WHL Draft-Eligible Player Rankings: March 2011
TSR Features | 26 Mar 2011Skaters
- 1. LC Ryan Nugent-Hopkins | Red Deer -In a class by himself in the WHL – a good skater that is extremely agile, top-notch passer with an underrated shot.
- 2. LD Duncan Siemens | Saskatoon – Siemens has shown questionable decision-making at times, but there is no disputing his outstanding package of size, skill, and skating.
- 3. LC Mark McNeill | Prince Albert – Big center that plays hard at both ends of the rink. Has produced offensively despite limited help.
- 4. LW Sven Bartschi | Portland - Tenacious little Swiss forward has grit along with skill.
- 5. LD David Musil | Vancouver – Skating needs to improve, but Musil is the best defensive defenseman available in the WHL this year.
- 6. RC Colin Jacobs | Seattle -Big two-way center shows flashes of what he’s capable of but needs to be more consistent. High risk factor involved but the potential for reward is high.
- 7. RD Myles Bell | Regina - Offensive defenseman with a big shot and a willingness to play physically.
- 8. RW Ty Rattie | Portland – Shifty winger with top-six upside. A potential boom/bust prospect.
- 9. LD Joe Morrow | Portland – Talented defender that skates well and has the ability to move the puck up ice.
- 10. LW Adam Lowry | Swift Current - Power Forward winger that is still growing into his body and plays a fundamental game
- 11. LD Joel Edmundson | Moose Jaw – Large steady defender is learning from 2010 1st rounder Dylan McIlrath. Takes care of his end first.
- 12. RC Michael St. Croix | Edmonton – Smart, but small center has left TSR wanting more this year.
- 13. LD Brenden Kitchton | Spokane – Late-blooming offensive defender with questionable size. Went undrafted a year ago but a big season has got shifted a lot of attention his way.
- 14. LD Alex Roach | Calgary - A big riser throughout the season, Roach is the type of defender NHL teams love to see from the WHL. Has great size, toughness, and has a heavy shot. Strictly a project pick.
- 15. LD Jesse Forsberg | Prince George - Forsberg has some untapped potential and isn’t afraid of the extra curricular activities.
- 16. RW Shane McColgan | Kelowna – Small skilled winger needs to bring offense and grittiness on a regular basis.
- 17. LD Zach Yuen | Tri-City – If Yuen was a couple inches taller, he probably would be in most NHL teams’ top 10 wish list from the WHL. Skilled and unintimidated.
- 18. LC Brent Benson | Saskatoon - Some untapped skill to go with a physical game.
- 19. LW Travis Ewanyk | Edmonton – While not overly big, Ewanyk gives brings the energy and toughness needed for a bottom 6 role every night.
- 20. RD Tyler Hansen | Kamloops – Defensive player that does everything asked of him for the Blazers.
- 21. LC Dylan Wruck | Edmonton – While tiny, Wruck had a very good season under most people’s radar the way Brendan Gallagher did last year.
- 22. LW Marek Tvrdon | Vancouver – Blew out his shoulder early in the season and has been largely forgotten. Good combo of skill and size for a late pick.
- 23. RW Matej Stransky | Saskatoon – Much like teammates Marek Viedensky and Josh Nicholls, Stransky possesses the skill and size to be a late round steal if he can be more consistent.
- 24. RC Colin Smith | Kamloops - Skilled center that needs to get much stronger moving forward.
- 25. RW Dylan Willick | Kamloops – Much like Ewanyk, Willick plays hard and puts up a little offense as well.
- 26. RW Marcel Noebels | Seattle - Undrafted last year, the big German has good hands and shot that could result in him hearing his name called late in this year’s draft.
- 27. LD Jagger Dirk | Kootenay – Young Ice defender stepped in nicely when Brayden McNabb was injured.
- 28. RD Reece Scarlett | Swift Current – Complete boom/bust prospect. Has the tools to excel offensively, but a disaster in his own end this year for the Broncos.
- 29. LC Kale Kessy | Medicine Hat - Nice size and toughness, but the Tiger forward needs to significantly improve his skating.
- 30. RD Keegan Lowe | Edmonton – Edmonton defender has tremendous genes as the son of both a former Stanley Cup winning defenseman and a former Olympian. Has noticeably improved since the beginning of the season.
- 31. RD Mitch Topping | Chilliwack – Young defenseman is starting to play a big role for the Bruins.
Goaltenders
- 1. Laurent Brossoit | Edmonton – Underrated Oil Kings netminder has great size with the ability to bail out his teammates with a big save.
- 2. Liam Liston | Brandon – Steady goalie for the high-flying Wheat Kings.
- 3. Eric Williams | Prince Albert Raiders – Backup goalies is small, but very quick.
Tags: 2011 nhl draft, 2011 nhl draft prospects, Adam Lowry, Alex Roach, Brendan Kichton, Brent Benson, David Musil, Duncan Siemens, Dylan Willick, Dylan Wruck, Eric Williams, Jagger Dirk, Jesse Forsberg, Joe Morrow, Joel Edmundson, Kale Kessy, Keegan Lowe, Laurent Brossoit, Liam Liston, Marcel Noebels, Marek Tvrdon, Mark McNeill, Matej Stransky, Michael St. Croix, Mitch Topping, Myles Bell, Reece Scalett, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Shane McColgan, Sven Bartschi, Travis Ewanyk, Ty Rattie, Tyler Hansen, whl prospects, Zach Yuen
A few things:
- Jacobs is way too high. Totally faded in the 2nd half of the year. To have him above Rattie is quite mind blowing.
- I like McNeill at #3.
- Morrow will surprise people.
- I like Edmundson, but not THAT much.
- Forsberg needs to be higher, will likely be an early 3rd rounder.
- You are selling Scarlett short big time. The kid is much better than 29th in the Dub. I have him in my top 15. He was overwhelmed this year with minutes in Swift and tired towards the end, but the kid is a very solid 2 way defender.
- Kessy needs to be higher, he will likely be a 3rd rounder in the NHL.
- Keegan Lowe has come on as of late and with his bloodlines will likely be a much higher pick then where you list him.
For goalies, Williams is my number one. I like his athleticism. Brossoit is nice to see because of his size, but he is just way too inconsistent for my liking.
Here is my current top 20 for reference.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – FW, Red Deer Rebels
Duncan Siemens – D, Saskatoon Blades
Mark McNeill – FW, Prince Albert Raiders
Sven Bartschi – FW, Portland Winterhawks
Ty Rattie – FW, Portland Winterhawks
David Musil – D, Vancouver Giants
Myles Bell – D, Regina Pats
Joe Morrow – D, Portland Winterhawks
Jesse Forsberg – D, Prince George Cougars
Michael St. Croix – FW, Edmonton Oil Kings
Adam Lowry – FW, Swift Current Broncos
Dylan Wruck – FW, Edmonton Oil Kings
Colin Jacobs – FW, Seattle Thunderbirds
Travis Ewanyk – FW, Edmonton Oil Kings
Reece Scarlett – D, Swift Current Broncos
Shane McColgan – FW, Kelowna Rockets
Keegan Lowe – D, Edmonton Oil Kings
Brent Benson – FW, Saskatoon Blades
Joel Edmundson – D, Moose Jaw Warriors
Tyler Hansen – D, Kamloops Blazers
HM Kale Kessy — FW, Medicine Hat Tigers
Thanks for the reply CJN.
I appreciate the feedback. I guess I’ll start by saying that despite this list just going up this weekend, it was mostly compiled a month ago so there will be some alterations between this list and our end of season list.
In the case of Jacobs, yes he did struggle badly down the stretch and that will likely drop him a little. Guys like him tend to take a little longer to develop and while this rating does seem a little high (it was contentious amongst our staff as well), we do feel that there is a player behind all that inconsistent play.
While we have liked Bartschi this season, we have had some concerns about Rattie. We have difficulty trying to figure out where he will fit on an NHL roster. Rattie has been no slouch this year, but he has had the benefit of playing with some very talented teammates.
Both Curtis and I are fans of Morrow and think, like you, that he will surprise some people.
Forsberg definitely could be higher on the list, but honestly I need to see more of him. With him playing in PG, I don’t get to see as much of him as I would like. Unfortunately, last time the Cougars came through southern/central Alberta, he was injured and didn’t play in either Lethbridge or Calgary.
Scarlett has been a real disappoint for me this season. At the start of the season I don’t think you’d find a much bigger fan of his than me. I really enjoyed what I saw from him at the end of his 16 year old season and he blew my expectations of him away at the U18 Team Canada camp. From that point on, I have seen him play 5 or 6 times throughout the season and his play has stagnated while many others have improved as the season has moved on. There is no doubt that he has tremendous talent and will likely be picked earlier than I have him on this list, but I am leery of his defensive zone play and he hasn’t made up for it enough offensively yet either. There is definitely some wiggle room for his placement, but that being said, there is no way he’s in my top 15 right now.
Lowe is a player I had almost left for dead early in the year. He has significantly improved as the season has moved on and he will almost certainly be higher when the final list is created.
Finally, we get to Kessy. I just don’t understand all the hype with him thus far. I think it is unfair for him to be compared to Lucic. People tend to forget that Lucic had an astronomical development curve. Kessy’s play on the other hand has flat-lined over the past calendar year. I was a fan of Kessy’s last year and at that time I could have justified him being a late 2nd or early 3rd rounder. However, in the 9 or 10 Tigers games I’ve taken in this year, I just don’t see it. I love his physicality and how he finishes his checks, but his skating really concerns me and I don’t think he has the offense Lucic developed. I’d love to be proven wrong with this kid as he’s a guy I’d love to draft as a sleeper, but I wouldn’t want to jump on him that early in the draft.
I hope that answers all your questions/comments.
Thanks,
SM
edmundson boys nuff said
All this hype about RNH ! I dont get it ! RNH is tallented and ranked #1 overall BUT Ryan Strome is a much more ALL ROUNDED hockey player ! Also, and honourable mention for FRITCSH of OS Attack !!!! And McNeil, gonna be a good one !!