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Top-10 Prospects: 6-10 Buffalo Sabres |
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The second half, which probably didn't need to be a second half, but I'm a dink like that. As mentioned before, players with 40+ games in the NHL are not appearing on this list, so yes, for some and many teams guys will be missing.
Big thanks again to Michael Pachla who gave me his top-10 with his reasons, I forgot to tell him the caveat of the 40+ games thing so I feel really stupid, but his list was regardless pretty solid, I filled in a few gaps and got disgruntled.
6. J.T. Compher : Centre, 5’11 185lbs, 35th overall, 2013, 19 Years Old, University of Michigan in the NCAA
35 games 11 goals 20 assists 31 points
Injuries, injuries, injuries, yet none of them really bad or with any significant consequence...unless you’re a fan of the US U20 team. Regardless, nobody can deny his talent nor his drive. Surprising most, Compher fell into the second round of the 2013 draft despite usually being ranked consistently as the best player from the USHL. He would eventually be the third pick from that league after Michael McCarron (25th) and Ian McCoshen (31st). He had an extremely impressive rookie season for Michigan leading the team in points (How many 18 year olds manage that in the NCAA?) and +/-...I know I know. That put him second in points by an 18 year old in the league, with the highest PPG and earned him the NCAA Rookie of the Year award. What I’m getting at is that he has some nice offensive upside. Compher aside from being known for his strong passing skills is a skilled player with a non-stop motor. He’s a reckless player in the offensive zone when it comes to getting around the net and fighting along the walls. It’s hurt him and caused him to miss time, but if he’s going to succeed in the NHL he needs to play that way. Getting bigger and having a “pro body” would do wonders for that. I haven’t seen him play since the U18 tournament in which he was the United States best player, but I would imagine he has kept up his above-average defensive abilities. I like Compher as a jack of all trades kind of forward and a guy reminiscent of Joe Pavelski. Obviously I don’t think he will ever have the kind of impact Little Joe has (40 bloody goals yikes), but they play a similar game style. I personally think he has the upside of a second line centre when all is said and done, but he has the versatility to play multiple roles.
Potential : Second-Third Line All-Purpose Centre
7. Hudson Fasching : Right Wing, 6’3 213lbs, 118th Overall, 2013, 19 Years Old, University of Minnesota in the NCAA
40 games 14 goals 16 assists 30 points
Fasching oddly enough is the next highest scoring U20 player in the NCAA after Compher and took massive leaps of improvement this past season. He was originally drafted by the LA Kings, but was a part of a prospect swap that saw Brayden McNabb (pretty much NHL ready or bust at this point) and a couple second rounders go for Fasching and defenseman turned forward Nicolas Deslauriers. It’s too early to say who won the trade, but I would imagine both clubs are happy. Oddly enough after the trade Fasching went on a cold drought managing only 3 points in his final 12 games, but points are largely a bonus with him. He’s big and he controls the puck with gusto with surprising speed. He’s a physical player as well, but a smart one, he doesn’t take dumb penalties like charging. Those who watched the U20’s saw probably the best of Fasching, he was very much the complimentary player he projects to be in the NHL. He’s the kind of player you attach to a high-end skilled guy and let him do the hard work. Heavy forechecking ability and generally just working hard in each zone will probably help him carve out a career as a complimentary forward that can give some spark from the third line while killing penalties.
Potential : Third Line Two-Way Winger
8. Gustav Possler : Right Wing, 5’11 183lbs, 130th Overall, 2013, 19 Years Old, MODO in the Elitserien
22 games 8 goals 7 assists 15 points
There were two major surprises in the Elitserien this past season, one was Rookie of the Year and seventh round choice Andreas Johnson (Leafs) and the other was fifth round selection Gustav Possler who might well have won that title had he not been injured. He had the highest PPG for a player under 20 in the league, slightly ahead of Kevin “The Dream” Fiala., while keeping his ridiculous pace is not a given, he would likely have passed Johnson who had 9 more points in 22 games played. Possler is a speedy sniper by and large and a guy who can embarrass defenders with his acceleration. He gets to a high top speed very quickly which can be tricky. While on the surface his game looks more designed for the bigger ice, there has never been a lack of extremely speedy snipers in the NHL. If I have a criticism is that he seems “soft.” Something that can make or break a prospect like this. I’m not talking the injuries, more that he doesn’t really do well with contact and is definitely more of a guy who does his work on the rush and on the breakout than the sometimes more slogging cycle game that can happen in the NHL. He’s an underrated passer, primarily because he is usually in a prime location to shoot this goes unnoticed. I’m interested in seeing if he can build on last season, sadly for him the timing of his injury basically meant that we won’t get to see him in the Tre-Kronor at the U20’s as he’s turning 20 in November.
Potential : Second Line Sniper
9. Nicholas Baptiste : Right Wing, 6’1 203lbs, 69th Overall, 2013, 19 Years Old, Sudbury Wolves in the OHL
65 games 45 goals 44 assists 89 points
Sometimes gambling on a high CHL pick in the mid-rounds who has struggled pays off, sometimes it turns out to be simply nothing, with Baptiste it’s still early but I’m leaning towards the former. Baptiste was…is…a very toolsy player, gifted with the size and physical attributes that make a player a constant threat, gifted with excellent hands and a strong shot, but some things in life aren’t gifts, they’re earned and the major thing with Baptiste is consistency. He finally showed it last season and he had an extremely promising year for Sudbury. He finished tied for fourth in OHL goal scoring with 45 goals in 65 games, coincidentally leading the Wolves in goals and points (practically doubling his career goals). If Baptiste ever learned how to pass he would have basically all the expected components of an all-around offensive threat...that and the speed, he isn’t the swiftest skater out there.
Potential : Second Line Power Forward
10. Johan Larsson : Centre, 6’0 207lbs, 56th Overall, 2010, 22 Years Old, Rochester Americans in the AHL
51 games 15 goals 26 assists 41 points
This one might be a homer pick by me because I have always really liked his game and think he’ll be a solid NHLer. Larsson is a two-way centre with excellent positioning and understanding in the defensive zone. He’s respectable on face-offs and while maybe not ready for NHL prime-time in that regard, he was one of the better face-off players in the Elitserien when he played there. Larsson might not have the speed to translate his underrated offensive awareness into big points, but he understands the game so well and is so versatile that it really doesn’t matter. He’s hard working and always finishes his checks. It’s still hard to say what his ceiling is, I mean, just a few years ago he was the Elitserien Rookie of the Year and captaining Sweden to Gold. At the very least I expect Larsson to find his niche as a third line centreman that can kill penalties and be excellent defensively, heck he even got penalty killing time when he was called up with the Sabres. Given time, he could be a very valuable player. Also I noticed some saying that he is too old and therefor not really a great prospect anymore, this seems odd considering that the majority of top 2010 draftees are only just now making the NHL fulltime let alone a second round pick.
Potential : Third Line Shutdown Centre
Notables :
Linus Ullmark (Teammate of Possler and one talented big butterfly goalie, I just left him off this list because goalies are extremely hard to project, the 21 year old is coming off of a .931sv% campaign where he won the Best Goalie of the Year in the Elitserien and is likely the best goalie prospect in this system)
Brendan Lemieux (He plays like his dad, he’s annoying, he’s tough and he came up huge in the playoffs, not convinced he will be anything more than a 3rd line grinder, but he could be a really good in that role),
Vaclav Karabacek (A very poor transition to the Q hurt his draft status, but as the year went on he got more and more comfortable including a fantastic playoff performance scoring 6 goals and 12 points in 9 games, he was also excellent for the Silver winning Czech Republic at the U18’s, he’s a North-South player that doesn’t stop skating, lacks the skills to be a play creator)
Connor Hurley (Youngest player in the 2013 draft, Hurley is taking a long and slow approach to development, had a good, but not great first season in the USHL, he has a lot of raw tools and is a wait and see boom/bust kind of guy at this point)
and
Brycen Martin (Martin is a great skating defender with good size that brings an offensive mindset without the best execution, he’s an excellent puck rusher, but doesn’t have the shot or passing ability to make him a more typical PP QB, his skating alone makes him a valuable prospect, though he has to improve in many areas).
Here is Michael's rough list, I think he has his own prospect stuff planned for the future to tide you Sabres fans over until the season starts.
1. C, Sam Reinhart
2. D, Rasmus Ristolainen
3. RW, Joel Armia
4. D, Nikita Zadorov
5. D, Mark Pysyk*
6. D, Jake McCabe
7. G, Linus Ullmark
8. C, Mikhail Grigorenko*
9. RW, Hudson Fasching
10. LW, Gustav Possler
*for my screwing up and not telling him about the parameters
Thanks for reading, not sure who is up next, but I'll pick something sometime...maybe a popular team like Atlanta.
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