Scott Crawford provides a detailed scouting report of 58th ranked big defenseman Eemeli Rasanen. We have included our write up from the 2017 McKeen's NHL Draft Guide. You can learn more here about our magazine and a subscription.
Eemeli Rasanen wins the 2017 draft award for prospect most likely to be unfairly compared to Zdeno Chara on the basis of height alone. Standing 6-7”, and with a marked offensive bent to his game, the Finnish import had a strong rookie season in the OHL, helping Kingston get to the second round of the OHL playoffs, before returning to Europe to represent Finland at the WU18s.
While Rasanen does not have the mean streak that marked Chara’s play, he does put his massive frame to good use. He is very tough to play against in the corners. Further, as long as he can keep his man in front of him, he can be hard to get past with his long reach and his proclivity for closing gaps. Therein also lies his main weakness. With some larger prospects, you will read that he is a good skater for his size, even if he would lose footraces to average sized opponents. Not so with Rasanen. He is simply slow of foot.
This was more apparent in the wider rinks of Europe, and raised some eyebrows at the WU18 for the wrong reasons, but it remains a concern for NHL scouts. If a team thinks that specialized training can improve his skating to at least average, he will be a great weapon, able to provide offense from the blueline while demonstrating a good head for the game. On the other hand, as the overwhelming majority of his OHL offense (30 of 39 points) came on the man advantage, his ceiling may be more limited in that side of the game than presently appears to be the case.
A note on the 20-80 scale used below. We look at five attributes (skating, shooting, puck skills, hockey IQ and physicality) for skaters and six for goalies (athleticism/quickness, compete/temperament, vision/play reading, technique/style, rebound control and puck handling). Each individual attribute is graded along the 20-80 scales, which includes half-grades. The idea is that a projection of 50 in a given attribute meant that our observer believed that the player could get to roughly NHL average at that attribute at maturity.
| Eemeli Resanen | 2017 Draft Eligible |
|---|---|
| Position: D, Shoots R | H/W: 6-7", 215 lbs |
| Stats to date (GP-G-A-PTS-PIMS) | Kingston Frontenacs, OHL (66-6-33-39-41) |
| Finland U18, WU18 (6-1-0-1-2) |
Skating: Rasanen has the skating for a defenseman, a BIG defenseman, yet is still able to skate backwards without disrupting his backward strides and square up the opposing forward. For a big defenseman, he has a decent stride, although not like the other defenseman moving up the ice. He can still be a part of the play without falling behind. Grade: 55
Shot: He needs more work on his shot when he is a stand-alone shooter. In the playoffs, he took a high number of slap shots that missed the net and did not complement his teammates on secondary chances. He likes to take one timers near the blue line and gets in great position to take shots, but he is looking at the defender when he shoots so he is shooting at him when he should be looking to the outside of the blocker to have the puck at least go through him maybe have a chance to hit the net. Grade: 50
Skills: Very surprised at how well Rasanen can move the puck up the ice with his big frame. His skating makes him look like a clumsy player with the puck, but his slick stick work allows him to be in a transitional play with his forwards to either pass the puck at the offensive zone entry or move the puck in himself. He understands his big frame is a challenge for opposing players and uses the extra time to make smart quick passes to open teammates or teammates in a better position on the ice than he is. Grade: 55
Smarts: Rasanen is a crafty smart giant that any team would be able to appreciate. At the start of the season he was extremely uncomfortable playing the stretch with his defensive partner whenever they had to close the gaps. He made it work by the end of the season as he finally got comfortable using his big frame to close out the gaps and drag opposing puck possessors to the walls or push them to dump the puck in. An extremely smart defenseman that can play a decent two-way game and can potentially double his offensive output next season. Grade: 60
Physicality: He is active on the clean side of the game when it comes to pushing players against the boards or holding opponents along the boards by placing his leg between the opponent’s legs and using his body weight to take them out of the play. However, he needs to understand that he can really do damage to someone and create an intimidating style of aggressive play that causes players with the puck to be scared to be even close to him. In other words, look at how big he is - he should score much higher here. Grade: 55
Summary: Eemeli Rasanen is probably the tallest player in the draft this year and produced decent numbers in his first season in the OHL. Playing on the North American ice surface for the first time this season, of course he was going to be uncomfortable and struggle, but he continued to improve all the way through the playoffs. He played with more confidence as the season wore on, and it showed up in his defensive play. His puck handling capabilities need a bit of improvement to go along with his skating to become more of an offensive factor for the Frontenacs next season. He has the raw potential to be a special defenseman next season and any NHL team that drafts him is getting a good prospect that is committed to developing his play on and off the ice.
| Zach Gallant | 2017 Draft Eligible |
|---|---|
| Position: C, Shoots L | H/W: 6-2", 190 lbs |
| Stats to date (GP-G-A-PTS-PIMS) | Peterborough Petes, OHL (60-21-26-47-74) |
Skating: Gallant's best attribute that he brings to the game is his acceleration when he receives the puck. On one hand when he collects around the neutral zone, his acceleration carries him across the o-zone entry without opponents seeing him. on the other he can also use his acceleration in the defensive zone to increase the damage of his attempted hit or to move the puck out of the zone. He needs work on his first stride otherwise he would have a higher grade and he would be a difference maker on the offense, but his acceleration comes from his cross over instead of the first stride. Grade: 55
Shot: Shooting is decent, he has many options from an accurate wrist shot to a decent looking slap shot. The problem is that there is no power from either shot when he is skating. When he would be coming up the ice with the puck on a break out, aim it high, hitting the goaltender in the waist area most of the time, but he rarely puts much strength in his shots, making them easy saves for the goalie. However, when he is standing still and has time to put pressure on the puck he can release a strong shot, which is why he was effective on the powerplay. Grade: 55
Skills: Gallant has above average puck handling skills that allow him to move around the defensive zone and neutral zone when players are behind him or transitioning to defense, giving him an edge. However, when he enters the offensive zone and he has opponents in front of him he has a hard time moving around defensemen, even at an average height and it causes him to delay the play in the corner or worse, lose the puck in a 50/50 battle. Looks to pass the puck in the offensive zone and can make a quick play. Grade: 55
Smarts: Gallant is a frustrating player to watch because he is a decent two-way forward that can be a difference maker, but there is something in his head that tells him to not play in the first period, but play hard in the third period. He is extremely inconsistent and there were times in the playoffs that he did not see ice time in a given period. He understands how to read plays and get himself open, but I question if he has the confidence to play as an effective center at a higher level. Grade: 50
Physicality: A capable physical player as he puts up five good hits per game on average. He is there on the forecheck making the right plays and he often causes a stir behind the opposing net or in the corners. His problem is he cannot be physical with the puck as he tends to lose the 50/50 battles at an alarming rate. Grade: 55
Summary: Zach Gallant is an intriguing prospect with the size and skills to potentially be a bottom six forward, but needs a lot of work to make it to the next level. The NHL team that drafts him needs to work hard on his mental development as it is his biggest weakness heading into the draft and his failure to score a single goal in two rounds of the 2017 playoffs is proof of that shortcoming. A reputation for inconsistency and laziness will cause him to go lower in the draft, but there is hope. He has decent skating skills and a shooting style that normally hits the target. He can be a decent defensive forward when he wants to be and has potential to make the NHL, but again, the team that takes a chance on him will need to put in a ton of work to get a return on their investment.