Welcome to the 2014 edition of “Top Shelf NHL Prospects”. As we go through the Summer of 2014 I will be featuring a team-by-team look at the top prospects in the NHL. I will go team by team through the NHL bringing you a look at each Teams Top Prospects. I will be following the order of the first round of the NHL draft (as if there were no traded draft picks) and you can find all the articles here. Since we had an extensive NHL Draft preview, I will not be reviewing the players who were drafted in the 2014 draft, as there have been no games since then, and my reports on them will not have changed. What I will be doing is linking you to those articles, as well as taking a look at prospects that were acquired before this year’s draft; their progress, and their chances of making the 2014-15 roster of the NHL team in question. I will also bring you one sleeper pick – a player who was either drafted in the 4th-round or later, or was an undrafted free agent signing who I pick as my darkhorse to make the NHL. For those wondering, the cut-off for what is or isn’t a prospect is typically about 50 NHL games played (including playoffs) or being 25 years old. These are not hard or fast rules though, and I may make some exceptions depending on the circumstances.
The St. Louis Blues went “all in” this year with their late-season trade for Steve Ott and Ryan Miller. Unfortunately the move didn’t work out as planned and after the Blues won the first two games of their first-round series against the Chicago Blackhawks, they went on to lose the next four and suffer a first-round playoff defeat.
This off-season has seen Blues let Ryan Miller walk, as he heads for Vancouver as an Unrestricted Free Agent. They also saw Brenden Morrow head to Tampa Bay, Derek Roy head to Nashville, Vladimir Sobotka head to the KHL, and traded Roman Polak to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Major additions include prime free-agent signing Paul Stastny, defenceman Carl Gunnarsson in the trade with the Leafs, bringing in Finnish KHLer Jori Lehtera, Peter Mueller on a two-way contract and new assistant coach Kirk Muller as the Blues try to find the right mix to finally bring the cup to St. Louis.
2014 NHL Draft Picks Reviewed by LWOS: Robby Fabbri, Ivan Barbashev, Jake Walman, Maxim Letunov, Ville Husso
Graduations: Vladimir Tarasenko,
Top St. Louis Blues Prospects
Top Prospect: Jake Allen, Goalie
Born Aug 7 1990 — Fredericton, NB
Height 6.02 — Weight 192 — Shoots Left, Catches Left
Drafted by St. Louis Blues in the 2nd Round, 34th Overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft
After posting a 2.03 GAA and .928 save percentage for the Chicago Wolves in the AHL last year there is no more holding Jake Allen down. He’s ready for NHL hockey and is almost guaranteed a place on the St. Louis Blues roster for this fall. With Ryan Miller gone, Allen will battle with Brian Elliott for the starters role in St. Louis.
At 6’2″ Allen has decent size for a goaltender, and plays an effective butterfly style. He is extremely athletic, and a very good skater, which allows him to come out far to challenge shooters as well as to get across the net quickly on cross ice-passes, or back up quickly on dekes. He’s got quick legs that take away the bottom of the net. Allen plays an efficient style that keeps his form when he does give up a rebound and allows him to get into position for the next shot. That said, his rebound control has developed well over his time in the minors. If there is a flaw, it is that he sometimes can be caught going down in his butterfly a little bit too early, but this is something that many butterfly goalies struggle with and is not a major weakness.
Allen plays the puck extremely well, helping his defence on clearing the zone, and can even spring the forwards for an odd man rush with a long pass while the opponent is caught on a change. This ability to help the defence will make an already great puck moving group in St. Louis even better, and improve the team’s possession game even more. Opponents will need to better aim the puck when dumping it in to the Blues zone as its a new dynamic that Halak, Elliott, and Miller, the Blues goalies last season don’t really possess at the same level.
#2 Prospect Ty Rattie, RW,
Born Feb 5 1993 — Airdrie, ALTA
Height 6.00 — Weight 179 — Shoots Right
Selected by the St. Louis Blues in round 2 #32 overall at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft
Rattie made the jump to the pros this season, and put up 31 goals in a great campaign with the Chicago Wolves in the AHL. It was an impressive showing that proved his offensive abilities he showed in junior would translate at the next level.
Rattie is a talented offensive player, and pure sniper off the wing. He has very good hockey sense and a knack for finding open ice in the offensive zone. He seems to elude defenders and find free patches of ice from which he can unleash a deadly accurate wrist shot. His release is deceptively quick and eludes goaltenders and he has a great one timer. Rattie is also not afraid to go to the front of the net despite his size and works to score rebounds tip ins and deflections. He is also a talented playmaker, finding open teammates and setting them up with crisp, tape to tape passes. Rattie does work to get involved in battles in the corners and along the boards, he added some strength last summer and improved this area, but needs to add a little more again this year.
In addition to his high level offensive game, Rattie also plays an efficient defensive game with good positioning and an excellent ability to put pressure on the puck carrier. However this is another area where increased strength would greatly improve his game.
Rattie’s skating was described as weak by many analysts in his draft year, and that was certainly the case. However Rattie has taken strides to improve. He has improved his stride making it much smoother, and this has led to increases in his top end speed and acceleration. Now he’s not a burner by any means and his skating is only slightly above average at best, however the improvements he has already made are a positive sign for the future.
Expect to see Rattie back in the AHL, with a chance for callups to the Blues this season.
#3 Prospect: Dmitrij Jaskin, LW
Born Mar 23 1993 — Omsk, Russia
Height 6.02 — Weight 196 — Shoots Left
Drafted by St. Louis Blues in the 2nd round, 41st overall in the 2011 NHL Draft.
Dmitrij Jaskin also had an excellent first season of pro hockey, putting up 15 goals and 29 points in 42 games for the Chicago Wolves. He turned it up another notch with 9 points in 9 playoff games. The efforts earned him a short stint in St. Louis where he got his first NHL goal and first assist. The year before Jaskin formed a dynamic line on the Moncton Wildcats with new Blues second round pick Ivan Barbashev.
Dmitrij Jaskin is a solid skater with very good speed, and solid acceleration, change of pace, and agility. His stride is a little unorthodox but it really doesn’t rob him of anything in terms of speed. As a result he can drive defenders wide, and cut to the net. He is very dangerous on the rush. Defenders must back off on him opening up opportunities for him him to unleash a great wrist shot, with a quick releast. Jaskin also has good balance and the power to skate through checks and drive the net, showing some parts of a power forward’s game. He’s not really a big hitter, but he is not afraid to play in dirty areas, or to battle in the corners and in front of the net. Jaskin adds the threat of being a great play maker, with strong passing skills and excellent vision.
Jaskin’s defensive game is a work in progress, but has improved a lot since turning pro. The Blues preach the importance of two-way play and he has bought in showing improved effort on the backcheck and more of a willingness to be involved in his own zone. He still needs some work on his positioning, but with the way he’s improved, his willingness to learn, and the coaching he will receive I do expect to see continued improvement this season.
Jaskin will likely start the season in the AHL, however if injuries occur, or other opportunities open up, he could be in St. Louis for call-ups. He could make a full-time impact in St. Louis as early as the 2015-16 season.
Super Sleeper: Jani Hakanpaa, Defence
Born Mar 31 1992 — Kirkkonummi, Finland
Height 6.05 — Weight 218 — Shoots Right
Selected by the St. Louis Blues round 4 #104 overall 2010 NHL Entry Draft
Hakanpaa played his first full season in North America this year, adjusting well to the smaller rink and playing a solid defensive game for the Chicago Wolves. He didn’t show a lot of offence, but was a reliable player on the backend. Lets be clear here, this is a pure “super sleeper” prospect. While I like Hakanpaa, he is on the list because he qualifies for the criteria. He is not the Blues third best prospect, and is not even one of the best defensive prospects the team has. However those ahead of him, do not fit the sleeper criteria.
Hakanpaa is a giant, coming in at 6’5″ and 220 lbs. Mainly a defensive defender, Hakanpaa plays a rugged, physical game. He uses his size and strength to overpower opponents along the boards, and keeps the front of the net clear. He also plays well positionally, and blocks shots and cuts down passing lanes with his huge size. Offensively, Hakanpaa’s biggest asset is a very good slap shot and one timer. He can really let it fly. He’s not a powerplay quarterback though, and one shouldn’t expect big offence from him at the next level.
Like many big defencemen, Hakanpaa requires further work on his skating. He will need to improved his pivots so that he is not beaten to the outside off the rush. His top end speed is decent for a big man, but that isn’t saying a lot, and there is certainly room for improvement. His edgework and agility are below par at this point. Some time spent working on this aspect of his game would certainly improve his chances to make the NHL.
Hakanpaa will likely be back in the AHL next season. He is a bit of a project, but his size and physicality make him an intriguing one.
The Blues continue to crank out prospects year after year, despite finishing high in the standings (and drafting near the end of the round) year after year. They really have done a remarkable job in scouting and development. This continued in the 2014 Draft where we gave St. Louis an A+ grade for their efforts in grabbing 5 of our top 100 prospects. In addition to the 2014 picks, and the four players mentionned above there is depth in the system. We can see that in goaltender Jordan Binnington; and defencemen Tommy Vannelli, Jordan Schmaltz, Joel Edmundson, and Colton Parayko. The forward depth started to thin after Jaskin and Rattie due to the graduations of players like Jaden Schwartz and Vladimir Tarasenko in recent years, but was greatly replenished with Fabbri, Barbashev, and Letunov this year. Its this depth and the quality drafting that allows the team to give up a William Carrier and a bunch of draft picks and make a move for Ryan Miller without really hurting the future of the team all that much.
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