Prospect Info: Top Prospects Poll 2021

[DaveG]

We're going to do it the same way as last year, top 15 skaters and top 4 goalies. If you want to send a combined list that works as well. 24 YO or younger, and max 25 NHL games played. This usually is one of the better group projects that we do as a board and more often than not there ends up being some interesting discussion. As always anyone from any other board that is interested in participating is welcome.

Prior years threads:
2020 - Prospect Info: - 2020-21 Prospects Poll - Results on Post 2
2019 - Prospect Info: - Top Prospects Poll 2019
2018 - Prospect Info: - 2018-19 Prospect Poll


Eligible Prospects (and Hank's list):
Jackson Blake - RW - 4th 2021, 109 OA
Dominik Bokk - RW - 1st 2018, 25 OA (STL) - Acquired in Faulk trade
David Cotton - C - 6th 2015, 169 OA
Jack Drury - C - 2nd 2019, 42 OA
Dominick Fensore - LHD - 3rd 2019, 90 OA
Cavan Fitzgerald - LHD - undrafted - signed as UFA 2021
Noel Gunler - W - 2nd 2020, 41 OA
Nikita Guslitsov - C - 7th 2021, 209 OA
Aleksi Heimosalmi - RHD - 2nd 2021, 44 OA
Anttoni Honka - RHD - 3rd 2019, 83 OA
Aidan Hreschuk - LHD - 3rd 2021, 94 OA
Seth Jarvis - RW - 1st 2020, 13 OA
Joey Keane - RHD - 3rd 2018, 88 OA (NYR) - Acquired in Gauthier trade
Lenni Killinen - LW - 4th 2018, 104 OA
Ville Koivunen - RW - 2nd 2021, 51 OA
Stelio Mattheos - C - 3rd 2017, 73 OA
Lucas Mercuri - C - 6th 2020, 159 OA
Sam Miletic - LW - undrafted - signed as UFA 2021
Bryce Montgomery - RHD - 6th 2021, 170 OA
Scott Morrow - RHD - 2nd 2021, 40 OA
Blake Murray - C - 6th 2019, 183 OA
Alexander Nikishin - LHD - 3rd 2020, 69 OA
Zion Nybeck - RW - 4th 2020, 115 OA
Joel Nystrom - RHD - 7th 2021, 219 OA
Bobby Orr - RW - 5th 2021, 136 OA
Alexander Pashin - C/W - 7th 2020, 199 OA
Vasili Ponomarev - C - 2nd 2020, 53 OA
Patrik Puistola - LW - 3rd 2019, 73 OA
Jamieson Rees - W - 2nd 2019, 44 OA
Massimo Rizzo - LW - 7th 2019, 216 OA
Justin Robidas - C - 5th 2021, 147 OA
Ronan Seeley - LHD - 7th 2020, 208 OA
Jesper Sellgren - LHD - 6th 2018, 166 OA
Kirill Slepets - RW - 5th 2019, 152 OA
Spencer Smallman - RW - 5th 2015, 138 OA
Ryan Suzuki - C - 1st 2019, 28 OA
Tuukka Tieksola - LW - 4th 2019, 121 OA
Kevin Wall - C - 6th 2019, 181 OA
Cade Webber - LHD - 4th 2019, 99 OA

Goalies:
Patrik Hamrla - 3rd 2021, 83 OA
Pyotr Kochetkov - 2nd 2019, 36 OA
Jake Kucharski - 7th 2018, 197 OA
Jack LaFontaine - 3rd 2016, 75 OA
Eetu Makiniemi - 4th 2017, 104 OA
Yegor Naumov - 7th 2021, 200 OA
Nikita Quapp - 6th 2021, 187 OA
Beck Warm - undrafted - signed as UDFA 2021
Dylan Wells - 5th 2016, 123 OA (EDM) - Acquired for future considerations

I'll be taking votes through the 25th and be releasing the results that weekend.

Click to read more...

 

[DaveG]

Goalies:
1 - Pyotr Kochetkov - 4 first place votes
2 - Jack LaFontaine - 4 first place votes
3 - Eetu Makiniemi - 3 first place votes
4 - Patrik Hamrla
5 - Beck Warm
T6 - Jake Kucharski
T6 - Dylan Wells

Skaters:
1 - Seth Jarvis - 11 first place votes
2 - Jack Drury - 1 first place vote
3 - Ryan Suzuki
4 - Jamieson Rees
T5 - Dominik Bokk
T5 - Scott Morrow
7 - Noel Gunler
8 - Vasili Ponomaryov
9 - Ville Koivunen
10 - Aleksi Heimosalmi
11 - Tuukka Tieksola
12 - Jesper Sellgren
13 - Joey Keane
14 - Anttoni Honka
15 - Ronan Seeley
16 - David Cotton
17 - Patrik Puistola
18 - Alexander Nikishin
19 - Aidan Hreschuk
20 - Stelio Mattheos
21 - Blake Murray
22 - Alexander Pashin
23 - Bobby Orr
T24 - Kevin Wall
T24 - Dominik Fensore

 

[DaveG]

reserved for profiles

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

I love looking back at past lists.

We liked Kochetkov better than Ned as recently as last offseason.

 

[DaveG]

I love looking back at past lists.

We liked Kochetkov better than Ned as recently as last offseason.

Let's go to our goalie expert for his opinion on predicting the position:

 

[bleedgreen]

I love looking back at past lists.

We liked Kochetkov better than Ned as recently as last offseason.

To be faaaaair.....there’s a possibility we may feel that way still after this coming season.


I had already forgotten we took so many guys this draft. Normally by now there’s not so many names I don’t know at all.

 

[LakeLivin]

I love looking back at past lists.

We liked Kochetkov better than Ned as recently as last offseason.

It really is interesting. I just need to remind myself not to fall into the trap of Monday Morning Quarterbacking the old lists. Here's the top 17 from 2018-19 with some of the subsequently more interesting developments (at least to me) highlighted:

Final List:
1: RW Andrei Svechnikov
2: C Martin Necas
3: LHD Jake Bean
4: LW Valentin Zykov
5: RHD Adam Fox
6: W Warren Foegele
7: LW/C Aleksi Saarela
8: C/W Janne Kuokkanen
9: RHD Roland McKeown
10: RW Julien Gauthier
11: RHD Luke Martin
12: C Nic Roy
13: C Lucas Wallmark
14: RW/C Stelio Mattheos
15: G Alex Nedeljkovic
16: C Jack Drury
17: RW Morgan Geekie

Of course Fox at #5 is the biggest "miss", but one of what I thought would have been one of the more difficult players to rank that the board seems to have pretty much nailed is Gauthier (although with some different players ahead of him than the ones listed).

 

[bleedgreen]

It really is interesting. I just need to remind myself not to fall into the trap of Monday Morning Quarterbacking the old lists. Here's the top 17 from 2018-19 with some of the subsequently more interesting rankings (at least to me) highlighted:

Final List:
1: RW Andrei Svechnikov
2: C Martin Necas
3: LHD Jake Bean
4: LW Valentin Zykov
5: RHD Adam Fox
6: W Warren Foegele
7: LW/C Aleksi Saarela
8: C/W Janne Kuokkanen
9: RHD Roland McKeown
10: RW Julien Gauthier
11: RHD Luke Martin
12: C Nic Roy
13: C Lucas Wallmark
14: RW/C Stelio Mattheos
15: G Alex Nedeljkovic
16: C Jack Drury
17: RW Morgan Geekie

Of course Fox at #5 is the biggest "miss", but one of what I thought would have been one of the more difficult players to rank that the board seems to have nailed is Gauthier (although with some different players ahead of him than the ones listed).

That’s a really accurate list for its time. Geekie worked his way up from the bottom as he should. There’s a natural issue with these lists in that everyone values attributes different. Some people want to emphasize ceiling. Others want to emphasize likeliness of playing in the NHL over ceiling. Most people have a sliding scale of those two mixed in. The list changes as the players develop obviously.

For being a bunch of hockey dorks that’s a pretty good job with a list. There wasn’t a big reason to list Ned higher back then.

 

[LakeLivin]

That’s a really accurate list for its time. Geekie worked his way up from the bottom as he should. There’s a natural issue with these lists in that everyone values attributes different. Some people want to emphasize ceiling. Others want to emphasize likeliness of playing in the NHL over ceiling. Most people have a sliding scale of those two mixed in. The list changes as the players develop obviously.

For being a bunch of hockey dorks that’s a pretty good job with a list. There wasn’t a big reason to list Ned higher back then.

Just so that no one misunderstands my post, I was in no way criticizing the list. Just noting the subsequent developments I find most interesting.

 

[bleedgreen]

Just so that no one misunderstands my post, I was in no way criticizing the list. Just noting the subsequent developments I find most interesting.

I wasn’t vehemently defending it either. Every list will have missed and (hopefully) hits. I was actually surprised at how good that list was. Fox is where he should be honestly at the time. His skating was (and still is) meh, and it’s impossible to know who can compensate for that at the pro level and who can’t. He’s smart enough to do so.

 

[Discipline Daddy]

I also looked back at the 18-19 prospect list. What is really surprising to me is how many of those have become NHL players. And more will come from that list, probably. It wasn't long ago when we would have 2, maybe 3 names on the list become NHL players. Now we can actually expect at least one player in the honorable mentions to become actual bona fide players. I wouldn't be too surprised if we get 5 NHL players or more out of this group. Many of them will end up playing for other teams.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

I'm disappointed in our pipeline right now, tbh. I don't see a single player who I would rate as an A prospect.

 

[WreckingCrew]

I'm disappointed in our pipeline right now, tbh. I don't see a single player who I would rate as an A prospect.

That's what happens when you make the playoffs for 3 years though!! You gotta take some fliers on boom/bust guys and keep an influx of good prospects that can be cheap depth or trade chips, with a chance of the occasional Aho/Kuch/Point-type steal

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

That's what happens when you make the playoffs for 3 years though!! You gotta take some fliers on boom/bust guys and keep an influx of good prospects that can be cheap depth or trade chips, with a chance of the occasional Aho/Kuch/Point-type steal

Hook, line, sinker

 

[Discipline Daddy]

Artem Anisimov >> Henrik Zetterburg

Also

Brent Gretzky > Wayne Gretzky

 

[tarheelhockey]

Just so that no one misunderstands my post, I was in no way criticizing the list. Just noting the subsequent developments I find most interesting.

I'm definitely criticizing it. My ballot was absolutely perfect, the rest of y'all must have really messed up.

 

[Lempo]

I'm definitely criticizing it. My ballot was absolutely perfect, the rest of y'all must have really messed up.

No politics!

 

[WreckingCrew]

No politics!

It's called Facts!!! Facts ain't political right?

 

[NotOpie]

I'm disappointed in our pipeline right now, tbh. I don't see a single player who I would rate as an A prospect.

First names?

 

[Navin R Slavin]

First names?

That's just a misunderstanding of my analytical model.

 

[NotOpie]

That's just a misunderstanding of my analytical model.

I mean, could be a slight improvement....after all:

A-drei Svechnikov

...could have been revolutionary back in 2018

 

[DaveG]

7 lists received so far, hoping I can get at least half a dozen more in over this next week

 

[TheReelChuckFletcher]

This might be the most difficult top-20 prospect list to piece together in the entire league, but here's my shot at it. So many of these guys are going to at least become premium assets at future trade deadlines, which is all that you can ask for IMO. Let me know what you think.

1. Seth Jarvis
2. Jack Drury
3. Ryan Suzuki
4. Vasili Ponomaryov
5. Noel Gunler
6. Dominik Bokk
7. Jamieson Rees
8. Pyotr Kochetkov
9. Joey Keane
10. Tuukka Tieksola
11. Scott Morrow
12. Aleksi Heimosalmi
13. Eetu Makiniemi
14. Ville Koivunen
15. Alexander Nikishin
16. Anttoni Honka
17. Jack LaFontaine
18. Patrik Puistola
19. Jesper Sellgren
20. David Cotton

HMs, in order of current preference and interest: Ronan Seeley, Aidan Hreschuk, Dom Fensore, Kevin Wall, Alexander Pashin, Zion Nybeck, Blake Murray, Patrik Hamrla, Jackson Blake, Robert Orr, Justin Robidas, Cade Webber, Lucas Mercuri, Nikita Guslistov, Beck Warm, and Stelio Mattheos.

 

[DaveG]

my current list, while we wait for me to tabulate:

1 - Jarvis
2 - Drury
3 - Suzuki
4 - Rees
5 - Gunler
6 - Ponomaryov
7 - Morrow
8 - Heimosalmi
9 - Bokk
10 - Nikishin
11 - Tieksola
12 - Koivunen
13 - Puistola
14 - Seeley
15 - Honka
HM: Sellgren

G1 - Makineimi
G2 - Kochetkov
G3 - LaFontaine
G4 - Warm

edit: and preliminary list is posted, I'll re-tabulate to confirm and work on some profiles later on

 

[FlyingSquirrels]

I am completely down with 7th rounder Ronan Seeley getting some love. Awesome.