W Devin Kaplan - USNTDP, USHL (2022, 69th, PHI) | HFBoards - NHL Message Board and Forum for National Hockey League
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W Devin Kaplan - USNTDP, USHL (2022, 69th, PHI)

For all the hype around him before going to NTDP, I am not that impressed. When he turns it on, he can be VERY GOOD. However, I question his puck-moving ability and he is very undisciplined. Tremendous upside if he can learn to compete every shift, make better decisions moving the puck and eliminates some of the retaliatory penalties.
 
Not loving what I'm seeing early in this season. Looks inconsistent with his effort and contributions. Sense might be worse than I suspected. He's often lagging behind the play. Still very talented with the puck, but I think there are fair questions to be asked about his game.
 
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He’s underrated because he’s only like the 10th best forward prospect on his own team. But he can score and skate. Also has size. Four points from the fourth line without really any PP time so far in the WJC18.
 
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I didn't think he was very noticeable (in a positive way) most of the tournament. But he showed the flashes in the gold medal game that have you intrigued by his long term potential. Of course the coach didn't play him enough even though he was one of the most dialed in forwards today.
 
95snipes said:
Overlooked with all the 1st round guys on the NTDP team, but Kaplan stood out to me in a positive way. Good size, good skater, enough skill there to be a middle sixer. Should be a top 50 pick.
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Trust me, GM's will know who he is. They always are looking for a guy with size who can play. I think he and Snuggerud will be picked higher than expected. Late 1st, or in the second.
 
57special said:
Trust me, GM's will know who he is. They always are looking for a guy with size who can play. I think he and Snuggerud will be picked higher than expected. Late 1st, or in the second.
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I more meant on this web site. I have Snuggerud as a first rounder myself. Somewhere in the 20s. Liked his game better earlier in the year and thought his flaws were more apparent at the U18s. Still enough there to be a first round pick IMO.
 
Kaplan can be very inconsistent. He's talented though, and was under-utilized on a powerhouse because someone had to be. He'll go to BU and light it up. Could be a middle six/second line scoring winger. If you get him any later than the second round, thats a steal.
 
I believe Mitch Brown tracked him a bunch and he has some really good underlying metrics.

He has tools and advanced stats to suggest there's things to work with there.
 
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95snipes said:
I more meant on this web site. I have Snuggerud as a first rounder myself. Somewhere in the 20s. Liked his game better earlier in the year and thought his flaws were more apparent at the U18s. Still enough there to be a first round pick IMO.
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Oh, I see. I thought that most would be rating Snuggerud in the middle rounds. Late 1st is plenty early enough. I don't know that I'd take him over a guy like Kasper.
 
Solid winger for defensive play. I would see him in the 2nd round. With Shai Buium, this will make a 2nd Israelite in the NHL.
 
Dirtyf1ghter said:
Solid winger for defensive play. I would see him in the 2nd round. With Shai Buium, this will make a 2nd Israelite in the NHL.
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Defensive play? I think you have him all wrong. Thats one of the areas he struggles with. He played on the fourth line because there was no place for him higher in the lineup. He's a scorer.
 
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Pavel Buchnevich said:
Defensive play? I think you have him all wrong. Thats one of the areas he struggles with. He played on the fourth line because there was no place for him higher in the lineup. He's a scorer.
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Probably not in the NHL. The majority of defensive players in the NHL were offensive players in the junior leagues. This will probably be the case with Kaplan.

I don't think Kaplan is talented enough to play on an attacking line or be integrated into a goalscoring role.

If he's not good enough at puckless then he'll just play in the minor league.
 
Probably the most interesting NTDP player outside of the first round staples.

Reminds me a bit of Ryder Rolston, who I always liked during his time with the '19 NTDP team, and who I think has continued to look sharp for Notre Dame.
 
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This guy is underrated. I think he could play a bigger role in the next few years on a less talented team, and we could see him score a lot. Wouldn’t surprise me if he’s eventually like a second line winger. For a 3rd round pick, he has good upside for his draft slot.
 
I think we are moving away from the winger in a top 6 NHL. But it was already obvious in 2022. The Americans produce 3 top 6 forwards per year. Cooley, Gauthier, McGroarty, Nazar, Howard, Snuggerud were potentially those guys. The window was very thin for Kaplan, it has closed even more now.
 
Dirtyf1ghter said:
I think we are moving away from the winger in a top 6 NHL. But it was already obvious in 2022. The Americans produce 3 top 6 forwards per year. Cooley, Gauthier, McGroarty, Nazar, Howard, Snuggerud were potentially those guys. The window was very thin for Kaplan, it has closed even more now.
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What? There is no set amount of forwards for a country per year? That’s absurd.

Johnny Danger said:
how do you like his development so far? his stats are pretty the same in comparison to last season ...
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.575 last year and .65 this year. That’s not a bad improvement. Next year you’d like them to be 1PPG or better. If not, that’ll tell us he’s likely not trending towards being an NHL’er.
 
Pavel Buchnevich said:
What? There is no set amount of forwards for a country per year? That’s absurd.


.575 last year and .65 this year. That’s not a bad improvement. Next year you’d like them to be 1PPG or better. If not, that’ll tell us he’s likely not trending towards being an NHL’er.
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It's all a question of average. This is what USA produces.

On a global scale, places are limited to join a top 6 and there are a lot of players ahead.

A promo draft is an average of 16 top 6 forwards. Slafkovsky and Cooley have already taken a place.

0.65 isn't crazy. 30th U20 in NCAA behind undrafted and younger players.

If he breaks into the NHL, it will not be for his offensive skills but his defensive commitment.

That's what will make the difference, not the points.
 
He's been battling a lower battle injury that caused him to miss a game. I think he was playing 4th line LW/2nd PP unit against BC on Monday at Beanpot. I wouldn't say he's progressing amazingly, but he's only a third round pick and still pretty young as a college player for a strong team like BU.

Trying to make some sort of statement based on averages and people "taking spots" doesn't make much sense. There is no specific American or Draft Year quota. Some years end up stronger than others... The 1985 birth year collectively accounted for 20,913 NHL points while the 1986 birth year only collectively accounted for 13,114 NHL points.

Just limited to Americans, 04 has projected as a very good year for Forwards for quite some time (and reflected in draft status). Compare that to say, 03s, where you may have to really stretch things to find a future Top 6 forward in the group (Chaz Lucius or bust? After that it's like... Jackson Blake, Dylan Duke, Sam Lipkin, Jack Devine?)...
 
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my concern with him is he takes a lot of dumb penalties - torts won’t put up with that and it’s been consistent
 
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