd I'd absolutely consider using my pick though.

I recall Constantino of SN had him late round 1 in his first mock. He's since slipped out of his last mock draft. In light of the He signing, Wang was born in Asia as well.
A couple other Asian prospects in this draft. Alex Huang and Tanner Lam are rated to go Rd 2 for Huang and then mid rounds for Lam.

 

[LeProspector]

I recall Constantino of SN had him late round 1 in his first mock. He's since slipped out of his last mock draft. In light of the He signing, Wang was born in Asia as well.
A couple other Asian prospects in this draft. Alex Huang and Tanner Lam are rated to go Rd 2 for Huang and then mid rounds for Lam.

That guy uses the 32nd pick as a “This player is a hot topic as of late and is rather obscure, I’ll throw him at the end of the first round”

 

[Kevin Musto]

Top15? Really? I think that would require one heck of a 2025.
Yes, you can't teach size and Wang is clearly a good skater. Still, at this point he's far from a complete or well rounded player and one heck of a project. Being big doesn't mean you go top15 in an NHL draft. Performance matters as well and Wang so far hasn't performed. Talent is there, performance is not. Even Lian Bichsel didn't go top15 despite cracking SHL Leksands in his draft season. Silayev did go top15 but he was a regular for KHL Nizhny Novgorod all draft season long.
Wang, as we speak, isn't even close from Bichsel or Silayev kinda level. The upside may be there but we're talking different worlds here. Wang would get eaten alive playing vs men. Wang so far failed to crack an OHL lineup in his draft season. The one game he played he frankly just wasn't good. I watched the game vs Ottawa and he was struggling. He was bad enough to not get another chance since. He's gonna be one of the younger players available but he has to crack the Generals (or find another place to play at a higher level) if he even wants to get drafted. I'm not saying he can't play in the NHL eventually but at this point he's a project at best and top15 seems like one heck of a stretch. We'll see. But he'd probably have to dominate the OHL if he wants to go top15.

He goes top 10 if he can produce in the OHL

You can't ignore unicorn potential

 

[Hinterland]

He goes top 10 if he can produce in the OHL

You can't ignore unicorn potential

Define produce? Are we talking 20 points? 30? Eduard Bondar has six points playing for what's probably the worst team in the Q. And boy does he ever look good. From game 1 he's been fantastic. Should he go top10, too? Furthermore, Bondar is a righty while Wang is a lefty.

 

[Kevin Musto]

Define produce? Are we talking 20 points? 30? Eduard Bondar has six points playing for what's probably the worst team in the Q. And boy does he ever look good. From game 1 he's been fantastic. Should he go top10, too? Furthermore, Bondar is a righty while Wang is a lefty.

I'm talking about minimum .7 ppg pace

But I'll add Bondar to my watchlist. Thanks for the tip.

 

[SoundAndFury]

"Top-10", "Top-15" for a kid who barely broke into major junior in his draft year? Okay. Must be big Duncan Siemens and Griffin Reinhart fans.

 

[Hinterland]

I'm talking about minimum .7 ppg pace

But I'll add Bondar to my watchlist. Thanks for the tip.

I think to score .7 Wang needs to crack the Generals. If he gets traded he'll be on an OHL team as bad as Bondar's Val d'Or in the Q. Tough to score in the CHL as a draft eligible defenseman if you're on a rebuilding team.

 

[Briser la glace]

Guys, it's just a bold prediction of what might happen in 6 months

Who would have thought 6 months ago that Ryabkin would now be excluded of many Top-32s?

All I'm saying is.. we don't know what the rankings will look like in 6 months. I'm just making the prediction that Wang will be a huge riser in the second half because he's a unicorn.

 

[FiveTacos]

Guys, it's just a bold prediction of what might happen in 6 months

Who would have thought 6 months ago that Ryabkin would now be excluded of many Top-32s?

All I'm saying is.. we don't know what the rankings will look like in 6 months. I'm just making the prediction that Wang will be a huge riser in the second half because he's a unicorn.

I predict that he will get slapped quite often when he introduces himself to the ladies.

 

[cheesymc]

When is he going to start playing regularly? Is he limited to the amount of games or is he still contemplating the college route?

 

[Kobe Armstrong]

He's got that Dustin Rose aura

 

[Leviathan899]

We'll see. But Wang has to play in the OHL. If he doesn't get the chance in Oshawa I wonder if he may be involved in a trade. He'd be a valuable asset in trades. Oshawa was bad early on but Ritchie turned the team around single handedly and they've been on a roll since. For as long as Ritchie is healthy I think it would make sense for them to go all in this season.

Not happening. He’s on a B contract and can only dress in 10 OHL games. Oshawa’s gm said the plan is for him to stay with his Jr A team, play some call up games for oshawa and then be full time for oshawa next season. He’s not getting traded.

 

[Hinterland]

Not happening. He’s on a B contract and can only dress in 10 OHL games. Oshawa’s gm said the plan is for him to stay with his Jr A team, play some call up games for oshawa and then be full time for oshawa next season. He’s not getting traded.

Thx for the clarification. He's not gonna go top15 in an NHL draft without playing major junior though. I don't see that happening. Probably 2nd/3rd round at best. Though that doesn't have to be a bad thing. He's clearly a project and gonna need time. 1st round let alone top15 would put him under a lot of pressure.

 

[Leviathan899]

Thx for the clarification. He's not gonna go top15 in an NHL draft without playing major junior though. I don't see that happening. Probably 2nd/3rd round at best. Though that doesn't have to be a bad thing. He's clearly a project and gonna need time. 1st round let alone top15 would put him under a lot of pressure.

I agree, even if he did I wouldn’t select him top 15. He’s extremely raw and the potential is there, but he’s a true project and will need significant development time. Like a full year or two of OHL, then at least a couple of years in the ncaa. So we’re looking at a 4-5 year time frame, at least. I agree if he goes that high, teams will want to sign him sooner rather than later and then the clock starts ticking. For his sake I hope he goes in a more reasonable spot. I think 2nd round is fair as at that point, a lot of the really high upside guys are off the board and you’re now picking more for need, late birthdays who are late bloomers, etc. I’d be ok with my team taking him in the 2nd, the potential upside is worth it.

 

[GoJackets1]

He's got that Dustin Rose aura

Holy hyperbole Batman. Nobody has ever had an aura even approaching Dustin Rose.

 

[StreetHawk]

Wang has a July birthday, but it appears he's not going to join BU until 2026/2027 season. He's part of their 2026 class. So, looks like he's going OHL next season full time I would imagine.

CHN: Top-ranked Terriers; A Defenseman for the Future

tw-align-center 2023-24 CHN Preseason Top 10 https://t.co/lSMB8UkdOa pic.twitter.com/vKLY9PnlXF — College Hockey News (@chnews) Septem...

terrierhockey.blogspot.com

 

[Hockeyville USA]

I support the kid, but I also think getting drafted too high is not good for his career.

Having a "1" next to your name puts moderate to insane level of pressure on you depending on market. Having a "2" next to your name, selected just a couple picks later, means far less pressure on you, even in the hockey crazed markets.

He'll be a 2nd or 3rd rounder IMHO.