RW Rocco Grimaldi (2011, 33rd overall, Florida)

[wej20]

What are the odds the kid could play RW in the pros? I would love to see him on the Pens in a couple years. 5'6" is small, but it sounds like he is a tough SOB.

I imagine he'll end up on the Wing in the Pros.

 

[Circulartheory]

IMO size never matters if you have the skating and ESPECIALLY the hockey sense to compensate for it. Doesn't matter if you're 6'8 or 5'6, if you can get into position and find the open areas, you'll do well in the NHL.

 

[forthewild]

I'm a huge size hound, but watching Jarod Spurgeon play for the Wild the guy is a shrimp but he uses his smart and has been great this season, Rocco could be the same way.

It would be pretty funny tho if he just grew like 4'' after being drafted

 

[IkeaMonkey*]

The thing is, Grimaldi is actually as good or better than all these guys at the same age.

The question that needs asking is this: Does the fact a guy like Roy or Gionta or St. Louis or Cammalleri are 5-8 instead of 5-6 really make any difference what's so ever?

Personally, I highly doubt it.

Grimaldi and St. Louis are the same height. And technically....Grimaldi still has time to grow(lol).

 

[Patty Ice]

The Sharks need a Grimaldi in their system. The guy has future superstar written all over him.

 

[AmericanDream]

I said it in another thread, I'd be very surprised if he went before the 3rd round. No one questions his talent but 5'6" is ridiculously small.

Some may not like it, but it's the simple truth that almost no players that small stick in the NHL, let alone have success. The game is more open now, and smaller players can have success, but 5'6"? Come on.

dude, you just set yourself up for the biggest plate of crow come June...if he went before the third round???? everyone has their opinion, but you obviously have no idea who this kid is, and your posting is clearly showing it.

I would be floored if he drops out of the top 30, but it could happen...but third round is a joke.

 

[IkeaMonkey*]

dude, you just set yourself up for the biggest plate of crow come June...if he went before the third round???? everyone has their opinion, but you obviously have no idea who this kid is, and your posting is clearly showing it.

I would be floored if he drops out of the top 30, but it could happen...but third round is a joke.

This.

A guy like Ambroz or JT Miller deserves to "drop" to the third round before Rocco. Rocco going in the second to a team that already has a first rounder basically means that team won the draft.

 

[Rabid Ranger]

As bullish as I am on Grimaldi, I think we need to temper our enthusiasm a bit. I think he had the skills, skating, drive, and determination to carve out a nice career for himself in the NHL, but it's going to take a while to get there.

 

[Subzero]

I would not be surprised in the slightest if the Avs grabbed him at #11 (assuming that they get the pick from St. Louis). They love to take guys with great character, high skill and compete levels regardless of size.

 

[JawandaPuck]

First thing to remember is that putting up a point per game with the NTDP team is different than putting up a point per game in the USHL with another team. The NTDP team is the youngest in the league. Age, inexperience, physical and mental immaturity are huge factors working against them on most nights. The majority of the NTDP team(s) didn't even dominate the NAHL for those same reasons. The sledding is even tougher for them obviously in a much superior league. Second thing to remember is that Grimaldi's NTDP team isn't one of the better offensive teams the NTDP has had. Offensively, they're basically a one line team with Rocco, J.T. Miller, and Reid Boucher and Rocco is the straw that stirs that drink.

For more perspective, just look at where Rocco is in NTDP History for scoring. He's currently 8th in career goals, 2nd in career assists, and 5th in career points. The only players ahead of him in career points are 1) Phil Kessel (180); 2) Patrick Kane (172); 3) Andy Hilbert (153); 4) Jeremy Morin (139); and then 5) Rocco Grimaldi (135).

Even with that, you have to remember that during Kessel, Kane, and Morin's NTDP runs they played in the NAHL both seasons and not the USHL like Rocco. Hilbert's first season was also in the NAHL as well but his second season was in the USHL (NTDP last played full seasons in the USHL during the 98-99 and 99-00 seasons. They just rejoined the USHL last season). When Hilbert played with the NTDP they also used to play a lot more games and the USHL was a much weaker league back then. Now not only were all 4 of those players playing in weaker leagues, but in the case of Kessel, Kane, and Morin you also need to look at who they played with. Kessel played with the following: Peter Mueller (also Top 10 in NTDP goals, assists, and scoring), Jack Johnson (#3 in all-time NTDP d-man scoring), Erik Johnson (#4 in all-time NTDP d-man scoring) Nathan Gerbe, Jack Skille, Ryan Stoa, etc. Kane played with following: Blake Geoffrion, Bill Sweatt, Erik Johnson, Jamie McBain, Jim O'Brien, and Rhett Rakhshani. Morin played with the following: Drew Shore, Jerry D'Amigo, Ryan Bourque, Jordan Schroeder, Kyle Palmieri, Cam Fowler (#10 all-time NTDP d-man scoring), David Warsofsky, Danny Kristo, etc. Andy Hilbert also played with the #10 all-time NTDP player in career points in Connor Dunlop.

With that for some perspective, you also just have to see Rocco play to see what the hype is about. If he were 5'10, he'd be in the running for the #1 pick in the draft. He's an elite skater. Very fast. Very shifty. He has a great shot. He has very, very slick hands. Very good vision. He's very good on face-offs. He plays both ends of the ice. And most importantly, given his size, is that he's a pit bull. He's small but he's compact and tenacious. He doesn't back down at all. He's not afraid to throw his "weight" around, go in the corners, in front of the net, traffic areas, etc. He not only goes to those areas but he excels in them and isn't pushed around and he'll challenge anyone in the process. He's also probably the most driven player I've ever followed. His only drawback is his size.

That said, he's not going Top 10 because he is that small. Even in the new NHL it's a risk and one I don't think teams will be willing to make that high. But he should, and I think he will, go in the 1st Round. This draft doesn't have a lot of "guarantees" and a lot of the players have some glaring warts. A guy like Rocco is worth the pick in the 1st round.

Great post for this thread. So, Rocco is a Theo Fleury type exception to the rule it would seem?

 

[NYR Viper]

Great post for this thread. So, Rocco is a Theo Fleury type exception to the rule it would seem?

He creates contact and is not afraid of the dirty areas of the ice. However it is too early to say one way or the other as there are a lot of smaller guys who play that way when they are that age and have success, but when they move to the pro's it just doesnt work. I would bet he will be an early to middle 2nd rounder. He could be a gem, or he could bust.

 

[William H Bonney]

Great post for this thread. So, Rocco is a Theo Fleury type exception to the rule it would seem?

Rocco has the skill level but he's not mean and nasty like Theo was. He's more like Nathan Gerbe, if you've seen him this season with Buffalo, in regards to his feistiness.

IMO, he has Theo/St. Louis type upside but that doesn't mean he'll have the same success. With the tiny guys you just never know how it'll translate until they get to the league. With a guy like Rocco, his only drawback is his size. He's not a floater or a perimeter player or a marginal skater like you see with a lot of the other highly talented small guys that never sniff the NHL.

It'll be interesting to see how much more weight his frame can handle. If he could put on 10-15 lbs of muscle in the next couple of years it would be huge for him.

 

[canuck2010]

Just sayin' but with the little guys like this each level level up becomes so much more difficult. It gets tougher as the overall size of players increases and the speed of the game increases.

I wish him the best though.

 

[The Vinstar]

nucks should take him.

 

[Dr.Sens(e)]

The other thing to note about Grimaldi is how well he has played and scored (a ppg pace) when playing with the NTDP team against Div 1 NCAA competition (The US site breaks down the stats overall and NCAA games specific). Even when you look at first round draft picks LAST year who are now in the NCAA, very few actually perform at that pace, and they are a year older than Grimaldi. And Grimaldi has produced at that rate against guys 19-23 years old who are bigger and stronger on average than the typical CHL team. That's a great test he has already passed in terms of being able to be effective at the next level.

 

[Alberta tough]

After watching him I forsure see the hi end talent. In the games I just watched he trys to do everything on his own a bit too much. It was just 2 games so it might be premature for me to critisize him on this.

 

[JawandaPuck]

Rocco has the skill level but he's not mean and nasty like Theo was. He's more like Nathan Gerbe, if you've seen him this season with Buffalo, in regards to his feistiness.

IMO, he has Theo/St. Louis type upside but that doesn't mean he'll have the same success. With the tiny guys you just never know how it'll translate until they get to the league. With a guy like Rocco, his only drawback is his size. He's not a floater or a perimeter player or a marginal skater like you see with a lot of the other highly talented small guys that never sniff the NHL.

It'll be interesting to see how much more weight his frame can handle. If he could put on 10-15 lbs of muscle in the next couple of years it would be huge for him.

If Martin St. Louis is any guide, developing leg strength and flexibility is even more important for short guys. By being fast and elusive, they'll avoid some of those prolonged board battles where they will almost always be outmatched physically...click to expand...

View attachment 44932

 

[member 30781]

http://hockeyspy.blogspot.com/2011/03/size-doesnt-matter.html

That's an article I wrote on him. Hope it sheds some light on him. I see him as a Fleury type of player.

 

[17Kurri]

I respect his skills and tenacity, but a team would have to be willing to take a huge chance to take a player of his physical stature in the first round. I can't see it happening unless some team is looking to make a statement.

 

[dream catcher]

How does Grimaldi's skill level compare to Tyler Ennis?

 

[rocketdan9]

Won't be suprised if he goes late 1st round. This kid has enormous heart and passion to counter his short height.

He should be gone before the 2nd round is over

 

[STL fan in MN]

I respect his skills and tenacity, but a team would have to be willing to take a huge chance to take a player of his physical stature in the first round. I can't see it happening unless some team is looking to make a statement.

It might actually make more sense to take him with a late 1st than an early 2nd. If he busts and whichever team drafts him decides not to sign him, they can get a 2nd rounder as compensation whereas they don't get anything if he's picked in the 2nd. That said, I think he's well worth a 1st rounder regardless. I doubt many get to see many U-18 teams so they're basing their thoughts on him on perhaps a limited number of views but mostly by stats and what others say. Trust me, the kid is amazingly skilled. I'd easily rank him #1 if he was 6'0"...heck, I'd still likely say that if he was 5'10". He's only 5'6" so his height does need to be taken into account but his skill level is very elite. I've never met him personally but in talking to a scout, he told me that Grimaldi is super passionate and hard working and has very high character as well.

 

[pmorris]

It might actually make more sense to take him with a late 1st than an early 2nd. If he busts and whichever team drafts him decides not to sign him, they can get a 2nd rounder as compensation whereas they don't get anything if he's picked in the 2nd.

I never looked at it that way in terms of a compensation pick. But I still think it would be a ballsy move for a gm to pick a kid that small in the first round. If he busts or doesn't turn out to be the second coming of Fleury or St. Louis, that GM will be hearing about it for the rest of his tenure, especially if players after him turn out to be studs. I mean, you think Glen Sather likes watching Claude Giroux light up the league knowing that he took Korpikoski right before him?

Also, it would be kind of foolish to take a kid in the first if there's a good chance that Grimaldi could slip into the mid to late 2nd round because other teams are scared off of his size. Take Tim Tebow for example: if the Broncos picked him in the third and used one of their first rounders to take like Dez Bryant or something, then a.) the team is more vastly more talented and b.) Tebow wouldn't be a gamble if you took him in the third round like everyone predicted he would go. Instead Josh McDaniels is sitting in the unemployment line as one of the worst hires in recent NFL history.

So if Grimaldi slides, he will has reasonable expectations associated with his performance, the GM doesn't chance his reputation to a high stakes pick (which it is when you take a kid who's 5'6 in the first round), and the GM looks like a genius if Grimaldi does turn out to be the next Fleury.

 

[ronnyweed]

Burke will take him if he is still there

cant resists Americans, no matter what size. Its big Canadians he covets after that.

 

[Lay Z Boy GM]

This kid is 5'6, right? Not many players his height in the NHL. Good luck, Rocco!