Welcome back to Top Shelf Hockey Prospects, the daily column that brings you the next crop of professional hockey players. Each day I will bring you a new player profile or topical article in the lead-up to the 2014 NHL Draft. Be sure to bookmark the site, follow me on Twitter, and spread the word for the site that will bring you analytical and critical profiles and scouting reports! Last Word On Sports is your new headquarters for everything “NHL Draft”! For a Complete Listing of all our 2014 Draft Articles Click here.
Today we bring you a draft prospect who is getting a ton of buzz across the internet, and seems to be a favorite of various scouting services, Warren Foegele. Now here at Last Word, we aren’t going to B.S. you. The reality is that Foegele played hockey at St. Andrew’s College in Aurora, Ontario. This is an undercovered league. As a result, I have not seen any full game footage of this player, and am not ranking him. However because LWOS strives to bring you the reader full draft coverage, we are going to quote what other sources have said about him and direct you to more quality pieces on Foegele. In this way you can trust that we will always bring you the straight goods (as we see them) on any prospect we cover, but will also strive to not leave our readers completely out of the loop when it comes to high ranking NHL Prospects. For this reason Donato is the first of our honourable mentions (not ranked by me, but by who is getting top 2 round draft buzz that I’ve noticed).
He is committed to playing NCAA hockey at New Hampshire in the 2014-15 season, though he was originally scheduled to start there in 2015 and headed to play for the Penticton Vees in the BCHL next season. Should he change his mind the Dubuque Fighting Saints hold his USHL rights, while the Kingston Frontenacs hold his OHL rights.
Warren Foegele
Left Wing — shoots Left
Born April 1 1996 — Unionville, Ontario
Height 6.01 — Weight 179 [185 cm/81 kg]
From Bob McKenzie at TSN speaking to an NHL Scout:
“He’s a kid everyone is going in to look at now,” one scout told TSN. “There’s a lot of interest in him right now, so we’ll see how does with a lot of scrutiny. There are always skeptics for players playing at that level but he’s a legit NHL prospect.”
From Red Line Report Via Usa Today:
“His impressive offensive numbers speak for themselves. But there’s more to his game than numbers. He plays a full 200-foot game, working as hard defensively as offensively. Foegele has excellent speed with his long, strong stride. He has excellent puck skills and soft hands. His lower body strength is exceptional and he gets very low when he has the puck on his stick, making him tough to check. His grit/compete level is very high, and while he doesn’t run players over, he does finish checks hard.
Still, Red Line staff members are split on Foegele’s eventual offensive upside. While we like that he isn’t afraid to go to the middle of the ice in heavy traffic to create scoring chances, we’re not fully convinced about his offensive instincts and natural hockey sense. Those are the facets of his game we’ll be focusing on as his season winds down over the next month.”
From Draftsite’s Bill Plazcek (104th overall):
“Solid two-way winger with good jump. Late bloomer you grew five inches and never got interest from junior teams, but has put up good numbers and impressive full ice game. He displays a long stride with power and really good speed. Fearless in traffic, and also gritty when he doesn’t. Strong lower body and seems strong on the puck at the present level. Has good puck skills and hands. A long term prospect who will need to develop more instinct and grow as the competition does. ”
A short excerpt from the Future Considerations Draft Guide (rank 133)… a great resource available for purchase by going here.
“A smooth-skating offensive winger at the high school level. Able to use his speed and quickness to generate chances. Has soft hands and a strong shot, as well as solid vision and playmaking abilities. He’s the complete offensive threat. Thinks the game and reads the play well. Needs work on his shot release, and getting it off quicker and at different release points to continue success shooting at higher-level, more skilled puckstoppers. This kid makes you believe in him when you see him play as he works hard and is involved all over the ice. Not physical at all, turns away from the big hit and does not like the rough stuff too much.”
A short excerpt from McKeen’s Draft Guide (Rank 61)… a great resource you can purchase by going here.
“a strong bow legged skater, he boasts exceptional straight ahead speed and plays his wing with efficiency as he operates well playing a north-south game.. tenacious and aggressive in his puck pursuit, he is brash down low and hurls his body at the opposition .. offensive zone hockey sense and creativity come into question as he has a difficult time stick handling.. does a formidable job of getting pucks on goal at all times .. uses his speed to attack scoring lanes as he elects to go through players rather than around them .. shot is hard and heavy, with a better snap shot than slap shot .. defensive game is a work in progress, hustles to get back but effort level is sporadic.”
Here are some highlights of Warren Foegele in action, he’s #3.
Check back tomorrow for another NHL Draft Prospect Report.
For the latest sports injury news, check out our friends at Sports Injury Alert.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @lastwordBkerr. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Interested in writing for LWOS? We are looking for enthusiastic, talented writers to join our Hockey writing team. Visit our ”Write for Us“ page for very easy details in how you can get started today!
Main Photo:
