Théo Rochette – McKeen's Hockey

NHL: 2026 European Free Agent Frenzy – 47 Players you may see with an NHL franchise next season

Chapin Landvogt — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 18:17:08 +0000

There was a time when almost every spring brought with it a free agent name or two out of Europe that created a bit of a bidding war among interested NHL teams. This aspect of springtime business has calmed down in recent years as the rate of regular NHLers to be found has also cooled down, perhaps considerably. The Panarins of the world have been few and far between, even if KHLers usually head the list of desirables. The New York Islanders gobbled up two respective top names coming out of that league in the offseasons of 2024 and 2025, with the results having been less than satisfactory to date.

2024 target Maxim Tsyplakov put in a fairly solid 10-25-35 statline in his first NHL season but had just one point in 25 outings for the Islanders this season before being unceremoniously traded to the New Jersey Devils in what was part of an Ondrej Palat salary dump, only to find himself waived by the Devils about a dozen games later. An undersized Maxim Shabanov was the most heavily targeted prize last spring and ultimately made his way to Long Island but has found himself scratched of late more often than not, even if his 4-12-16 statline over 42 games did include some plays of brilliance that indicated there’s probably more in the tank.

Interestingly, the Tampa Bay Lightning went free agent hunting in Europe last spring and made several signings, with current defenseman Charle-Édouard D’Astous having become the most successful of last year’s crop. He not only has 27 points this season but has regularly chalked up over 18 minutes of TOI throughout the season, serving as the prime example of what teams hope to get when they go this route. Two years ago, the Dallas Stars added 22-year old forward Arttu Hyry to their program, who went on to have a 49-point rookie AHL season and has gotten into 13 NHL games this season as lower line depth.

Each are an attest to what many teams hope to find when they chance it on a low-key signing of a player enjoying success in Europe’s top leagues.

What we’re seeing this spring is that the various European leagues are lacking in big must-have free agent names but are well represented in providing players whom a number of teams would appear interested in adding to their farm systems. Furthermore, a number of available KHL players are not only in their mid-20s but just happen to be free agents in Russia as well, a concern that always precludes some of the statistically most successful players from being market grabs each spring. No less than five forwards have excelled this season and find themselves open to go to whoever they see the best opportunity with, be it in North America or the KHL.

Likewise, leagues such as the SHL, Liiga, NL, and DEL just happen to have the odd U25 player or two available who very much look like worthy ELC candidates, even if none appears close to being an immediate homerun swing of any sort.

With this in mind, we have little doubt that a number of the following players - many of whom were draft topics at one point or have come out of nowhere in recent years - will land themselves a contract with an NHL team and their chances of doing so will be considerably better if they are open to multiyear two-way contracts for next season. As always, the NHL season is a long one with injuries always playing a role, so there’s plenty of reasons for players to pine for the kinds of opportunities that, for example, fell into Pavol Regenda’s lap this past season.

MOST LIKELY TO BE SIGNED THIS SPRING OR OFFSEASON

Vitali Pinchuk (BLR) - C - 24 - 6-foot-3, 203 pounds. - KHL

The well-built former Kingston Frontenac is the cream of the crop for this spring’s European free agents. There were things scouts liked back in the 19-20 season, but it never led to a drafting, and he was quick to return to Belarus (granted, it was the pandemic), where he got a lick of the KHL the next season. Now he’s wrapping up his fourth straight season of KHL play and what a season it’s been, seeing him finish sixth overall in league scoring (66 points) and third overall in goals scored (31). He also put up a +21 rating. Already last season, his 43 points raised a good number of eyebrows and had teams very curious about this season, knowing he was scheduled to become a free agent this spring. He’s in full playoff mode now with three points in an initial round sweep of Dynamo Moscow. It is felt that he should be NHL-ready right off the bat, capable of a heavy game and nifty stickwork. There was a bit more hoopla about Tsyplakov and Shabanov in recent years, but Pinchuk may have the kind of overall game that’ll make him a more versatile NHL option.

Danil Aimurzin (RUS) - C - 23 - 6-foot-0, 180 pounds. - KHL

Not the biggest, fastest, or slickest player out there, Aimurzin nonetheless is very solid on his skates, makes a husky impression, and, well, constantly brings the puck to the goal. And if he’s not doing it, he’s heading to the net to make himself a pass option or pounce on rebounds. There’s a solid offensive orientation to his game, featuring strong patience with the puck, and he plays in a manner that makes it feel like he doesn’t sense stress. Although very different in the highlights department from a player like Maxim Shabanov the year before, Aimurzin is still fairly young and has a puck-protection style that is easily imaginable on North American ice. Truth be told, he’s coming off his worst regular season (14-29-43 and -7) in several years but is only now truly a free agent topic due to his current contract concluding this spring. His 57 points last season (including 31 goals) would have made him a likely signing last summer, so teams that were interested then are surely going to continue being in the hunt. For what it’s worth, his Cherepovets team features two draft picks from both Carolina and Pittsburgh.

260108 Skellefteås Pontus Johansson under ishockeymatchen i SHL mellan Skellefteå och HV71 den 8 januari 2026 i Skellefteå.
Foto: Johan Löf / BILDBYRÅN / COP 230 / JH0083

Pontus Johansson (SWE) - LHD - 24 - 6-foot-1, 185 pounds. - SHL

A slick, mobile defenseman whose deep knee crouch and long, straight back are reminiscent of former Blackhawk and Coyote Niklas Hjalmarsson, Johansson is currently suiting up for playoff hockey in his fifth season of SHL hockey, having literally exploded onto the scene this season after four relatively anonymous seasons of SHL play. His six goals in 51 games are as many as the past four seasons combined while his 25 points and +15 far outweigh anything he’s done before. That he’s often chewed up over 20 minutes of TOI per game only goes to show how much his role has grown for an absolute championship contender this year, not surprising in light of Skelleftea’s regular ability to develop future NHL talent. Pontus’ age is just right to take the next step, and his all-round play should be making him an attractive target for teams looking for a wide variety of defensive depth options.

Nick Malik

Nick Malik (CZE) - G - 23 - 6-foot-2, 180 pounds. - CZE

It wasn’t too long ago that the US-born Czech goaltender was a Tampa Bay Lightning draft pick selected as a 20-year-old after a strong season as a starter for Kookoo of the Finnish Liiga. He continued to be a starter there in the years thereafter, but always with a losing record and numerical statistics that didn’t inspire Tampa to sign him on time to retain his rights. In the past two years, he’s taken his act back home to Plzen, where he’s served as the starter for a regular playoff contestant, putting up topflight stats in that league each year. At the moment, his team looks poised to easily get to the second round of the playoffs, naturally with Malik in net, so a signing will have to wait a few weeks. Alas, when a goaltender of this age in a pro league carries his team to the tune of a 25-14 record with six shutouts, a 1.65 GAA, and a .929 save percentage in a whopping 41 starts, he can become a hot topic for NHL teams seeking viable goaltending depth.

Daniil Gutik (RUS) - LW - 24 - 6-foot-3, 190 pounds. - KHL

Had Gutik been available last offseason, it’s hard to imagine that he’d not have been gobbled up. He was 23 and coming off a total of 28 goals and 57 points. He has size, can aptly get from point A to B, and has actually been more noticeable as a playmaker to that point, until he started putting pucks in the net with regularity. This season didn’t kick off as promising with an Admiral Vladivostok team that never really competed, but a midseason trade to Spartak Moscow saw him pick things up again, collecting 19 points in 21 games and now having scored two goals in three playoff games to date. All in all, he finished 20-27-47 in 65 games and has a total package that should lead to a couple of suitors, again fully aware of his current contractual status as an unrestricted KHL free agent. The assumption will be that he’d need some time in the AHL to gain his bearings in North America.

Skellefteås Rickard Hugg
Foto: Michael Erichsen / BILDBYRÅN

Rickard Hugg (SWE) - C/W - 27 - 5-foot-10, 190 pounds. - SHL

After captaining the Kitchener Rangers in the 18-19 season and scoring at over a PPG pace that year, some were surprised that Hugg didn’t latch on to an NHL organization. In light of his skating style and average size, it shouldn’t have been that much of a surprise. He then immediately headed back to his home region in Sweden and went pro with Skelleftea, playing two decent seasons on a lower line before becoming a top six mainstay. Over his last four seasons, he’s managed to put up between 40-50 points every year, playoffs included. However, as this year’s playoffs get underway, Hugg is coming off a career best 56 regular season points and a +13 rating, having established himself as a serious threat in every game and seen in the SHL as one of the top 5-10 forwards whatsoever. He’s simply hard to get the puck from and combines a hounding playing style with some very nifty mitts and a strong wrister. The feeling is that he can immediately jump onto an NHL roster and contend for a third line spot, especially in light of his cycling abilities and net-area instincts.

Simon Johansson (SWE) - RHD - 26 - 6-foot-2, 194 pounds. - Liiga

Johansson is a known commodity who, as a 2018 5th rounder, joined the Wild organization for two solid, but unspectacular AHL seasons not too long ago and actually has a contract for Kloten of the NL in the bag for next season. However, he’s coming off a monster season in the Finnish Liiga in which he accounted for 19-32-51 and a +16 over 58 games, regularly logging app. 20 minutes of ice time every night. This not only meant he was the league’s top scoring defenseman but 14th overall in league scoring. If there’s any hope on his behalf of giving the NHL another shot, now wouldn’t be the worst time. He has never been a defensive beast but has savvy transitional skills and comes with strong bloodlines (cousin to Alex Winnberg and brother to Anton and Victor, both drafted). Perhaps accompanying one of the pups to their respective AHL club next season would make for a good storyline.

SHOT IN NORTH AMERICA BECKONS!?

Matyas Filip (CZE) - 25 - C - 5-foot-11, 187 pounds. - CZE

Filip is just the type of unassuming player who could see himself in a Radek Faksa or Zemgus Girgensons role at the NHL level within a few years’ time if he plays his cards right. Having shown steady play as a lower line center for years now, Filip took a step towards being one of the Czech league’s most important two-way players. With 13 goals, 26 points, and a +11 in 46 regular season games as well as another 3 points and +4 in 7 playoff games, he’s assuming the middle six forward role to a tee for his Plzen club in this career year, but the stats only tell part of the story for a player who thinks team-first and is a go-to must when the defensive chips are on the line. Skating and average size is there for a player who could very well be a solid lower line option after a season of AHL preparation.

Tobias Normann (NOR) - 24 - G - 6-foot-1, 187 pounds. - SHL

Normann spent last season, his first in the SHL, as famed Frölunda’s 1B starter. This season, he made his way to being the team’s 1A. Ultimately, his season ended on April 2nd against Lulea with a 2-3 record and a sparkling 1.33 GAA and .921 save percentage, something his stacked club couldn’t make use of. Alas, Normann’s regular season saw a number of fantastic performances including three shutouts in 24 appearances. Furthermore, his 1.68 GAA and .923 save percentage led the entire SHL in both categories, even if his 14-10 record was good, but pedestrian for a club that had heavy title ambitions. Originally from Norway, Normann has extensive pro experience from teenage years back home and used a strong 23-24 season in the HockeyAllsvenskan to jump up to the SHL last year. He also stood in goal for Team Norway three times at the Men’s WC last spring, pitching a shutout and 2.63 GAA along the way. We expect him in net in Switzerland this spring as well, likely as his nation’s starter. The time is ripe for him to take a next step if he should have any NHL ambitions, even if Frölunda would love to see him finish off his contract there, which first expires after the 28/29 season.

Patrik Puistola (FIN) - 25 - RW/LW - 6-foot-0, 181 pounds. - SHL

It’s hard to say if the former Carolina Hurricanes draft pick could one day be a true NHL option, but it is clear that he’s not only overcome a few skating issues from his earlier years but has spent the past four seasons establishing himself as a top producer in both the SHL and Liiga, meaning there’s little doubt he’d at least contribute to an AHL line-up right off the bat. Anyone seeing him the past two seasons has noticed a player who is very keen on generating high octane opportunities and even found more of a playmaker gene than initially thought, seeing as how he was originally drafted as a gunner off the wing, thanks greatly to being a Mestis-league goalscorer in his draft year and then a bit of a sniper at ensuing U18 Worlds and WJC tournaments. Agile and slick with his turns in the corner, Puistola is not a speedster and certainly not one to be found deeply involved in rough stuff. It definitely feels like a team playing with house money would best be served by bringing him in and seeing how much of an option he turns himself into after he gets a bit of AHL play under his belt.

Theo Rochette (SUI/CAN) - 24 - C/LW - 5-foot-11, 172 pounds. - Swiss NL

A former Memorial Cup winner, Rochette first turned 24 in February and has taken his steady development to a new level this season, serving as perhaps the NL’s top U25 player whatsoever. After regular seasons of 30 and then 31 points the past two years, he jumped to 22 goals and 43 points this past season and just exited the playoffs in an exciting seven-game series, pitching in with seven points along the way. The author of 317 points in 271 career QMJHL games, it was felt Rochette may sign a contract last summer after a spring to remember featuring 11 goals and 17 points in 19 playoff games. When one combines his continued growth as a point collector with what’s been an uncanny ability to play meaningful hockey every spring - and constantly fantastic +/- stats to boot -, it should be a foregone conclusion that an NHL team will look to give him a shot as soon as this summer.

Sandro Schmid (SUI) - C/RW - 25 - 5-foot-11, 185 pounds. - Swiss NL

No relation to Swiss NHL goaltender Akira Schmid, the former Malmö Redhawk junior player is coming off his seventh straight NL season, and it has been his finest by a country mile, turning into a top league playmaker with a career year of 10-28-38 over 52 games. Actually, it’s been a longer stretch of fine play for Schmid who was not only a part of Switzerland’s silver-medal-winning WC squad last spring but contributed a 3-4-7 statline in the process. All this also led to him being at this winter’s Olympics where he provided a strong Swiss club with some feisty 3rd line play and intelligent corner work. And this is where it gets interesting because he’s always been capable of providing energy and conducting yeoman work but now it’s turning into more dangerous creation of offensive opportunities off the forecheck. This development would indicate there’s sound logic in believing he can step right onto an NHL checking line without missing a beat. Another strong WC performance this spring - a tournament taking place in his native Switzerland - might be all we need to see before he signs an ELC.

Axel Sundberg (SWE) - RW/LW - 27 - 6-foot-2, 215 pounds. - SHL

Last year, we identified Sundberg as a heavy-built winger who had come out of nowhere to put himself on the map of system depth options. With skating deficiencies that nonetheless look like they’d be little problem on smaller ice surfaces, Sundberg went from being a lower level nobody to a 2nd line SHLer last season. Now somewhat fully developed, he’s taken it all a bit further this spring, jumping from 25 to 34 points and engraving himself on the left face-off circle of the power play. There’s a physical dimension to his game and he uses his body adeptly to not only protect the puck, but ward off oncoming attackers. Sure, he’s come a long way in a short period of time while quickly heading towards his late 20s but it’s very easy to picture him wreaking some havoc on a North American ice surface. We’ll soon find out if an NHL team feels the same way.

JUST GETTING OUT OF THEIR DIAPERS

Hugo Fransson (SWE) - LHD - 21 - 6-foot-0, 176 pounds. - SHL

If he were one year younger, we’d have little doubt that Fransson would be an overage draftee this summer. Despite two straight seasons of SHL play with at least 27 contests per season, rounded out by some decent HockeyAllsvenskan play, no-one foresaw the kind of breakout season he enjoyed this year, albeit for an SHL team that needed to punch its SHL ticket for a 3rd straight year in the relegation round series. Finishing off with 11-16-27 numbers over 56 games, Fransson has been the discovery of the season in the SHL and everyone’s curious to see if that’ll pocket him an ELC, especially in light of how many smaller, mobile defensemen have made their way to the NHL in recent years. At his age, it would be akin to a team signing a draft pick.

Santeri Huovila (FIN) - LW - 21 - 6-foot-0, 172 pounds. - Liiga

After putting up a 9-33-42 statline in 49 games as a Liiga rookie last year, Huovila managed to tie that output this year with 5-37-42, yet he achieved that in all of 33 games! We understand if you need to blink twice seeing that stat. A 21-year-old undrafted player collecting more than one assist per game is something you quite frankly do not see in many established pro leagues, much less one featuring former NHLers and current NHL draftees. There is of course a reason for doubt, as he not only is a lightweight out on the ice but doesn’t have much of a second gear. However, there’s a radar in that head of his and if you’re open and in a scoring position, watch out! You will get the puck. He is incredibly adept at handling the biscuit and quickly distributing it. A team willing to invest in a physically underdeveloped player will add a skillset and player who has started looking underchallenged in the Finnish Liiga.

Adrian Klein (GER) - LHD - 22 - 6-foot-3, 212 pounds. - DEL

There was a time when Klein was just a 16-year-old gangly defenseman who managed to put up 11 points in Germany’s 3rd pro league circuit. It’s not something we see often, so the hope was that he’d make his way to being an NHL topic. Even though he progressed fairly evenly, bit by bit, getting 80 DEL games under his belt between the ages of 17-19, participating in a U18 Worlds and two WJCs, the size and experience combo just wasn’t enticing enough to overcome some mobility and hockey IQ issues and see him get drafted. What has happened since is that he’s become a DEL regular and after two seasons of being his team’s # 6/7 defenseman, he established himself as a clear-cut top four this past season, making incredible use of his size as a shot and pass blocker while regularly muscling out opponents along the boards and in front of the net. In addition, he put in a career year statistically with five goals, 16 points, and a+10 rating over 51 games heading into the playoffs. We’d love to see him play for Germany at the men’s WC and have to think there’s an NHL team out there that knows he’s ready for a bigger test - and may not want to wait to enter what would likely become a bidding war if he ups the ante once again next season.

Jere Lassila (FIN) - C - 22 - 5-foot-10, 176 pounds. - Liiga

There are those out there in the scouting community who wonder how players like Lassila slip through the cracks come draft day. Once the captain of Finland’s U18 entry (8 points in 6 games) and then two years later its WJC entry (8 points in 7 games), Lassila is basically a coach’s dream. He’s a hound out there who plays with intensity and simply understands where he needs to be and what he needs to be doing in situations in all three zones. He’s seen regular Liiga action for four straight years now, seeing his point production increase from 3 to 26 to 35 to now 58 points. Indeed, a 20-38-58 and +4 statline in 60 games for a non-playoff team is highly impressive for a player who just turned 22 at the end of March. Seeing as how his game is very much a two-way affair, it’s hard to imagine there won’t be an NHL team ready to bring him in and start shaping him for a future bottom nine role at the NHL level. There was a time when he was just felt to be downright small, but his actual size isn’t unheard of at the NHL level.

Vasili Machulin (RUS) - LHD - 23 - 6-foot-4, 201 pounds. - KHL

A no frills defenseman with great size, Machulin plays an unspectacular all-round game in which he has no hesitation to use his body in a variety of ways. Playing for a weaker Sochi team for several seasons now, Machulin racks up the TOI, often getting upwards of 21 minutes per contest, seeing use in just about every situation, save for the power play. There’s little risk in his game and yet it always looks like there’s a bit more that could be squeezed out under the right circumstances. He nonetheless has 19 and 14 points to show for himself the past two seasons. For teams that keep their eyes open for low-risk, physical additions such as an Artyom Zub or Ilya Lyubushkin, for example, Machulin could be right up their alley. He is well-schooled and now quite KHL-experienced for a player who hasn’t yet turned 24.

Janne Naukkarinen (FIN) - C/W - 22 - 6-foot-2, 192 pounds. - Liiga

The 23-24 season was Naukkarinen’s first full season of Liiga play (20 points) and also saw him get in some reps at the WJC where he collected two assists. This wasn’t enough to get drafted as an overager, but he continued to keep eyebrows raised with a decent 24-25 season that didn’t see any real progress pointwise (18 in total) yet a continued Liiga role as a third line center with five points over 21 playoff games to boot. This year saw him in a similar role but with a good bit more production, delivering 24 points and cutting down his penalty minutes. The skating is anything but polished yet he’s a big body with a solid slate of pro experience to date and an offensive game that keeps showing flashes of being deserving of more opportunity. Could that come in the AHL next year?

Nestor Noiva (FIN) - RW - 22 - 6-foot-0, 183 pounds. - Liiga

Despite strong U18 and U20 league stats, Noiva has only represented his nation in international friendly play and not at any of the major tournaments. However, he did work his way into a regular shift and 25 points last season as a Liiga rookie and there was no sophomore slump this year, as Noiva put up 12-24-36 and +5 regular season numbers, which he impressively improved on with 7 points in a 5-game first round playoff victory over Kiekoo-Espoo. His importance to his Assat team can’t be overstated as he regularly logs ca. 19 minutes of TOI per game and is coming off a recent 38-minute performance in a game that stretched over six periods. Should he get signed this offseason, we would say there’s good potential for Noiva to take the same kind of developmental path as recent Dallas Stars signing Arttu Hyry.

Veit Oswald (GER) - LW - 21 - 6-foot-2”, 179 pounds. - DEL

Where to start. After a quiet but interesting draft year with a sneaky good U18 Worlds performance, Oswald really made some noise in his DY+2 (both at the WJC and in DEL play) but didn’t get drafted and then fell off the planet a bit in conjunction with a disjointed Munich team in DY+3, despite having attended the Toronto Maple Leafs prospect camp the summer before. Still 21 right on up into August, Oswald has reset his clock this year, being the most effective U22 player in the DEL and serving as a multifaceted weapon for a Munich team with serious aspirations. Often playing with established ex-AHLers, Oswald has never looked out of place and set career highs of 12-14-26 and a +16 in 38 games before suffering an injury that has kept him out since mid-January. Chances are that his numbers would be even more appealing just now as his team found a bit of a groove right down the stretch. We’re convinced that a team ready to give him an ELC can throw him right into a top nine role in the AHL next season and think of him much like a drafted player with NHL upside moving forward.

Matvei Polyakov (RUS) - RW - 21 - 5-foot-10, 176 pounds. - KHL

Aside from strong MHL statistics the past two seasons for SKA St. Petersburg’s junior club, Polyakov hasn’t popped out as an overage Russian player you risk a pick on. That’s usually reserved for someone who is sticking out in the KHL. Now beyond draftability, the slightly undersized Polyakov decided to use the last year of his current contract to force his way onto St. Petersburg’s roster and simply become the veteran-laden squad’s sixth best scorer with a 16-13-29 statline. Likely a player St. Petersburg fully intends on retaining, signing him now would - age wise - be like investing in a recent European draft pick. Combine this season and the prior high-scoring junior years and well, Polyakov has clearly outplayed a number of Russian forwards who have been drafted this century.

Alexander Smolin (RUS) - G - 22 - 6-foot-2, 168 pounds. - KHL

One of the youngest goalies on the market, Smolin has seen an astronomic rise in his stock in a very short period of time. Only two seasons ago, he was splitting his time between the junior MHL, the second tier VHL, with a bit of KHL hockey sprinkled in between. Then he became a full-time back-up for Metallurg last season, generating all-round solid numbers and a 14-6-2 record. This season saw him split duties and take things to another level. A 23-8-2 record was accompanied by a 2.33 GAA and .915 save percentage, stats that are fine if not lights out in the KHL. He has kicked off the playoffs with three straight victories and a 1.00 GAA and .947 save percentage. There are Gagarin Cup ambitions here, so we’ll see where Smolin is at when all is said and done, but there’s no doubt the age/performance ratio is very enticing.

Jimi Suomi (FIN) - LHD - 23 - 5-foot-11, 174 pounds. - Liiga

Always known as a mobile and agile skater, Suomi was a known commodity (although a good bit smaller) in his draft year, when he put up four assists at the U18 Worlds. He followed that with 32 games and six points in Liiga play in his DY+1. Over the years, he kept gaining experience and after two straight seasons of regular deployment in Finland’s best pro league, he enjoyed a bit of a breakthrough this season with 11 goals, 31 points, and a +13 in 53 games. Suomi has a shot and has a real knack of avoiding the rough stuff when players come hunting for him. If he doesn’t make his way to North America, the feeling is we’ll see him in the SHL next season.

Jiri Tichacek (CZE) - LHD - 23 - 5-foot-9, 170 pounds. - Liiga

Yes, there’s a bit of a size issue here. We always knew that no matter what he achieved, that size wasn’t what you ideally want to use a draft pick on. He could be another Jared Spurgeon, but teams don’t make a habit of selecting that in advance. Still, Tichacek keeps arousing interest. He made the Czech Olympic team (alas, only getting ca. 10 minutes of ice time all tourney long) but more importantly, he took his gig to Finland after an impressive 24-25 season in the Czech Republic and actually took a little step in the process. Like in 24-25, he accumulated 31 points, doing so in two fewer games than the year before. He also improved by seven points in the +/- department. The question is if there’s a team out there who can hand him the power play blueliner job at the AHL level next season? If there is, there could be grounds for finding out if Tichacek could just be another Spurgeon.

Yegor Vinogradov (RUS) - C/RW - 22 - 6-foot-3, 203 pounds - KHL

The well-built forward who hasn’t exactly been fleet-of-foot in recent years took the next step in a major way this season. After three seasons of subtle KHL introduction to the tune of 17, 13, and 16 points, Yegor received a whole new role while suddenly displaying an almost newfound will to succeed, chiming in with 23-31-54 and +6 totals in 67 regular season games while having since chipped in 3 points in his team’s 4-1 first round playoff victory over Cherepovets. The author of a number of smooth moves and slick passes throughout the season, he did indicate a breakout might be coming when he played part of last season in Russia’s second tier pro league, the VHL, putting 23 points in 21 games and adding another 18 in 19 playoff games, 10 of which were goals. Whereas a team could worry about how much this season was a one-and-done productionwise, it was his 4th season of KHL play and a look at the production itself would indicate that he’s only just begun to realize what he’s capable of. Should his next contract be a KHL contract, rest assured that it’ll be a long one, so now would be the time to strike if you believe in his possibilities.

IS THE TIME FINALLY RIPE?

Boris Blank (GER) - LW/C - 24 - 6-foot-0, 187 pounds. - DEL

Already having completed six full seasons of DEL play, the former WJC participant was a draft topic for several years but simply didn’t display the overall speed to compensate for other holes in his game. This season, he has exploded onto the scene with 19-28-47 numbers in 52 games, becoming a clear-cut go-to offensive player. Plenty in the scene feel it’s time for him to get a WC call as well for Germany, but that is still up in the air. What is clear is that he has shown flashes for years now, but his skating has gotten to a point where it shouldn’t prohibit an international career. The question now is if a team sees him as a player who is simply a year of AHL play away from being an NHL option. His stats certainly trump other U25 players who’ve signed ELCs in recent years and he made a very mature impression this year, taking the bull by the horns for a club that needed him to score.

Max Franzreb (GER) - G - 29 - 6-foot-0, 198 pounds. - DEL

Actually smaller than he appears on the ice, Franzreb has been a goalie who has looked mentally stronger than most you’ll see around Europe for a number of years now, often scratching the surface of what seems to be untapped potential. This winter, he took over the reins as the 1A in net for yearly contender Adler Mannheim and has put in his best ever season, not only putting up a 23-11 record, but finishing third in GAA (2.04) and SV% (.921). He was also on the Olympic team and faced the US in a game where he put up a valiant effort for the first and final 20 minutes of play. He’s definitely a bit old to be an NHL option, but a strong playoff push (4-1 record in a first round victory) might be the cherry on top for a team looking to add a sneaky 3rd option for its goalie rotation next fall. His current coach and GM is former NHL official Dallas Eakins.

Leon Hüttl (GER) - RHD - 25 - 6-foot-0, 180 pounds. - DEL

Another player who has been seen at the men’s WC in recent years, Hüttl was a strong candidate for the Olympic team but the coaching staff went in another direction. His playoffs are about to begin and we’re thinking last spring’s decent WC performance should see him there again this year, but what we don’t have any doubt about is his mobility, hockey IQ, and overall understanding of how to push the game forward up the ice. He’s got another 25+ points (28 to date) but his +24 ties a career high and has him 7th overall in the league. He’s not the biggest player around and not a speed demon either, but he’s a Brian Rafalski of sorts by DEL standards and we’ve wondered what an NHL organization could make of him, considering he has a pure winner’s attitude and is a highly respected competitor in the DEL.

Yaroslav Likhachyov (RUS) - 24 - LW - 5-foot-11, 174 pounds. - KHL

He played three seasons of hockey in the QMJHL and was never drafted, with his final season coming during the pandemic. After two years of decent youngster production in the KHL, he kind of fell off the map last season with just 10 goals and 14 points. Little was expected this season, but in the final year of his KHL contract, he went out and blew away all previous highs with 22 goals and 39 points in 59 games. He was always a good player on the move with some solid hands and now it’s come to fruition. What is unclear is his exact contractual status as he played on loan with an option this season. If he feels he’s on the cusp of some big KHL numbers heading into next season, it may be worth it to ink a one-year KHL deal and see what next spring brings. But if Lokomotiv is his only option for next season should he stay in Russia, where he was stunted in the 24-25 season, he may feel the time is right to give North America another go.

Nick Olesen (DEN) - C/W - 30 - 6-foot-1, 185 pounds. - CZE

For sure, you’ll rarely see a player this old listed in this or any list of possible European free agents, but Olesen has something cooking recently that some team out there definitely has on its radar. Long a player who simply made noise in his native Denmark or in Sweden’s lower leagues, Olesen eventually made it to the SHL and played a minimal middle six role for 3 seasons, once even potting 13 goals. Then he took his act to the Czech Republic, where he had his best season as a pro and something went “click”. Last spring, a Team Denmark featuring Nikolaj Ehlers as its sole NHL player had a magical run in a tournament it hosted. A key in that run was Olesen, who whipped up 12 points in 10 games. He then blew all previous highs out of the water this season with 45 points in 51 regular season games for Ceske Budjevice, also participating in the Olympics along the way, where he led Denmark in scoring with 4-1-5 in four games. Quite clever around the net and in making use of time and space, while also fleet of foot, one has to wonder if he’s just the good old fashioned case of a very, very late bloomer. In any case, his most recent stats in conjunction with his above-average international performances have raised eyebrows and one should never underestimate how hungry a player from a smaller hockey nation like Denmark could be if the opportunity comes along.

Eugen Rabcan (SVK) - G - 24 - 6-foot-3, 196 pounds. - SVK

In his third season of regular top league play in Slovakia, Rabcan became an absolute minute-muncher for a run of the mill team that is in the midst of an interesting playoff battle at this time, one Rabcan has a 3-3 record in. All in all, Rabcan started 40 regular season games and put up a 20-20 record with a 2.52 GAA and strong .921 save percentage. There is talk of Rabcan having a good shot at being part of the country’s WC outfit (2-0 with a 1.49 GAA in several international outings this winter) and seeing as how he’s represented by an agency with a heavy emphasis on North America, Rabcan’s path to an NHL organization could be just a few contractual autographs away.

Colin Ugbekile (GER) - LHD - 26 - 6-foot-2, 198 pounds. - DEL

There were some who felt Ugbekile should have been on the Olympic team. It didn’t happen and we’ll be curious to see if he is one of the final cuts for the men’s WC or keeps strutting his stuff in Switzerland. Fact is, it’s likely now or never for the former USHLer who has clearly established himself as one of the top two-way defensemen and power play quarterbacks in the DEL, coming off a career season with nine goals, 43 points, and a +10 rating for a team that once again came up short of the playoffs. He’s got the size and wheels to give the AHL the good ol’ college try, and his game is definitely one that can thrive in a program that emphasizes the transition. But it’s easy to think that if an NHL contract isn’t offered this summer, that might be all she wrote for a player who’d spend the next 10 years likely being one of the DEL top five German defensemen on a yearly basis.

Libor Zabransky (CZE) - RHD - 25 - 6-foot-0, 203 pounds. - CZE

You look at Zabransky’s size and shot, and his plethora of WHL experience as well as his regular appearance for his native Czech Republic on the international stage (albeit, without any WC performances), and you have to wonder how come no-one has taken a flyer on him to see what he can do at the pro level in North America. Let there be no doubt that there have always been warts in his game, but he’s tickled scouts’ fancy here and there to keep his name in the notebooks. Now, after six seasons of pro play, with four of them having been in a bottom four role in the Finnish Liiga, Zabransky has cashed in his maturity cheque and set Czech league bluelines on fire to the tune of 18 goals this season. Considering he had never had more than seven in any given season, and that was five years ago, teams will have to determine if it’s just one-off or if Zabransky has reached the potential he once long hinted at.

YOU DON’T KNOW HIM, BUT DON’T BE SURPRISED IF HE GETS SIGNED

Ruslan Abrosimov (RUS) - C - 24 - 5-foot-10, 181 pounds. - KHL

A former MHL captain and top scorer, Abrosimov put in three straight seasons of KHL play and improvement before exploding this season to the tune of 24 goals, 48 points, and a +15 in 62 games, wearing an “A” on his chest while at it. If there are any NHL aspirations, the timing is just right for a player whose game is all about production. Slightly below average size doesn’t have to be an issue here as Abrosimov is adept at avoiding physical contact.

Vasily Atanosov (RUS) - RW/C - 23 - 5-foot-11, 160 pounds. - KHL

A strong identifier of opportunities and a player who knows how to read the room on the rush, Atanosov has done nothing but produce in recent years. Although he came in shy of the 40 points he had for Torpedo in their strong 23-24 season, Atanosov has deposited 21 shots in the net this year (36 points) and is finally a contractual free agent. There’s skill and vision here, and you never know how long the next KHL contract will be. He has consistently scored in the KHL for three straight seasons, so teams know what he is, but also that he’s quite a lightweight.

Tim Barkemo (SWE) - LHD - 21 - 6-foot-1, 185 pounds. - HockeyAllsvenskan

We’ll preface this by mentioning that you rarely see a Swedish UFA sign an ELC coming out of the second tier HockeyAllsvenskan. Then again, Barkemo had several solid U20 league seasons in the Skelleftea organization, even suiting up 13 times for the regular SHL contender. Last season was then his first full introduction to pro play, and he turned himself into a regular. This season, he turned himself into a top two defenseman who a number of SHL clubs are on the hunt for, with Skelleftea likely having the best cards. His 5-17-22 and +21 statline over 50 games is quite impressive for a player his age in a conservative league (scoring wise), but he put up six points in his team’s first round playoff sweep. Most importantly, he regularly sees upwards of 22 minutes of TOI per game. In his most recent playoff contest, he gobbled up 31:13 of ice time. We’re talking about a player that an NHL franchise could really mold quite directly as of next season. Otherwise, he’s clearly SHL-bound.

Maxim Fedotov (RUS) - RHD - 24 - 5-foot-10, 172 pounds. - KHL

That last name should ring a bell because Maxim is indeed Red Wings legend Sergei’s eldest son. The undersized righty shot defender actually had his best KHL season for Torpedo back in the 22-23 season, capped off by seven points in 10 playoff games. After finding lower line roles in the KHL in recent years, he was back in a top four role again this year, which he capped off with 24 points in 52 games, serving as his team’s best all-round defender after Artyom Serikov, who will hit the UFA market next summer. Fedotov now has loads of KHL experience, mostly with bottom-feeders, but without a KHL contract under his belt, the option is there to test his luck in North America and a certain someone may even be able to open a door or two to that opportunity.

Anton Kosolapov (RUS) - LW - 24 - 6-foot-1, 190 pounds. - KHL

Once a player with some good junior numbers, Kosolapov stood out mostly as a bit of a tenacious forechecker who liked to bang bodies. His VHL stats in recent years never really popped and until this season, it looked like he might just end up a minor leaguer in Russia for the long run. Then he got a shot with a new organization (Sibir Novosibirsk) and proceeded to go 17-21-38 and + 7 in 38 games. He’s still playing playoff hockey right now, but he’ll be a KHL free agent this offseason. It won’t be for long though as he’ll have a number of suitors and heck, he might be best served sticking with Sibir. But if an NHL team has seen something it likes, and Kosolapov put some wares on display, now is the time to bring him in, even if the plan would be to give him a year of AHL hockey and hope for the best.

Lucas Lagerberg Hoen (SWE) - LHD - 21 - 6-foot-2, 190 pounds. - SHL

For the draft gurus among us, you’ll recognize this last name and wonder what’s going on. No worries though, Lucas is just the older brother of Jonas, who is draft eligible this summer. But while Jonas unfortunately missed much of his draft season, Lucas was able to use this season to officially put his name on the map. It wasn’t a fairy tale ride though as Lagerberg Hoen spent some nights getting just 1-2 minutes of ice time and others with 19+, so there was a good bit of up and down in his role. But when all was said and done, he had eight points in 43 games and established himself as a physically adept youngster who skated and competed like an older player. This season came on the heels of two prior years in the HockeyAllsvenskan where he was often entrusted with a healthy dose of ice time. There’s a package here to build on and Lagerberg Hoen looks like the kind of player teams that haven’t drafted much in recent years would be interested in.

Danjo Leonhardt - LW - 23 - 5-foot-11, 185 pounds. - DEL

The stats won’t blow anyone away although his 29 points and +13 in 45 regular season games are career highs for a player who looks to explode in the DEL in coming years, but Leonhardt has long been on our watchlist and checks a number of boxes for teams that appreciate what the Ondrej Palats of the world can offer to an organization. He gets his nose dirty and does a lot of the little things right, making high value decisions all over the ice and being particularly effective around the opponent’s net. He’s been incrementally earning himself a closer look in recent years and it feels bound to come, next summer if not this one.

Aleksi Matinmikko (FIN) - RHD - 26 - 5-foot-11, 181 pounds. - Liiga

Some players just take a bit of time and Matinmikko is now one of those mid-20s European pros who is what he is, and you’ve got to wonder what a shot in North America might lead to. Having never played outside his native Finland, Matinmikko has been tasting Liiga waters since the 19-20 season, but it took a whopping 21-goal, 65-point season in the second tier Mestis to finally get the type of role he’s been auditioning for. Now he’s wrapping up his third year of full-time Liiga play and his 9-25-34 and +30 was clearly his best to date. His size is average and he isn’t the most mobile player around, but he has a bullet of a shot and has gotten incrementally better year after year for four seasons now.

Oleksii Myklukha (UKR) - C - 23 - 5-foot-10”, 176 pounds. - SVK

The former QMJHLer has never really given the scouting community the belief that he, at his size, had enough jam and enough tricks in the bag to become an NHL option. But in addition to last year’s playoffs, the agile Myklukha has exploded offensively in Slovakia’s top league. There’s a player here who creates time and space, then sets up the open players who can benefit from the newfound areas Myklukha has created, ringing up 18 goals and 55 points in 51 games this season. It’s clear that he’s ready to be playing in a higher profile league next season. Does an NHL team think that league should be the AHL?

Mikkel Oby-Olsen (NOR) - RW - 23 - 5-foot-11, 185 pounds. - HockeyAllsvenskan

Without a doubt, one of the slyest possibilities you’ll read about today. Despite playing almost a full season of HockeyAllsvenskan contests in the 22-23 season, he fell off a bit until latching on again last season to the tune of 25 points. That he’d push that production to 30 goals and 50 points in 54 games this season couldn’t have been expected. But it wasn’t just the numbers that made things special. It was the how. He’s been effective everywhere, controlling play as a puck-carrying trickster, making wonderful passes, and sniping from many spots, often on the power play. He was Almtuna’s all-purpose weapon and raised plenty of eyebrows this winter. The assist totals would have surely been more impressive if he had more talent to work with. We not only expect an SHL contact to be in the bag, but a spot on Norway’s next WC squad seems to be a given at this point. The question is if a team thinks it could find some unexpected gold by bringing over the Oby-Olsen train?

Jasper Patrikainen (FIN) - G - 25 - 6-foot-1, 176 pounds. - SVK

The smaller built battler had an eye-opening 22-23 season, when he pounced on an opportunity and put up a number of wins and some decent stats, but fell right back into more of a back-up role with time missed in each of the last two seasons of Liiga play. In fact, he was so disenchanted with where he was career wise, he jumped to Stavanger of the Norwegian league last season and went on an 8-1 tear in the playoffs. That landed him a gig in Slovakia and he’s been lights out this season, going 22-8 in the regular season with six shutouts. The 2.02 GAA and .930 save percentage haven’t been shabby either. In the middle of the playoffs, the question is if the size isn’t a deterrent, is he the dominating goalie we’ve seen in weaker leagues in Norway and Slovakia, or the player degraded after a strong season in the Finnish Liiga? Will an NHL team look to find out?

Eetu Randelin (FIN) - G - 24 - 5-foot-11, 187 pounds. - Liiga

Yet another smaller Finnish goalie, judging on size alone, you wouldn’t expect Randelin to be an NHL topic. But there’s a little engine that could aspect to his story, as he continues to beat the odds and work his way up the totem pole. Now he’s coming off his first season as a starter in Liiga action in which he put up a 21-9-6 record, steering his KooKoo club into the playoffs. He’s quick and agile, but most importantly, determined.

YEARLY SIDENOTE

As always, it bears mentioning every year that above and beyond the players listed above, the Swiss NL, SHL, and KHL - among others - are chock full of former NHLers, NHL draft picks, AHLers, Canadian juniors, and college hockey players, not to mention former European free agent signings of NHL teams that have since returned to Europe. These leagues also employ a large number of established pros who you’ll see dressing for their respective national teams. A prime example this year would be former Ranger and Golden Knight forward Oscar Lindberg, who exploded for 30 goals and 67 points in 52 regular season SHL games this season. Thus, these leagues also feature many players who were in the NHL in recent years or on the bubble to the NHL, usually as highly effective AHLers and as such, any number of these players could of course still be in the sightlines of NHL teams or maintain the connections that would see them return to a franchise in the coming months.

NHL: 2025 European Free Agent Frenzy – 26 Players you may see with an NHL franchise next season

Chapin Landvogt — Sun, 16 Mar 2025 14:53:24 +0000

Färjestads David Tomasek 11 march 2025 i Gävle.
Photo: Jens Carlsson / BILDBYRÅN

For the second year running, NHL teams looking at plucking over older European players to jump right into the line-up have few options to target for a home run swing. Even if a few players in predominantly the KHL have burst out on the scene, few of them are actual free agents this summer while many of the players having surprise impacts in the SHL, Liiga, NL, and DEL belong to the “been there, done that” category or are even North American players who have gained somewhat of a new lease on life this season. Still, a couple of them are very likely to be signed to two-way contracts for next season by NHL teams sometime this spring.

Our top European free agent last spring was forward Maxim Tsyplakov, who came out of virtually nowhere to put up 31 goals for his KHL club and signed (almost just as surprisingly) with the New York Islanders. This season, he earned a spot right out of camp and has proceeded to become a regular player with solid third line production, showing himself to be more of a power forward set-up man than net front goalscoring presence. At the moment, he appears to be in line to re-sign with the team on a multi-year contract.

Alas, three of the other European players we were certain would find their way over were Swedish forwards Marcus Sylvegard (STL) and Oscar Eklind (PHI) as well as Czech standout Jakub Rychlovsky, all of whom have had very mixed results this year. While Eklind’s 20 points and +5 rating in 51 AHL games certainly haven’t indicated anything but a return to Sweden next season, Sylvegard’s 21 points in 35 AHL contests, as well as his fading prospects for making a jump to the NHL line-up this season, led him and the team to break ties, allowing him to jump back over to Växjö, for whom he’s already put up 12 points in 12 games. Rychlovsky has punched in just eight points in 38 AHL contests thus far.

Of our other candidates last spring, 6-foot-6 Canadian defenseman Nicolas Mattinen turned his monster season in the DEL into a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, for who’s farm team he’s only managed to suit up 19 contests for.

With those kinds of returns being nothing short of meager, we look at this year’s crop with skepticism that there’ll even be a Tsyplakov-style addition to be made, at least among players who haven’t yet had a crack at it with an NHL club in the past. Nonetheless, we are absolutely certain that teams will add a few of the following candidates as they go about creating system depth and, as always, hoping a player will ultimately surprise and proceed to have the type of careers we’ve seen from former European UFAs Artemi Panarin and Mats Zuccarello, to name a few.

Get ‘em while they’re hot!

Maxim Shabanov (RUS) - C/RW - 24 – 5-foot-8, 160 pounds - KHL

If he were even three inches taller and 20 pounds heavier, then we’d talk about Shabanov as a surefire NHL addition this summer. There are skills and hockey sense here that are clearly above average, and you’ll want to do yourself a favor and catch some of his highlights because he’s been the author of some very impressive plays the past few seasons. He’s a player with splash-n-dash. If things get too physical, he’s nifty at finding other ways to get his stick on dangerous pucks. With 64 points in 62 games at the time of this article, he’s now set personal KHL highs after seasons of 31 and then 50 points. As with Tsyplakov last season at this time, Shabanov has cooled down in recent weeks, going 1-6-7 in his past ten games after starting the season with 14 points in his first 12 games. What we can say is that his size will likely not prevent a team from signing him and his agency works for a long list of predominantly Russian players who have been drafted by or later signed with NHL teams, including recent Russian UFA signings Nikita Gusev and Alexander Barabanov.

David Tomasek (CZE) - C - 29 - 6-foot-2, 187 pounds - SHL

He led the Swedish SHL in regular season scoring last season with 25 goals and 45 points, albeit in 52 games. He had piqued interest. We know that teams were looking at him and he was in heavy consideration. Then he flopped with just one point in a horrific first round sweep in which his first-place club lost to the eighth seed. After that, he showed up at the Men’s WC for Czechia and was quite ok, going 1-3-4 and +3 in 10 games. He didn’t get signed by an NHL team. There were other interested parties around Europe, but Tomasek seemed to believe that he was already in the best place for his progress in Färjestad and this season has done nothing but back that up. At the moment, he’s leading the SHL - a league whose top scorer is often clipping at less than a PPG pace - with 57 points in 47 games. His team is gearing up for a long playoff run and yes, we know he’s getting some serious attention, despite his age. Tomasek has another year on his SHL contract but there’s an out clause should the NHL come knocking.

Charles-Édouard D’Astous (CAN) - D - 26 - 6-foot-2, 187 pounds - SHL

Without a doubt, the Quebec-born defenseman put up some very shiny numbers over the final three years of his QMJHL career. Never having been drafted, he spent three seasons trying to latch on in the AHL, playing the bulk of his games in the ECHL, where he even had a monster 21-22 season for the Utah Grizzlies. Will it now be the Utah HC that gives him another shot to head back west for some possible NHL action? It wouldn’t be surprising because D’Astous has gone from raising eyebrows with 17 goals and 46 points in 54 Liiga games last season to storming the higher octane SHL this season to the tune of 12-27-39 in 49 games for the upstart 1st place Brynäs club, going +26 in the process. Having somehow turned his earlier skating weaknesses into something that hardly holds him back, D’Astous has gained considerable interest in the international hockey community. We’ve seen plenty of mid-to-late 20s Canadian defensemen go from European success to an NHL contract (often with less success), and this is almost a certainty in D’Astous’ case.

Atro Leppanen (FIN) - D - 26 – 6-foot-0, 183 pounds - Liiga

It is very difficult to put a finger on what makes Leppanen so successful in Liiga play. At least for the game there, he seems to have an incredible read on how and when to make use of ice that is available while possessing a quirky shiftiness to buy himself the odd second here or there with the puck. He’s neither large nor the most beautiful skater out there, but one thing is certain, namely that Leppanen has set the all-time record for points by a defenseman in a single season in Finland’s top pro circuit. It took a long-range empty-netter to recently collect his 54th point of the season but that saw him surpass the previous record of 53 held by former late blooming NHLer all-star Brian Rafalski and Finnish legend Pekka Rautakallio, a defender who played three seasons of NHL hockey that saw him put up 35, 56, and then 68 points respectively for the Atlanta/Calgary Flames organization. Heavy company! Leppanen has only been a part of Liiga action for two seasons now, turning a 58-point performance in the second league Mestis (in 51 games) into 28- and now 61-point performances at the top level. We know he may finish the year in the Swiss NL. We know he has a contract in the bag for the SHL next season. What we don’t know is if an NHL team is ready to give him a look now based on performance rather than an analysis of his otherwise average-looking skillset and playing style.

Worth another look?

David Bernhardt (SWE) - D - 27 - 6-foot-4, 209 pounds - SHL

A 2016 draft pick of the Philadelphia Flyers, Bernhardt looked like a legitimate prospect in the two seasons after being drafted. However, an injury here and there led to some stalling, and it took some time in the Finnish Liiga and then HockeyAllsvenskan to get back on track. Seasons with 56 and then 72 total points went a long way in solidifying his role with a MoDo team that finally made its way back into the SHL, where his first season as a top four defenseman in the league saw a good amount of growing pains, but nonetheless led to his statistically best top league campaign to date. This season has left the previous one in the dust, already having put up seven more goals and 15 more points in two fewer games to date. He’s also flipped a -21 into a +5 despite playing for a team still establishing itself. Will it all be enough to get a look in North America? It looks a lot like the season Hardy Haman Aktell had before signing with the Washington Capitals and the players aren’t all that different in size and style in the grand scheme of things.

Daniel Gazda (CZE) - D - 27 - 6-foot-1, 207 pounds - Liiga

A stoutly built righty shot, we mentioned Gazda last season after he collected 17 goals, 30 points, and a +11 rating in 52 games for Brno in what was his first season in Czechia’s top league. That earned him a shot in Finland, and he’s done nothing but run with it to the tune of 12 goals, 35 points, and a +20 in 51 games. The trickiness in his game is a good part of his repertoire and we’re seeing aspects of his game that has us thinking he’s watched plenty of tape on Adam Fox. If a team wasn’t quite ready to see him on North American ice after last season, it’s hard not to want to after what’s taken place this season.

Matias Mäntykivi (FIN) - C - 22 - 5-foot-11, 165 pounds - Liiga

No longer a Boston Bruins prospect, Mäntykivi is once again having a career year with 52 points in 59 games after putting up 49 in 60 games last season. That makes him one of Liiga’s key contributors. Topping a +25 last year with a +27 this year doesn’t hurt either. However, size and skating are still his weakness, and the NHL will only see so many players of his ilk break the mold and become regulars over time. Then again, much of what we see and hear about Mäntykivi was originally thought about Mats Zuccarello once upon a time as well. He may just have to keep putting up the big numbers before he gets a shot.

Dominik Pavlat (CZE) - G - 25 - 6-foot-2, 174 pounds - Czechia

Still young by goaltending standards, Pavlat was a statistically dominating goaltender in the Czech league last season and promptly found himself manning the net for the Ilves program in Finland, where he’s been even better. After concluding last season with a 2.16 GAA and .936 SV% in 29 regular season games, Pavlat finds himself with a 2.21 GAA and .913 SV% in 25 contests this year, platooning with fellow Czech native and New Jersey Devils prospect Jakub Malek. Those numbers may seem quite mortal, but they mean he’s third overall leaguewide in GAA and first overall in save percentage. Highly notable is also his 17-5-5 record, making him first overall in winning percentage for goalies as well. In a league that has seen an insane amount of games go to overtime this season, his five OT losses are tied for fewest among goaltenders with 25 or more starts. Still lightweight for goalies in the modern age, Pavlat has now put up two straight noticeable seasons in Europe and will be shooting for the Finnish championship this year. And we know that Liiga action gets a bit more attention than what Pavlat has been exposed to date.

Ludvig Persson (SWE) - G - 25 - 6-foot-1, 183 pounds - SHL

Now 25, Persson’s season has been notable for a number of reasons. North American scouts are well aware of who he is considering he was Miami University’s starter for three seasons before jumping over to man the nets as the go-to man for North Dakota in the 23-24 season. A minute-muncher, seeing at least 32 games of action in each of the past three collegiate seasons, Persson jumped on an opportunity to join the famed Brynäs organization which was heading back up to the SHL and had signed recent NHLers Jakob Silfverberg, Oskar Lindblom, Erik Källgren, and Victor Soderstrom. That team is now at the top of the SHL standings and Persson has been a big part of it. Actually, replacing Damian Clara (ANA), who went 10-1 in last year’s successful HockeyAllsvenskan playoffs, Persson was expected to be the clear back-up to Källgren, but has forced his way into a platoon, going 14-6 with two shutouts. His 1.75 GAA tops the entire league while his .925 SV% is second overall. Make no mistake, Persson has come to play with the big boys and any team that had him on the “Monitor his progress” list during his college career has surely taken notice. Is an SHL championship in the cards this season? That league-high winning percentage may be the ticket to a starting role in the hottest time of the year.

Theo Rochette (SUI/CAN) - 23 - C/LW - 5-foot-11, 172 pounds - Swiss NL

Having just turned 23 in February, we’re going to continue to mention the young former Memorial Cup winner because he’s not only still young and improving, but the nation’s top U24 player whatsoever, imports included. He was impressive with his 30 points and +4 in 46 games last season (with another 9 in 19 playoff games), but he’s upped the ante this season with 31 points and +8 in all of 38 games to date, long flirting with a PPG pace. NHL scouts are fully aware of him after 317 points in 271 career QMJHL games and six in four Memorial Cup contests. What also needs to be said is that his Lausanne club lost in the seventh game of last year’s finals. He won the Memorial Cup the year before. Some players just find themselves playing for winners. As we mentioned last year, Rochette looks like he has everything necessary to be the next Swiss player to take the Pius Suter path to the NHL.

Justin Schütz (GER) - LW - 23 - 5-foot-11, 185 pounds - DEL

After bursting out for 30 total goals and 47 points in 55 DEL contests last season, the now 24-year old Schütz (a former 6th round draft pick of the Florida Panthers) looked like he could be a hot topic for a team looking to add to its offensive stockpile at the AHL level, one possessing that je-ne-sais-quoi possibility with a year or two of minor league marinating. In four fewer games this season, Schütz is up to 26 goals and 46 points, while flashing a nice +20 despite pacing a team that has had plenty of ups and downs this season. A DEL regular for five seasons now, Schutz is constantly smiling and passionately riling up his teammates or protesting referee decisions, celebrating goals and assists with youthful enthusiasm. Although his skating doesn’t hold him back whatsoever in the DEL, it’s understandable that teams may see it as something less than a selling point. But that nose for the net has got to be tempting.

Off the beaten path

Eskild Bakke Olsen (NOR) - C/RW - 22 - 6-foot-0, 185 pounds - HockeyAllsvenskan

In general, it’s hard to imagine that an NHL team would be looking to add a slightly below-average skater like Bakke Olsen to its program at this stage, having not even seen what he could possibly do at i.e., the SHL level. Alas, the 22-year-old Norwegian already has four Norwegian league seasons under his belt and is in the midst of his second HockeyAllsvenskan season, one that has been an absolute revelation. Yes, some bells were already ringing last season when his 10-27-37 statline in the regular season was converted into 5-9-14 numbers in 12 games while playing together with St. Louis prospect Otto Stenberg. Now he’s been the go-to offensive player for his Karlskoga club, upping the ante to 9-44-53 in 48 games to date, coordinating most all attacks and running the power play. He’ll be in the playoffs again this season, so we’ll see what magic he can work with his Czech winger de choix Theodor Pistek - also 22 -, who himself is ready for bigger things next season. After successfully debuting with the Norwegian national team last season, expect budding playmaker Bakke Olsen to be a key figure at this spring’s Men’s WC.

Alex Breton (CAN) - D - 27 - 6-foot-1, 190 pounds - DEL

It’s been a magical season for Breton and it’s far from over as his Ingolstadt Panthers enter the DEL playoffs ranked first overall. After some decent years including the captaincy for the Gatineau Olympiques of the QMJHL, two outstanding seasons in the ECHL led to a solid gig with Banska Bystrica - and then eventually Kosice - in Slovakia, with another tenure in the ECHL. Always capable of putting up some solid stats from the blueline, his 13 goals and 40 points last season earned him a heavier contract in the DEL, and he’s delivered like seldom before. While Canadian defenseman Nicolas Mattinen made headway as a dominant performer in the DEL last season, leading to a contract from the Toronto Maple Leafs, Breton has taken things a bit further, becoming the first DEL defender in over a decade to score 20+ goals in a regular season. As the playoffs approach, he’s put up 48 points and a +25 rating in 52 games. With sturdy size and a simply outstanding ability to be involved all over the ice, it’s hard to imagine a team won’t bring him in on a two-way contract.

Leon Hüttl (GER) - D - 23 - 6-foot-0, 180 pounds - DEL

We’ve seen Hüttl as a budding national team player who, despite slightly below-average size, gets better year after year and brings all the smarts and transitional abilities you’d want to see from a modern defenseman. This year has been a career year for the righty shot and like Breton, he’s been a cog in all aspects of the game for an Ingolstadt team with championship ambitions. We’ll also go so far as to peg him for the national team at this spring’s Worlds, which could go a long way in improving his status as an NHL target. What we’re certain of is that he’s ready to test the AHL and then see where things go from there. The 10 goals and 34 points to date have accompanied a +9 rating but only tell part of the story for a player who rarely sees less than 18 and half minutes of ice time a game.

Denis Kostin (RUS) - G - 29 - 6-foot-1, 205 pounds - KHL

In the midst of a career year, he’s one of the few Russian goaltenders of note whose KHL contract is running out at the conclusion of the season. Having more than paid his dues over many years of Russian minor league play, the 29-year-old required a monster 21-22 season in the VHL to finally get a KHL look, signing with a team that has done more losing than winning for quite a while now. This year, he’s taken the bull by the horns to the tune of a .931 SV% and six shutouts in 44 games of action. His 20-15 record has been just outstanding in light of his team’s 26-37 record after 63 games. We all know that there have been plenty of goaltenders who first hit their stride in their late 20s. A team willing to take a shot might just find themselves with one in Kostin.

Michal Kovarcik - (CZE) - C/RW - 28 - 6-foot-0, 176 pounds - Liiga

Truth be told, it’s hard to imagine that a 28-year-old Kovarcik who is scheduled to return to his hometown Trinec team in the Czech Republic wouldn’t want to see if his late-blooming offensive explosion - which already began last season - isn’t something he couldn’t turn into a shot at North American glory. A bit of a lightweight who isn’t always great on the eye, Kovarcik is in essence a highly skilled puckmover and a very fast point A-to-B skater. When he gets the wheels going, there haven’t been a lot of players in the Finnish Liiga in recent years who can keep up. Despite having suffered what may be a season-ending injury on March 5th, Kovarcik will end this season with the top PPG clip in the league, if not as the top scorer overall, should the aforementioned Leppanen not surpass him in the final two outings. Having never scored more than 30 points in a pro league campaign, Kovarcik popped last season with 15-30-45 numbers for surprise Jukurit. Jumping to Kärpät, he’s taken things to a whole new level with 13-49-62 in 52 contests, often setting up teammates in a manner that left opponents with little opportunity to react. Teams lacking in the playmaking department have tried taking less exciting routes in the past, so Kovarcik definitely presents a joker-in-waiting possibility.

Michal Kunc (CZE) - RW - 24 - 6-foot-0, 187 pounds - Czechia

If you’ve never heard of Kunc, don’t be hard on yourself. It’s been a six-year journey of incremental playing time at Czechia’s highest level that has seen the now 24-year-old break out in his far-and-away best season to date. A classic number 10 forward with stints on his team’s 3rd line for the first four seasons of top league play, Kunc broke out last year tying for second on the team with 11 goals (23 points) in 49 games, numbers indicative of the scoring problems his team experienced. But he obviously discovered that his hunched style with choppy, yet quick crossovers didn’t mean he can’t be more of a producer, exploding on the scene this season with 13 goals and 35 points this year, making him his team’s top scorer and 22nd overall in the league. The real eyebrow raiser though is that Kunc is strutting a +22 for an Olomouc team featuring 17 players with minus ratings. The next closest teammate has a +3. He’s been known to get involved in altercations in recent years too, so there’s some real bite and a will to succeed in this young man’s game.

Viljami Nieminen (FIN) - F - 23 - 5-foot-10, 181 pounds - Liiga

Viljami was born in Denver and his father spent parts of seven seasons in the NHL playing in a 3rd and 4th line capacity for seven different teams. Much like his father, Viljami can do everything well but does not stick out with any one particular strength. What we have been taking note of is that he’s all over the place. He skates well, he drives to the net, he makes strong (if not, exhilarating) passes, he takes one-timers, he forces errors with a hard forecheck - he does it all. His size is average and although his skating is very sound, you can’t classify him as a speedster. But we see absolutely no reason why Viljami - who definitely has pedigree - shouldn’t get a couple of AHL seasons under his belt to see if there isn’t something more here. Tools and wherewithal abound - and the 23-year-old has gone from 13 points as a young 10th forward last season to a 36-point powerplay performer in the top six this season.

Axel Sundberg (SWE) - RW/LW - 26 - 6-foot-2, 209 pounds - SHL

A very thickly built winger who skates with an upright back and hunched knees, creating a strong center of gravity, Sundberg only just made his debut in the SHL last season, having barely been a blip on the map coming up from the HockeyAllsvenskan, where he had a breakout year in the 22-23 season. This year he’s broken out a bit as a middle-six winger getting powerplay time, putting up 11-14-25 in 52 games in the process. What catches our eye is that although his skating style doesn’t pop out as anything fancy and his numbers are simply nice, but nothing to write home about, he’s incredibly strong along the boards and in holding onto the puck. In addition, he’s got quite an eye and is very sly at putting pucks in dangerous places or finding his teammates, while also ready to make his way to the goal when called for. He’s even found himself in the Ovechkin spot on the second powerplay unit. In short, he looks like just the type of player who can wreak some havoc on a North American ice surface.

Stanislav Skorvanek (SVK) - G - 28 - 6-foot-2, 192 pounds - Slovakia

The 29-year-old Skorvanek is not a player we’d keep throwing our eyes on if we weren’t living in a day and age where teams are platooning more than ever and constantly looking for 3rd string goalies who won’t be gobbled up on waivers whenever their services aren’t required. Alas, we saw him dominate in Slovakia in an impressive playoff run with a 10-8 record with a 1.83 GAA and .944 SV% in 18 games only to then make his WC debut for Slovakia last spring, where he went 3-1 with a 1.26 GAA and .954 SV% in 4 outings. This led to a nice contract in Czechia’s top league and things have only got better. His 21-13 record for contender Mountfield has accompanied a 2.03 GAA and .919 SV% with the playoffs just around the corner. He’s very composed and brings a lot of structure to the net. It would be interesting to see if he could be this spring’s Marcus Högberg-style signing.

Hidden gems?

Sebastian Cederle (SVK) - C - 25 - 6-foot-2, 190 pounds - Slovakia

There are players out there who can probably do more than their stats indicate but their coaches know they’re needed for other important tasks while certain other teammates have to be given the offensive roles for a lack of versatility. Cederle falls into this category. Now in his mid-20s, the two-way center knows how to dog and rag the puck as well as what his tasks are in his zone. After showing this incrementally in recent years, his role was pivotal in the playoffs last season, turning a 20-point season (41 games) into an 11-point playoff run (21 games). All he’s done this season is double down on his progress, scoring a career high 15 goals and 24 points in 34 games while being a key player in all important situations. His ice time is rarely under 18 minutes a night and when it is, his team is firmly in control of the game, meaning the coach can spread the ice time wealth. When things are tight, Cederle is on the ice. There will be astute hockey people who have seen the qualities he brings to the table and envision that there’s more in the tank moving forward.

Grigori Kuzmin (RUS) - LW - 21 - 5-foot-10, 187 pounds - KHL

He’s not big but he’s got wide shoulders and a strong core, and he’s coming basically out of nowhere to be on this list. Yes, those who follow the second tier VHL will point out that he’s been almost a PPG player there for three seasons, including 52 in 51 games last season. But as a predominantly 21-year-old player this season, the righty shot has not only forced his way into a stacked St. Petersburg line-up, he’s also put up over 20 points in 37 KHL games. Now, this might not pop out at anyone from the onset, but the youngster will first turn 22 in April and is a free agent after this season. In addition, his build-up has been slow but continual this season (for example, seven points in his last six games) and he’s figuring more and more into St. Petersburg offensive plans up front. If a team likes what it sees, then this would be the time to bring him into the fold before he signs what will likely be a 3-5 yearlong KHL contract, as he’s currently an attractive free agent target in Russia as well.

Filip Prikryl (CZE) - C/LW - 23 - 6-foot-1, 179 pounds - Czechia

The numbers (12-15-27 in 50 regular season games and +7) won’t jump out at you, but the former Saint John Sea Dog has spent the past three seasons turning into a more responsible, all-round player whose creativity is really starting to blossom. The fans love him in Budejovice and his playing time has swayed between 14-20 minutes in recent weeks, even getting in a good 18 and half minutes of play in two playoff games in which his team was shut out. What we’re seeing here is a player who looks like he could already make some nifty plays at the AHL level while showing his newfound understanding for three-zone responsibility. Some teams seem to operate with a mindset that they can add players like this and do the rest with their development group. Prikryl would be a nice case study.

Josh Samanski (GER/CAN) - C/LW - 22 - 6-foot-6, 190 pounds - DEL

Former OHLer and 2-time WJC contestant Samanski is a player we continue to keep our sites on and this season, it hasn’t been hard to do as he’s been pure eye candy for his Straubing Tigers. We already thought he’d be a player the NHL would take into consideration last summer after he arrived as a bonafide middle six forward at the ripe age of 21. Now he’s taken things to a whole new level. A very big boy who uses his size well to gain, protect, and battle for pucks, Samanski has done nothing but show continual bursts of speed, silky mitts, and a keen sense of creating and finishing all season long. Yes, he’s got a contract with DEL powerhouse Berlin next season, but if he continues on this pace, he’ll be putting up numbers we haven’t really seen from a youngster his age since Dominik Kahun earned himself an NHL contract. And Kahun was older and smaller when he did. Wearing an A on his jersey, Samanski already has a career high 40 points in 52 games as his team holds the prime spot for the upcoming wild card round. At this rate, you shouldn’t be surprised to see him suiting up for Team Germany at the upcoming Worlds either. SIDENOTE: His younger brother Noah is currently playing for the Powell River Kings in the BCHL.

Marko Stacha (SVK) - D - 22 - 6-foot-1, 196 pounds - Slovakia

After portions of two seasons in the WHL, Stacha hadn’t seemed to live up to the billing of an up-n-coming two-way defenseman, although he had put up some real nice outings for his nation in younger years. Then he had a pretty solid pro season as a 21-year-old last year and has pushed the limits again this year. He’s been more present physically (55 penalty minutes) while quietly putting up 15 points and a +12 for his Nitra club in what has nonetheless been a season marred by some injuries. His six points and +13 in 21 playoff games last season surely caught some scouts’ attention. Another shot at play in North America for the mobile defenseman seems imminent.

Simon Zajicek (CZE) - G - 23 - 6-foot--0, 187 pounds - Czechia

Some say he’s closer to 6-foot-2 than the reported six foot, but the undersized Zajicek has gone from being a promising goaltending with a losing record as a back-up to a winning 1b. His play has been raising some eyebrows and whereas his 2.12 GAA only has him ranked 5th in the league, his .930 SV% has him at the top of the list. Five shutouts are looking nice as well. His 15-13 record shows that he’s stolen the net from Philadelphia Flyers asset Matej Tomek. We don’t expect Zajicek in Czechia next season, but an NHL club may take a bit of a wait-n-see approach at this point in time. He looks ready for a crack at the AHL.

SIDENOTE

As always, it bears mentioning every year that above and beyond the players listed above, both the Swiss NL and KHL - among others - are chock full of former NHLers, NHL draft picks, AHLers, Canadian juniors, and college hockey players, not to mention former European free agent signings of NHL teams that have since returned to Europe. These leagues also employ a large number of established pros who you’ll see dressing for their respective national teams. Thus, these leagues also feature many players who were in the NHL in recent years or on the bubble to the NHL, usually as highly effective AHLers. Naturally, any number of these players could of course still be in the sightlines of NHL teams or maintain the connections that would see them return to a franchise in the coming months.

NHL: 2024 European Free Agent Frenzy – 31 Players You May See in the NHL or AHL Next Season

Chapin Landvogt — Wed, 06 Mar 2024 14:58:50 +0000

_{Marcus Sylvegard (Växjö Lakers HC)}

If you’re looking for a player to come into your line-up and do what, say, an Andrey Kuzmenko did in his initial NHL season, then this year’s crop of European free agents will leave you thirsty. As every year, several players have stepped to the forefront to gain some NHL attention as free agent entities, but there’s no surefire scorer out there just ready to be instantly plugged into an NHL line-up with a production guarantee. Are there candidates? You bet. But there’s reason to believe they’ll need some North American seasoning or at least will first have to battle with other candidates for a lower-line NHL role to start off with.

Nonetheless, we’re seeing some players here who have been very successful in Europe after years of pro play. A few were already putting up points last year, but the scouting community needed to see them verify it in a follow-up season, which several ultimately have. Then you’ve got those mid-20s guys who have just now shown up on the scene in a scoring capacity and thus, one has to wonder if they’ve truly arrived as an NHL topic or if the stars were just aligned properly in this particular season.

What’s clear is that a few players out of Europe will be signed once again by a handful of NHL teams and these are some of the key names you’ll want to keep a lookout for.

Get ‘em while they’re hot

Maxim Tsyplakov (RUS) - C/RW - 25 - 6’3”, 190 lbs. - KHL

Not only the most prominent UFA out of the KHL (and we’re only including Russian players here if they are not on contract in Russia next season) but in all of Europe in the current batch, Tsyplakov has somewhat exploded on the scene this season to the tune of 31 goals and 47 points in 65 games. He was actually on pace to have a much better output than that but has only potted 2 goals since a 4-goal explosion 11 games ago. As a pro, Tsyplakov already played 22 games of KHL hockey as an 18-year-old. He then had 4 straight seasons between 9 and 17 points before chipping in 25 last season, when he became a regular top 9 fixture for his Spartak Moscow club. For NHL teams, Tsyplakov’s size and nose for the net are both attractive, and there’s a well-crafted wrist shot here that slyly finds holes in goalies. But there is a skating deficit to mention, as he moves around the ice like a player whose leg strength isn’t quite up to par. It’s not the kind of deficit that has lumbering out there and to be honest, there are some regular NHLers out there who don’t skate all that differently. An NHL team signing him may not know just how much offense it's getting, but he’s an adept face-off man who has spent plenty of time playing bottom-two-line hockey in his career, so there’s something to gain out of him if the offense doesn’t translate.

Marcus Sylvegard (SWE) - RW - 24 - 6’0”, 190 lbs. - SHL

The Sylvegard family is one that is very well known in Sweden’s 3rd largest city of Malmö. That is where Marcus and his older brother Emil, long the SHL’s bad boy answer to Tom Wilson, have made a name for themselves with a few pit stops in Växjö, a name you don’t even want to try to pronounce. That’s where they both are now and Marcus was one of the league’s top free-agent signings last summer after a breakthrough 7th SHL season with 45 points in 57 total games. Solidly built and simply fantastic at getting into shooting positions, Sylvegard has been worth every penny, uh, “öre” this season as he’s set a career-high with 23 goals (41 points) in 47 games while amassing an impressive +25 rating. Very strong at protecting the puck, quick on rebounds, and possessing a deceptive one-timer from the Ovechkin spot on the power play, two straight seasons of upper-echelon SHL production should be convincing enough to obtain an NHL contract. A team bringing in Sylvegard could find itself with a Daniel Sprong-type producer by the end of his first season in North America.

Jerry Turkulainen (FIN) - RW - 25 - 5’7”, 160 lbs. - Liiga

We’d normally hesitate to put a player like Turkulainen on this list. He’s now 25 and is in the midst of his 8th straight season of Liiga hockey, having never accumulated less than 26 points in a season. And that was back when he was a teen and just entering his 20s. So, NHL teams know who he is. He also just signed a contract with Swiss NL club Ajoie for next season, so there’s that. But for the first time in his career, he’s leading Liiga in scoring (61 points in 56 games) and that’s coming on the heels of his first 50-point season just last year. In addition, be it his motor, his agility, his stickhandling, his shot, or his on-ice vision - all of his primary skills are not only above average (often downright smooth), but look as though they’d translate quite well to the North American rink, where his incredibly slick hands and quick passes as well as his first three steps (hops, even) could take considerable advantage of areas where there’s little space. No doubt, his size is why he may be one of the best players you’ve never heard of, but he sure does seem to be exactly where Mats Zuccarello was at before an NHL team decided to chance it on him as a free agent.

Oscar Eklind (SWE) - LW - 25 - 6’4”, 220 lbs. - SHL

There’s been a lot of slow cooking for Eklind, whose size has always been tantalizing but whose skating and rather slow reactions long had skeptics thinking he’d be little more than a HockeyAllsvenskan pro. But Brynäs felt he was ready several seasons ago and brought him in for a lower-line role while investing in his development on other fronts. After seasons of 17 and 16 points, he’s now taken a new step with a very even-keeled Lulea club this season, thus far authoring 15 goals, 25 points, and 62 penalty minutes in 44 games, the latter stat placing him among the league’s top 10. What’s more is that Eklind has shown himself to, at times, be a bit explosive in his first few steps and he’s firmly implanted as the bumper man on the team’s first power play unit. The coaching staff also has him on the ice in the waning moments of games when the team is in the lead, so there’s a level of trust in him as a team leader and a guy who gets the job done. You can’t teach size, and now he’s taken steps in all the departments you can teach, so a team looking to bring in a big body with some job may just have a contract for him.

Christian Heljanko (FIN) - G - 26 - 6’0”, 187 lbs. - Liiga

When you come from a country that is renowned for developing goalies, it can be easy to get lost in the fray, especially when you’re not north of 6’3”. But at some point, a combination of the eye test and your achievements can simply no longer be overlooked. In his 6th year as a starter for the famed Tappara program, Heljanko has already won two league titles and been named the league’s top goaltender twice. His numbers are actually slightly down this year, even if he’s still moving along nicely in the wins column (24) and leads the way with 7 shutouts. A great deal of athleticism is accompanied by Heljanko’s strong ability to track the puck. We’ve rarely gotten to see him play internationally, even if he technically has a U18 Worlds silver to his name, but the feeling is that he may have a decent shot at making the men’s team this spring for the World Championship. At the moment, there’s hardly a more established European league netminder who hasn’t already been given a shot in North America.

Marcus Hardegard (SWE) - D - 26 - 6’1”, 203 lbs. - SHL

In a free agency year really devoid of clearcut blueline additions, Hardegard is about the best of the bunch. No doubt, he already raised some eyebrows last season with Örebro for whom he collected 12 goals and 27 points as a #4 defenseman. Now he’s having an immensely solid season for Lulea, a team that has him on the ice in all situations. Very sturdy and always willing to initiate and play through physical play, Hardegard stands out a bit due to his wide stance and bowlegged playing style, which furthers the impression that you just can’t knock this guy down. He’s seen international action for Team Sweden this winter and is looking like a WC candidate, which would be quite an accomplishment in light of how many NHLers will likely be available for that tournament. Hardegard brings all the basic requirements and is also a fixture on Lulea’s power play unit, even if his 6 goals and 24 points aren’t blowing anyone away. But he’s a warrior and tough to beat in his zone.

Daniel Vozenilek (CZE) - LW/C - 28 - 6’3”, 216 lbs. - Czechia

Having just turned 28, Vozenilek is not a player you’ll see on many European free-agent lists. We have him here because his 6 goals, 16 points, and +12 rating in 22 playoff games last season, which subsequently filtered into a spot on the men’s WC squad, were his real coming out party and all he’s done this season is keep the scoring going. His 21 goals, 48 points, and +21 rating in 51 games thus far have him way up top in all of those stat categories leaguewide while his 65 penalty minutes allude to his ability to play a brazen game as well. Moreover, he can score in many ways and carries himself in a very confident manner on the ice, seemingly understanding what his best options are in just about every situation. With heavy-set Czechs such as Jiri Smejkal and Radim Zahorna having been added to NHL organizations in recent years, it wouldn’t surprise us in the least if a team rolls the dice to see what Vozenilek could mean for their organization next season.

Justin Schutz (GER) - LW - 23 - 5’11”, 185 lbs. - DEL

If you’re a draft aficionado, then chances are you’ll recognize Schutz’s name, but perhaps not know where from or why. A former member of Germany’s U18 and U20 outfits that featured the likes of Moritz Seider, Tim Stützle, JJ Peterka, and Dominik Bokk, Schutz was selected in the 6th round of the 2018 draft by the Florida Panthers, who have since detached themselves from his rights. A DEL regular the past four seasons, he’s gone from a talented 3rd line youngster to being the DEL’s top goal scorer within the matter of one season, currently leading the entire league with 27 goals in 51 games after tallying 15 markers in 73 games last season. His totals of 43 points and a +21 are not only career bests but also have him firmly implanted among the league’s top 10. But aside from a tenacious motor, a strong sense of where the goal is, some slick moves, and soft mitts, Schutz plays with a refreshing joie de vivre, celebrating goals and his teammates in a manner reminiscent of winning Olympic gold. A student of the game who often plays with a chip on his shoulder, his ascendancy has but only begun and all signs are that he’ll be wearing his nation’s jersey at this spring’s World Championship. If you’ve been a fan of low-key European signings in the past such as Dominik Kahun or Pius Suter, then keep an eye on if and when Schutz dots his name on an NHL contract.

Jakub Rychlovsky (CZE) - LW - 22 - 5’10”, 181 lbs. - Czechia

The truth of the matter is that you can’t look at the Tipsport Extraliga scoring list in the Czech Republic without Rychlovsky’s name popping out at you right away. His 26 goals top all U23 players by far and have him currently at first overall in the league. Add in another 20 assists and a +8 for an outfit that has had its problems keeping goals out of the net and you can see that NHL eyes will indeed be watching. This said, Rychlovsky is more or less a successful culmination of many factors because the eye test won’t necessarily scream “NHL talent”. He’s simply a sound hockey player who is just now budding into a topic in his 6th pro season, but only his second in the nation’s top league. Alas, the 22 points in 62 games from last season have been blown out of the water this season, so the upward trajectory is considerable. And as opposed to some of the older players on this list, he can be given a 2-year ELC right off the bat. Expect a team cramming to add younger depth to the system to reel him over at this point.

Return visits?

Vladimir Alistrov (BLR) - LW - 23 - 6’3”, 190 lbs. - KHL

Already last season, there was reason to believe that this former undrafted WHLer would have to be gaining NHL interest after enjoying a top 9 roll up front that saw him put up 15 goals and 33 points in 73 KHL total games for Dinamo Minsk. As a player clearly built and designed for North American play, Alistrov took his goods to powerhouse St. Petersburg and then took the next step. Although having lost the second half of the season to injury, he had put up 13 goals and 31 points in just 39 games while collecting a +16 along the way. That had him on pace for over 50 points, which is something seldom done in the KHL, much less by a player this young. Might be a bit off the radar in light of the season-ending injury.

Oscar Flynn (CZE) - RW - 24 - 5’9”, 163 lbs. - Czechia

A little guy we touched upon last season when he arrived on the scene with 25 goals and 44 points in 61 total games. That’s turned into 19 goals and 44 points this season in just 45 games to date as his overall game and chemistry with a strong, young attack on the White Tigers (Bili Tyrgri) continue to grow. Size remains a key concern and has prevented some of the better scorers around Europe from getting a look overseas, but a +14 indicates that he’s effective at 5-against-5 as well.

Leon Hüttl (GER) - D - 23 - 6’0”, 180 lbs. - DEL

A righty shot we mentioned for the first time last spring, Hüttl has spent this season reinforcing everything he achieved last year for a top DEL club. A player possessing the kind of strong shutdown abilities that earned him a spot with the national team at last spring’s WC, his offensive production has dropped a bit this year, even if his 7 goals in 46 games have already eclipsed last season’s 6 in 57 total games. His real importance to his team and coaching staff is nonetheless documented by his ice time. He hasn’t seen less than 21 minutes of ice in the past ten games, often getting over 24 minutes of playing time. He is a workhorse in the traditional sense.

Janne Kuokkanen (FIN) - C/LW - 25 - 6’1”, 194 lbs. - SHL

It wasn’t too long ago that we saw Kuokkanen put up 25 points in 50 NHL games for the New Jersey Devils. He couldn’t quite equal that total the next season (17 in 57 games) and then headed over to Europe at a time when the organization was bringing in tons of young talent. After a solid, yet unspectacular season in the Swiss NL, he is now one of the few SHL players clipping at over a PPG pace, and doing it for a team in the bottom half of the standings. With 41 points in 40 games, and averaging over 18 minutes of ice time a game, he looks like one of the prime European players who’d be ready to step right into a 3rd-line NHL job if a team is willing to go that route this summer. He’s got the whole package for a job of that nature.

Filip Larsson (SWE) - G - 25 - 6’2”, 194 lbs. - SHL

A mid-20s goaltender who has taken an unusual path to SHL play, namely consisting of one year of USHL, then NCAA, and then pro play split between the AHL and ECHL. Then some slow marinating in the HockeyAllsvenskan earned him a backup gig in the SHL this season. Seeing more time than most would have expected, his impressive 16-9 record is accompanied by an even more impressive 1.97 GAA and .917 SV%. Doesn’t do much spectacularly, but everything solidly. Strong lateral movements for a netminder with a desired size.

Adam Najman (CZE) - C/LW - 23 - 6’0”, 190 lbs. - Czechia

A bulldog of a player who always likes to be involved in the nitty gritty, Najman brings a number of tools to the table and has spent several years displaying some impressive playmaking abilities, especially after battling for the puck and pouncing on broken plays, some of which he creates. There’s a lot of energy to his game. His 11 goals and 42 points in 59 games last season have turned into 12 goals and 45 points in 49 games this season. Unfortunately, his low goal totals are not from a lack of trying, but from a lack of finish. But he sure is in the middle of chance creation quite a bit. Currently 4th overall in NL scoring.

Ruben Rafkin (FIN) - 22 - D - 6’0”, 190 lbs. - Liiga

Looking like a probable draftee in 2020 after a year in the USHL and then his one season in the OHL, Rafkin decided to continue his career in his homeland and has since seen four straight seasons of Liiga action. This one has clearly been his most solid to date with 4 goals and 24 points in 54 games. It’s been a less-than-impressive year for a fairly young TPS club and no one will be smiling about the -15 Rafkin has collected, but he’s averaged almost 20 minutes of ice time a night. He’s seen 22+ minutes a night on 28 occasions and even logged almost 29 minutes in a late October OT tilt. As a young, righty shot minute muncher who was in plenty of scouts’ notebooks a few years back, this could be the performance a team was looking for in order to bring him into the depth mix. He’s currently viewed as a candidate for the men’s WC this spring.

Theo Rochette (SUI/CAN) - 22 - C/LW - 5’11”, 172 lbs. - Swiss NL

One of the most successful and highest-scoring CHL junior players to go undrafted over the past four years, Rochette went from winning a Memorial Cup while contributing 127 points over 83 total games to taking not only a regular shift in the NL but also serving as the league’s top-scoring U23 player with 11 goals and 29 points in 46 games, putting him well ahead of several current notable NHL draftees. Some players simply will themselves into an NHL job and Rochette looks like he has everything necessary to be the next Swiss player to take the Pius Suter path to the NHL.

Ostap Safin (CZE/RUS) - 25 - RW/LW - 6’5”, 203 lbs. - KHL

Once a 2017 4th rounder of the Edmonton Oilers, the hockey world understood Safin as having a strong shot and above-average skating and speed for a man his size. There were growing pains in his younger years and he simply never really popped in the QMJHL, ECHL, or AHL. After a less-than-impressive season for Sparta Prague last year, he surprisingly jumped over the KHL, made solely possible by him denouncing the Czech half of his citizenship in order to not count as a foreigner in Russia. That this has led to an absolute breakthrough 36-point, +16 season right when his KHL one-year show-me contract has concluded means that he’s there for the taking, should a team be convinced that his KHL season is indicative of him having found the long sought-after toolbox.

Michael Spacek (CZE) - 26 - C/RW - 5’11”, 187 lbs. - Swiss NL

It may be the last time we bother mentioning one of the best Czech players not currently in a regular NHL role, but the former Winnipeg Jets draft pick with a boatload of WHL and AHL experience just keeps plugging away as a go-to scorer in a top European league. This season has even been a bit better than last with 17 goals, 49 points, and a +10 in 47 games to date. In addition, if there was a Lady Byng trophy dished out in the NL, he’d be about the top candidate. Rarely one to be found in the sin bin, this righty shot mainstay on the Czech national team isn’t getting younger but continues to be one of the most notable European forwards to have never taken an NHL shift.

Off the beaten path

Dominik Egli (SUI) - D - 25 - 5’9”, 179 lbs. - NL

Involved with the national team program since he was 16, Egli is an on-again, off-again member of the men’s “Nati” and has already played in parts of eight straight NL seasons. Having put up 28 points or more in each of the past four seasons, he’s sitting pretty with 7-27-34 and a career-best +17 as the NL playoffs are about to start. Brings the necessary mobility for a player his size. Never been tested outside of Swiss borders.

Nicolas Mattinen (CAN) - D - 25 - 6’6”, 225 lbs. - DEL

Four years of OHL hockey were followed by three seasons of U Sports hockey before getting a short (and impressive) look in the AHL. He then took his show to Europe and after a really nice first year with Villach of the lower-class ICEHL in predominantly Austria, Mattinen found his way to the DEL and has been tearing things up ever since. With 16-30-46 (and a +11) in 51 games, he’s not only the league’s top-scoring defenseman, he’s 7th overall in scoring. His size is something few in Germany have been able to deal with. If an NHL squad isn’t ready to give him a look, he’ll surely be bagging himself an NL, KHL, or SHL contract for next season.

Igor Merezhko (UKR) - D - 25 - 6’4”, 220 lbs. - Slovakia

If it were the late 90s, chances are that Merezhko would long since have a role in an NHL organization. He’s big, uses his reach to stuff out opponents, blocks a ton of shots and well, isn’t the best skater out there. But he likes to shoot and he does it a lot. After four years with the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the WHL, he ventured out to Uzbekistan (yes, you read that correctly) for his first season of pro hockey in the VHL. It was a league he didn’t look to be able to get out of until he skipped over to Denmark on a whim last winter and put up some impressive numbers. That led to a gig in Slovakia where he has since exploded. 10 goals, 48 points, and a +28 in 49 games are what he’s got to show for his efforts. Oh, and he’s a cog for the Ukrainian national team. It’s hard not to want to see what he could do in a season of AHL hockey and with the kind of all-around pro preparation afforded in North America.

Dominik Pavlat (CZE) - G - 24 - 6’2”, 174 lbs. - Czechia

Way up there in the stats department with a 2.16 GAA and .929 SV%, Pavlat has arrived as a verifiable starter and is sporting a career-best 16-12 record. After many years of spending time here and there in the Czech Republic’s lower leagues, he’s found spot duty in the top league in recent years and has now been acquired by Pardubice down the stretch run, which should include a healthy playoff run. And it looks promising as he’s now 3-1 with a 1.52 GAA and .042 SV% with his new employer. Quick lateral movements and strong puck tracking separate him from his peers in the Tippsport Extraliga.

Stanislav Skorvanek (SVK) - G - 28 - 6’2”, 192 lbs. - Slovakia

Our eyebrows were raised when the late 20s journeyman goaltender became a starter for the first time last season and had an impressive playoff run with a 10-8 record with a 1.83 GAA and .944 SV% in 18 games, then made his WC debut for Slovakia last spring and went 3-1 with a 1.26 GAA and .954 SV% in 4 outings. Was it lightning in a bottle? Well, he’s proceeded to become the league’s absolute workhorse with a 24-14 record in 38 games including a 2.33 GAA and .931 SV% in 38 outings. In a day and age where teams are talking about keeping 3 goalies around, chancing it on a ready-made Skorvanek looks like a viable option for a couple of teams out there with a tight budget.

Hidden gems?

Daniel Gazda (CZE) - D - 26 - 6’1”, 207 lbs. - Czechia

He’s got decent size and can get around the ice all right. He doesn’t really stick out much in just about any situation, but that’s often a good thing for a defenseman. There’s not a whole lot to write home about nor to complain about. But he’s a righty shot, and he simply loves to shoot. He’s doing it all the time, with every opportunity. And although he can definitely bomb it, there are plenty of little pauses and fakes in there before getting off deceptive snapshots. At the moment, he’s got 17 goals, 30 points, and a +11 rating in 52 games. That’s a lot of goals for any pro-league D-man. He’s never ventured outside of the Czech Republic, so this might be time to give him a minor-league look.

Daniil Gutik (RUS) - LW - 22 - 6’3”, 190 lbs. - KHL

A player with some surreal skills, Gutik can be a bit of a behemoth out on the ice, but it’s his incredibly slick stickwork that jumps at you most. He’s hard to defend against and has tempted scouts with some of the sleek moves he’s pulled off along the way as well as the passes that follow, even if everyone would like to see him shoot more. This has been his best KHL season to date and his KHL contract concludes this spring. That’ll likely make him a player of interest for any team that feels the raw skill and now proven pro production (12 goals and 36 points this season) is worth trying to hammer a good dose of “compete” into him, ‘cause that has been questioned plenty in recent years.

Matias Mäntykivi (FIN) - C - 22 - 5’11”, 162 lbs. - Liiga

A Boston Bruins 6th rounder in 2019, Mäntykivi wasn’t offered a contract last summer and will now be a free agent for any team to sign. That he apparently didn’t care for being brushed off by his drafting team may very well be evident in the 19 goals and 49 points he’s put up in 58 games in his 5th full season of Liiga hockey, which clearly marks a career-high and is accompanied by a sweet +24 rating. The size is anything but ideal, but he’s got great vision and some nifty hands. He’ll need to add muscle and continue working on his overall skating, but he sure does look ready for a stint in the AHL.

Wiktor Nilsson (SWE) - C - 22 - 6’0”, 165 lbs. - HockeyAllsvenskan

In a chronically low-scoring league, it’s seldom to see a 22-year-old player go from being an interesting 15-goal guy at 21 to a 37-point first-line guy a season later for a top club with a whole lot of ambition. He’s been in the Djurgarden program for 6 straight years and wants to gain promotion with them. But one way or another, there’s too much offensive acumen to not be in the SHL or AHL next season. Already plays with a chip on his shoulder, so some added weight would make the righty even more interesting.

Josh Samanski (GER/CAN) - C/LW - 21 - 6’6”, 190 lbs. - DEL

Just slightly no longer draft-eligible, Samanski is the son of a former Canadian pro who has made a career as a coach in Germany. A former OHLer and 2-time WJC contestant, Samanski has been playing pro hockey for several years now, with over 40 DEL per season for three straight years. Whereas he technically arrived in the league last year, this is the season where he’s become a cog in his wildly successful team's game plan. With hulking size, Samanski is able to play a rough ‘n tumble game while threading passes on a needle and adeptly charging the net. Trusted in all phases of the game, including late shorthanded situations with a 1-goal lead, Samanski currently has 9 goals and 26 points with the playoffs just around the corner. His all-round game has him firmly in the eyes of the national team.

Nikita Sedov (RUS) - D - 22 - 6’1”, 187 lbs. - KHL

If the name perhaps sounds familiar, you’re not off base. After spending time in juniors in Colorado, he went on to play a lower-line role for the Regina Pats between 2018 and 2020. There’s been little to write about since he returned to Russia, but right as his most recent contract is expiring, he’s gone out and become a full-time KHL player. Now, his 4-14-18 and +14 in 57 games won’t necessarily jump out at you, but they have him just 3 points behind the top-scoring defenseman on a team whose impressive producers are just about all of the younger variety. In addition, that +/- rating is tied for tops on the team. It’s a bit of a shame that Sedov has only scored 4 goals because his celebrations are well-choreographed, but it should be noted that he gets pucks to the net with regularity, isn’t hesitant to initiate physical play, and averages over 15 minutes of ice time per night. If a team gives him an AHL shot, it should do so with the readiness to invest 2-3 years in him, but there’s potential here for NHL minutes someday.

Colin Ugbekile (GER) - D - 24 - 6’1”, 198 lbs. - DEL

The shooting star of the league among German non-draft eligibles, Ugbekile has gained plenty of experience in Cologne in recent years but transferred to Iserlohn last summer in hopes of obtaining a bigger role with some powerplay opportunities involved. Well, he’s not only gotten that, but fully taken the bull by the horns. This has culminated in a Unit 1 power play spot leading to 12 goals and 33 points in 51 games while averaging roughly 22 minutes of ice time a night. Big, sturdy, and capable of initiating and handling rough stuff, the well-spoken defender with 3 years of USHL experience has finally arrived as a pro and has seen his game expand in leaps and bounds this season. Particularly his hands and mind have caught to what were already strong skating skills. Granted, he’s playing for a club that only recently was able to escape the basement of the standings in what has been a thrilling run to avoid relegation, but the added responsibility has been a boon to him discovering his inner Bobby Orr. Hard to imagine that he won’t be auditioning for a bigger paycheck at the men’s WC this spring.

SIDE NOTE

It bears mentioning every year that above and beyond the players listed above, both the Swiss NL and KHL are chock full of former NHLers, NHL draft picks, AHLers, Canadian juniors, and college hockey players, not to mention former European free agent signings of NHL teams that have since returned to Europe. These leagues also employ a large number of established pros who you’ll see dressing for their respective national teams. These leagues feature many players who were in the NHL in recent years or on the bubble to the NHL, usually as highly effective AHLers. Naturally, any number of these players could of course still be in the sightlines of NHL teams or maintain the connections that would see them return to a franchise in the coming months.

2021 NHL DRAFT: Re-Entry Candidates – 2nd and 3rd Year Eligible Prospects to Watch – Part One: Canada

Sat, 05 Jun 2021 20:11:26 +0000

In a normal year, scouting hockey is marred by imperfection. Every year high end players get skipped over at the NHL draft for various reasons. Maybe they suffered through injuries. Maybe their team struggled, and it prevented scouts from getting a good read on them. Maybe their team was too good, forcing them down the depth chart with limited minutes and exposure opportunities. Or...maybe they just were not good enough. But thankfully human development is nonlinear and therefore unpredictable. Teenage hockey players are far from a finished product on the ice as their games mature just as the rest of their body and mind does. That is why it is critical to track players as they move through their second and third years of draft eligibility (or fourth years of eligibility for some European players).

However, this has certainly not been a normal year. Given that play for some leagues has been limited or even nonexistent (the OHL), one has to wonder if NHL scouts may choose to select more players who narrowly went undrafted last year; the top remaining ones from their list a year ago. This is especially true if said players have shown positive progression this season.

North American players with birth dates from January 1st to September 15th, will be eligible for three NHL drafts. Players with birth dates from September 16th to December 31st, will be eligible for two NHL drafts. And for European players (in European leagues), extend that eligibility by one year in both cases. Recently, NHL scouts have increased the rate with which they are selecting “re-entry” candidates, or players previously passed over. Contract limits have made it critical for teams to spread out where they select players from, in addition to their age. This has made second- and third-year eligible U.S. and European based players especially attractive. However, these players have had a lot of success in recent years too. The reigning Vezina trophy winner in the NHL and one of the best goaltenders in the league was one; Connor Hellebuyck.

Last year, eight “re-entry” candidates went in the Top 100; Yegor Chinahkov, Mason Lohrei, Yegor Sokolov, Gage Goncalves, Nico Daws, Trevor Kuntar, Daniil Chechelev, Sam Stange. In our “second chances” article last year (Part 1: Part 2: Part 3: ) we wrote about five of these eight. In total there were 41 taken, right in line with the trend of over 40 being selected in other recent drafts (roughly about 20% of all players selected). Additionally, of those 41, we identified and wrote about 18 in our aforementioned second chances series. Just like in previous editions of this annual report, we aim to identify more.

In 2021, we have some very interesting candidates. Cameron Rowe and Josh Lopina were two of the best freshmen in the NCAA this season. Josh Doan, the son of former Arizona Coyotes star Shane Doan, has exploded with the Chicago Steel of the USHL. Zakhar Bardakov had a terrific World Junior Championships and has played well in the KHL. Speaking of the WJC’s, Florian Elias was a breakout star for Germany at the event. Swiss defender Janis Moser has had the best U21 season in NLA history for a blueliner. And of course, many CHL players have stood out too (even transplanted OHL players). This article intends to highlight them and many other candidates who could be part of that 20% this year.

Canada

OHL

Ethan Cardwell - Center/Right Wing - Barrie Colts

One of the main players that we, at McKeen’s, was shocked to see go undrafted after a strong second half to the OHL season following a trade to Barrie. Ranked 107th by us, Cardwell is a player with few weaknesses; a jack of all trades type. Perhaps the fact that he’s under six feet tall and does not possess a true standout quality made NHL teams believe that his skill set would not translate. Regardless, we still believe in him as a player and prospect. With no OHL this season (yet), Cardwell played in the Swedish third men’s league HockeyEttan, where he put up some pretty gaudy numbers as an 18-year-old (Cardwell has a late August birthday). Averaging 1.50 points per game, Cardwell was one of the better offensive players in the league before returning home. With some improvements made to his strength on the puck, speed, and confidence, he puts himself back in the conversation for the NHL draft yet again.

“Cardwell's best asset is his hockey sense. I really like how he plays without the puck and how quick he makes decisions with the puck. He is a very good three zone player as his anticipation is excellent. He's not a big kid at 5'11, but he is very effective at separating players from the puck on the backcheck. He does a really good job of getting himself in shooting position in the offensive end by keeping his feet moving and predicting passing lanes. And he is deliberate with the puck. If he's got a shooting lane, he's getting that puck to the net. If he doesn't, he makes a quick pass and always seems to have his head up looking to get it back. He's not a dynamic offensive player IMO. Last year, I felt his first few strides and explosiveness could improve, and he did look quicker playing in HockeyEttan. He also looked much stronger on the puck and was consistently able to fight through traffic and prolong possession, something he struggled with at times in the OHL. It is clear that he has put in the work to improve. As he gets stronger, quicker, and more confident with the puck, I think he projects as a quality two-way winger who can slide up and down the lineup as a complimentary piece.” - Brock Otten

James Hardie - Left Wing - Mississauga Steelheads

Yet another OHL player that we ranked highly that went undrafted in 2020, much to the surprise of everyone. Ranked 80th by us at McKeen’s, Hardie is a talented goal scoring winger whose 34 goals in the OHL last season put him fourth among U18 goal scorers behind three NHL first round picks (Perreault, Perfetti, and Foerster). Ultimately, NHL scouts must have felt that Hardie’s consistency away from the puck was not at a high enough level, nor did they feel that his goal scoring ability could carry over to NHL success. Like a lot of OHL players this season, Hardie has not played in 2021. He did sign an ATO with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL but was released a few weeks later. If Hardie was close to being selected last year, scouts may opt for familiarity in selecting him this time around with so much uncertainty surrounding other members of this draft class.

“Simply from a production standpoint, Hardie had a terrific year and deserved to be drafted. This was especially true in the second half. If you take away a stretch of 14 games in October and November where he was not very productive, Hardie had 33 goals and 60 points in 45 games. That would put him in line with the likes of Jacob Perreault and Tyson Foerster, two NHL first round selections. His skating improved last year, so it would have been interesting to see further improvement this year. I would still call him an average skater (in terms of a projection at the next level), but he looked more explosive last year which allowed him to hit those gaps and close on the forecheck more effectively.

At his core, Hardie is a high-volume shooter. Sometimes that works to his benefit and sometimes I feel like he could demonstrate a little more patience with the puck. You'll see him spin off the wall and rifle a puck on net, even if there aren't teammates out front for a rebound. Shot selection is something that he'll need to improve on. Additionally, Hardie will need to improve his consistency away from the puck and get stronger to win more battles near the half wall where he likes to operate. At times he is aggressive on the forecheck, playing with fire. And at other times, he is too complacent, relying on the highly underrated Cole Schwindt to win those battles down low to get him the puck in the slot.

Hardie could also stand to be more consistent getting to the middle of the ice, playing through traffic to score more "greasy" goals. As it stands, he doesn't get to the net enough considering how good his hands and release are. However, Hardie does have a heck of a shot. His ability to gather in traffic (when he gets there) and his release are also very strong. It certainly would have been nice to see how other areas of his game improved around his goal scoring ability this year.” - Brock Otten

Robert Calisti - Defense - Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds

One of the most improved players in the OHL last season, many believed Calisti would get drafted in his second go around. But that was not the case. A tremendous skater and offensive defender, Calisti spent a good chunk of time this year with the Belleville Senators of the AHL on an ATO. While he did only see action in one game, he spent over a month with the team, which would have definitely been great for his development. In that one game he did not look out of place at the AHL level and even recorded an assist. Had the OHL season occurred as planned, Calisti would have, no doubt, been one of the higher scoring defensemen in the league in his final shot at being drafted (as a 2001 born).

“The first thing you notice about Calisti is his skating. In my opinion, he is one of the better skaters in the OHL and he uses this mobility to his advantage at both ends of the ice. He is very effective leading the rush because of his explosiveness. He does not take long to build up speed from his own end, making him very difficult to pin down on the forecheck. And he is ultra-aggressive in pushing across the opposing blueline, constantly on the attack, pushing the pace. Calisti also does a great job of using his mobility to create shooting lanes, which helps to explain his 18 goals last year. He identifies gaps well and is aggressive in jumping up in the rush, hitting the middle with authority. Defensively, while undersized at 5'10, he is physically aggressive and will not allow himself to get pushed around. That said, his aggressiveness can hurt him at both ends of the ice. He does play a high-risk game that sees him caught up ice. And his defensive coverage is a little erratic because he gets himself caught out of position because he's trying to get back, or simply overplaying puck carriers. In his only AHL game this year, all of this was on display, as Calisti more than held his own. I still believe that he could be a solid pro defender.” - Brock Otten

Tucker Tynan - Goaltender - Niagara IceDogs

Last year Tynan was having a terrific draft season with Niagara before tragedy struck. In a game against the London Knights, Tynan suffered a deep leg laceration from a skate that nearly took his life and required him to receive a 5 unit blood transfusion. It was a scary moment. However, now fully healed, it would have been great to see Tynan back on the ice had the OHL been able to start up. An averaged sized netminder (6’0), it is easy to see why NHL teams overlooked Tynan at last year’s draft, considering the uncertainty around his ability to return from this. However, he is unquestionably talented. He did spend about three weeks with the Iowa Wild (AHL) on an ATO this season, but never got into game action.

“From September to the beginning of December, Tynan was performing as one of the best goaltenders in the OHL. He wasn't getting credit for it because the IceDogs weren't in the spotlight, but he was the goaltender in 11 of Niagara's 18 wins...and he didn't play past December 7th. He flat out stole some of those victories. At the time of his injury, Tynan was seeing among the most rubber of any goalie in the league, yet he held firm with a .910 save percentage.

Not a huge goalie at 6'0, Tynan relies a lot on his quickness and athleticism. There's a lot of Mikey Dipietro in his game with how well he takes away the bottom part of the net with his pushes laterally and backwards. And even though he has a tendency to go down a little early, he keeps himself in the play by holding his positioning/angles and tracking pucks through crowds. Yes, smaller goaltenders do have a greater margin for error because it means their positioning needs to be that much better. However, Tynan showed enough to me that I would have used a later round selection on him, even with a steep recovery he was facing.” - Brock Otten

Brett Brochu - Goaltender - London Knights (OHL)

After posting the best goals against average in the OHL last season as a rookie, there was some thought that Brett Brochu could be drafted in the later rounds in 2020. But the size bias towards goaltenders by NHL scouts reared its ugly head; Brochu is only 5’11. You simply can not argue with the success that he has shown on the ice though and this season he has been rewarded for that. He was one of the goaltenders (although eventually cut) invited to Team Canada’s evaluation camp for the World Junior Championships and has been part of the Wilkes-Barre Scranton (AHL) organization for the better part of the 2021 AHL season. It is obvious that he is held in high regard even if he did not get drafted last year.

“At the beginning of last season, I was highly skeptical that this undersized rookie straight out of Junior C would be able to keep up the level of play that he established early on. But he actually got better as the year went on and really was the saving grace of London's season, in a year where the lack of quality goaltending early on hurt the team's success. Brochu is going to be a high-quality goalie in the league and someone who could win an OHL goaltender of the year award by the time his career is finished.

His size is going to work against him with NHL scouts. Smaller goaltenders have their work cut out for them at the next level because their positioning and rebound control has to be so much better. The margin for error is that much greater. That said, Brochu, currently 5'11, was one of the youngest players available last year (September 9th). There's room for him to mature further physically. The athleticism, reads, composure, confidence. It's all there. As he gets stronger, he'll be a little better at holding his posts, but he's just a solid netminder.” - Brock Otten

WHL

Owen Pederson

Owen Pederson - Left Wing - Winnipeg Ice

An intelligent, big bodied winger, Pederson was ranked fairly highly by us (at McKeen’s) for last year’s NHL Draft (166th). The 6’3, 200lbs forward elevated his game even further this year with Winnipeg, finishing just outside the top ten in WHL scoring as part of one of the best lines in junior hockey this season with Peyton Krebs and Connor McClennon. Given that he has proven to be a terrific support/complementary with more skilled linemates, Pederson may have caught the eyes of NHL scouts now who believe he can play the same sort of role at the next level.

“Pederson is a player that I expected to be drafted last year. I thought he made subtle skill plays in the cycle game that showed promise and that his north south style would be effective when playing with more skilled players. His power forward style of game with dominant cycle shifts, good net drives and imposing presence in front of net made him an appealing project in the later rounds.

This season he has taken his subtle skills and brought them to more of his game. He is a more dangerous rush player and showing some improved vision. In terms of link up play through the neutral zone he makes good passes to keep the pace up, which makes his lack of foot speed less of an issue. He is a player that can make a living within a couple feet of the blue paint and down low retrieving pucks and getting to the net. He is a crash and bang type of player that can surprise with a bit of skill in the cycle game.” - Vince Gibbons

Kyle Crnkovic - Left Wing - Saskatoon Blades

Tied for eighth in WHL scoring this season, Crnkovic is another ranked player who was passed over in the 2020 NHL Draft. Crnkovic has improved his production drastically from a year ago for the Blades. Unlike Pederson, a big forward who went undrafted because of some skating issues, Crnkovic is the polar opposite who passed through because of his lack of size (5’7). At McKeen’s, we had the speedy winger ranked 129th last season. Now an offensive leader for the Blades, along with the terrific Tristen Robins and overager Chase Wouters, Crnkovic has emerged as a draft option yet again. While obviously undersized, Crnkovic’s tenacity and high energy pace make him a fun player to watch.

“Kyle Crnkovic was a player I thought would be a great 7^th round pick last season. The skill set was undeniable in that he was a great play maker, with outstanding vision and ability with the puck in space. His shot and finishing ability were good as well although he often overlooked his own shot to make a pass. His feet are quick with high agility which is what you need to survive at the pro levels when you have his obvious deficiency. Listed at 5’7” 166 pounds this year he is still small and still can get pushed off the puck. He tends to get forced to the high slot sometimes rather than some of the more dangerous areas of the ice, but the skill is there.

His puck handling is very good and can overmatch defenders in space. He has a deep offensive tool kit with one-on-one skill, excellent visioning and passing skills and a strong ability to read the play. Steps have been taken in his off the puck game, his back pressure and his ability to use leverage rather than strength in terms of winning puck battles and defending have helped him become a more complete player this year.” - Vince Gibbons

Ryker Evans - Defense - Regina Pats

Yet another WHL player passed over last year despite being ranked fairly highly by us at McKeen’s (168th). A strong offensively minded blueliner, Evans has worked hard to improve his play in his own end while also increasing his offensive production on a stronger Regina team. Will the 5’11 defender be selected in his final year of draft eligibility (as a late born 2001)? It definitely seems likely, especially given how many fans he had in the scouting community last year.

“Ryker Evans has certainly felt the positive effects of Connor Bedard this season moving from below a half of point per game to over a point per game this year. That said his skill set existed before and Bedard has only helped improve the production. Evans' speed is only average, but he makes up for that with strong footwork and edge work particularly at the offensive blue line. He is a gifted shooter from the point and can make a move or two to get a better line on net. He has a hard slap shot and a powerful wrist shot that he can use to get the puck on net.

Defensively he has shown a real improvement in his own zone where he is much more successful in puck battles and boxing out around his net. The belief the entire team has this season over last is personified by Evans, he makes better decisions, crisper plays and helps with the link up play in the neutral zone compared to a season ago. I am not sold on him as a powerplay quarterback at the pro level but there is reason for optimism he could be an effective middle pairing defender.” - Vince Gibbons

Ben King - Center - Red Deer Rebels

The last of four WHL players mentioned who were ranked by us at McKeen’s last year before going undrafted, King was actually ranked the highest at 112th. After a trade to Red Deer from Swift Current, King surged but it was not enough for the hulking 6’3 center to be drafted. This year, wearing an “A” for the Rebels, he has continued to grow as a player for a rebuilding team, leading Red Deer in scoring by a wide margin. Given his size at the center position, he is likely to attract NHL attention.

“Ben King is a big-bodied center that continues to make steady steps forward in his game. He has not received the chance to play on even an average team since joining the league with Swift Current and Red Deer, two of the weaker teams in the Eastern Conference. His game is simple, solid, and effective which is what makes him an appealing target. The work ethic on the ice is there, as is the frame at 6’3, 200 pounds. He is at his best with the puck below the faceoff dots where he can protect the puck well, drive the net and finish plays. He is a right shot center who has good shot rates and production despite the overall weakness of the team around him. Defensively he is an asset dropping below the dots to support his defence and willing to engage physically to get pucks out. He is a player who can manage the puck and plays within his skill set. Not a ton of upside but certainly has the potential to be a bottom six player at the pro level.” - Vince Gibbons

QMJHL

Theo Rochette

Theo Rochette - Center - Quebec Remparts

A dual Canadian and Swiss citizen, Rochette was one of the higher ranked players by McKeen’s to go unselected last year (136th). A former highly touted prospect, Rochette struggled with injuries and a trade in his draft year, which highlighted some of the weaknesses in his game. This year, he returned to Quebec for a full season and finished second on team scoring (a well-balanced attack with several good young players), while also wearing an “A’ for the Rempart.

“The same concerns as last year for Rochette are present this year. Certainly, overall, he improved his game. He is a smart player, he’s good for 200 feet and he has great vision of the game. He is methodical in his approach as you rarely see him rush or force a play. He splits the ice well. I was surprised that he was left off the board last year, but I can understand why. I think the NHL teams felt that if he didn’t break through as a top six player, he would not be useful. I think he improved the aspects of his game that he lacked to be a reliable player (on a 3rd line for example).

He's a bit stronger and more involved in 1v1 battles. His shot is better than it was last year, which was his weakest point in my opinion. He is less hesitant to simply throw it at the net, and he has improved his velocity now. His movement has improved too. He brings more power from his core, from rotation of his hips and legs than just his arms as he tended to do before. His release is better too. Now, will that be enough as an improvement? He's a very solid playmaker, a smooth skater with excellent edges. Not an elite player, but a very good one. I think he is worth a pick.” - Benoit Belanger

Miguel Tourigny - Defense - Blainville-Boisbriand Armada

Tourigny, a 5’8 offensive defender, ended up finishing fifth in QMJHL defenseman scoring this year with 36 points in 32 games for the Armada. His 15 goals were third. In his second year of draft eligibility, Tourigny has certainly put himself on the radar again. While he is undersized, he plays much bigger than he is listed and has the mobility and quickness that you would want to see from a smaller defender.

“In my opinion, Tourigny should have been drafted last year. I understand he's not very tall and big, but he works really hard and he is physically engaged. He plays with poise, and you hate playing against him. Tourigny is an excellent skater. He moves very well in all directions. Mobility is one of his greatest strengths. It allows him to create separation from his chasers in puck recovery and during the breakout. He is a dynamic skater who pairs this with his excellent puck handling ability. His shot was good (especially his wrister) but I find he added power to it this year. Small progress in terms of its consistency but it remains a point to work on.

His positioning in the defensive zone is not yet optimal and he tends to have an "all offense" mentality. However, he's a beast in transition, both in puck transport and in his passing game. Lots of creativity with the puck. He's a short player but plays like a bigger player physically; he has a mean side. The uncertainty in his ability to defend well shouldn't prevent him from hearing his name in the next draft.” - Benoit Belanger

Francesco Lapenna - Goaltender - Drummondville Voltigeurs

Not the biggest goaltender (at 6’0), but Lapenna has put himself in the draft conversation this year with a strong sophomore season with Drummondville, during his second year of NHL draft eligibility. His .911 save percentage was fifth best in the QMJHL this season as he took over the starting job for the Voltigeurs. The only blemish may have been a weaker playoff performance, but as his rank of 7th by NHL Central Scouting (in North America) suggests, Lapenna is still a likely draft selection this time around.

“Surely the best goalkeeper in the QMJHL next year. Lapenna is excellent. He's technically good and is very fast and dynamic in his movements (particularly, from left to right). He seems to do everything effortlessly. In addition, he is competitive. He plays on a very average team which he manages (with the help of Xavier Simoneau and Will Dufour) to make better. He's a factor in every game and if he had been on a better team, I think he would have heard his name in last year's draft. His workload is enormous in Drummondville and he would benefit from getting a few evenings off.

Physically, he can still make progress to bring more power. He is spectacular in his fighting spirit and he never admits to being defeated. Excellent glove, excellent with his pads. I have a hard time finding fault in his game because I find him so good. I might like to see him "bite" a little less at the first moves that his opponents make. Also, he remains quite deep in his net, and he prefers to trust his reflexes. I would like to see him challenge the shots a little more. He follows rebounds very well too. He deserves a shot at the Pro level, with a draft pick or by invitation.” - Benoit Belanger

Xavier Cormier - Center - Rimouski Oceanic

A late bloomer, Cormier is entering the draft picture for the first time in his final year of eligibility as a 2001 born player. Now on his third QMJHL team (previously Quebec and Shawinigan), a trade to Rimouski this year has brought out the best in him. Developing great chemistry with 2021 top prospect Zachary Bolduc, Cormier was well over the point per game mark with the Oceanic, continuing to produce even when Bolduc got injured.

“I’ve really tried with Zach Bolduc multiple times this year, and I’m not surprised that his production took a massive jump once a pace-y, skilled, and pace-pushing forward in Xavier Cormier came to Rimouski from Shawinigan in late January. Rimouski’s offense before he showed up was an anemic 1.86 goals per game, but has shot up to 3.78 since, with Cormier landing points on 32% of those goals. Bolduc has been injured since late March, but Rimouski averaged three goals per game with both Bolduc and Cormier sharing the ice, with Bolduc involved in 40% of those goals.

I see Cormier as a player who is a driver of play on his line, and while I’m not sure I’d use a draft pick on him, he could be a guy I would invite to a camp without hesitation. He wasn’t a player I noted with Shawinigan, but with significant ice time and a top line role with Rimouski, he’s been on display as one of the better undrafted D+2 players I’ve seen this season. He’s quick, deceptive, pushes pace, and creates for linemates well.” - Will Scouch

BCHL

Ellis Rickwood - Center - Victoria Grizzlies

Rickwood, a 6’1, 200lbs center, has taken quite the path to get to where he is now. Undrafted into the OHL in his priority selection year, Rickwood returned to play Major Midget (now referred to as U18) in Brantford, where he was one of the highest scoring U18 AAA players in Ontario. This turned into a selection in the OHL’s U18 draft with Peterborough. Rather than report to Peterborough, Rickwood played in the GOJHL with Hamilton, where he finished second in team scoring and near the top 10 in assists in the league. Fast forward to this year and Rickwood has elevated his game yet again, even though he has stepped up a level. Finishing second in BCHL scoring and was named one of the MVP’s (of his pod), the uncommitted Rickwood is on the NHL scouting radar. An 18 year old, look for Rickwood to commit to an NCAA school soon, perhaps reuniting with his sister Emily at the University of New Hampshire (a top defenseman with the Wildcats).

“Ellis Rickwood is certainly making it look easier than it is to be second in league scoring in the BCHL, arguably the second-best league in Western Canada, with 13 goals and 24 points in a mere 14 games (at the time of writing this). The BCHL doesn’t often produce NHL talent, and those who do make it were utterly dominant with the puck on their stick while still contributing and providing value away from the puck. Rickwood, like the majority of BCHL players, is very much a “per-puck-touch” player, which describes someone who mostly provides value for his team when the puck is on his stick and is often found floating around without it.

While Rickwood generates points, he doesn’t score in ways that project well up the pro hockey ladder. He doesn’t scan the ice often, which results in missed opportunities to get his teammates involved. Instead, he’s looking to shoot the puck the second he has enough space to do so.

Regardless, there's no denying his shot is quality, and his various setups are crafty enough to beat BCHL level defenders, maybe even WHL. This is at its most notable when he’s attacking off the rush. That being said, higher level defenders will shut those lanes down forcing Rickwood to be craftier if he wants to get shots off from these locations. Rickwood’s game would benefit from adding layers of deception to his shot, increasing scanning habits for awareness, and a more engaged motor away from the puck.” - Sam McGilligan

AJHL

Taige Harding - Defense - Fort McMurray Oil Barons

A Providence College commit, Harding is an absolutely massive defender who has taken huge steps forward this season, a year after going undrafted. At 6’7, and nearly 240lbs, Harding was among the highest scoring defenders in the AJHL (fifth), while also wearing an “A” for the Oil Barons. A late bloomer, Harding’s sharp progression and trajectory are bound to make him an NHL draft pick this time around.

“If you’re a scout that prioritizes size then Taige Harding is an overager that provides intrigue in the later rounds. This mammoth of a left shot defenceman is standing at a lumbering 6’7 while weighing in at a whopping 236lbs. His draft year campaign with the Oil Barons finished with a mere six points in 46 games - not enough to result in his name being called back in October, but this year Harding’s expanded his game and the near point per game results (5 goals + 8 assists in 16 games) indicate noteworthy progress.

His skating isn’t particularly efficient, but he can still cover a lot of ice due to his elongated wingspan. Harding can be an overly physical defender, utilizing his sheer strength to throw players off the puck. Harding doesn’t profile as a puck moving defenceman, but he has shown considerable improvement from last year in terms of identifying who to move the puck to when a breakout is initiated. Simply put, you can’t teach size, but you technically can teach hockey. Last year there wasn’t enough there to entice scouts that he was worthy of a pick, but his improved play in the offensive zone might be the sign an NHL team needs to deem him a long, long term project worth working on.” - Sam McGilligan

QMJHL: Theo Rochette, C, Chicoutimi/Quebec (2020)

Benoit Belanger — Tue, 05 May 2020 11:45:03 +0000

Theo Rochette is a player that coaches appreciate. He is smart, effective through all 200 feet and he has great vision of the game. He is methodical in his approach; you rarely see him rush or force a play. He needs to add significantly more bulk and become much stronger in order to thrive as a top-six forward at the National Hockey League level. This is the big question mark in his case. He skates with ease and has good speed, is a good playmaker and can score with his quick release.

He should continue to improve as he adds the strength and bulk necessary to compete in small spaces. Added strength will also help him be more effective in one-on-one situations. He is a player who could do great service for an NHL team, but I am just afraid that if he doesn't break through the top six on offense, he could be completely ineffective. One thing is certain, he is an intelligent young man with a good head on his shoulders. He will surely find a way to improve his weaknesses and take his game to another level.

Theo Rochette	2020 NHL Draft Eligible
Position: C, Shoots L	H/W: 5-10", 159 lbs
Stats to date (GP-G-A-PTS-PIMS)	Chicoutimi Sagueneens/Quebec Remparts, QMJHL (49-14-25-39-20)
	Canada U18, Hlinka Gretzky Cup (5-0-0-0-2)

Theo Rochette. Photo courtesy of the QMJHL.

Skating: Rochette is a smooth skater with very good technique. He has excellent edges and he has the agility to move in tight spaces. The good use of his edges allow him to be excellent in puck protection and to make plays at high speed. He could definitely improve his strength, especially if he wants to reach the highest level one day. His balance is not bad, especially if you think about the technique. Again, he would benefit from adding strength to his legs, allowing him to win more 1-on-1 battles. That being said, he has good explosion that allows him to create separation from opponents. Grade: 50

Shot: Without a doubt, this is Rochette’s weak characteristic in my opinion. However, this is not a lost cause since it is an asset that he can quite easily improve. The problem is connected to power or strength. It is not all bad when you watch him shoot. His shot is quite precise, he fires quickly and he has good velocity on it. We saw him score with different shots: a quick release slap shot and an accurate wrister. I just believe his shot is good for the junior game but he needs to be stronger and more powerful to beat NHL goalies. Knowing that, he has the other qualities of a good shot. I hope that it will come with additional physical maturity and training at the gym. Grade: 50

Skills: Despite the fact that he was born in Canada, and that he played there for four years as a child, for me, Rochette is the typical Swiss player (he grew up in Switzerland). What do I mean by that? He has the precision of many Swiss players, playing like a Swiss watch. Everything he learns, everything he does, he does with the utmost precision. Does that mean he is an elite player? No, not necessarily. He is above average when you look at his skills, but not elite. He is a good puck handler. He distributes the puck well. I also like the way he receives it. He is gracious in his skills. It is not in his mentality to try to impress with incredible prowess to become a YouTube star. He is meticulous, precise, refined. He is a formidable finisher in the shootout. He has dramatically improved his faceoff circle success rate since last season. These upward trend is a good omen. Grade: 55

Smarts: He does a good job finding soft spots in the attacking zone. Rochette is blessed with excellent vision to turn any teammate into a scoring threat. He can bring offense from zone entries or from the power play, and that is what makes him dangerous, as he can be productive in multiple ways. He is very good setting up plays and he prepares his plays like a chess master. His tremendous passing abilities show us how smart he is. His creativity is why the Remparts coaching staff used him in the top of the umbrella on the power play, to be the masterpiece to create and set up plays. He can find open lanes to make a pass. Another sign of his excellent understanding of the game is the way he plays defensively and in his own zone. His positioning is optimal, he is rarely taken out of position. This is one of the reasons why coaches do not hesitate to use him as a center. Grade: 60

Physicality: I would like to see him go a little more in the dirty areas. It is really this point that will be crucial for the future of Rochette's career. I don’t place as much importance as others on physical play, but there is a bare minimum that must be met. For the moment, Rochette does not meet this minimum. The physical step between junior and professional hockey is huge. At the very least, he can take hits and he manages to win battles 1-on-1. I would say that it is mainly thanks to his intelligence though, as opposed to his physical abilities. Grade: 45

Overall Future Projection (OFP): 53.25

QMJHL 2019-20 Season Preview: Early returns show parity, competition at top of standings

Mike Sanderson — Sat, 05 Oct 2019 13:01:36 +0000

Sorry, QMJHL friends, but the penthouse is overbooked.

Five teams have won four or more games to start this young 2019-20 season, and all five of those teams are within two points of each other.

The defending champion Rouyn-Noranda Huskies would not likely be anyone’s top pick as the best team for a second year, with all the movement of players this past summer. Missing stalwarts like Joël Teasdale, Félix Bibeau, Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Peter Abbandonato and, for the moment, Noah Dobson has not slowed the Memorial Cup titleholders this season, as Vincent Marleau is tied for the league lead in points and Tyler Hinam has made huge strides in his game.

Netminder Zachary Emond has lost his first regulation game in over a season this year, but he has been solid with a 5-1 record to lead all goalies in wins.

While one would be remiss to expect that hot play to continue, the Huskies are at the top of the heap once more as the season rumbles into its third week. A repeat of their 59-win season of a year ago seems unlikely, as they will look to maximize return of their remaining current assets for future gains, but they can get the accolades while they are hot.

More expectedly in the Western Conference, the Sherbrooke Phoenix are in second place. The Phoenix boast an older lineup and the league’s top drafted player from last June’s NHL entry draft in Sam Poulin, who is looking to build on a strong first camp with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

His ability to take over a game at the left wing position and shut a team up or shut them down has been chronicled a lot with his strong playoff last season, and the Phoenix are looking to form their team around their captain’s strengths as they look poised to break team records for their best season in franchise history.

Alexis Lafreniere

Out east, the top three teams boast one potential surprise and two predicted top teams – the Rimouski Oceanic, the Cape Breton Eagles and the Charlottetown Islanders.

Rimouski enters the year with the most pressure to salvage results out of this season than any other team in the entirety of the Canadian junior league. They have potential top pick Alexis Lafrenière for this season and likely no more, and will attempt to build a contender around their wunderkind for a third season in a row. Last year, they were swept in the third round, and their regular season results will not matter this year. They have considerable pressure to be a contender this year, or the Lafrenière-led team will be considered a failure.

Lafrenière already has four multi-point games in his five games played so far this season. He has not skipped a beat. They also boast a strong starting goalie in Colten Ellis, and good offensive depth around the prodigal right winger, but their defence corps at this point is worse than last season’s edition, and Serge Beausoleil will feel the pressure to make moves at Christmas time to form a strong unit.

The Eagles are no longer Screaming, but they will provide plenty of emotions for their fans this year in Cape Breton. New ownership, a new coach in Jake Grimes, and a new outlook gives new life to one of the deepest teams in the QMJHL. While the team is lacking in top-end talent, they have plenty to be excited about throughout the lineup in forwards Mathias Laferrière, Shawn Boudrias and the impeccably named Ivan Ivan.

The team is lacking in a top star up front and a top defenceman on the back end, but the market is there for both of those holes, and they have a great goalie in Ottawa prospect Kevin Mandolese. A possible strong defender is still on the shelf, as overager Antoine Crête-Belzile is still recovering from post-concussion symptoms from a knock late last season.

Charlottetown is always in the mix as long as coach Jim Hulton is in the fold, and this season is no exception. The Islanders may not stay in this position all season long, but they have one of the best goalies in the league in Matt Welsh, who can steal games by himself, and a team that always stays committed to the game plan. Xavier Bernard on the back end is no slouch, and neither is the solid pivot Nikita Alexandrov.

The league’s best potential team is just behind the big five in Chicoutimi. The Saguenéens are in the best position to be contenders this season – a good mix of veterans, a very strong young core of Hendrix Lapierre, Théo Rochette and William Dufour, and three first round picks to make moves if they choose.

Of course, since many of their core players will not age out next season, they can choose which year in the next couple they want to load up their team.

If they choose this season, they have captain Harvey-Pinard and Ethan Crossman up front with Memorial Cup experience, an underrated goaltender in Alexis Shank and a solid-if-unspectacular defence group led by Artemi Knyazev. The Sags have a lot going for them this season, and the world is their oyster in terms of what they choose to do.

Another potential contending team is in Moncton, as the Wildcats made a move in the summer to set themselves up for a run this season. They acquired goaltender Olivier Rodrigue to start games for them this season, and the 19-year-old is likely AHL bound after the season. This turns this season into an important one for the Wildcats, who lost Jeremy McKenna and Jonathan Aspirot to pro contracts.

There is a chance they may receive both players back from their pro teams, but even with the veteran boosts, the Wildcats are still missing an impact defender to be a true contender. That blueliner could be Boston Bruins pick Axel Andersson, who is in limbo in Providence, but until he is physically in the uniform, no one knows for sure.

The draft this June will be interesting for another New Brunswick team: the Saint John Sea Dogs. The Dogs are the most polarizing team to predict this season, as they have many young potential stars in their lineup, but their core is still very young. Last season’s youngest team in the CHL is still wet-behind-the-ears, but the talent in undeniable, led by blueliner Jérémie Poirier.

Poirier will lead a defence corps with five 17-year-olds in the fold, including fellow draft prospects William Villeneuve, Joona Lehmus and Charlie Desroches. Up front, Josh Lawrence and Brady Burns return and along with Alex Drover and Dawson Stairs taking important roles, all at 17, they look to be setting themselves up for a bright run. Joshua Roy, the league’s top pick in the Q draft in June, is also on the team, taking a regular shift and having an impact in his first year in the league.

The Sea Dogs could catch lightning in a bottle or could crash and burn in their inexperience, but will provide must watch attention for draft watchers trying to catch the next NHL players from the QMJHL.

Last season’s Memorial Cup hosts in Halifax are not the team they were last season. This year, they are more of a one-line unit than a fleshed out juggernaut, led by forwards Benoît-Olivier Groulx, Raphaël Lavoie and Maxim Trepanier.

Jared McIsaac starts the year on the shelf for a considerable amount of time, leaving potential first rounder Justin Barron as the undisputed number one defender on the unit; a huge boon to his development. It is not the start new head coach Jean-Jacques Daigneault would have hoped for in taking the job, but he could really make a name for himself as a coach if Barron thrives in this environment.

It is expected that the Mooseheads will make some moves for the future during the mid-season trading period in which they kiss any or all of Lavoie, Trepanier, Groulx and McIsaac goodbye, which would dramatically alter the skills of this team in the second half.

Also looking ahead to the future is the Baie-Comeau Drakkar, who saw the fruits of their building labors tumble and sputter in a first-round upset to Moncton last spring. Nathan Légaré and Gabriel Fortier could be available to the highest bidder as the Drakkar hope to begin anew with a new coach in Jon Goyens, who has an excellent record of development at the midget level.

Goyens’s Lac-Saint-Louis teams have a reputation for producing many QMJHL players and pros, including Mike Matheson, Jonathan Drouin, Joe Veleno and Anthony Duclair. The Drakkar will have a chance to rebuild in his image, and he has earned it with his success at the midget level.

Drummondville will also be looking to cast off veterans in favour of younger players, as they hope to look to future years. The for-sale sign is on stars like Xavier Simoneau and Thomas Pelletier, while it has been rumoured that draft hopeful Dawson Mercer already has a new home lined up at Christmas when the trading period opens in late December.

In closing, here is a top-ten of QMJHL prospects to watch this season:

Alexis Lafreniere, Rimouski – his hype precedes him, but he’s absolutely worth it.

Hendrix Lapierre, Chicoutimi – missed some time last year with injury but hoping to make up for lost time.

Justin Barron, Halifax – Dobson-like skater and potential dominator on the back end.

Vasily Ponomarev, Shawinigan – a fitness freak in an optimal position to make things happen with lots of ice time.

Mavrik Bourque, Shawinigan – impressed on an offensive-weak Shawinigan last year with his skills and poise.

Theo Rochette, Chicoutimi – An early season injury sidelines him in a critical year, but will have plenty of opportunities.

Dawson Mercer, Drummondville – do-it-all two-way winger who skates well and can play all situations.

Jérémie Poirier, Saint John – great size and skating ability, is already a top-pairing defender in his draft year.

Lukas Cormier, Charlottetown – undersized, but excellent skater who can always make something happen offensively.

Noah Delémont, Acadie-Bathurst – great skater, great hockey sense and ability to handle minutes, especially internationally.

QMJHL Playoff Preview: Huskies leaders of the pack in the President’s Cup playoff

Michael Sanderson — Wed, 20 Mar 2019 13:23:49 +0000

The Rouyn-Noranda Huskies are looking to complete what they could not in 2016: win a Memorial Cup.

They may just have the team to do it, but first they need to lay waste to the rest of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

That’s what they did in the regular season. Boasting three players from that 2016 Memorial Cup squad in league-leading scorer Peter Abbandonato, minute-eating defender Jacob Neveu and record-setting netminder Samuel Harvey, the Huskies set the record for most wins in a single season with 59 wins in 2018-19. Raphael Harvey-Pinard played five games for that 2016 Huskie crew in the regular season and was the team’s second leading scorer this year.

The Huskies are a very strong defensive unit that moves the puck fast and plays with intensity. They lost just one game in the 2019 portion of the schedule.

Noah Dobson, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies.

Rouyn-Noranda made it count in the mid-season trading period as well, trading all of their picks in the first-through-fourth rounds in the next three seasons to acquire three players – Joel Teasdale from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, Louis-Filip Côté from the Québec Remparts, and Noah Dobson from the defending Memorial Cup champion Acadie-Bathurst Titan. Teasdale boasts 42 points in 29 games, and Dobson added 36 in 28.

The Titan will not be defending their crown, as they missed the playoffs this season, allowing for a new champion that could be wearing red and black. The Huskies have another piece from last year’s champs: head coach Mario Pouliot joined the team, taking over as head coach and GM.

Joe Veleno, Drummondville Voltiguers

Another team in red and black, the Drummondville Voltigeurs, are the yin to the Huskies yang in terms of contending combatants. While the Huskies dominate with defensive play and timely scoring, the Voltigeurs try to outscore the opposition, and were very successful at it, especially in the second half. The Volts led the league in goals with 338 on the strength of Detroit pick Joe Veleno’s 104 points and Maxime Comtois’s 48 points in just 25 games.

They have the forward depth to put most teams to shame. Nicolas Guay has been an excellent winger with 40 goals. Gregor MacLeod was picked up at the beginning of the season from Québec and put up 84 points. Félix Lauzon’s two-way play was magnified by his 80 points, and Dawson Mercer, not draft-eligible until 2020, had 64 points with his blazing speed and great defensive instincts. This playoff season could be Mercer’s breakout party with the responsibility Steve Hartley and the Volts coaching staff put on his shoulders.

The Huskies, not to be outdone, outscored every team but Drummondville in the regular campaign.

Drummondville and Rouyn-Noranda both benefit from a different playoff format this year, as well. Due to travel issues, the league decided to toss out the previous 1-vs-16, 2-vs-15 format for a conference set-up, putting the league’s 12 Quebec-based teams in three divisions of four, and the Maritimes all in a single division of six. The two western-most divisions were shuffled into the Western Conference, while the East Division and the Maritime teams were linked into the Eastern Conference.

This plan creates an imbalance in the conferences, so the possibility of a crossover exists; if the ninth-best Eastern Conference team has more points than the eighth-best Western Conference team, the Eastern team joins the west for the playoffs, and the eighth-best Western team misses the playoffs. The tenth-based team in the east, if they too have more points than the remaining team in the west, could also cross over.

This possibility nearly happened, with the Saint John Sea Dogs tied in points and holding the tiebreaker over the Shawinigan Cataractes on the league’s final day of the regular season. The Sea Dogs lost in regulation, while the Cataractes lost in overtime, putting them one point ahead of the Dogs and into the final playoff spot. Shawinigan, who made the playoffs despite a 0-14-1-0 record in their final 15 games, will take on the Huskies, a team that has only lost eight times all season.

The first round will be 1-vs-8, 2-vs-7 and the second round will pit the four winners, highest remaining seed playing lowest remaining seed. The third round will be a free-for-all, with the team’s left over ranked by record and seeded one-through-four regardless of conference, and lastly the winners of the third round will meet in the league final.

The possibility of the best two teams meeting in the final is still there, and the two best teams in terms of points, Rouyn-Noranda and Drummondville, will have an easier ride than most one- and two-seeds.

The talent disparity between the Eastern and Western Conferences this year was a sight to behold, perfectly demonstrated by the Sherbrooke Phoenix. The Phoenix, with 77 points, finished third in the west and will have home ice against the Armada. Given the same results, if Sherbrooke was in the east, they would have finished in eighth place, and would be playing the Conference-leading and Memorial Cup hosting Halifax Mooseheads. Quite a jump in competition, and on the road, no less.

The Mooseheads overtook the Baie-Comeau Drakkar to win the East crown on the final day, and they will have home-ice assured for the first two rounds. While they received some criticism for potentially not doing enough during the mid-season trading period, making the fewest trades of any team, the Mooseheads are coming in with a very strong outfit that had a better 2019 than 2018. Head coach Eric Veilleux and the personnel struggled at times in terms of game-plan; Veilleux is a more defensive coach and the players he is directing are more offensive-minded, but he does his best coaching in the playoffs, and has a league final in 2013 and a Memorial Cup championship in 2012 to his credit.

Jared McIssaac

Samuel Asselin, acquired from the Titan in the season’s first week, had an excellent campaign and was the most consistent Moosehead over the 68 games, firing a league-topping 48 goals and 86 points for Halifax. Anaheim prospects Benoît-Olivier Groulx and Antoine Morand both shone in the regular season as well, with 80 and 70 points, respectively. Arnaud Durandeau kept pace as well, as the Islanders hopeful had 73 points of his own. Detroit prospect Jared McIsaac was second in defenceman points with 62 in 53 games. Having Edmonton prospect Ostap Safin back in the lineup in March after missing several months with recurring hip issues is a major boost to the scoring touch of the team.

Fans will keep a close eye on Raphael Lavoie, projected as potentially the league’s biggest draft prospect for this June’s NHL draft. Lavoie had a very hot February with 24 points in the month, and while he was kept off the scoresheet in his last three games, needs a big playoff and Memorial Cup to keep himself above the competition, namely Moncton’s Jakob Pelletier and Sherbrooke’s Samuel Poulin.

Ivan Chekhovich

The Drakkar are the Mooseheads’ biggest challengers in the east, and they held the title until the league’s final games. Much like the Huskies, the Volts and the Mooseheads, the Drakkar boast major scoring in their lineup. San Jose prospect Ivan Chekhovich was six points off the league leader in Abbandonato with 105 points, and Nathan Légaré, a 2019 draft hopeful, was tied for eighth in league scoring with 87 points and tied for second in the league with 45 goals. Their top four scorers all scored at least 35 goals, and they beefed up the back end with additions of Keenan MacIsaac from the Titan and Pascal Corbeil of the Armada.

The team did not sit pat with their goaltending either, as GM Steve Ahern acquired three capable goaltenders in Alex D’Orio from Saint John, Dereck Baribeau from Québec and Lucas Fitzpatrick from Shawinigan. Due to Baribeau’s injury in early January sidelining him for the rest of the regular season, D’Orio has been the team’s starting goaltender, and the Penguins’ signee has shown that with a contending team, he is a very good starting goaltender who can handle a lot of shots. The Drakkar do not give up a lot of shots, though, being fourth in the league in shots against at just 26-and-a-half.

Alexis Lafreniere

The Eastern Conference is the side to watch in the first two rounds, as they had seven teams breach the 85-point barrier to the west’s two. The Rimouski Oceanic, upset in last year’s first round by the Moncton Wildcats, bring in Alexis Lafrenière for his second playoff run, and they added big muscle in Calgary prospect D’Artignan Joly to a lineup that already boasted high-flying Tampa signee Jimmy Huntington and defensive leading scorer and Charles-Edouard D’Astous. Lafrenière’s 105 points already secures him as a top prospect for 2020, but he will want to get further than the opening round this time around. The Oceanic will go as far as 2019 prospect Colten Ellis can take them from the red line.

While Charlottetown traded away Arizona first rounder Pierre-Olivier Joseph to Drummondville, they were able to get New Jersey prospect Xavier Bernard in the deal. Matt Welsh is capable of stealing a series in net and would be talked about more in NHL circles if he was taller than 5-11”. A team could still take a flyer on him and be well-off; he never quits on a play and excels in making saves however necessary. Anaheim prospect Hunter Drew has made more great strides in his game, and 2019 potential picks Nikita Alexandrov and Brett Budgell are joined by sharpshooter Daniel Hardie and former Titan forward Jordan Maher for experience. Jim Hulton is a very good coach and an excellent motivator, and he has a group he can mold for a playoff run, despite selling off his best asset.

The Islanders’ first round opponents will be the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, who acquired Derek Gentille and Minnesota prospect Shawn Boudrias at the deadline. Ottawa pick Kevin Mandolese will have to earn his keep in the net against the Isles, and former Titan forward Mitch Balmas, two-time 40-goal scorer, will hope to improve upon his five goals in last year’s playoff run. The Eagles may be a year away, but this would be a very pivotal moment in the growth of this year’s core going forward, and they are more than capable of pulling off an upset.

Chicoutimi was a player in the Noah Dobson sweepstakes; as part of a handshake agreement, Dobson was sent to Rouyn-Noranda, but with mostly Chicoutimi draft picks. Those picks were sent to the Huskies by Chicoutimi for facilitation and the ability to acquire William Dufour. The trade was a part of the Titan’s deal for Olivier Galipeau last season; the Sags wanted the ability to re-acquire Dobson next year if faced with the possibility, but also take in Dufour as a potential core piece for the future. If Dobson went through Chicoutimi directly, the Saguenéens would not be able to re-acquire him for three years.

Chicoutimi under Yanick Jean have been rebuilding for a couple of years, but they have three of the first seven picks from last year’s first round on the team in Dufour, Hendrix Lapierre and Théo Rochette. All three have received international attention and will be important building blocks for the team in future years, and this team will gain valuable experience in the post-season, with the potential of netminder Alexis Shank stealing a game or two against Rimouski.

Jakob Pelletier is a player whose game gets better as the chips are down, and he is potentially the Wildcats’ most important player in their playoff push. Jeremy McKenna’s 97 points does not hurt either, but the Wildcats changed coaches in January and struggled to find their game at times this season. They made moves to get better at Christmas but saw a team that sold off players in Charlottetown and a team that more or less stood pat in Chicoutimi, adding just William Dufour and shuffling in Liam Murphy for Jesse Sutton, surpass them in the standings. The team is playing better under the watchful eye of John Torchetti, but the playoffs are a different animal.

Samuel Poulin is also a player who benefits when the checking gets close. He is big, fast and smart, and he can play physical as well as contribute offensively. The Phoenix scored more goals this year than any other year in their history, but do not have a scorer who jumps off the page; Poulin’s 29 goals tied for the team lead, matched by Alex-Olivier Voyer. Poulin will be relied upon heavily in the post-season, but the Phoenix have eight players with 42 points or more in the regular campaign.

The Eastern Conference is a wide-open group with good teams set to pack after the first round, while the West feature the two top teams in the league in the Huskies and the Voltigeurs. One would expect those latter two teams to make it to the final four, but any of the top seven teams in the east could make a run for the President’s Cup.

Who will meet the Mooseheads in Halifax at the 2019 Memorial Cup in May? The Huskies have recent history on their side, and the league’s wins record to boot. 16 more wins to their 59 they have already amassed seems most likely.

Predictions

First Round

Rouyn-Noranda over Shawinigan in 4

Drummondville over Gatineau in 4

Blainville-Boisbriand over Sherbrooke in 7 (with goaltending leading to the mild upset)

Victoriaville over Val d’Or in 6

Halifax over Quebec in 5

Baie-Comeau over Moncton in 5

Rimouski over Chicoutimi in 7

Charlottetown over Cape Breton in 6

Second Round

Rouyn-Noranda over Blainville-Boisbriand in 4

Drummondville over Victoriaville in 6

Halifax over Charlottetown in 7

Baie-Comeau over Rimouski in 6

Third Round

Rouyn-Noranda over Baie-Comeau in 6

Drummondville over Halifax in 7

League Championship

Rouyn-Noranda over Drummondville in 6

QMJHL 2018-19 Preview: Voltigeurs, Oceanic early favourites to join Mooseheads at Memorial Cup

Michael Sanderson — Thu, 04 Oct 2018 11:59:22 +0000

There is one certainty in the 2018-19 QMJHL season: the Halifax Mooseheads have already punched their ticket to the 2019 Memorial Cup.

They printed the tickets, in fact.

Halifax is the host for the CHL’s holy grail tournament in May, and the question is, what team joins them at the big dance?

Two teams have revealed themselves to be the cream of the crop, at least on paper at the onset of the season: the Drummondville Voltigeurs and the Rimouski Oceanic.

Benoit Olivier-Groulx

But Halifax may be the best of them all, with a deep lineup throughout, led by forwards Antoine Morand, Benoît-Olivier Groulx, Jordan Maher and draft-eligibles Raphaël Lavoie and Xavier Parent. They only lack a minute-eater on defence, depending on the progression of blueliners Jared McIsaac, a Detroit pick, and Justin Barron, and a consistent starting netminder, though Chicago pick Alexis Gravel has the potential to steal games. The acquisitions of Ostap Safin and Samuel Asselin only further bolster a strong offensive attack for head coach Eric Veilleux’s group.

Drummondville’s true potential will depend on the potential return of forward Maxime Comtois. The bruising two-way forward has turned a great showing at Anaheim’s camp, and some luck with an injury to Corey Perry, into a chance at some real live NHL games that count this season, and if he were to stick in the pros, it would be a big blow to the Volts’ title hopes. The team is deep beyond him, boasting Joe Veleno and Pavel Koltygin up front, NHL-draftees Xavier Bernard and first-rounder Nicolas Beaudin on the back end, and the league’s best goaltender in Olivier Rodrigue defending the cage. Top to bottom, Drummondville is Halifax’s biggest challenger on paper.

Rimouski has the league’s biggest name in Alexis Lafrenière, who still can’t be picked until the 2020 NHL Draft. Lafrenière has already made a name for himself on the international stage, and will be looking to improve on his 80 points from last season. The Oceanic finished third in the league last year, and holding onto that spot is the least of their expectations. Rimouski was upset in the first round last March, and will look to improve on that and go on a deep run. Adding Jimmy Huntington, Cédric Paré and Olivier Garneau to the fold up front provides strong depth to an already formidable group.

Beyond the big three, there are several clubs that could surprise, including offensive juggernauts in Baie-Comeau and Moncton, and wildcard teams like Charlottetown, Cape Breton and Quebec.

Ivan Chekhovich

The Drakkar started very hot out the gate with strong offensive play, including San Jose’s Ivan Chekhovich and Tampa Bay’s Gabriel Fortier among the top scorers. Undrafted forward Yaroslav Alexeyev, acquired from Sherbrooke in the summer, has already made an impact. Xavier Bouchard leads a middling defense corps, and Kyle Jessiman joins Justin Blanchette in a bit of a loaded crease.

The Wildcats have the horses up front to do damage as well. Last season’s shot leader Jeremy McKenna returns along with Mika Cyr, while undrafted forward Anderson MacDonald, tries to show teams he deserved to be picked last June. They shipped netminder Mark Grametbauer to Bathurst, opting instead to go forward with former Drakkar and Armada goalie Francis Leclerc. Their defence needs work, but stalwarts Jonathan Aspirot and Gabriel Sylvestre head the group.

Pierre-Olivier Joseph of the Charlottetown Islanders. Photo courtesy of the QMJHL.

Charlottetown was slept on a lot at the start of last season, but they surprised and made it to the third round, where they were finally knocked out in seven games by the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. They hope to build momentum from final four finishes the last two seasons, but if they get off to a cold start, they have two of the best players available for trade at Christmas: Arizona first rounder Pierre-Olivier Joseph and netminder Matt Welsh.

Cape Breton is hungry for a winner, and they acquired 40-goal man Mitchell Balmas and defender Antoine Crête-Belzile to jump to contending status. Ottawa goalkeeper Kevin Mandolese looks to grow this season as the clear number one goalie as Jessiman was traded to Baie-Comeau.

Quebec returns with the biggest wild card in the whole league: new/old head coach and general manager Patrick Roy. Patrick is either loved or hated by every QMJHL hockey fan, but there is no denying he brings excitement and intensity to the product. He adds a few wins to any team he coaches, and will do so here. While Roy’s development record isn’t the strongest in the Quebec league, he is responsible for players like Jonathan Marchessault and Logan Shaw. Potential Minnesota signee Dereck Baribeau and Chicago pick Philipp Kurashev, too.

The league has adjusted their divisions and playoff format this season. Instead of three divisions, there are four. The Maritime Division has six teams, while the 12 remaining squads are split up into three four-team groupings.

Playoffs will be conference based with a 1-plays-8 format, but the 16 best teams will make the playoffs – the conferences will be shuffled so the top 16 will be in the post-season no matter what. This method avoids the top seeds breezing through the first round of the playoffs, and it prevents some of the more extreme travel in the early rounds. However, this format can prevent some monumental upsets, much like 14-seed Moncton defeating third-seed Rimouski last year.

Acadie-Bathurst’s storybook season last year resulted in a Memorial Cup championship, but it’s now time to pay the piper for the party. The Titan acquired netminder Mark Grametbauer to provide some stability in goal but have traded away much of the core from last season’s winning squad.

Noah Dobson on Acadie-Bathurst. Photo courtesy of the QMJHL.

One player to watch is still in a Titan uniform – Islanders first rounder Noah Dobson. The performance of the team in the first two months of the season will depend if the watch is on his talent or his future destination at Christmas time. Teams will be lining up for his services when the mid-season trading period opens up, and there aren’t many teams in the league that would refuse the best defenseman in the QMJHL on their roster for a playoff push.

Tough seasons will be ahead for Chicoutimi and Saint John, but those teams have names to look out for in future drafts – namely Josh Lawrence, William Villeneuve and Jeremie Poirier of the Sea Dogs and Hendrix Lapierre and Théo Rochette of the Saguenéens. They are all up for grabs in 2020 or later.

While there is much time between now and June on the Rogers Arena stage in Vancouver, the first name called from the QMJHL is expected to be Halifax’s Raphaël Lavoie. The Chambly, QC, right winger has great size, speed and hands to succeed at a top-line level in the professional game. He potted 30 goals last season, including a remarkable 10 game winners, and added 33 assists in the full slate of 68 games, and added five points in nine playoff contests.

He does an excellent job of using his 6-4” frame to his advantage as leverage in puck protection, and the long reach to keep the puck away from defenders. With added bulk and physical maturity, he already has the fundamentals to be a strong power forward, puck protector and possession player. He also is adept at firing a strong wrist shot off the rush on the left wing, where he can fire on his off-hand side. At his size, it’s no surprise he is a force in front of the net, either.

While he does have some center potential at the next level, he is an early favourite to receive passes on the right, or left, flank from Antoine Morand, who can most definitely dish with the best in the league. Expect those goal numbers to rise, and the attention with it, by the time the weather heats up in 2019.

Other early favourites to be first rounders include forwards Maxim Cajkovic of the Saint John Sea Dogs, Samuel Poulin of the Sherbrooke Phoenix, Jakob Pelletier of the Moncton Wildcats, Valentin Nussbaumer of the Shawinigan Cataractes, and defender Artemi Knyazev of the Chicoutimi Saguenéens.

All but Nussbaumer featured for their respective national teams at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Edmonton in August, though Pelletier fractured his wrist at the tourney and missed the first week of the QMJHL season.

Cajkovic is a power forward waiting to blossom. He has tremendous confidence in the offensive zone to let go his big shot, one of the best available in the draft, and the speed and soft hands to give him the space needed to get it off. His speed separates him from the pack, as well. He is a leader on the ice for a young Sea Dogs team and can inspire his team with a big hit or a big goal.

Poulin is the son of former NHLer Patrick Poulin. He has had a hot start to the season with the trigger finger, and he is just as strong making plays as scoring. He already has a pro size at 6-1” and 204 pounds, and is strong along the boards. He plays much like his father; strong along the boards, in the offensive zone, and defensively where his speed and anticipation make him deadly on the backcheck or on the penalty kill.

Pelletier has a motor that doesn’t quit and a nose for the net, even with his currently small frame. He has been an emotional leader for the Moncton Wildcats since his first shift in the league, and he always works hard to the final whistle. His hockey sense is off-the-charts, as well. He is a strong playmaker and a great passer, and finds his way into traffic to shoot his shot.

Nussbaumer holds two advantages over his league-mates in his quest to get drafted – he can play all three forward positions, and he has already played against men in his native Switzerland. He had a 26-game cup of coffee with his hometown team, Biel-Bienne, last season, with five goals and six points. He is a late September birthday, which also gives him an edge in performance, though he would have been a very good 2018 pick if he was eleven days older.

Knyazev is an offensively talented defenseman who can move the puck crisply. He is also strong in his own end. He isn’t the biggest defender but can handle the speed of oncoming forwards very well and steer them where they need to go. His transition game is an instant offensive tool, and he doesn’t give up on plays.

The Halifax Mooseheads also owns the rights to Victoria Grizzlies forward and potential first rounder Alex Newhook, but even the enticement of the Memorial Cup was not enough to convince the St. John’s, Newfoundland, native to make the jump to the QMJHL. He is committed to Boston College for next season.