D Ryan Lin - Vancouver Giants, WHL (2026 Draft)

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GermanSpitfire

EU Video Scout for McKeen’s | Rest Easy #13
Jul 20, 2020
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One of the best defenders available out of western Canada for the 2008 age group. Lin has been seen as a top defender in this age group for while, combines excellent decision making and positioning in both the offensive and defensive zones with physical play, and a calmness to his game. He should go quite high In the upcoming WHL draft and is an exiting prospect moving forward.

 
He has looked awesome even going back to the playoffs last year. Extremely poised and had a great preseason so I’m not surprised by the strong start. Really excited to see how much offence he can produce at this level as the rest of his game is so polished.
 
10 GP, 13A after 2 primary assists last night. Has bumped 19 year old Mazden Leslie off the top unit on the powerplay. Feels like he’s getting super close to potting his first goal. Very mature game for a 16 year old, often having to be the more responsible one on his pair with Leslie.
 
10 GP, 13A after 2 primary assists last night. Has bumped 19 year old Mazden Leslie off the top unit on the powerplay. Feels like he’s getting super close to potting his first goal. Very mature game for a 16 year old, often having to be the more responsible one on his pair with Leslie.
Thanks for sharing your insight. He's made quite an impression, not just on his team, but on other teams as well, as this article attests.

 
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I thought Lin did well at the WHC17. As some have said, mature game. I question if maybe a little too mature at this age compared to some of the others. He was better defensively than I expected. Does he have a high ceiling is my main question? 5'11 defenseman. Offensive ability and skating is not bad, but is it NHL caliber unless he grows taller than 5'11 or 6'0?

I think we're probably talking about an early round pick, but the ceiling could see him be a slider as time goes by.
 
I thought Lin did well at the WHC17. As some have said, mature game. I question if maybe a little too mature at this age compared to some of the others. He was better defensively than I expected. Does he have a high ceiling is my main question? 5'11 defenseman. Offensive ability and skating is not bad, but is it NHL caliber unless he grows taller than 5'11 or 6'0?

I think we're probably talking about an early round pick, but the ceiling could see him be a slider as time goes by.

We saw a continual trend of smallish defenders getting drafted higher and higher between 2000 and 2020 and it's now moving the other way, and it's going to be really hard to be drafted in the first round again as a sub-6'0 defender unless your offensive skill level is off-the-charts.
 
We saw a continual trend of smallish defenders getting drafted higher and higher between 2000 and 2020 and it's now moving the other way, and it's going to be really hard to be drafted in the first round again as a sub-6'0 defender unless your offensive skill level is off-the-charts.
And the issue isn’t that the league is reverting to D-men who bring nothing but size. It’s just that 6-foot-3 D these days are more and more skilled and teams would rather have a 6-foot-3 two-way D than a 5-foot-10 two-way D, if given the choice.
 
Saw him live against Kelowna. Really controls the speed of the game when he has the puck. When he doesn't have it, his positioning is solid. Covers for Leslie who can be a bit of a wildcard sometimes.

Doesn't shoot nearly enough and doesn't have a good shot. But an excellent passer.

Being overshadowed by a Dupont, but he's put up a very solid season as a rookie in the Dub.
 
I thought Lin did well at the WHC17. As some have said, mature game. I question if maybe a little too mature at this age compared to some of the others. He was better defensively than I expected. Does he have a high ceiling is my main question? 5'11 defenseman. Offensive ability and skating is not bad, but is it NHL caliber unless he grows taller than 5'11 or 6'0?

I think we're probably talking about an early round pick, but the ceiling could see him be a slider as time goes by.

but hes 5'11 at the age of 16. Which means he can be 6'0 or 6'1 by the time he's hits his draft year. 23 points in 30 games for a 16 year old dman, extremely impressive. Would love to see a "Lin" Play for Vancouver.
 
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Lin looks pretty good so far and I wonder where he gets drafted compared to Carson Carels who is doing quite well in Prince George this year.
 
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