Ranking Prospects 2023-24
- Thread starter herman
- Start date
herman
Well-known member
https://twitter.com/LondonKnights/status/1769793231502377362
So some of this is just Cowan playing with very productive teammates on a relatively strong team; he gets points naturally by transitioning the puck to the OZ and putting it into good space for heavy shooters against junior goalies.
The impressive parts:
Speed/Pace - he makes defenders uncomfortable with how in their face he gets; he also has that change of pace instinct that Marner and Nylander have -- staying in line with the puck in transition and then just squirting into open ice on a little burst, or sensing a hard backcheck and pulling up to open up passing lanes.
Quick Release - doesn't take much time dusting pucks off, which will hold him in good stead in pro-play
Body Positioning - he's not the biggest, but he routinely maintains good body positioning to shrug off checks to keep plays alive
Tenacity - a lot of second, third effort plays to get the puck across the line or into a clean shot for linemates; he can wheel and deal from the boards, and crash the slot with equal aplomb, but really excels in rush play (defense to offense). This skill is on all the time, not just on finishing plays, and he's one of the major reasons the Knights can chain plays into the OZ with relative ease.
I haven't been able to watch full games lately, but it looks like he has cleaned up some of his earlier penalty issues.
So some of this is just Cowan playing with very productive teammates on a relatively strong team; he gets points naturally by transitioning the puck to the OZ and putting it into good space for heavy shooters against junior goalies.
The impressive parts:
Speed/Pace - he makes defenders uncomfortable with how in their face he gets; he also has that change of pace instinct that Marner and Nylander have -- staying in line with the puck in transition and then just squirting into open ice on a little burst, or sensing a hard backcheck and pulling up to open up passing lanes.
Quick Release - doesn't take much time dusting pucks off, which will hold him in good stead in pro-play
Body Positioning - he's not the biggest, but he routinely maintains good body positioning to shrug off checks to keep plays alive
Tenacity - a lot of second, third effort plays to get the puck across the line or into a clean shot for linemates; he can wheel and deal from the boards, and crash the slot with equal aplomb, but really excels in rush play (defense to offense). This skill is on all the time, not just on finishing plays, and he's one of the major reasons the Knights can chain plays into the OZ with relative ease.
I haven't been able to watch full games lately, but it looks like he has cleaned up some of his earlier penalty issues.
Highlander
Active member
Can Webber play for the Marlies this year, if his season ends before the Marliesherman said:
herman
Well-known member
Highlander said:
It would be the same situation to Knies and Abruzzese's ELC signings; if Webber signs the ELC following his NCAA career, he can join the Leafs, but wouldn't be eligible to be assigned to the Marlies until next season.
https://x.com/AHLPR/status/1631655666250022912
Highlander
Active member
Thanks Herman, to bad as a few games with the Marlies would have been an eye opener for him.
herman said:
If he signs a future contract that doesn't kick in until the 24/25 season he could join the Marlies on a professional tryout deal for the remainder of the season + playoffs (which is what Tverberg did last season).
But considering Webber and his camp have a good amount of control here (hence why he was traded in the 1st place) I would guess they'll push hard to burn year 1 of his deal this season (making his 2-year ELC deal essentially a 1-year contract) and yeah in that case he can't be assigned to the Marlies this season.
Guilt Trip
Well-known member
No. He'll probably be 2nd.herman said:
herman
Well-known member
No. He'll probably be 2nd.Guilt Trip said:
[/quote]
I think that's about right. His potential ceiling has shot out of a rocket, especially relative to draft day expectations, which were nearly negative due to being unknown to every casual and expected to be 2nd/3rd rder to pundits.
He has leap-frogged Robertson, Minten, Niemela, and Liljegren. It could be argued he's got a higher offensive ceiling than Knies, but Knies has the NHL experience and size (and matching playstyle) that probably keeps him above him until they start playing at the same level.
I think the Brayden Point comp matches, especially if he keeps getting centering duty opportunities.
Travis Konecny (there's a ton of similarities there) feels like a little more reasonable of a comp right now than a multi-season 90-point centre.
bustaheims
Well-known member
CarltonTheBear said:
The Point comparisons always felt like absolute best case scenario for him. Konecny feels like a much more realistic way to envision his potential.
herman
Well-known member
Just chop down Point's PP production (usually 30-35 pts in his 90+ pt seasons), which Cowan probably won't get a chance at the NHL to do until the big 3 drop off or get split up. I think Cowan has a higher ceiling than Konecny's 60ish pts (he doesn't seem to ever last a full season) with his two-way play + SH opportunities.
I can see Cowan getting the Nick Robertson (likely traded in the off season) experiment on line 3 with Minten/Holmberg-Nylander, or even Nylander-Jarnkrok to start the season. Front Office appears to be building towards a top-9. Lots of mix-n-match opportunities with someone like Cowan who can move around the lineup like Jarnkrok but has better skating+passing. Even more if Domi re-signs and is not an outright liability under Matthews' wing.
I can see Cowan getting the Nick Robertson (likely traded in the off season) experiment on line 3 with Minten/Holmberg-Nylander, or even Nylander-Jarnkrok to start the season. Front Office appears to be building towards a top-9. Lots of mix-n-match opportunities with someone like Cowan who can move around the lineup like Jarnkrok but has better skating+passing. Even more if Domi re-signs and is not an outright liability under Matthews' wing.
herman said:
Konecny's about to have back to back 30 goal/30 assist seasons (and he's gotten close to it a number of other times in his career) and that's while playing with the likes of Tyson Foerster, Noah Cates, and Sean "I just missed 1.5 seasons with a possibly debilitating back injury" Couturier. 60 points in that environment is nothing to sniff at. He's also established himself as a regular penalty killer the last 2 years. He brings that same pesky/feisty factor that Cowan seems to have. Similarly slightly somewhat under sized. Similar draft positions. Similar D+1 offensive explosions that made people question why they weren't drafted higher pretty quickly.
As fans we should be absolutely ecstatic if Cowan reached Konecny's level of play because he's a hell of a player who would get talked about a lot more if he played with a better supporting cast. Obviously reaching top-10 centre in the league status like Point wouldn't bad either.