Sidekick Part 87 – Draftclass '17 / Roster Down to 26 (24.09.2017)

Geschäftige Woche bei den Canes - alles auf Grün für Saison 17/18

Draftclass '17

Die Veranstaltung ging speditiv über die Bühne. Ohne grosse Überraschung ging Overall Firstround Pick Nico Hischier auch in der Faceoff als Nummer 1 weg. Die Bruins sicherten sich durch den Lotteriegewinn das Supertalent für Ihre Organisation. Die Canes traten insgesamt neun Mal ans Pult und wählten dabei folgende Spieler:

Round 1 / Overall 9

Forward

Nicholas Suzuki, Original round 1 #13 overall by Vegas Golden Knights

1999-08-10 / 5'11 / 183lbs / London, ON, CAN/ CAN / right

A smart offensive center who thinks the game at a fast pace and makes very good decisions on a consistent basis. Though he may not be the biggest player on the ice, Suzuki plays a thick, sturdy game and is hard to knock off the puck, especially when he has his feet moving. He's an excellent skater that knows his own game well. Skilled with the puck and has a high level of hockey sense. This blend of talent and work ethic is hard to come by, invaluable in the long run.

Round 2 / Overall 24

Forward

Morgan Frost, Original 2017 round 1 #27 overall by Philadelphia Flyers

1999-05-14 / 5'11 / 170lbs / Aurora, ON, CAN / left

 A playmaking pivot who reads the game intelligently calm and poised agile on his skates and possesses excellent edgework. Morgan has good hockey sense and he reads plays quickly in all three zones and reacts accordingly.

Round 3 / Overall 39

Forward

Isaac Ratcliffe, Original 2017 round 2 #35 overall by Philadelphia Flyers

1999-02-15 / 6'5 / 203lbs / London, ON, CAN / left

Definitely uses his size to his advantage has a mean streak and loves to throw his weight around setting the games physical tone. He has impressive moves one on one and can beat defenders both with protection ability and with his hands.

Round 4 / Overall 54

Forward

Morgan Geekie, Original 2017 round 3 #67 overall by Carolina Hurricanes

1998-07-20 / 6'2 / 179lbs / Strathclair, MB, CAN / right

Morgan Geekie shows tremendous strength in the face off circle using his lanky 6’2 frame to his advantage. Works hard in the offensive zone and finds his home between the hash marks in front of opposing goalies. A smart defensive centre who has been racking up time on the penalty kill and is an effective two-way player. Sees time on the potent Tri-City power play and cashes in on a regular basis. Has shown tremendous growth in his defensive game from a year ago and has developed a wicked shot from the slot.

Round 5 / Overall 69

Forward

Stelio Mattheos, Original 2017 round 3 #73 overall by Carolina Hurricanes

1999-06-14 / 6'1 / 194lbs / Winnipeg, MB, CAN / right

Stelio Mattheos is a player that if he makes the league, Canes fans will enjoy his style of play. He is a grinding, hard worker who plays a advanced two-way game, loves to go to the net. His high-level shot and good hands in close. Fits the mold of a third line center type, who has the ability to develop into a guy who plays a lot of minutes on the penalty kill.

Round 6 / Overall 84

Goalie

Stuart Skinner, Original 2017 round 3 #78 overall by Edmonton Oilers

1998-11-01 / 6'4 / 207lbs / Edmonton, AB, CAN / left

A large and agile keeper with refined skills uses his lower half extremely well, expanding his legs in the butterfly to seal off the whole lower half of the net. His size doesn’t hamper his speed as he remains agile and in control in his movements is very quick post to post and has great leg strength to pop up and drop down quickly multiple times on reactionary circumstances is great at squaring up shots and is constantly searching to get the best sightline at the puck adjusts his angles according to the shooters position and is able to swallow up numerous shots with his large torso without rebound controls rebounds well, limiting pucks in the slot with a combination of well angled leg work and the use of his blocker. His glove hand is quick and he keeps it held in a good position compete to never give up is exceptional very impressive how polished he is at this stage of his career has the potential to become a high end stopper at the pro level.

Round 7 / Overall 99

Forward

Matthew Strome, Original 2017 round 4 #106 overall by Philadelphia Flyers

1999-01-06 / 6'3 / 201lbs / Mississauga, ON, CAN / left

A big, skilled winger that plays a complete and consistent game. Battles hard for puck possession and is relentless on both the power play and penalty kill. Plays a hard-nosed game and uses his size to establish his presence around the net. Has good hands, an accurate shot, and zero compromise hockey sense. His skating and overall balance off the rush and in-transition is a work in progress that is continuing to get better by the day. That being said, his vision is excellent and his offensive talent is apparent; he is able to play at a fast pace. Being able to keep up is a big part of that, and, moving forward, he has the potential to develop into a strong two-way winger that is hard to play against and can be relied on in all situations.

Brothers: Dylan Strome, Ryan Strome

Round 8 / Overall 114

Forward

Alexei Toropchenko, Original    2017 round 4 #113 overall by St. Louis Blues

1999-06-25 / 6'3 / 187lbs / Moscow, RUS / left

Toropchenko is regarded as a highly-skilled offensive player with great speed and size. The Canes are taking a gamble on him, as all teams are with their fourth-round selections, but they’ll have four years to track his progress in Europe before they have to make a decision on him, and if he ends up developing as they hope he will, they’ll end up with a 6-foot-3 scorer who delivers a great effort at both ends of the ice.

Round 9 / Overall 129

Forward

Sebastian Repo, Original            2017 round 6 #184 overall by Florida Panthers

1996-06-23 / 6'2 / 198lbs / Lahti, FIN / right

Repo is an average skater. His speed doesn’t stand out but he isn’t slow either. He has pretty good first strides and has decent agility.Shooting is Repo’s primary asset. He has an accurate and hard wrist short that he can fire from impressively tight spots. He can also shoot hard slap shots. Repo’s puck skills are decent. He knows a deke or two and can handle the puck well in high speeds. Repo plays a solid two-way game and can be trusted in his own end, too. He is also sound positionally in all three zones of the ice and can find his team mates with his passes. Even though Repo has good size, he isn’t really a physical player. He doesn’t shy away from battles but he rather tries to defend with his positioning and long reach. He isn’t in any way a soft player, but could use his body much more effectively.

Hurricanes trim Roster to 26 Player

Auch diese Woche fanden diverse Camps und Pre-Season Spiele statt. Heute 1200 MEZ  gab GM Weber den provisorischen Kader für den Start der neuen Saison bekannt. Mit Julius Honka und Colin White (beide zurück zu den Checkers) sowie Brendan Woods (POT beendet). mussten 3 weitere Spieler über die Klinge springen. Mit Dave Bolland, welcher an seinem Comeback arbeitet, sowie Tim Erixon (PTO Contract) sind noch 2 weitere Wackelkandidaten im Team weiter dabei. Am 02.10.17 Mitternacht muss der definitive Startkader der Liga gemeldet werden. Der Kader darf dabei maximal 28 und minimal 23 (mindestens zwei Goalies, sechs Verteidiger und zwölf Stürmer) Spieler umfassen. GM Weber liess heute am Rande des Draft verlauten, dass die Canes mit maximal 25 Spieler in die Saison starten werden. Den Spielern, welche keinen Platz im Fanionteam haben, soll Spielpraxis in den Minorligen  ermöglicht werden. Der erste Waver soll traditionell ebenfalls noch mögliche Alternativen ermöglichen. Mit dem Rostercut bei den übrigen Teams wird der eine oder andere interessante Kandidat auf den Markt kommen. Man erinnere sich an die letzte Saison, als die Canes mit Zdeno Chara den Jackpot ergattern konnten. Zudem sind durch die vielen Draft-Prospects (es wurden nur 135 Spieler gezogen) ebenfalls noch Spieler verfügbar.

Es steht uns eine interessante Woche bevor - wir bleiben dran.