Prospect Info: LAK Draft (2nd, 2020) C Quinton Byfield - Sudbury Wolves, OHL

[Sol]

To be fair, most of Byfield goals were from off the rush pre-draft. Anyone with access to YouTube can see his scouting videos.

Also it's nice to see that he's putting it together apparently. I'm not watching much anymore cause of work but I'm holding out some hope that he can be the player you guys are expecting him to be.

 

[King'sPawn]

To be fair, most of Byfield goals were from off the rush pre-draft. Anyone with access to YouTube can see his scouting videos.

Also it's nice to see that he's putting it together apparently. I'm not watching much anymore cause of work but I'm holding out some hope that he can be the player you guys are expecting him to be.

I have no problem with them pointing it out.

Unfortunately, it was blown up and misconstrued, and his ranking by the video scouts were affected as a result. He was punished for scoring off the rush.

 

[Sol]

I have no problem with them pointing it out.

Unfortunately, it was blown up and misconstrued, and his ranking by the video scouts were affected as a result. He was punished for scoring off the rush.

Well I mean it's kind of a fair though through the scope of the NHL where those kind of opportunities are much less.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Do Leafs or Oilers fans get upset when a Matthews or McDavid score off the rush? I’m just baffled that people targeted that as if it’s a bad thing.

 

[Sol]

Do Leafs or Oilers fans get upset when a Matthews or McDavid score off the rush? I’m just baffled that people targeted that as if it’s a bad thing.

How many McDavids are in the NHL? You're being disengenous. There are exceptions and Byfield has never been projected to be like either. If he was, he'd be in the NHL like Matthews and McDavid were right off the bat.

I'm not bashing on Byfield when I say that he's not McDavid. Just be realistic with your comparisons. Byfield has good straightline speed, is he quicker than Kempe? Kempe doesn't score off the rush. And I don't think he's quicker than Kempe.

And Kempe has some filthy hands so it's not because Kempe isn't agile or bad with his stick handling.

Let's stop comparing people to random players and drawing false comparisons.



However if he becomes like them somehow I'll be one happy camper lol

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

How many McDavids are in the NHL? You're being disengenous. There are exceptions and Byfield has never been projected to be like either. If he was, he'd be in the NHL like Matthews and McDavid were right off the bat.

I'm not bashing on Byfield when I say that he's not McDavid. Just be realistic with your comparisons. Byfield has good straightline speed, is he quicker than Kempe? Kempe doesn't score off the rush. And I don't think he's quicker than Kempe.

And Kempe has some filthy hands so it's not because Kempe isn't agile or bad with his stick handling.

Let's stop comparing people to random players and drawing false comparisons.



However if he becomes like them somehow I'll be one happy camper lol

I’m not comparing Byfield to them, I’m mocking those who think scoring goals a certain way is a supposed negative thing.

 

[KingLB]

Meh, goals off the rush are completely misleading in juniors anyway. They already have an abnormally high number of goals on the rush, due to the openness of the game, different skill level between teams and between players.

Shit just look at the gap between Byfield and his teammates, the skill level difference mighta been such Sudbury rarely had sustained offensive pressure in which to score off a cycle.

 

[Sol]

I’m not comparing Byfield to them, I’m mocking those who think scoring goals a certain way is a supposed negative thing.

There's very few players who have the ability to pull that off in the NHL which is why that kind of play style is looked down upon because it more often than not doesn't translate into the NHL. It's not negative, it's just unlikely to carry over into the NHL. So yeah, he's no McDavid or Matthews so he's most likely not gonna be the exception to that playstyle. Nor is he quick like Kempe or has the hands of Kempe. The likelihood of him becoming an off the rush scorer in the NHL is slim. The types of goals he scored predraft are not common goals in the NHL unless you're the exception.


However he does provide a small chance to be an exception since he does have good hands, good speed, and size. Which speed and size don't really mesh. If he has high IQ for the NHL he may be able to be an anomaly. Byfields skillset is a bit unusual so I can't say for certain what his best playstyle will be.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

There's very few players who have the ability to pull that off in the NHL which is why that kind of play style is looked down upon because it more often than not doesn't translate into the NHL. It's not negative, it's just unlikely to carry over into the NHL. So yeah, he's no McDavid or Matthews so he's most likely not gonna be the exception to that playstyle. Nor is he quick like Kempe or has the hands of Kempe. The likelihood of him becoming an off the rush scorer in the NHL is slim. The types of goals he scored predraft are not common goals in the NHL unless you're the exception.

I’d say with his size and reach, and what we’ve seen him do thus far in the AHL, Byfield will be more capable to do some of the things we saw from him in juniors. He’ll get stronger and develop his upper and lower body strength, and he’ll be able to make plays with opposing checkers draped all over him.

He’s not going to blow by players with ease like McDavid or MacKinnon do, or snipe like Matthews does, because if he did he would’ve been the #1 pick, but Byfield has those Kopitar like abilities and traits.

 

[Statto]

There's very few players who have the ability to pull that off in the NHL which is why that kind of play style is looked down upon because it more often than not doesn't translate into the NHL. It's not negative, it's just unlikely to carry over into the NHL. So yeah, he's no McDavid or Matthews so he's most likely not gonna be the exception to that playstyle. Nor is he quick like Kempe or has the hands of Kempe. The likelihood of him becoming an off the rush scorer in the NHL is slim. The types of goals he scored predraft are not common goals in the NHL unless you're the exception.


However he does provide a small chance to be an exception since he does have good hands, good speed, and size. Which speed and size don't really mesh. If he has high IQ for the NHL he may be able to be an anomaly. Byfields skillset is a bit unusual so I can't say for certain what his best playstyle will be.

Did he score most of his goals off the rush or are most of his youtube videos of him scoring off the rush? Genuine question.

As for his pace, I think he will probably end up one of the quicker guys around, based on the coaching/development stuff I’ve read/listened to. He won’t be McJesus quick, but who is? That said I don’t think he will score most of his goals off the rush, for the exact reason you say, the NHL game isn’t played like that. However, his toolset will allow him to adapt to the pro game as we are starting to see...

 

[Sol]

I’d say with his size and reach, and what we’ve seen him do thus far in the AHL, Byfield will be more capable to do some of the things we saw from him in juniors. He’ll get stronger and develop his upper and lower body strength, and he’ll be able to make plays with opposing checkers draped all over him.

He’s not going to blow by players with ease like McDavid or MacKinnon do, or snipe like Matthews does, because if he did he would’ve been the #1 pick, but Byfield has those Kopitar like abilities and traits.

It's kinda hard to say with him what kind of an NHL player he will be. As annoying as I think Kopitar can be, he has great hockey IQ and vision. If Byfield shows that he has that as well then I can't say for certain which type of mold he will fit in. I just know which molds he won't fit in. But there's a few types he can be or a mix of them. I don't see him being a Kopitar because Kopitar has never really been fast at all, so him playing more conservatively has been a part of his game. Byfield is much quicker than Kopitar so him playing like Kopitar will be him not using one of his best traits. All I know is that some of his criticisms are that his hockey IQ isn't all that. Byfield is more like Carter than he is Kopitar in my opinion.

 

[Sol]

Did he score most of his goals off the rush or are most of his youtube videos of him scoring off the rush? Genuine question.

As for his pace, I think he will probably end up one of the quicker guys around, based on the coaching/development stuff I’ve read/listened to. He won’t be McJesus quick, but who is? That said I don’t think he will score most of his goals off the rush, for the exact reason you say, the NHL game isn’t played like that. However, his toolset will allow him to adapt to the pro game as we are starting to see...

I watched him play a lot, him and Stutzle. And then I watched a bunch of scouting vids as well, and there's one thing you notice about Byfields goals, it's mostly off the rush. His toolset is very good, his hockey iq is where most of the questionmarks are about him. Maybe it's age, or maybe it's not great. Maybe given more time he will show more of it but until then we're just hoping his game comes together and it's just his age.


I'd really love to see Byfield play as soon as possible, sheltered under Kopitar. It really would be interesting to see how he performs.

 

[DoktorJeep]

How many rush plays do the Reign even get?

 

[KINGS17]

I like Byfield's straight line speed, but the reason I liked him for the Kings system is he has the size, wingspan, and quickness to be a good forechecker and force errors by defensemen. From what I have seen Byfield also stick handles well in tight quarters, and finds open teammates in tight spaces.

 

[Schmooley]

Byfield from age 22-27 will be an absolute force. That should mark the Kings next true contention window. Not to say they cant catch some lightning in a bottle before that with Kopitar and Doughty still playing at a high level. But they shouldnt make any irrational moves until Byfield and Turcotte are beginning to peak as professional players.

 

[cyclones22]

I like Byfield's straight line speed, but the reason I liked him for the Kings system is he has the size, wingspan, and quickness to be a good forechecker and force errors by defensemen. From what I have seen Byfield also stick handles well in tight quarters, and finds open teammates in tight spaces.

Exactly. Which makes him not like Carter very much. Carter in his prime was an elite north-south skater with an elite shot. But he was never good at stick handling or playmaking. It's part of why his line always gets killed on the forecheck now. Once physical contact happens he's turning the puck over. He has very little change of direction ability or stick handling.

Byfield on the other hand has good quickness in all directions. And is already learning how to use his size to shield the puck better. He may never have Kopitar level of thinking the game, but he already has some physical gifts that Kopitar will never have. The agility and skill with the puck at his size is unicorn levels of rare. That is the allure.

 

[yankeeking]

Again I think the knock on his IQ is so over blown , maybe by his scoring off the rush that was too easy for him , his IQ is better than average especially lately , if you watch the games he hits the right guy most of the time they don’t always finish but he puts the puck to good spots continuously . I think the scoring off the rush has a lot more to do with the shot release than the speed , otherwise Wagner and other speed demons would have the results than McD has

 

[No Name The Nameless]

Do Leafs or Oilers fans get upset when a Matthews or McDavid score off the rush? I’m just baffled that people targeted that as if it’s a bad thing.

I'm certain the ratio of their goals scored of the rilush were not even close.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I can't believe that would still be a complaint when the vast majority of Byfield's professional goals are NOT off the rush and are, in fact, using his superior tools to get into the slot.

 

[bland]

I can't believe that would still be a complaint when the vast majority of Byfield's professional goals are NOT off the rush and are, in fact, using his superior tools to get into the slot.

The "rush" implication was used to demonstrate that comparatively he produced less in cycles and in zone possession situations, which is a direct criticism of that fabled "hockey IQ" question. If he had a higher "IQ" he would produce more than he had in less free-flowing or advantageous circumstances. Boiled down, the thought was that he had no problem whatsoever with the gimmies, but wasn't as productive as other star players in more difficult situatuons.

And to a degree I have seen that with the Reign. Rush goals and tap ins around the net are the vast majority of his goals.

But, the question I would ask is "so what?" Dude generates and finishes a ton of layups. What exactly is the problem with that? Do they count less? Is he lacking because he makes the game easier for himself?

 

[King'sPawn]

I think, sometimes, people make broad "hockey IQ" statements because they don't know how else to critique someone's play.

 

[Mats26]

Been playing hockey my whole life and it takes more hockey IQ to score off the rush than to crash and bang in rebounds. We usually tell our weaker guys to "go for the net" while the more talented forwards try to make the plays and get the puck to the net.

In QB's case he has been scoring and setting up plays in so many ways that the whole IQ thing is just nonsense.

 

[YP44]

Pronman did a Q&A on the Athletic and he is still a believer in QB. Man should not have to put "still" in that, like he has done something that shows he is not. QB will be an absolute stud.

 

[kingskring]

As we understand things, the current plan is to call Quinton Byfield up for one of those spots early next week when the Kings return home from Colorado. He will taxi with the team during the week and then is roughly targeted for his NHL debut on April 26.

Clarifying Kings Roster Situation, Only Three Call-ups Remaining

 

[BigKing]

Clarifying Kings Roster Situation, Only Three Call-ups Remaining

Thanks for the link. Nine games remaining from that targeted date of 4/26 and I believe he can play in 6 before the contract kicks in. Makes total sense although I thought he wasn't taxi eligible for some reason.

Have to believe Turcotte will be one of the other call-ups. Toss-up between Thomas and Fagemo. Thomas has been pretty decent as of late and Fagemo already has more pro experience than Thomas.