David Noel – McKeen's Hockey

QMJHL Trade Deadline: Want to improve your QMJHL team this season? Pay up!

Michael Sanderson — Mon, 17 Dec 2018 17:43:55 +0000

The QMJHL’s silly season is upon us.

The league’s trading period opens up Sunday, and several trades are already in the books, some of which were consummated before the opening bell was officially opened. The period closes up on January 6. One thing to be expected this season: contenders will have to pay to make their teams better heading into the second half.

All eyes are on the Halifax Mooseheads this season as the Memorial Cup hosts in May. Because of this, the team has some extra pressure to build a contender. On paper, they are one of the strongest teams in the entirety of the Canadian Hockey League, but they have struggled a little bit with consistency. The team is noticing some potential issues that may need solving for the tourney, adding to their depth.

Now, if newspaper quotes are to be believed, Mooseheads general manager Cam Russell is not all that interested in blowing up the future for the present, as he observes that his team could be even better next season as presently constructed. However, this year is a guaranteed Memorial Cup berth, whereas future years are earned solely by hard work from August-to-May. The sure thing dictates that this declaration is just posturing, as a Memorial Cup host can expect a heightened market for any assets.

Further, this Mooseheads squad could use some tinkering. Edmonton Oiler forward Ostap Safin, acquired from Saint John at the start of the season, has been in and out of the lineup due to ongoing hip issues. Overager Jordan Maher has simply not been the best fit with the team with just four goals so far, despite his best efforts. Anaheim Ducks prospect Antoine Morand’s game has been as expected, but the numbers are not quite where they should be, with 28 points in 29 games. Potential first rounder Raphaël Lavoie has hit a bit of a snag this season, not looking like himself from last season; he is scoring less and seeing his focus wane at times this season. The offence, a strong suit in prior years, is sixth-best in the league right now, with a few blowouts augmenting the numbers.

New Jersey Devils defender Jocktan Chainey has seen his ice time drop and Chicago Blackhawks blueliner Jake Ryczek has seen his rise, but behind Jared McIsaac and Justin Barron, who have been solid, there is no big third defender option. Despite that, the team has solid defending numbers, tied for second-best in goals against.

To his credit, goaltender Alexis Gravel has been maybe the team’s most valuable player so far this season, but his backup option is Cole MacLaren, a decent choice but not a goalie you want starting against the OHL and WHL champions.

To that end, Halifax will be in on a defenceman this trading period, and potentially a second goaltender as well. If the price is right, they may also look to add to the forward group to try and jumpstart the offence.

Noah Dobson

Thankfully for the Mooseheads, the two biggest names available in the trading period are both defencemen. New York Islanders prospect Noah Dobson is the biggest fish in the pond, and right behind him is Arizona Coyotes draft pick Pierre-Olivier Joseph.

The price for Dobson will set the market, as he is the prize all teams are competing for. Dobson is a game-changer on defence, capable of controlling a game from the back-end, and has championship experience on the biggest stage. Joseph is a very solid consolation prize, as teams who find the price for Dobson too high may rather try to acquire one of the league’s hardest workers and smartest players. The Islanders also have very useful players to add into a Joseph trade to help a win-now team, such as Keith Getson or Anaheim Ducks prospect Hunter Drew, but it’s believed that Jim Hulton is not looking for far-off picks, preferring players that can help as early as next season in exchange for his assets. Having said that, the Islanders are in a contending position, and could choose either to stand pat or add to their team.

What is interesting in the Dobson speculation is that it is rumoured that any deal involving him will have to go through the Chicoutimi Saguenéens, as part of conditions of a prior deal for Bathurst last season. The Sags would rather the assets that Dobson would provide rather than use him this season, as Chicoutimi is a middling team with no real title aspirations this season. The suspense will run into the new year, as Dobson cannot officially be traded until his term with Team Canada at the World Junior Championships are over.

There are some top-level defender and forwards beyond those two, but in goal, most contenders seem to be set with one or two good goaltenders. There are many options for a team to buy for a playoff run – Minnesota Wild prospect Dereck Baribeau from Quebec, Pittsburgh Penguin signee Alex D’Orio in Saint John and fellow Penguin camp attendee Tristan Côté-Cazenave, to name three – but most of the top teams are set in net.

The changed playoff format this season could also have an effect on the trading period, due to the imbalance of talent between the Eastern and the Western Conferences. Starting this year, to prevent so many easy matchups in the first round and to cut down on potential travel, the league decided to drop the 1-vs-16 format and form two conferences of two divisions each. The Maritime teams and the Eastern-most Quebec teams form the 10-team East, and the rest create the eight-team West. There is the potential for wildcards to allow the top 16 teams to make the playoffs, but the weakness of this playoff format is best demonstrated by the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. At the time of writing, the Eagles would hold home ice in the old playoff format, sitting in eighth spot in the league. Because of the new conference format, though, Cape Breton would be sixth in the East, drawing a tough, contending Baie-Comeau team, on the road no less, in the opening round, rather than 11th-place Quebec. That format change could influence some teams in terms of whether to buy, sell or stand pat this season.

Two definite contenders outside of Halifax that dominate the list of other potential buyers are the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies and the Drummondville Voltigeurs.

Rouyn-Noranda are a very strong team built from within and coached and managed by last year’s Memorial Cup winner, Mario Pouliot. They are hard-working, very deep in net and on defence, and just one player on the entire roster has played for another Q team. Their wildcard is the potential return of injured Pittsburgh Penguin prospect Zachary Lauzon. His return would put the Huskies in limbo with their overagers, and they would have to make a decision on their 20-year-olds.

Joe Veleno

The Voltigeurs are maybe the league’s deepest team, led by Anaheim Ducks prospect Maxime Comtois and Detroit Red Wings first rounder Joe Veleno up front, Chicago Blackhawks first rounder Nicolas Beaudin and New Jersey Devils prospect Xavier Bernard on defence, along with Edmonton Oilers prospect Olivier Rodrigue in goal. Comtois’s return to the Q is maybe the biggest acquisition any team could have made this season. They are a rumoured team for Dobson, and adding Dobson to Beaudin and Bernard defensively would make Drummondville a very tough team to face in the playoffs with that three-headed monster on the back end.

One team that is certainly making some changes is the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. General Manager Steve Ahern has promised that several trades will be announced Sunday. They are heavily linked to the above-mentioned D’Orio.

Further with the Drakkar, Calgary Flames pick D’Artignan Joly has left the team on his own accord, awaiting a trade. Joly and the team have had a bumpy 2018, with player wanting to be more creative and team wishing he was more engaged and aggressive. Joly can absolutely score at this level, but he is an artist more than he is a worker.

Editor’s note – prior to publication, it was announced that Joly had been dealt to Victoriaville

The Rimouski Oceanic were a contender for the league title on paper this season, but they look up at the Drakkar at this point in the year and are facing a decision – do they go for it or hold back and go for it next year. According to bench boss Serge Beausoleil, they will be tentative, but not sell off players who won’t return, including captain Charles-Edouard D’Astous, who drew some interest from the Ottawa Senators in the summer. The Oceanic are the proud team of phenom Alexis Lafrenière, who will return to the league next season, and Rimouski could set themselves up to be an even better team next season.

The Moncton Wildcats may opt to do the same, as they have a high-flying offence, but many players also set to return for next season, namely potential first rounder Jakob Pelletier and Minnesota Wild pick Alex Khovanov, despite some issues on the defensive end. Unlike the Oceanic, though, players not returning next season or otherwise not in the plans for next season could be available for trade.

Among the anticipated sellers, the Acadie-Bathurst Titan have also had a move announced ahead of Sunday’s opening day for the mid-season trading period. They will acquire forward Anderson MacDonald from the Wildcats for a pair of picks. MacDonald has not had the bounce-back season either he or the Wildcats were hoping after he was surprisingly undrafted in last June’s NHL Entry Draft. MacDonald has battled injuries all year, and has played in only four games, largely on the fourth line, before being shuffled out of Moncton to the north of New Brunswick.

The Titan have also all but moved Dobson, fellow blueliner Keenan MacIsaac and forward Ethan Crossman, and will continue to take calls on defender Michal Ivan. The foursome all played key roles for the Memorial Cup winning Titan squad last year, as they look to set themselves up for a rebuild.

Editor’s note – Prior to publication, both Crossman and MacIsaac were dealt to Baie-Comeau

One can add the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada to the list of potential sellers, as they may look into cashing in on the remaining assets from three straight strong playoff runs. Montreal Canadiens prospect Joël Teasdale is a name that would garner lots of interest, and they have many useful veterans they do not need this season – Rémy Anglehart, Alex Katerinakis, Luke Henman, Thomas Ethier and Charles-Antoine Giguère come to mind. The Armada could recoup a lot of assets for their collection of forwards.

Editor’s note – Giguère was traded to Moncton prior to publication

The Gatineau Olympiques could also cash in on a few of their players for the future, namely Minnesota Wild prospect Shawn Boudrias and overager Gabriel Bilodeau, who could put up points on a contender looking to upgrade their powerplay. So could Val-d’Or’s David Noel, a St. Louis Blues pick, who is 19, but is currently on the shelf with an eye injury.

The composition of the QMJHL’s top teams will look different between now and January, and despite the high prices, expect a lot of player movement this time around.

QMJHL: David Noel (Val-D’or Foreurs – – St. Louis), Arnaud Durandeau (Halifax Mooseheads – New York Islanders)

Mike Sanderson — Wed, 08 Nov 2017 15:09:51 +0000

Hard shooting defender David Noel is off to a strong start with Val D'or on pace to surpass last seasons output and is one goal shy of last years eight with seven in 10 less games. Mike Sanderson provides a detailed report on his progress early in the season. Arnaud Durandeau faces a season with last years running mate Nico Hischier. Playing once again on the top line at even strength with top 2018 draft prospects Filip Zadina and Benoît-Olivier Groulx, Sanderson breaks down his game early in the season.

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.David Noël

David Noël	2017 Draft (130th - St. Louis Blues)
Position: D, Shoots L	H/W: 6-1", 175 lbs
Stats to date (GP-G-A-PTS-PIMS)	Val-d'Or Foreurs, QMJHL (18-7-11-18-6)

David Noel. Photo courtesy of the QMJHL

Skating: Noël’s skating is good, not great. He will not wow anyone with his movement, but he also is not an anchor on defence. He likes to start the rush behind his own net and move the breakout along, and he is a capable defender at doing that. As long as he keeps his gaps appropriate, and he can anticipate the speed of the oncoming forward, his speed is decent enough to get by. He will need to work on it at the higher levels. Grade: 50

Shot: Noël has an absolute cannon from the point. He can fire it from all parts of the point and make it hard for the goalie to stop, and he can use it as a decoy to open up teammates, or as a pass off the end boards out to the front of the net. He can also fire off a one-timer on the power play or off the rush as a trailer with effectiveness. Rarely, Noël can break in and let go a good wrist shot, opting to go with the slapper when he has the time to unload it. Grade: 55

Skills: Can make a solid first pass out of the zone or feed a teammate in the offensive zone effectively. His puck control is average. His puck play is more of a power game, as he is more of a North-South player. He plays better with the puck if the players are stationary, such as in the offensive zone, than in transition. Grade: 50

Smarts: Noël can run a point on a power play with relative ease. He also shows a good knack of when to join the rush and when to hang back. He also has an effective safety valve on his pairing with David Henley, who has a solid grasp of reading his partner’s tendencies. Noël has a tendency of holding onto the puck a little too long, and it can get him in trouble. Defensively, he is adequate at reading the play and setting the appropriate gaps, but can get burned by speedy forwards or lose his check in front from time to time. Grade: 45

Physicality: Strong and uses that leverage to his own benefit, but he is not a bruiser. He is a defenceman who grew early in his development, and was 6-0” in midget, which made him a physical player at that level, but his size is not imposing at this level. He is a decent penalty killer but can lose battles in front to stronger and bigger forwards. He will need to get stronger to improve in this department. He has had one career QMJHL fight. Grade: 45

Summary: The trade of David Noël from Chicoutimi to Val-d’Or allowed the defenceman’s offensive game to blossom with more ice-time. He is now a fixture on the top powerplay unit of the Foreurs, and runs the unit from the point. Seven goals in his first 17 games of the season is nothing to shake a stick at, including five markers on the power play. He has a solid, stable partner at even strength in captain David Henley, who has provided the yin to Noël’s yang in terms of offensive and defensive play. Noël’s shot from the point is a bullet, and it will be his ticket to the pros. What development he has beyond that will be what takes him further.

Overall Future Projection (OFP): 48.5

Arnaud Durandeau	2017 Draft (165th - New York Islanders)
Position: LW, Shoots L	H/W: 5-11", 185 lbs
Stats to date (GP-G-A-PTS-PIMS)	Halifax Mooseheads, QMJHL (18-5-10-15-12)

Skating: Durandeau’s skating stride is both very shifty and very fast. He seemingly floats above the ice and can turn very quickly. He also possesses good breakaway speed that lets him create separation when it is needed off the rush, which was not present in midget and he has developed well in Halifax. His skating, paired with his anticipation, is one of his best assets. Grade: 55

Shot: Durandeau’s shot coming into the Q was his greatest weapon, but his game has changed a bit at the junior level. He loves to curl off the boards on either wing and let a shot go from the circle at about 30 feet out, and he can score consistently off those shots. He was a big scorer in midget but his shot has not progressed as far as one would hope. He is still a threat to score on the rush and from the circles on the power play, but he scores more goals from in front of the goalmouth. Grade: 50

Skills: Plays very well with linemates who are also offensively-minded, and his hockey sense with the puck is excellent. He is a threat constantly with the puck on his stick. He finds teammates well and can hit them in stride with the pass, which keeps defenders honest about his game. His stickhandling in traffic is strong and his moves on the rush give him good separation and space. He shows good poise to know when the seams open up, and when to pounce on an unsuspecting defender. Grade: 50

Smarts: Durandeau’s game is offensive, and his anticipation is a big part of his game. He loves to hang out around the net and wait for rebounds to pounce, or play the tip. He is as much at home on the half-wall as he is in front of the net, and both his shot and pass are threats, which optimizes his talent, since the defenders cannot anticipate one or the other. Without the puck though, his game needs work. He can be invisible for stretches when the puck is in the defensive zone. Very much an offense-first player. Grade: 50

Physicality: Finesse player who looks smaller than his size is listed. He makes his living, usually, in front of the net, and takes that punishment as needed, but he is not a threat for delivering a big hit or being all that gritty in the corners. Grade: 45

Summary: Arnaud Durandeau is right in the mix of Halifax’s top-6 forward group, which includes top 2018 draft prospects Filip Zadina and Benoît-Olivier Groulx, as well as newly-signed with the Blue Jackets Maxime Fortier. Durandeau has played most of his even strength minutes with Groulx and Fortier, on a line that has been a very effective top line for Jim Midgley and has played a lot in the final minutes of games. In a lot of ways, he is like a Filip Zadina-lite. Their skating strides are the same style and their offensive zone instincts are similar, though Zadina has more talent. A former seventh-overall pick in the 2015 QMJHL draft, Durandeau could have a home in the pro ranks if he bulks up to take the punishment from bigger blueliners, or continues his skating development to outskate them. Ideally, both would happen to optimize his chances in the pro game.

Overall Future Projection (OFP): 50.75

2017 NHL Draft Team Grades: Central Division – St. Louis Blues

Ryan Wagman — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 21:17:43 +0000

Shortly after 1:00pm CST, on Saturday, June 24, 2017, the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins selected William Reilly, a defenseman from RPI as the 217^th player selected, bringing the 2017 Entry Draft to an end. With a few days of hindsight between me and the bowels of the United Center, the urge to spew out hot takes flushed away, it is time to analyze the strategies and selections employed by the league’s 31 teams.

CHICAGO, IL - JUNE 23: A general view of the floor prior to the first round of the 2017 NHL Draft on June 23, 2017, at the United Center, in Chicago, IL. (Photo by Patrick Gorski/Icon Sportswire)

The analysis will focus on the first five rounds, as it is clear to most long-time observers that the final two rounds are often taken up with long-shots, favours to regional scouts, or a myriad of reasons. I will, of course, call out some astute late picks, but will not judge a team for the names called in the final hour. The apocryphal story of Pekka Rinne, drafted as an eighth round after-thought in 2004 based mostly on his play in game warm-ups. Few other scouts would have seen him at all, and he has had a very good career, which is not yet over. For the most part, though, those picks have little statistical likelihood of having NHL careers and teams should not be judged there.

Finally, all grades are incomplete. Actual winners and losers in this draft class will not be known until 2023 at the earliest, after those who will have “made it” will have played out their entry-level contracts. What I am looking at here is whether, knowing what we know now, the drafting team got good value.

Each draft class will be graded using the 20-80 scale that we use in our player specific scouting reports throughout the site. In this context, a 50 is essentially an average grade in light of the picks the team had on draft day. A 20 would mean the draft is an untimigated disaster while an 80 would be the best draft class of all time. As those things can only be truly seen in retrospect, most classes will trend towards 50 at this point, so pay attention to those we see as outliers.

RD	#	CS	MCK	PLAYER	P	AGE	HT/WT	TEAM
1	20	22-N	15	Robert THOMAS	C	18	6-0/190	London (OHL)
1	31	1-E	21	Klim KOSTIN	C	18	6-3/195	Dynamo Bsh Balashikha (Rus 2)
1	31	1-E	21	Klim KOSTIN	C	18	6-3/195	Dynamo Moscow (KHL)
1	31	1-E	21	Klim KOSTIN	C	18	6-3/195	HC MVD (MHL)
4	113	21-E	73	Alexei TOROPCHENKO	RW	18	6-3/190	HC MVD (MHL)
4	113	21-E	73	Alexei TOROPCHENKO	RW	18	6-3/190	Dynamo Bsh Balashikha (Rus 2)
5	130	136-N		David NOEL	D	18	6-1/175	Chi-VdO (QMJHL)
6	175	154-N		Trenton BOURQUE	D	19	6-2/200	Owen Sound (OHL)
7	206	NR		Anton ANDERSSON	D	17	6-3/215	Lulea (Swe Jr)
7	206	NR		Anton ANDERSSON	D	17	6-3/215	Lulea (Swe Jr 18)

RD	#	PLAYER	P	TEAM	GP (W)	G (L)	A (T)	PTS (GA)	PIM (Sv%)
1	20	Robert THOMAS	C	London (OHL)	66	16	50	66	26
1	31	Klim KOSTIN	C	Dynamo Bsh Balashikha (Rus 2)	9	1	0	1	4
1	31			Dynamo Moscow (KHL)	8	0	0	0	27
1	31			HC MVD (MHL)	1	0	1	1	2
4	113	Alexei TOROPCHENKO	RW	HC MVD (MHL)	45	19	12	31	50
4	113			Dynamo Bsh Balashikha (Rus 2)	1	0	0	0	0
5	130	David NOEL	D	Chi-VdO (QMJHL)	65	11	21	32	29
6	175	Trenton BOURQUE	D	Owen Sound (OHL)	67	0	11	11	36
7	206	Anton ANDERSSON	D	Lulea (Swe Jr)	13	2	1	3	2
7	206			Lulea (Swe Jr 18)	4	2	2	4	12

St. Louis Blues - Grade 55

Even though they only had six total picks and did not take a player in the second or third rounds, the Blues had a great draft. A lot of people were confused when they protected slugger Ryan Reaves in the Expansion Draft over scoring winger David Perron, but that was a matter of 13 dimension chess, as the Blues swung the two biggest day one trades (not counting Chicago’s pre-draft deals). First, they dealt their second first rounder to Philadelphia, along with Jori Lehtera, for Brayden Schenn, who should be more than an adequate replacement for the departed Perron. Schenn is under contract for three more years at a reasonable cap hit. I liked that trade. But then, in the weirdest move of the day, they managed to flip Reaves to Pittsburgh, along with their second round pick, for a decent AHLer in Oskar Sundqvist, and the last pick of the first round. And that is how the Blues entered the day with Ryan Reaves instead of David Perron and ended it with two high end forward prospects and Brayden Schenn.

With their two first rounders, they selected London Knights playmaker Robert Thomas and big Russian enigma (in this case, the modifier is earned) Klim Kostin. We had ranked Thomas 15^th on the draft class and Kostin 21^st. Kostin has already stated that he will be leaving Russia this summer and prefers playing in the AHL to the CHL. Thomas is not ready for the pro game yet, but adds well above average skating chops to his playmaking abilities. If the injuries that hampered him this year are in the past, Kostin combines high end skill with a big frame and a power game. I also have good things to say about day two selections Alexey Toropchenko, a big Russian winger with a lot of tools who needs to put them all together and sixth rounder Trenton Bourque, a raw blueliner who makes up for a lack of offensive sense with good decision making in his own zone.

Best value: Klim Kostin, C, Dynamo Moscow (1/31): After destroying worlds at the pre-season Ivan Hlinka tournament, Kostin’s regular season was a big flame-out. Many had him in the lottery pick conversation early on and some still had him in the top 10 as draft day neared.

Biggest head-scratcher: David Noel, D, Val-d’Or (5/130): Not really bad value at this stage of the draft. He looks better on paper than he does on ice.