Ranking Prospects 2023-24
- Thread starter herman
- Start date
Guilt Trip
Well-known member
Marlies sign Cole's brother and the guy that laid the hit on Hirvonen, along with 4 others.
https://twitter.com/nickbarden/status/1679853845743116289
https://twitter.com/nickbarden/status/1679853845743116289
herman
Well-known member
https://www.pensionplanpuppets.com/2023-t25u25-unranked-and-honourable-mentions/
This is kicking into gear for August. I don't really have any disagreements with the list of unranked other than maybe Joe Miller probably should've been ranked over some of the likely safer options littering the bottom 10.
The knock is that he is exceedingly small (5'8" & <150 lbs on Elite Prospects, but up to 5'9" 160lbs for 2023-24) for hockey, but he had a really good USHL season and more than decent freshman year with Harvard (28 pts in 33 GP with almost no PP) despite the physical limitations. We'll note here that his size is basically Brayden Point's draft W/H (also an RHC), but a year or two after. His skating is a bit ahead of Point's was when drafted and he favours elusiveness (Mitch Marner style), while Point has more strength and will use it to just pinball around to get to dirty ice. Not saying he'll get to that echelon, as a lot has to go very right, but there's something there to watch for.
Some older Joe Miller content, with clips:
https://theathletic.com/3125208/2022/02/15/joe-miller-is-latest-maple-leafs-prospect-out-of-chicago-steel-pipeline-who-could-turn-heads/
Unlike Marner,
Like Marner,
This is kicking into gear for August. I don't really have any disagreements with the list of unranked other than maybe Joe Miller probably should've been ranked over some of the likely safer options littering the bottom 10.
The knock is that he is exceedingly small (5'8" & <150 lbs on Elite Prospects, but up to 5'9" 160lbs for 2023-24) for hockey, but he had a really good USHL season and more than decent freshman year with Harvard (28 pts in 33 GP with almost no PP) despite the physical limitations. We'll note here that his size is basically Brayden Point's draft W/H (also an RHC), but a year or two after. His skating is a bit ahead of Point's was when drafted and he favours elusiveness (Mitch Marner style), while Point has more strength and will use it to just pinball around to get to dirty ice. Not saying he'll get to that echelon, as a lot has to go very right, but there's something there to watch for.
Some older Joe Miller content, with clips:
https://theathletic.com/3125208/2022/02/15/joe-miller-is-latest-maple-leafs-prospect-out-of-chicago-steel-pipeline-who-could-turn-heads/
Unlike Marner,
Like Marner,
herman
Well-known member
herman
Well-known member
PPP:
23. Dennis Hildeby
22. Brandon Lisowsky
Dennis Hildeby is my new favourite Leaf goalie prospect to hang unreasonable hopes and hype on (previously Ian Scott
). I have no particular reason why, as his numbers are... just okay?
TLN:
18. Vyacheslav Peksa
23. Dennis Hildeby
22. Brandon Lisowsky
Dennis Hildeby is my new favourite Leaf goalie prospect to hang unreasonable hopes and hype on (previously Ian Scott
). I have no particular reason why, as his numbers are... just okay?TLN:
18. Vyacheslav Peksa
herman said:Denis Hildeby is my new favourite Leaf goalie prospect to hang unreasonable hopes and hype on (previously Ian Scott
"Just okay" seems like a bit of an understatement. 5th best save percentage in the SHL last season, with the 4 guys ahead of him all at least 5 years older. Granted that wasn't in a full starter role (more of a 40/60 split) but his numbers were better than the veteran Matt Tomkins who got more starts. With Tomkins gone (signed with Tampa) it might have been well to actually keep Hildeby in the SHL since it looked like Farjestads was going to pass the reigns to him fully. Hopefully Hildeby doesn't get too lost in the AHL/ECHL goalie shuffle, especially if/when Toronto signs a more veteran 3G.
Also it's always easy to get hyped by a goalie who's 6'6", 230 lbs every game. Not saying he's fully without a doubt the goalie of the future, but there's reasons to have a little hope here.
https://twitter.com/dalter/status/1689283130396471297
I feel like the quality of almost all Leafs discourse/blogs/reporting has gone downhill quite a bit over the last few years and maybe this isn't the absolute biggest offender of that but this article calling Hildeby a 21-year old 3 times but also a 24-year old 3 other times is very funny to me.
I feel like the quality of almost all Leafs discourse/blogs/reporting has gone downhill quite a bit over the last few years and maybe this isn't the absolute biggest offender of that but this article calling Hildeby a 21-year old 3 times but also a 24-year old 3 other times is very funny to me.
herman
Well-known member
PPP:
21. Dmitri Ovchinnikov
His development has appeared to stall.
TLN:
17. Ryan Tverberg
This guy is a bit of a wrecking ball.
21. Dmitri Ovchinnikov
His development has appeared to stall.
TLN:
17. Ryan Tverberg
This guy is a bit of a wrecking ball.
herman
Well-known member
PPP:
20. Hudson Malinoski
If you squint really really hard, there are a good deal of similarities to my fave, Nylander: heavy shot, very nice passing, size is approximately where Willy was when he was 19. And then the comparison falls off a cliff because Malinoski's skating is under developed, whereas Nylander was carving up adults as a kid and had basically played up a year or two his whole pre-NHL career.
TLN:
16. William Villenueve
Started to focus on defense in his final QMJHL year, and it helped smoothed the jump to the (discombobulated) Marlies where he acquitted him well for a rookie. With Niemela making the jump to the AHL, I hope Villenueve gets the Timoth Liljegren Marlies track of heavy defensive deployment to further develop his reads and timings and retrieval techniques.
20. Hudson Malinoski
If you squint really really hard, there are a good deal of similarities to my fave, Nylander: heavy shot, very nice passing, size is approximately where Willy was when he was 19. And then the comparison falls off a cliff because Malinoski's skating is under developed, whereas Nylander was carving up adults as a kid and had basically played up a year or two his whole pre-NHL career.
TLN:
16. William Villenueve
Started to focus on defense in his final QMJHL year, and it helped smoothed the jump to the (discombobulated) Marlies where he acquitted him well for a rookie. With Niemela making the jump to the AHL, I hope Villenueve gets the Timoth Liljegren Marlies track of heavy defensive deployment to further develop his reads and timings and retrieval techniques.
Highlander
Active member
I'll double that, if he can stay healthy I can see him on a line with Knies/Holmberg/Robertson. That has a nice feel to it.herman said:
herman
Well-known member
PPP:
19. Semyon Der-Arguchintsev
He has gone back to the KHL for now, but the Leafs retain his rights
TLN:
15. Artur Akhtyamov
Signed, but loaned back to the KHL, hopefully for actual KHL minutes.
19. Semyon Der-Arguchintsev
He has gone back to the KHL for now, but the Leafs retain his rights
TLN:
15. Artur Akhtyamov
Signed, but loaned back to the KHL, hopefully for actual KHL minutes.
Dr. Wickenheiser also noted Akhtyamov's play specifically at the latest development camp (alongside his other Russian Leafs goalie prospect buddy, Vyacheslav Peksa).
herman
Well-known member
herman
Well-known member
PPP:
17. Ryan Tverberg
It's pretty strange (to me) to see a puck-carrying checker lining up at centre. One who plays a chaos-pinball style to boot. Could make for a suitable complementary bottom-6 winger.
TLN:
13. Nick Abruzzese
17. Ryan Tverberg
It's pretty strange (to me) to see a puck-carrying checker lining up at centre. One who plays a chaos-pinball style to boot. Could make for a suitable complementary bottom-6 winger.
TLN:
13. Nick Abruzzese
herman
Well-known member
herman said:
Kyle certainly isn't:
herman
Well-known member
PPP:
15. Ty Voit
TLN:
11. Ty Voit
JINX!
He has made the jump to the AHL and will try to fulfill the Semyon Der-Arguchintsev replacement role. Many of the same strengths and issues that make Voit interesting but put a ceiling on Der-Arguchintsev apply here:
* playmaking skills galore
* makes teammates deadly given time and space
* very slight of frame & strength --> perimeter play
* mentally agile but can't match it with their feet
* underdeveloped/utilized shot
Put those issues in the rearview mirror and you get a potential Mitch Marner. If he can't make breakthroughs on at least one of the three, then you end up with Jeremy Bracco.
15. Ty Voit
TLN:
11. Ty Voit
JINX!
He has made the jump to the AHL and will try to fulfill the Semyon Der-Arguchintsev replacement role. Many of the same strengths and issues that make Voit interesting but put a ceiling on Der-Arguchintsev apply here:
* playmaking skills galore
* makes teammates deadly given time and space
* very slight of frame & strength --> perimeter play
* mentally agile but can't match it with their feet
* underdeveloped/utilized shot
Put those issues in the rearview mirror and you get a potential Mitch Marner. If he can't make breakthroughs on at least one of the three, then you end up with Jeremy Bracco.