RD Carter Yakemchuk - Calgary Hitmen, WHL (2024, 7th, OTT)

[rt]

His skating is bad and needs a lot of refinement. I often wonder with him also if he’d be more successful as a forward, sort of like Brent Burns? He is lights out around the goal mouth, and as a defender being around the goal mouth isn’t something you want to see.

His skating is ugly but effective. He doesn’t have separation speed but that’s just one element of “skating”. His stickhandling is excellent and he wouldn’t be able to dangle through so many defenders if his skating was “bad”. But he does need help mechanically.

He’s less than optimal defensively when he’s been caught up ice or when he’s gone out of position for a big hit. Those are real issues. I disagree that he bad “around the goal mouth” as I think he’s quite effective there. He’s big and strong and mean and is unafraid to hurt kids to clear them out. I’m sure his goalie loves him.

I also don’t think he should be a forward. He’s got the best outlet pass in the draft. His stretch passes to forwards up ice are excellent. Calgary isn’t a talented team. His vision and ability connect high level to passes across distance will serve him very, very well in the future as the talent level around him increases.

I see your point about Buium being a slight product of his team. I don't think thats wrong, but his numbers are every bit as historic for a draft-eligible defenseman in his league as Parekh's are in his league. Parekh's numbers are also probably a slight product of the offensive system he plays in.

Both DU and Saginaw have the reputation. And it’s something that Mintyukov and Perfetti had to deal with in their draft years when folks were projecting them to the next level. Lazary doesn’t coach a pro style system. Very wide open. How would these guys adapt as it tightened up. So far so good. So I’m not really worried about it with Parekh.

 

[Oscar The Grouch]

Someone else mentioned that this guy reminds them of David Rundblad (minus the physicality).

I see it too. Great outlet pass. Not a great skater. A weird ability, based on reach and soft hands, to slow-motion stick handle around people in the O-zone.

Is this skill-set projectable at the NHL level? It wasn't for Rundblad.

A very interesting player no-doubt. High-risk, high-reward. I think that his physicality guarantees he'll stick in the league, but will his offensive game translate?

 

[Hinterland]

Someone else mentioned that this guy reminds them of David Rundblad (minus the physicality).

I see it too. Great outlet pass. Not a great skater. A weird ability, based on reach and soft hands, to slow-motion stick handle around people in the O-zone.

Is this skill-set projectable at the NHL level? It wasn't for Rundblad.

A very interesting player no-doubt. High-risk, high-reward. I think that his physicality guarantees he'll stick in the league, but will his offensive game translate?

Rundblad never had the same offensive tools as Yakemchuk. That's especially true for goal scoring ability. Yakemchuk has a fantastic shot selection. You won't find many defensemen who can shoot the puck like him, even at NHL level. Yes, WHL goalies do let in weak goals but I feel like there are a few very good goalies around the WHL in recent years... goaltending certainly better than usual. Also, Yakemchuk scored 59 regular season WHL goals already, 55 of them this and last season. As a defenseman. And not a defenseman consistently cheating on offense (like for example Parekh). Make no mistake, that shot is gonna do damage at NHL level as well. Rundblad was never capable of anything like this.

 

[rt]

Someone else mentioned that this guy reminds them of David Rundblad (minus the physicality).

I see it too. Great outlet pass. Not a great skater. A weird ability, based on reach and soft hands, to slow-motion stick handle around people in the O-zone.

Is this skill-set projectable at the NHL level? It wasn't for Rundblad.

A very interesting player no-doubt. High-risk, high-reward. I think that his physicality guarantees he'll stick in the league, but will his offensive game translate?

If Yakemchuk was terrible defensively rather than good defensively, and I’d he had a muffin rather than a very high end shot, and if he was weak and soft and scared instead of an absolute bully physically, they’d have some similarities, sure.

Just as Jerome Iginla would be be very similar to Brendan Perlini if Iginla suddenly lost the majority of what made him very good.

 

[Hale The Villain]

Rundblad never had the same offensive tools as Yakemchuk. That's especially true for goal scoring ability. Yakemchuk has a fantastic shot selection. You won't find many defensemen who can shoot the puck like him, even at NHL level. Yes, WHL goalies do let in weak goals but I feel like there are a few very good goalies around the WHL in recent years... goaltending certainly better than usual. Also, Yakemchuk scored 59 regular season WHL goals already, 55 of them this and last season. As a defenseman. And not a defenseman consistently cheating on offense (like for example Parekh). Make no mistake, that shot is gonna do damage at NHL level as well. Rundblad was never capable of anything like this.

You need more than a hard shot to score goals from the blueline at the NHL level.

Nic Hague had 67 goals at the OHL level and he only has 15 goals through 277 games because he's not quite quick or smart enough to open up shooting lanes consistently.

Yakemchuk will probably be the same in that regard.

 

[Hale The Villain]

If Yakemchuk was terrible defensively rather than good defensively, and I’d he had a muffin rather than a very high end shot, and if he was weak and soft and scared instead of an absolute bully physically, they’d have some similarities, sure.

Just as Jerome Iginla would be be very similar to Brendan Perlini if Iginla suddenly lost the majority of what made him very good.

The Yakemchuk-Rundblad comparison is fitting only in the sense that a surprising amount of their offensive output comes from using their excellent hands to dangle defensemen and score around the net.

It worked for Rundblad in Sweden and it works for Yakemchuk facing WHL blueliners, but it's not something that is going to work on NHL defensemen.

 

[Hinterland]

You need more than a hard shot to score goals from the blueline at the NHL level.

Nic Hague had 67 goals at the OHL level and he only has 15 goals through 277 games because he's not quite quick or smart enough to open up shooting lanes consistently.

Yakemchuk will probably be the same in that regard.

You're comparing apples and oranges here because Hague scored more than half of his OHL goals in his D+1 season. Hague does not have shot, let alone a shot selection as good as Yakemchuk's.

I'm not gonna claim that it's a certainty all of Yakemchuk's tools are gonna translate well to the NHL level. His shot however is definitely gonna do damage in the NHL as well.

 

[Hale The Villain]

You're comparing apples and oranges here because Hague scored more than half of his OHL goals in his D+1 season. Hague does not have shot, let alone a shot selection as good as Yakemchuk's.

I'm not gonna claim that it's a certainty all of Yakemchuk's tools are gonna translate well to the NHL level. His shot however is definitely gonna do damage in the NHL as well.

I'm not comparing their seasons, I'm comparing their skillsets.

Yakemchuk's skating, particularly his agility, is going to need to improve significantly for him to reach the kind of goal totals you are suggesting.

 

[Hinterland]

I'm not comparing their seasons, I'm comparing their skillsets.

Yakemchuk's skating, particularly his agility, is going to need to improve significantly for him to reach the kind of goal totals you are suggesting.

His agility is a concern but I doubt it's gonna stop him from scoring goals at NHL level. He won't be able to dance through the slot the way he does in the WHL but he can still score goals, especially from down town or on the PP. Worst case you get a stay at home defenseman with one heck of a shot selection. Best case is of course a franchise defenseman who can do it all. Which is why I think he's gonna be the first defenseman off the board. He's a rather unique prospect. You don't get to draft those every year. You can go with Dickinson who's an excellent prospect in his own right and get a pretty safe high end top pairing guy but Yakemchuk is honestly just more exciting.

 

[bert]

I'm not comparing their seasons, I'm comparing their skillsets.

Yakemchuk's skating, particularly his agility, is going to need to improve significantly for him to reach the kind of goal totals you are suggesting.

He's a huge 18 year old, his skating is going to improve. His edgework is good, he just needs to get stronger more explosive and used to his body. The Rundblad comparisons are laughable. Yakemchuk is heavy and mean. His shots also way better and more diverse. Truly strange for me to read. He's very raw, lots of time to improve and work on his deficiencies. Cant teach some of the things he has like his skill, shot selection, and size.

 

[rt]

The Yakemchuk-Rundblad comparison is fitting only in the sense that a surprising amount of their offensive output comes from using their excellent hands to dangle defensemen and score around the net.

It worked for Rundblad in Sweden and it works for Yakemchuk facing WHL blueliners, but it's not something that is going to work on NHL defensemen.

Forwards you mean. He dangles forwards. And of course it can work against nhl players. Why not? Do nhl players not get dangled? Is anyone going to warn Kucherov?

You need more than a hard shot to score goals from the blueline at the NHL level.

Nic Hague had 67 goals at the OHL level and he only has 15 goals through 277 games because he's not quite quick or smart enough to open up shooting lanes consistently.

Yakemchuk will probably be the same in that regard.

That’s not how he plays at all.

I have to ask if you’re watching him play games regularly?

 

[Hale The Villain]

Forwards you mean. He dangles forwards. And of course it can work against nhl players. Why not? Do nhl players not get dangled? Is anyone going to warn Kucherov?

If you're expecting Yakemchuk to dangle NHL defensemen, you're going to be disappointed.

That’s not how he plays at all.

I have to ask if you’re watching him play games regularly?

I said nothing about how he plays in the post you quoted.

Not sure how you define regularly, but I've seen him play once in-person and several games via stream.

 

[majormajor]

You need more than a hard shot to score goals from the blueline at the NHL level.

Nic Hague had 67 goals at the OHL level and he only has 15 goals through 277 games because he's not quite quick or smart enough to open up shooting lanes consistently.

Yakemchuk will probably be the same in that regard.

Yakemchuk doesn't really need to outright walk NHL D in order to be a massive driver of offense. He has the tools to manipulate defenders and open shot lanes. I am a little unsure of the feet in that regard but his hands can do it.

Or think of all the times there are breakdowns in front of the net and the attacker has to be able to deftly get around shot blockers sprawling all over the place. This is a common NHL situation that I can see Yakemchuk doing well in.

 

[Sergei Shirokov]

I have the top tier of Dman in this class as: Yakemchuk, Dickinson, Silayev.

Yakemchuk is quite complete, Dickinson is safe w/ a high floor, Silayev is extremely unique & a potential nightmare to matchup against.

I had Yak ahead of those two, 5th overall in my last ranking (though I've taken a break from watching since the World Junior).

His skating is bad and needs a lot of refinement. I often wonder with him also if he’d be more successful as a forward, sort of like Brent Burns? He is lights out around the goal mouth, and as a defender being around the goal mouth isn’t something you want to see.

His skating is ugly but effective. He doesn’t have separation speed but that’s just one element of “skating”. His stickhandling is excellent and he wouldn’t be able to dangle through so many defenders if his skating was “bad”. But he does need help mechanically.

His skating ability isn't fantastic but I'd still say it's good - its certainly not poor.

It also helps that he's huge & covers alot of ice with size alone. I don't see his skating being a significant issue in the NHL at all. Nvm his escapability as rt says.

 

[landy92mack29]

If you're expecting Yakemchuk to dangle NHL defensemen, you're going to be disappointed.



I said nothing about how he plays in the post you quoted.

Not sure how you define regularly, but I've seen him play once in-person and several games via stream.

I mean have you seen some of the "defensemen" in todays nhl? there's a decent amount now who are glorified 4th forwards unfortunately. His skating does need to improve to reach his potential of being a #1 dman but there's time for that. Something I notice is it varies shift to shift from either being gassed or he's saving himself because he knows he'll be playing half the game.

 

[Artorius Horus T]

pretty good stat line in his draft season

26 goals
37 assists
1.05 ppg
118 pim
250 sog

(3 gwg, 8 pp g)

 

[Bubbles]

Yak with a huge night, 1G 3A. He's got 29 goals, which is insane for a defenseman. For reference Olen Zellweger had 32 as a 19 year old last year.

 

[Bubbles]

30!!

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

The review focuses on the positives. Not much on weaknesses

 

[Blue Chip Prospect]

Just gonna drop this here. That was a fun video to make !

 

[dr1234]

Amazing video; thanks for all your hard work

 

[Blue Chip Prospect]

Amazing video; thanks for all your hard work

Thank you !

 

[coooldude]

Nice profile by Wheeler in the Athletic. Standout points are:

• Coach and trainer think he's still growing and figuring out his body. His brothers grew late. They see him as still on a strong growth curve generally despite his older age for the draft
• Similarly, he's still getting his balance, flexibility, and technique together on skating, figures to improve
• Competitive; training with Basha, lots of fighting and wrestling but comments that he's still just figuring out how strong he can be.
• Is well aware his defense, specifically positioning, needs to improve but seems committed to figuring that side out
• He's a quiet kid and an introvert

It's probably confirmation bias but I like this kid more and more, just have a feeling he is low at 10-15 for the wrong reasons.

 

[19Simon19]

Here's my Scouting Report on Carter Yakemchuk

 

[majormajor]

Here's my Scouting Report on Carter Yakemchuk

Yakemchuk's potential is through the roof. I was put off by some of his games early in the year, where he made mistakes and I was worried about his defensive skating. But going by what Simon is telling us here, it seems Yakemchuk is progressing well. I don't see why he isn't talked about in the middle of the top 10.

Does anyone have games of his from the second half of the year that they can share here? There are no Yakemchuk games on youtube from after December.