Draft Summaries
Pension Plan Puppets
The Leafs Nation
The Athletic (paywall) |
Joshua Kloke,
Corey Pronman
The Leafs Notebook (MLHS)
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Fraser Minten: I was looking for McGroarty/Ohgren/Beck with our first pick because they were solid two-way forwards (mostly centres) who do all the hockey things well even if they don't put up top-3 pick production. Beck, for instance, is Shane Wright-lite. Fraser Minten profiles similarly, with more forechecking prowess and less playmaking potential. He scored high on the Leafs draft board for being a big time hockey nerd (a la Spezza); the combine interview process involved watching a short clip of a hockey situation, and answering what happened next as well as what he would do. He had an easier time of it since he watched so much NHL hockey in his free time that he recognized most plays.
Nicholas Moldenhauer: He'll be a project to fill out his frame and recover lost development time (illness/injury) to round out the toolbox, but what needs no fixing is his motor. Here's Scott Wheeler's story from before the draft on Moldenhauer's recovery and return to action:
link.
Also, I do want to share this hilarious thing: Moldenhauer made his own
highlight pack 3 years ago and his first few clips are going to win him some fans.
Dennis Hildeby: I don't know goalies, but the Blackbook scouting report on MLHS about his movement and tracking sound promising. I don't mind taking overagers for positions that seem to need long development tracks. From what the report indicates, Hildeby is trending upward quite sharply. His size specs are like Wilson Fisk's.
Nikita Grebenkin: lots of puck skills and hockey IQ held back by middling skating and almost no shooting mechanics. Like a Jason Allison? There's time and almost no pressure to see where this goes. You don't need the hardest shot to be dangerous if you can do it deceptively, and Grebenkin has a lot of shiftyness.
Brandon Lisowsky: Speaking of deceptive, Lisowsky has an arsenal of shots to choose from. He also has all the hallmarks of a Dubas-era flier: smol, highly productive, with above average edgework to boot. Similar to Minten, the Leafs like his game processing ability and work rate.
