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RD Ryan Chesley - USNTDP, USHL (2022, 37th, WSH)

If you ignore his overzealousness as he's taking a ton of penalties - a decent amount of these wouldn't be penalties at higher levels, even for the IIHF, as the reffing has been an abomination at the YOG - I've been impressed. Plays physical and with an edge, good defensively for a 15 year old, but has some nice skill too. He doesn't get talked about as much as guys like Brzustewicz, Casey, Hutson, etc. because his offensive upside at least right now isn't as evident but he's an interesting one. I wouldn't be surprised to see him develop into a Ryan Lindgren type.
 
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Can we update the team since he's with USNTDP program now?

Pavel Buchnevich said:
Reliable defensive defenseman who also has some offensive potential. He has very good size already at 6'1, he skates well, can move the puck, and has some offense in his game. His offense isn't high-end, but its not a liability.

Ryan Chesley at eliteprospects.com
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William H Bonney said:
If you ignore his overzealousness as he's taking a ton of penalties - a decent amount of these wouldn't be penalties at higher levels, even for the IIHF, as the reffing has been an abomination at the YOG - I've been impressed. Plays physical and with an edge, good defensively for a 15 year old, but has some nice skill too. He doesn't get talked about as much as guys like Brzustewicz, Casey, Hutson, etc. because his offensive upside at least right now isn't as evident but he's an interesting one. I wouldn't be surprised to see him develop into a Ryan Lindgren type.
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Has the offense that Chesley has shown this year changed your assessment?
 
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The U has a good run going on D with Johnson, Lacombe, Faber, and now Chesley along with the next tier guys Brinkman, Koster, and Mittelstadt.

Shame Chesley will probably only play with Koster and Mittelstadt out of those guys.
 
Chesley needs to start getting a lot more hype. I think he's probably the best NTDP prospect since Matthews.

He's a complete force. Every zone, every situation, plays really hard, plenty of tools. Always noticeable, and making an impact.

He's the type of defensemen that will probably lead the league in defensemen shots at some point. He puts the puck on net anytime he has a window, and he has a really hard and accurate shot. He also can make some really nice passes, and has a pretty high level of skill. I think he's a PP1 type in the NHL. Look at this play. Tell me that isn't high-end skill.



He's listed as 6'0 187. I don't know if thats correct, but he plays really physical and looks like one of the biggest players on the ice. He's a pretty hard hitter, and does this against older competition. Defensively, he's so tough to beat 1v1. You aren't going to dangle around him or skate by him. He's also really good in front of the net and winning puck battles in the corners. His defensive play looks the part of a high-end defender in the NHL.

He moves the puck well and makes quick decisions with the puck. Real solid hockey sense. He can carry the puck because he's big, powerful and a very good skater, but he looks to dish it off and jump into the play as a secondary offensive player than the primary puck carrier. If I was to have any criticism, he's really aggressive with his pinches and positioning. He plays like a rover. Goal line to goal line type of player. Occasionally he'll get himself caught too far up the ice, and it'll lead to a chance against. But it's not much more often than most similar style players, and one reason I think he'll reign it in is that when he's back in the play he's really good defensively. His defensive errors come from when he's taken himself out of the play.

I'm not suggesting he'll be as good because its a really high bar, but I think his upside is something like Doughty with Jones/Pietrangelo level as a reasonable projection. Worst case scenario, I think you get like a Trouba level player.

I don't know that I'd have him ahead of Wright/Lambert, but I absolutely think he's right there with those guys, and is a viable 1OA contender for next year.
 
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Have a feeling this thread might see a lot more action after the U18 tournament. Post above says it well, not sure how a near point per game, all-situations RHD is garnering such little attention. A lot of early '22 draft ranking are coming out and I haven't seen him near the top 10, which I think is a big mistake.

The offense kind of speaks for itself, but he also looks really sharp defensively considering he's pretty slim. At 22/23 years I think this kid is a beast on the blueline somewhere.
 
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BigHitter67 said:
Is he that much better than Casey ?
How do their games - compare? And project long term?
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Yes, he is, and it's not a slight on Casey, but Chesley is just that good.

Casey is more of a project. He's got elite skills, but you can tell he's a guy that played both forward and defense before the NTDP. He's also a 1st round caliber prospect, but he plays a less complete game right now.

Chesley has all the tools and plays a complete game. He's good defensively, he's physical, very good skater, high IQ, good offense, etc. Stylistically he reminds me a lot of McAvoy / Doughty and I think he has the same upside as them as well. He's a much better U17 player than McAvoy, but Charlie's development curve during his U18-20 seasons was phenomenal.

Chesley checks all the boxes of an elite #1 defense prospect.
 
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William H Bonney said:
Yes, he is, and it's not a slight on Casey, but Chesley is just that good.

Casey is more of a project. He's got elite skills, but you can tell he's a guy that played both forward and defense before the NTDP. He's also a 1st round caliber prospect, but he plays a less complete game right now.

Chesley has all the tools and plays a complete game. He's good defensively, he's physical, very good skater, high IQ, good offense, etc. Stylistically he reminds me a lot of McAvoy / Doughty and I think he has the same upside as them as well. He's a much better U17 player than McAvoy, but Charlie's development curve during his U18-20 seasons was phenomenal.

Chesley checks all the boxes of an elite #1 defense prospect.
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Agreed. Casey is a very good prospect but I'd have Chesley clearly ahead at the moment.
 
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William H Bonney said:
Yes, he is, and it's not a slight on Casey, but Chesley is just that good.

Casey is more of a project. He's got elite skills, but you can tell he's a guy that played both forward and defense before the NTDP. He's also a 1st round caliber prospect, but he plays a less complete game right now.

Chesley has all the tools and plays a complete game. He's good defensively, he's physical, very good skater, high IQ, good offense, etc. Stylistically he reminds me a lot of McAvoy / Doughty and I think he has the same upside as them as well. He's a much better U17 player than McAvoy, but Charlie's development curve during his U18-20 seasons was phenomenal.

Chesley checks all the boxes of an elite #1 defense prospect.
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And i’m seeing Hutson on the World U18 roster . He’s better than Casey too?
 
ConnorMcMullet said:
I haven't watched much of the 2022 class yet, but I don't think it's a stretch to say that Chesley could be the #2 pick next year after Shane Wright. He's right up there in that tier with Lambert, Miroshnichenko, Yurov, Savoie, etc.
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The #2 spot is looking like a crapshoot right now. Excited for the season to start to watch some of these kids
 
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