So here we are, draft day… and so far we’ve brought you our top 70 Draft Prospect Profiles plus three honourable mentions. You can find them all here of course: NHL Draft Directory
We hope you’ve enjoyed all our work leading up to the draft, and we’ve certainly enjoyed bringing you the reports.
Keep your eyes on the site cause we’ll have a draft recap, our look at covetted prospect Justin Schultz, and analysis of the big free agent moves to come in the next week. Then once free agency cools down I’ll be bringing you team by team assessments of NHL prospects.
Today though, we bring you 10 more NHL Draft prospect reports in this, the quickie edition.
71) Dylan Blujus – Right Defence, Brampton Battalion OHL
6’3″ 196lbs
66 GP, 7 G, 27 A, 34 PTS, 38 PIMs +4
A big mobile defenceman who has offensive potential. Has a good breakout pass, and good vision and playmaking skills in the offensive zone. Also has a nice, hard and low point shot. Needs some work on the defensive parts of his game including his positioning and physicality.
72) Coda Gordon – Left Wing – Swift Current Broncos WHL
6’0.75″ 176 lbs
66 GP, 30 G, 23 A, 53 Pts, 12 PIMs, +2
Undrafted into the WHL, Gordon turned heads with his 30 goal season. He’s a natural goal scorer who possesses an outstanding one-timer. In the offensive zone seems to find the soft spots in the defence to set up for the shot. Is one dimensional though, needs work on his skating, and his defense.
73) Erik Karlsson- Centre – Frolunda J20, Sweden
5’11.75″ 161 lbs
47 GP, 14 G, 19 A, 33 Pts, 70 PIMs, -4
Played for Sweden in the 2011 Ivan Hlinka, the 5 Nations, and the 2012 U18 World Championships. Undersized Centre with good skating and a good motor. A high energy guy who always keeps his feet moving. Strong on the puck and likes to hit, but needs more size to be effective. More a passer than shooter, as his shot could definitely use some work, on both power and release.
74) Cody Corbett – Defence – Edmonton Oil Kings, WHL
54 GP, 6 G, 20 A, 26 Pts, 24 PIMs, +36
A steady two way Defenceman for the WHL Champion Edmonton Oil Kings. Top End speed is only slightly above average but his skating is good in all other aspects. Defensively uses his body well and is physical, but doesn’t throw huge hits. Rather uses good positioning and rubs his man out of the play. Offensively he is poised with the puck and makes smart passes.
75) Jon Gillies – Goalie – Indiana Ice, USHL
6’4.75″ 216 lbs
31-11-9, 2.77 GAA; 0.915 Sv%
Another goalie with a big frame in this draft. An athletic goalie, with a very good glove hand and quick legs. Needs work on his puck tracking, and on his rebound control. Size and physical ability are there, but he needs some time and some work with a good goalie coach who can take his raw skill and refine his unorthodox technique.
76) Chandler Stephenson – Centre/Left Wing – Regina Pats, WHL
5’11” 191 lbs
55 GP, 22 G, 20 A, 42 Pts, 24 PIMs, -1
An above average skater, with very good speed. A pure offensive player with a good shot and a quick release that fools goalies. Protects the puck well, and has good dangles to get around defenders. He also has above average vision and playmaking skills. However can be lost in his own end of the rink, really needs work on his positioning and reading plays defensively. Is also overpowered in the defensive zone by stronger opponents.
77) Gianluca Curcuruto – Left Defence – Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, OHL
6’1″ 187 lbs,
63 GP, 3 G, 13 A, 16 Pts, 36 PIMs, -14
A disappointing year for Curcuruto. He was expected to be a first round pick at this time last year, but his offensive production just did not improve this season, in fact it regressed from his rookie year in the OHL. He did however manage to improve a lot defensively. Curcuruto loves to rush the puck, however he lacks top end speed. The other areas of his skating are very good though, as he is agile, strong on his skates, makes good pivots, and uses his edges well. A good passer both on the breakout and in the offensive zone, Curcuruto also has a decent shot. Combine all this with his improving defence and some team will still take a chance on him, despite the disappointing production.
78) Emil Lundberg – Left Wing – Södertälje, Allsvenskan
6’4″ 209 lbs
51 GP, 6 G, 12 A, 18 Pts, 12 PIMs +1
A big Swedish winger who works his tail off. This power forward prospect is always fighting and battling along the boards or working to get tip-ins, rebounds, and screens in front of the net. Also has a very good shot and a good release. Needs to work on his skating as his stride is unorthodox and his speed is below average. Could also stand to put more weight on his frame.
79) Ben Johnson – Left Wing – Windsor Spitfires, OHL
5’11.25″ 188 lbs
68 GP, 18 G, 20 A, 38 PTS, 44 PIMs, -5
A speedster who lives up to the name of the famous sprinter (without the scandals). Johnson went from Michigan High School Hockey to a walk on with the Windsor Spitfires. He was used in a mainly defensive role where he excelled as a penalty killer and shutdown forward. May have untapped offensive potential.
80) James Melindy – Defence – Moncton Wildcats, QMJHL
6’2″ 187 lbs
61 GP, 9 G, 18 A, 27 PTS, 74 PIMs, -4
A big and mobile two way defenceman. Very good skater with good top end speed, excellent pivots, good agility and balance. A good crisp passer on the breakout, and in the offensive zone. Has a decent shot and gets it on net. Plays a good positional defensive game and is an aggresive player. He needs to add muscle mass to his frame as he can sometimes be out-muscled by bigger forwards in the defensive zone.
Thanks again for following along and enjoy the draft today. Feel free to leave your comments below and follow me on twitter @LastWordBKerr.
…. and thats the Last Word.
