F Andrew Cristall - Kelowna Rockets, WHL (2023, 40th, WSH)

[FLYguy3911]

 

[Kevin Musto]

Buddy, no offense. But I don't know why you're so obsessed with rankings… Do you want hawks to draft him? Or you want your guy to be drafted high?
If he's 15OA, he's not going to be someone else. If he's first overall pick, he's not going to be guaranteed anything. Cristall is Cristall, no matter where he is. I just hope he could meet a great coach to help him refined his play.
You only make people into his haters by comparing him to others like this…

edit: I'm not trying to change your mind, it's just my opinion.

I don't have any obsession with rankings.

This is a prospect board, it's for discussion. If you're not interested, don't comment.

 

[Artorius Horus T]

7 points behind Bedard

 

[Colezuki]

Obviously subject to change but Grant McCagg (although controversial, has quite a few NHL connections) said a majority of the people he’s talked to in NHL circles don’t have crtisall top 15, let alone close to Michkov. Corey Pronman reiterated similar.

This could be one of those random situations though that happens that If he maintains the pace then will start hear him coming up the rankings in thew new years. There is a play above me posted here that would never fly in the NHL. wonder if some scouts are worried about projectablity at the NHL level

 

[wetcoast]

This could be one of those random situations though that happens that If he maintains the pace then will start hear him coming up the rankings in thew new years. There is a play above me posted here that would never fly in the NHL. wonder if some scouts are worried about projectablity at the NHL level

His projectibility is certainly lower than his production would suggest.

 

[Lavar Ball]

 

[ponder]

I wonder why ppl think he’s not projectable? He’s super shifty/elusive, terrific hands, great offensive instincts, nice shot, he has a tonne going for him. Like his compete level as well. Agreed that he’s stylistically similar to Marner, though not as good as same age Mitch IMO. Bratt vibes too.

I see people critiquing his skating, but I don’t really get it, he’s got great edges, turns on a dime and moves in all directions very fluidly. Moves between outside and inside edges beautifully, moves in and out of mohawks really effectively, etc. He doesn’t have burner top speed, but that’s just one element of skating, I think he’s a strong skater overall.

5’10” is a downside, no doubt, but IMO he’s got the skills/game to make it work.

He’s definitely not in my top 4, as Bedard, Michkov, Carlsson and Fantilli are just too strong. However, I’d give him strong consideration in the 5-10 range, and I think he’d be great value in the 11-15 range.

 

[WeThreeKings]

I wonder why ppl think he’s not projectable? He’s super shifty/elusive, terrific hands, great offensive instincts, nice shot, he has a tonne going for him. Like his compete level as well. Agreed that he’s stylistically similar to Marner, though not as good as same age Mitch IMO. Bratt vibes too.

I see people critiquing his skating, but I don’t really get it, he’s got great edges, turns on a dime and moves in all directions very fluidly. Moves between outside and inside edges beautifully, moves in and out of mohawks really effectively, etc. He doesn’t have burner top speed, but that’s just one element of skating, I think he’s a strong skater overall.

5’10” is a downside, no doubt, but IMO he’s got the skills/game to make it work.

He’s definitely not in my top 4, as Bedard, Michkov, Carlsson and Fantilli are just too strong. However, I’d give him strong consideration in the 5-10 range, and I think he’d be great value in the 11-15 range.

Looks like a Caufield situation where he's not an absolute elite speedster in straight lines, so combined with his size, people critique the skating.

I'm not worried about the skating at all. If you have good agility and edges, I think that matters more in today's NHL.

 

[NotProkofievian]

Looks like a Caufield situation where he's not an absolute elite speedster in straight lines, so combined with his size, people critique the skating.

I'm not worried about the skating at all. If you have good agility and edges, I think that matters more in today's NHL.

Having seen him up close, his technique is quite fine, and while he's not a speedster, he also doesn't go ''speeding around.'' He grabs space whenever he needs it, but otherwise he plays a very chill game. Wouldn't be surprised if he all of the sudden gets a lot faster when the game gets faster, much like Caufield as you point out.

 

[FourQuarters]

What his skating needs is stability.

 

[95snipes]

Caufield is a much better skater than Cristall IMO

 

[Daneurism]

Much better skater is being hyperbolic. Personally don't see a big gap.

 

[rt]

Scouch (whatever you think about him) has Cristall 4th and ahead of Michkov. He’s got Benson 5th and also ahead of Michkov. Pretty nuts. But he uses his own metrics and ranks accordingly.

Scouching's Preliminary 2023 NHL Draft Rankings

Here we are, all together again for the holiday season. I've been hard at work since late August watching and tracking hundreds of players around the world, and my first preliminary list is now ready...

www.scouching.ca

@Kevin Musto woukd certainly agree with his write ups on Michkov and Cristall. Reads like they could’ve been written by him personally.

 

[NotProkofievian]

What a high level play.

 

[FLYguy3911]

Beast.

 

[BigToe]

Beast.

Was about to tag you after he scored the second one lol

 

[Kevin Musto]

The media is so slow when it comes to prospects.

They stick to set a group of guys going into pre-season and don't drop them when they fail to perform.

Cristall has outplayed almost everyone in his class, and still isn't widely recognized.

Then there will be shock later in the year when he "emerges out of nowhere".

 

[FLYguy3911]

Was about to tag you after he scored the second one lol

Slide in my DMs bb.

 

[majormajor]

The media is so slow when it comes to prospects.

They stick to set a group of guys going into pre-season and don't drop them when they fail to perform.

Cristall has outplayed almost everyone in his class, and still isn't widely recognized.

Then there will be shock later in the year when he "emerges out of nowhere".

He'll probably climb lists after the season is over, when team scouts start leaking. And then folks here will lecture about how it is all hype because he only climbed after the games were done.

 

[ponder]

Another comp - reminds me a fair bit of fellow #28 Claude Giroux.

 

[BenchBrawl]

he looks damn good, I would consider picking him at #5

 

[Baaaaaaaaaaaaah]

Pretty confident he will go top 10.

 

[Playmaker09]

Another comp - reminds me a fair bit of fellow #28 Claude Giroux.

I would've said that for Will Smith.

 

[FourQuarters]

wow we even didn't played like a team when cristall is out… Surprising but not really surprising…

 

[barriers]