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#19. Nick Bjugstad | C | Blaine (HS-Minnesota)

Date of Birth: July 17th, 1992
Height: 6.04
Weight: 188lbs.
Shoots: R
Season Statistics: Regular Season | 25GP 29G 31A 60P 24PIM
Playoffs | n/a
TSR Midterm Rank: 15 | Position Rank: 13th Forwards
League Rank: 1st HS-Minnesota | Country Rank: 6th USA

At, 6’4” 188lbs, Nick Bjugstad stands out among his Minnesota High School peers. However, it is the effortless way in which Bjugstad goes about his business that has scouts excited about this kid’s potential. Another word to describe Bjugstad’s play is smooth. He has such a nice stride that it looks like he’s not moving, but you see him routinely win races for pucks and separate from opposing players. Of course, he has a great reach that allows him to get to those pucks and protect it, but the skating is definitely there. It will only get better as Bjugstad can easily add strength to his frame that will make him faster. Bjugstad also has the puck handling, passing and shooting skills that any team would love to have in a player his size. As strong as his skills are, Bjugstad’s greatest asset might be his hockey sense. At times, he can make a mockery of opposing players by just knowing where they are going to throw the puck even before they do. He’ll just peel off, go to a spot and wait for the puck to come to him….and it does. That may also be an indictment of the caliber of players that Bjugstad plays against, but you can’t deny his ability to anticipate the play.

Another intangible strength of Bjugstad is his determination. He had the opportunity to play for the USNTDP or perhaps another team in the USHL. Instead, Bjugstad valued his experience at Blaine High School with his friends and teammates and elected for one last season. Knowing that he was perhaps not going to develop as quickly had he taken the USNTDP route, Bjugstad elected to complete both his Junior and Senior years in High School through an accelerated graduation program ensuring that he could move on to the Minnesota Golden Gophers one year early. Also, Bjugstad took it upon himself to get a level of training and nutritional guidance that was more on par with what he was passing up with the US team at Ann Arbor. Bjugstad deserves full marks for seeing his plan through. Ironically, that decision might be the only negative on Bjugstad.

Although he received the Mr. Hockey award given annually to the top Minnesota High School player, that distinction does not guarantee NHL or even NCAA success. Minnesota High School competition is highly regarded but not as much as the other options Bjugstad had. In addition, the University of Minnesota program has been criticized recently by at least two NHL organizations questioning their ability to properly develop players for the NHL. Each NHL team has there own opinion on if those factors make Bjugstad a risky prospect.

Pros: Hockey sense, Size, physical skills and athleticism

Cons: Level of competition

Skillset Comparison: Ryan Getzlaf

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Tags: 2010 nhl draft prospects, Nick Bjugstad, Scouting Report

About the Author: Rich Michalowski