LD Bowen Byram - Vancouver Giants, WHL (2019, 4th, COL)

[newfy]

Yeah if someone doesn't have him as their top dman something is wrong as to me he's above Provorov and on Jones level. His confidence offensively has really taken off where he's joining the rush like Makar does but is much better in his own end as well as being a physical force

I think he is a Josh Morrissey clone. Skates well, not amazing but very well, very high IQ, great defensive stickwork, physical and plays with an edge. Can QB a PP and PK really well. Can log a tonne of minutes and because of his smarts can play any role you give him.

When you guys talk about him playing with an edge what do you mean? Does he throw open ice hits, or is it more he uses stick work in fornt of the net or what is it? I've seen him play a bit but never really noticed this side of his game so I'm curious.

He seems like a D who does a little bit of everything at a really high level. I definitely dont mind the Reilly comparison from what I've seen of him. I think he could easily go in the top 5. I'm a wings fan and I would have trouble seeing them pick a guy like Podzlokin over the potential number one dman. It'll be interesting to see where he ends up with Dach and Cozens since theyre all playing in the same league and can be compared easier. A strong finish could have him climb as high as third I think

 

[Daximus]

When you guys talk about him playing with an edge what do you mean? Does he throw open ice hits, or is it more he uses stick work in fornt of the net or what is it? I've seen him play a bit but never really noticed this side of his game so I'm curious.

He seems like a D who does a little bit of everything at a really high level. I definitely dont mind the Reilly comparison from what I've seen of him. I think he could easily go in the top 5. I'm a wings fan and I would have trouble seeing them pick a guy like Podzlokin over the potential number one dman. It'll be interesting to see where he ends up with Dach and Cozens since theyre all playing in the same league and can be compared easier. A strong finish could have him climb as high as third I think

Throws hits, gets physical in the corners, fights. Isn't afraid of playing on the edge a little bit.

 

[JadedRandom]

Right now, I've got Byram third in this year's draft, behind Hughes at 1 and Kakko at 2. That said, I could see him get drafted higher still as he could be very well be a franchise D and those don't grow on trees.

 

[lanky]

How does he compare to Noah Dobson?

Sounds like he's more assertive physically, though not as big.

Without having seen Byram yet, he sounds a lot like Dobson.

 

[JadedRandom]

How does he compare to Noah Dobson?

Sounds like he's more assertive physically, though not as big.

Without having seen Byram yet, he sounds a lot like Dobson.

Byram is better 1-on-1 defensively (probably the hardest defenseman prospect to beat that way since Doughty), is more physical, is probably tougher and more willing to fight, pokechecks slightly better, has slightly better skating speed and acceleration but much better agility (his agility is borderline elite even for the NHL right now), better offensive decision-making, a better arsenal of shots and better first-pass, possesses a much more dynamic skillset offensively, can log more minutes without whittling down and seems to exhibit better leadership capabilities with really clutch plays. At the same time, he has worse balance than Dobson, has a slightly leaner and smaller frame, doesn't block shots as well, isn't as good at blocking passing lanes and limiting chances on the penalty kill, is a bit physically weaker, isn't as efficient along the boards and has slightly worse positioning overall.

In the end, I'd say he's the same kind of well-rounded two-way D, but he's pretty much just better than Dobson all-in-all. If Dobson could realistically be a really good top-4 D, or even a top-pairing guy, Byram has the potential to be amongst the very best Ds in the league.

 

[scout97]

Byram reminds me abit of roman josi. His game has really developed since his first season. Does eveything at a fairly high level while playing extremely efficient and smart. Still has fantastic puck skills too. I think he could be a consistent 40-55 point in the nhl.

 

[newfy]

Seems like hes having a more impressive draft year than Provorov and really comparable to Jones. Byram doesnt have the stacked team Jones had production wise, but Jones was always talked about his athletic ability/skating combined with his size as being pretty freakish. If he keeps going like he is, he might be viewed as that calibre of prospect. He doesnt have the same hype right now but I find good American prospects will always get a little more hype anyways.

 

[JadedRandom]

Seems like hes having a more impressive draft year than Provorov and really comparable to Jones. Byram doesnt have the stacked team Jones had production wise, but Jones was always talked about his athletic ability/skating combined with his size as being pretty freakish. If he keeps going like he is, he might be viewed as that calibre of prospect. He doesnt have the same hype right now but I find good American prospects will always get a little more hype anyways.

Byram has lesser physical tools than Jones did at the same age. Not every defenseman can be 6'4, strong as a bull, skate like the wind, own an extremely high-end two-way skillset and possess pretty good hockey sense. That said, I think Byram thinks the game both ways a bit better than Jones did as a prospect, defends better and plays a bit harder. As an absolute fan of hockey sense over anything else, I prefer Byram over Jones even though I would have Jones ranked ahead as a prospect.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

He reminds me of Ryan McDonagh.

 

[Stephen Gionta]

I think this guy goes #3 in the draft this year. He reminds me of another guy who just went #3 two years ago, MIROOO

 

[StreetHawk]

I think this guy goes #3 in the draft this year. He reminds me of another guy who just went #3 two years ago, MIROOO

Probably depends who has the #3 pick. Could very well opt for either Cozens or Darch if they need a C. Likely have those 3 guys in the mix from the 3-5 spots. With Russian winger Podkolzin having shot to crack the top 5.

If any of the bottom teams hold the #3 pick who would they take?

LA - with Vilardi's back issues, likely take a C
Chi - I think they go C here despite Keith/Seabrook getting older. Think they have some solid D men in the system, but nothing like those 2 guys
Col - they take a C with Ottawa's pick
Det - I think they go C here.
Phi - I think they also go C. Have a lot of young Dmen in the system
NJ - I imagine they go C here. Zacha not living up to expectations.

 

[S E P H]

Byram is better 1-on-1 defensively (probably the hardest defenseman prospect to beat that way since Doughty), is more physical, is probably tougher and more willing to fight, pokechecks slightly better, has slightly better skating speed and acceleration but much better agility (his agility is borderline elite even for the NHL right now), better offensive decision-making, a better arsenal of shots and better first-pass, possesses a much more dynamic skillset offensively, can log more minutes without whittling down and seems to exhibit better leadership capabilities with really clutch plays. At the same time, he has worse balance than Dobson, has a slightly leaner and smaller frame, doesn't block shots as well, isn't as good at blocking passing lanes and limiting chances on the penalty kill, is a bit physically weaker, isn't as efficient along the boards and has slightly worse positioning overall.

In the end, I'd say he's the same kind of well-rounded two-way D, but he's pretty much just better than Dobson all-in-all. If Dobson could realistically be a really good top-4 D, or even a top-pairing guy, Byram has the potential to be amongst the very best Ds in the league.

Nope, Dobson has much higher offencive potential over Byram. Bowen clearly has him beat on the more physical and defencive spectrum. I do think Byram will become a very good two-way guy in the future, but all this talk about him being a QBPP in the pros is just ludicrous. He isn't even the best offencive defender in this draft (that goes to Cam York). I still see a lot of Morgan Rielly in his game, but I also won't complain about the Morrissey comments above either (I think he has a good chance to surpass him in the pros as well).

Seems like hes having a more impressive draft year than Provorov and really comparable to Jones. Byram doesnt have the stacked team Jones had production wise, but Jones was always talked about his athletic ability/skating combined with his size as being pretty freakish. If he keeps going like he is, he might be viewed as that calibre of prospect. He doesnt have the same hype right now but I find good American prospects will always get a little more hype anyways.

No just no, he is not as good as Jones and probably won't ever be as good as Jones. Seth is starting to become a consistent Norris candidate.

 

[newfy]

Nope, Dobson has much higher offencive potential over Byram. Bowen clearly has him beat on the more physical and defencive spectrum. I do think Byram will become a very good two-way guy in the future, but all this talk about him being a QBPP in the pros is just ludicrous. He isn't even the best offencive defender in this draft (that goes to Cam York). I still see a lot of Morgan Rielly in his game, but I also won't complain about the Morrissey comments above either (I think he has a good chance to surpass him in the pros as well).


No just no, he is not as good as Jones and probably won't ever be as good as Jones. Seth is starting to become a consistent Norris candidate.

My post might not have been clear but I'm not saying hes as good as Jones, just that his draft year production offensively is more impressive on a less stacked team. I dont think he'll be as good as Jones because like I said, Jones is an athletic freak which Byram just isnt. They both have a good chance at going in the same range in the draft as well.

At the time of their drafts how would you compare their level of play? Everything went right development wise for Jones and like you said hes a Norris calibre dman. In their draft years how do they compare? I know you watch a lot of WHL.

And is your comparison to Reilly an actual potential comparison or style of play?

 

[EXTRAS]

Seen him play a couple times this season. Imo, he's being overrated in this thread. But I suppose most prospects tend to get overrated pre-draft.

 

[S E P H]

My post might not have been clear but I'm not saying hes as good as Jones, just that his draft year production offensively is more impressive on a less stacked team. I dont think he'll be as good as Jones because like I said, Jones is an athletic freak which Byram just isnt. They both have a good chance at going in the same range in the draft as well.

At the time of their drafts how would you compare their level of play? Everything went right development wise for Jones and like you said hes a Norris calibre dman. In their draft years how do they compare? I know you watch a lot of WHL.

And is your comparison to Reilly an actual potential comparison or style of play?

Sure they're not as good as the Winterhawks, but the Giants have consistently been a top 10 team in the entire CHL until recently. So it's not like Byram is like Dellandrea who is producing even on a terrible club. However, he's on the perfect team where they're good enough to produce points, but bad enough that Byram gets play like half of the game.

I echo more of the comments that he's similar to Morrissey when he was at the WHL. I will say that Morrissey was one of the most impressive players I have watched, even more so than Jones or Provorov when all three were in the dub. Some of that factor is due to expectations and that the WHL game is far from the NHL game and why Jones and Provorov are considered better in the pros. Perhaps Byram will follow a similar path and be better at juniors than in pros which is why I don't buy comments to the offencive side to his game (like PPQB). This isn't a knock on him, but that any team who drafts him should expect very solid and consistent defencive play first and foremost. Even if I still believe he will become a good two-way guy in the future.

Jones always had way superior offencive ability, even watching them play without the stats you can tell. I understand that Byram has actually better stats, but I think that is more due to how much talent WHL has lost the last couple of years. the WHL that Jones played in was much tougher compared to this year's WHL that Byram gets to play in. The WHL should increase talent again after this years draft class, but holy smokes the past three or four years the "Q" weas overtaking the Dub (just look the NHL drafts as an example except for 2015 which was a good year for every league). Rielly comparison is more in terms of playing style and the impact he should have in the pros, but if I would consider Byram a better version of Morrissey, then perhaps we're talking about Morgan Rielly's potential. Now it depends on who you talk to or what your facets are when it comes to #1 defenders, but personally speaking I suggest that Rielly is more on the #2 side of the spectrum. Perhaps he is on the top end for a #2, but I do think he faces some uncertainty to the amount of ice time you should play him. I don't think he is number cruncher compared to someone like Hedman or Jones, but Byram should be better in that category than Rielly, but I don't think he can match his top offencive production.

 

[JadedRandom]

Nope, Dobson has much higher offencive potential over Byram. Bowen clearly has him beat on the more physical and defencive spectrum. I do think Byram will become a very good two-way guy in the future, but all this talk about him being a QBPP in the pros is just ludicrous. He isn't even the best offencive defender in this draft (that goes to Cam York). I still see a lot of Morgan Rielly in his game, but I also won't complain about the Morrissey comments above either (I think he has a good chance to surpass him in the pros as well).

I completely disagree and actually think it is the other way around. Byram has a better shot, better play selection with the puck, makes quicker decisions and reads, posts similar numbers in a slightly lesser offensive team, skates better, can more easily create shooting lanes for himself when covered at the blueline using his better agility. He is also younger for his draft year than Dobson was for his and more clutch.

 

[snipes]

Best D man on the ice tonight in the top prospects game.

 

[SAM STEVENS]

Best D man on the ice tonight in the top prospects game.

​

I don't agree

 

[EXTRAS]

Best D man on the ice tonight in the top prospects game.

I also disagree

 

[Pip]

 

[Pip]

 

[wings5]

Surprised he didn't get a WJC camp invite.

 

[Pip]

He did have a slow start to the season offensively which killed his chances as a 17 year old d-man

 

[snipes]

I have him at number 3 on my list after Hughes/Kakko.

He’s a phenomenal skater and I think his style of play is suited for the new warp speed NHL.

 

[93LEAFS]

Surprised he didn't get a WJC camp invite.

Canada rarely takes 17-year-old D. In recent memory, it has been Ekblad and Ellis (who destroyed junior statistically), and Chychrun got an invite back when people thought he might go 2nd overall. Prior to that, the only other one to make it since 2000-01 was Bouwmeester, who to do this day is still the only 16-year-old to make it as a defender or a late birthday.

Now, you can argue their approach is outdated, although, I'm not sure Byram had played to a level early in the year, and previously with Hockey Canada to earn the bump. Now, there are some 17-year-old players, in general, they haven't given a shot in recent years which seemed foolish (Hall, Seguin, RNH, Patrick, PLD, and others).