The Metropolitan prospect series

[Jon-Seattle]

NHL teams are preparing for the regular season this week and part of that preparation includes what to do with prospects. In some cases it's fairly straightforward. Send a guy back to the AHL or Juniors if he's still eligible and allow him to mature in a setting that's going to easily showcase his talents. Some prospects make it a little more difficult. Maybe the front office would like to have a little more control over the development of a prospect or think he's ready for regular NHL games but don't either have the roster to allow it or have injuries which are forcing it. I want to take a look at a few of these scenarios particularly in how it corresponds to my prospects and the outlook of their NHL futures so without further hesitation let's get started:

Mikhael Sergachev: this promising 19 y/o defenseman was making waves in Montreal before being traded to Tampa Bay after the season ended. Sergachev had played in his first four NHL games in Montreal at the end of the season and while he didn't show up in the points department he still managed a +1 rating in 4 games with a total of 49 minutes played, likely sheltered playing time, and still managing 10 hits and 3 blocked shots on only 4 shots against. The numbers are a small sample size and don't do him justice. I think he's going to be this years Zach Werenski. His value is through the roof right now in my opinion after putting up 100 points in juniors over 117 games.

The lightning have some serious questions they need to ask themselves though for him to stick on their NHL roster. Can the kid continue his development if he has to take on a smaller role and is kept away from 1st line minutes? Would another year of juniors be better for his development while saving a year of his contract? The biggest question though is is it worth it to play him this year. The Lightning will be due a second round pick from Montreal if Sergachev plays less than 40 games. Could this cause him to be scratched for a majority of the season?

As soon as I started writing this news has come out that Sergachev will start in Tampa Bay, the question is, will he stay there all year?

I planned on writing up most of my prospects in one go but this took much longer then I had planned and I'll likely have to revisit at least Sergachevs outlook after the start of the season, especially if the guy is doing well so this series might have enough to keep me going throughout the season.

Let me know what ya'll think. Should this be a normal thing or am I barking up the wrong forum?

[John-Michigan]

Is Seattle getting new uniforms or are they pulling a Tennessee oilers?

[Matt-Colorado]

Work in progress. Sometime this season.

[Jon-Seattle]

Oct 3, 2017 14:54:57 GMT -5 John-Michigan said:

Is Seattle getting new uniforms or are they pulling a Tennessee oilers?

There was an ordering fiasco, colors weren't quite right and the patterns had to be blended a bit better. Stitching and font weren't being matched properly and numbers were all backwards. We're currently working on this issue and plan to have it resolved soon. In the meantime the jerseys may look a little similar to the old Ottawa template with spray-painted and stenciled colors and graphics. The players will each be given free reign of design as long as color and numbers match the programs given out to fans.

[Jon-Seattle]

There seems to be some interest here so we'll keep moving on. Since I finished up some other homework and am on a pretty good roll between this and essays here is the first installment of the forgotten draft pick version. That's right two prospects in and we're already hitting on a guy I keep forgetting is on my team:

Evgeny Svechnikov - you're going to ask me how I could forget about my 2nd overall and mid first draft pick. The true is it's because he has a GHL card. This sounds super backwards so I'll explain. His card is practically unusable this year and when I look at my future prospects I look down at the nicely formatted table labeled prospects. None of these guys have a card and carry an extra year of eligibility on their rookie contract. Unfortunately Evgeny played all year in the AHL and despite having some good stats his AHL status brings down his card quite a bit. If there's anyone on this squad I could redshirt it'd be Evgeny, yet for now I'm stuck with him playing a year in the minors while I wait for his callup.

On to the good stuff. Last year, Evgeny's third in North America he scored 51 points (20G +31 A) in 74 regular season games and was called up for two NHL games without showing up in the stat sheet. He then collected 12 points (5G + 7A) in the AHL playoffs.

Unfortunately his +/- was 0 and the coaching staff in Detroit was looking for him to take the next step but got injured before the last few games of the preseason. It looks like he might be kept down at the AHL level for another year while players like Bertuzzi get their shot at sticking with Detroit.

Look for Evgeny to get one of the first call ups though if he seems to have the game slow down around him and he takes he next step in his progression or if the Red Wings have an injury or failure to adapt by someone currently slotted in the opening day roster.

The Red Wings are willing to let Evgeny come along slowly so I'm going to do the same, unfortunately because of that he's likely to continue being my forgotten pick but hopefully not for long.

[Jon-Seattle]

The Third prospect in my series is another defensemen who seems to have made his way onto an NHL opening day roster as a teenager:

Samuel Girard - Nashville seems to have found a diamond in the rough. A mid second round pick Girard was literally overlooked. At 5'10" and 160 pounds, he'll be one of the lightest players in the league to start the season which is often hard to overcome especially as a defensemen. Girard managed to impress this year in the preseason and a spot in the lineup opened up when Ryan Ellis went down with an injury. Nashville gave him a long look this preseason with nearly 90 minutes of ice time in just 5 games after watching him light up the QMJHL with 75 points (9G + 66A) and went +26 in only 59 games and brought him up for 6 games in the AHL after his junior season was over.

Nashville has a big decision to make despite keeping Girard on the opening day roster. They can keep him for the first few games and can still send him back to the juniors to save a year on his contract. It looks like he might be here to stay though which means he'll have to stay in Nashville the whole season and could result in his GHL card being playable quicker than I had initially planned. It will still depend on where they place Girard on the roster. Will he get protected and lower line minutes, possibly even be a healthy scratch part of the season, or will he be given the keys to the castle and play as a top four defensive player for Nashville. Personally I'll be surprised if he locks down a roster spot the entire year but he's playing way above his stature and could very well be a great player. Josi Roman and Peter Laviolette have been singing his praises and the Predators could definitely use a youthful infusing into a veteran D-corps so expect to see more of this guy regardless of what happens early this season.

[Jon-Seattle]

I'm attempting to make some changes to this series that may make it a little easier to read and interpret. One of the ideas I've had is to create a template for how I've been writing these. So far it's been fairly ad hoc and so in an attempt to clean this up and hopefully get some of you guys interested in writing up your own summaries I've created the following layout:

Play style: Is the prospect a playmaker, power forward, or offensive defensemen? what skills has this guy shown on the ice to be a coveted prospect. What are some of his poorer aspects of play, or what does he need to work on to get to the next level. maybe some personal stuff.

Juniors: How well did he play in the CHL or European leagues? Was he a standout player or a role player? Did he take advantage of a stacked roster or was he brought down by a bad team? Stats and other info. Draft status / results

Current years outlook: Will this prospect be sent back to the CHL for some seasoning or will he be getting top-line/pairing minutes because he's a superstar already? What are the expectations? Is he eligible for the AHL? What did he do in the preseason or first few games of the season

NHL outlook: What are the expectations for the rest of his career? Will the guy be a fringe player or a superstar in the making. Could he thrive as a second line player? What will his role be going forward and how does that fit his current team.

If any of you have any more thoughts feel free to add them below or feel free to start a new thread.

[Jon-Seattle]

Todays feature player is Nicholas Caamano, a guy I didn't expect to hear much about for a few years but picked him up because I'm a sucker for young prospects.

Play style: Suggested to be a power forward there's not a lot out there on Caamano just yet, which is somewhat strange but from what I have been able to find he is a great skater and with good size (6'1" and 185ish lbs). He's not afraid to move to the net and battle for position and is willing to mix it up. Check out dobber prospects, one of my go to places anymore they have two short entries on this guy and a fight video, nothing else. He's not a flashy play but isn't playing for the greatest team, which leads us too...

Juniors: Caamano has played three years of juniors and didn't look like much in his first year at Plymouth, where he only tacked on 9 points (3G, 6A) in 64 games and was -16. After the season the team moved to Flint Michigan and became the Flint Firebirds and things started slowly clicking into gear as he increased his points total to 37 (20G, 17A) but a -22 in the +/- department over 64 games during a tumultuous season for the Firebirds. Last season Nicholas managed to nearly double his points total with 64 points (35G, 29A) and a more respectable -6 in the +/- column as the Firebirds became a playoff contender. In the playoffs Caamano was held without a goal but managed 3 assists in 5 games. He also got a short stint in with the AHL's Texas Stars but was kept quiet through 6 games

Current years outlook: Caamano got an extended look in Dallas' training camp and had SBNation writers proclaiming him a reincarnation of Jamie Benn. Caamano quickly built himself a reputation with the coaching staff and fellow players and they couldn't stop talking about him. Unfortunately he was so much of a surprise that it seems the coaching staff wasn't quite ready for him and decided it was best to have him finish his junior career before taking another look at him. I'm not sure if Dallas' roster had anything to do with the decision but considering the offensive corps Dallas already has it makes all the sense in the world to let Caamano finish developing as an overage prospect in the OHL even if it is with a poor team. I'll be looking for what I'm guessing the Stars are looking for as well, can he take on a leadership role, will he continue to increase his point production, and will he be able to be a difference maker on a decent/bad team.

NHL outlook: Honestly there wasn't much of an outlook here even just a few months ago and had he become a grinder on someones fourth line I might have counted that as a win. Now I'll be looking for Caamano to develop into a mid six player who can crash a net and really push to stretch a defense when he gets called back up. I think he has the potential to be a steal in the draft and have a good career with some decent numbers if he ever makes it up to the NHL but could just as easily flame out if he gets stuck in the AHL somewhere for a team with a deep roster or can't make that transition to the pros. Skill set seems to be much more suited to the professional level however and the next 2-3 years are crucial for him to get some playing time in the big leagues and showcase that skillset.


For those interested SBNation NHL is a decent source of info and a decent sports writers site that I usually use more for Football then Hockey but has some decent stuff and seems to be getting better especially for large market teams. I think they have a better idea for what their teams are looking for in a prospect and can get some better interview clips from coaches and players but they're not going to have many objective or league wide views. For more generalized overview of prospects I usually head to dobber prospects and elite prospects for stat info. I'd love to see some more of these by someone else cuz right now I feel like I'm just writing these for myself more so than anything. That said if you have a prospect that you don't have the time to write up but would like to see get a write up message me and I'll see what I can do.

I think these will help immensely for those looking to trade prospects and could give you a better feel for what you have coming up through your system. I'll also start looking into rookie players and doing a draft series when I get the chance and the season has progressed a little farther.

[Jon-Seattle]

It's been a few days so ya'll know what that means. Ok you probably don't but essentially I have a few minutes to myself without homework or my kids breathing down my throat. So without further ado we'll get into Givani Smith:

Play Style: Projected to be a power forward, his skill set lends itself to a bottom 6 role where he can showcase his physicality and defensive instincts. He is a bit of a scrapper and isn't afraid to drop the gloves according to some sources and will rack up the penalty minutes.

Juniors: Givani isn't much of a goal scorer but he's also on a bad Geulph Storm team and has netted only 23 and 26 Goals in the last two season but has been one of the brightest stars of the team despite that. He's been returned to the Storm but is currently out with an injury and hasn't played at all yet this season.

Current Years outlook: Look for Givani to be the backbone of yet another poor Storm team if he ever gets back on the ice (no news on the injury yet). He definitely won't come off of the prospect list next year but could cement himself a spot in the AHL after the OHL season is over.

NHL Outlook: Smith isn't likely going to be on the big league roster just yet but he did take a big step in that direction by being one of the leaders during the Red Wings development camp. They seem to like this kid but expect him to take a while to get up to speed. Expect him to take few years in the AHL working on his skating ability and finding a niche for him to fill. He's a project but one that the Red Wings spent a second round pick on so we could see him sooner than later.

[Jon-Seattle]

Alex Nedeljkovic "Ned"

Play style: Alex is an American butterfly goalie. He's undersized at an even 6' tall but attempts to make up for it with his athletic profile. He's used to shouldering the load for his team and is only beginning to reach his full potential and the Carolina Hurricanes appear to be willing to let him marinate in the AHL.

Juniors: Played four years in the OHL for the Plymouth Whalers/Flint Firebirds before being traded in his last season to the Niagara Icedogs. He posted decreasing save percentages from .925-.907 but his team didn't provide a lot of backup and once he was traded to the Icedogs his winning percentage increased alongside his GAA, which hovered around 2.8 when he had the support of a playoff caliber team, because of this he became an early second round pick for Carolina in the 2014 draft.

Current year outlook: Alex is likely to sit in Charlotte for the next year or two and backstop the Checkers full time in anticipation of Carolina wanting to set him up to becoming the future franchise netminder. After last years performance he may even see a few short stints in Carolina but only as an injury assignment or protected fill in minutes where there wont be any pressure.

NHL Outlook: It's not pretty or flashy and he'll likely be on his second contract before seeing legitimate NHL minutes. That said he's projected as a legitimate starting caliber goalie, which is why Carolina is taking their time with Nedeljkovic. They really want to bring him along properly and not rush his development, seeing as how goalies are notoriously fickle beings.

[Jon-Seattle]

I've been a bit busy but I didn't want to hold off on this one much longer so say hello to Matthew Phillips

Play style: This kid is an offensive dynamo, he's arguable one of my favorite offensive prospects. Matthews is a sixth round pick and it isn't often one becomes a franchise style playing but Phillips could become just that. Unfortunately, for all of his scoring and playmaking ability there is one huge shortfall and I wanted to start with it so we could get it out of the way: Matthew Phillips is only 5'6", 140 pounds. This kid isn't just short he's legitimately miniscule in comparison to his peers. He isn't stout or compact he's just plain tiny. 

    Once you get past that though Phillips is an amazing playmaker. His vision on the ice is spectacular and his puck handling skills are ridiculous and he'll sneak past defenseman to set up in front of the net for rebound goals all night long. His skating keeps him out of trouble and there has never been any injury concerns. If he was even average height he may have been a much sought after prospect.

Juniors: This guy has been lighting up the scoreboard the last two years for the WHL's Victoria Royals and in his rookie year scored 37 goals and 39 assists (76 points) over his first full season of 72 games. Matthew won WHL the Jim Piggott award for the WHL's best rookie and led all rookies in goals and points.

    During his second campaign Phillips increased his goal total to 50 goals on the year and added another 40 assists (90P) to go along with a +34 rating in route to WHL first team All-Star honors.  These are insane numbers even for juniors but due to questions about his size along with playing on a good Victory Royals squad Matthew dropped to the 6th Round of the NHL draft after his rookie campaign and was picked up by the Calgary Flames. The good news for Matthew is that the flames seem to be willing to gamble on inferior size in exchange for offensive production while letting him progress in the WHL


Current Year Outlook: Phillips was sent back down for the second year in a row to the WHL but don't be fooled this kid is a superstar in the making. To date he has 11 goals and 17 assists in just 13 games. He also got an invite from team Canada for next years world juniors and has started making a name for himself. Expect him to continue putting up lots of points.

NHL Outlook: Honestly He's a huge boom/bust type guy to me, the difference between him and a prospect like Sergachev or Evgeny Svechnikov ("Geno") other than not being picked up early in the draft is that he arguably isn't even in consideration for a roster spot if he isn't playing on one of the top two lines due to his physical attributes. Throw the other two anywhere in the lineup and they could provide something of value, throw Phillips in with grinders and he'd likely be obliterated or at least become a non-factor. That said if he can buddy up to and become the next Johnny Gaudreau his value could jump off the charts.

For now I think it best to stash him and wait to watch how he handles the leap to the NHL, if he doesn't we can always blame his height.

[Jon-Seattle]

I'm back at it again with one of the last few guys we'll be going over in the prospect series before we start to review some of the prospects and what they've been able to get done so far this year. So second to last prospect on the list is Dmitri Sokolov:

Play style: A big powerful guy with a goal-scorers touch Sokolov could become a dynamic power forward. His skating leaves something to be desired but his awareness and wrist shot have taken him pretty far. Originally taken with the 3rd overall pick in the CHL import draft Sokolov was expected to become a huge contributor and NHL star. Unfortunately he's been overweight and reportedly may have attitude issues, though playing for the Sidbury Wolves could bring just about anyone down and cause them to regret coming to North America.

Juniors: a rare bright spot in a team that has gone 27-34-7 last year, which was a huge improvement over the 16-46-5 record posted in 2015-16. Sokolov scored 30 goals in that 15-16 season and added 22 assists in a rookie campaign that saw him post the most goals as a rookie. We won't even discuss his poor +/- (-40) but that's because the wolves were horrendous. Sokolov took a decent jump forward last year posting 48 goals to go along with 24 assists. It's been suggested his low assist numbers may be the result of trying to do too much on his own or just the result of him being a selfish player. regardless I think we'll see for sure once he graduates out of the OHL and is able to move on from the Wolves organization that is already 5-9-2 this year.

Current year outlook: In 15 games Sokolov is sticking to his goal-scoring ways posting 8 goals but the biggest indicator of potential maturation is his 11 assists and a +3 rating as well as being named a captain (A). Perhaps the wolves are putting some pieces around him to help him to succeed but based on their record I would hope that he's just focusing on some of his poorer aspects of play this year after getting a taste of the pros in Minnesota.

NHL Outlook: If Sokolov can put the weight and maturity issues behind him while continuing to put up similar numbers Sokolov could be a top 6 goal-scoring forward. He could be the guy that allows Minnesota to show that they really can develop their own players. If that happens expect Sokolov to come into camp next year and put on a show. He may spend a year in the AHL but a true power forward with Sokolovs skill could become a prime time player sooner than later. There was a reason he was a 7th round pick though and could never be heard from again or go back to Russia if he doesn't get into the lineup quickly. Regardless he'll be one to watch.

[Jon-Seattle]

I wanted to finish up with the prospects I received in the Charlie Coyle trade but jumped the gun a bit on Givani Smith. I blame that on the possibility of having a true power forward, but I digress. The final prospect in this series will be a guy I was a little worried about trading for, so without further ado here is Dennis Yan:

Play Style: Dennis Yan is a pure goal scorer, he has a knack for finding open ice and putting the puck on net. Can play a snipers game when called upon. Decent awareness c ufor and can be physical when called upon. Great skating ability but could play stand to work on his defensive play, even just making a solid effort rather than cruising around waiting for the transition could boost his defensive play quite a bit.

Odd fact about him, he was born in America and then moved to Russia. Grew up and started playing in Russia but his parents convinced him at 16 to move back to the states if he wanted any real shot at the NHL. Seems to have made a good choice so far.

Juniors: once he moved back to the states Yan got picked up by the Shawinigan Cataractes displaying great offensive abilities by scoring more than 30 goals and 30 Assists. Last year, his last in the “Q” he scored 46 goals and only 29 assists. Arguably his most important contributions came in the playoffs but at about the same scoring pace. This led to him being drafted at the top of the third round to the TB Lightning.

Current year outlook: Dennis Appears to be spending the year down in Syracuse with the TB affiliate, Crush. It looks like it’s taking him a while to get up to speed in the AHL or get integrated into his new team but he’s off to a slow start regardless. He has 2 goals and an assist in 9 games but it’s nothing to be alarmed by just yet. Expect Yan to stay down in Syracuse for the year unless TB finds a need for a young top 6 winger.

NHL Outlook: I initially though Yan had busy written all over him. A third round pick who didn’t have any real expectations. In studying him a little farther I could see him becoming a dynamic scoring threat who might be able to hold his own in his defensive zone. IF he can make it to the NHL level look for the kid to stick in a top six role and make a name for himself finishing plays and racking up points.

[Jon-Seattle]

With this series all wrapped up, at least for now, I want to start taking a look at GHL draft eligible prospects. The guys who are currently playing in the NHL/AHL as opposed to those who may get a call-up at the end of the year, at least to start. If you have any suggestions send me a message or feel free to write some names up here or in the next thread I end up creating for that series.

Hope ya’ll enjoyed the prospect series, I honestly didn’t think it would be this big of a thing but it’s been fun. Definitely getting me through a horrible start to the year. I also think it adds some depth to the sim and I hope y’all can add some similar content, if for no other reason then to entertain me while I creep around the forum all day between and even during my classes.