SENATORS
Classement de l’an dernier: 5e
Classement NHL: 27e
Gradués: Caleb Jones, Brandon Carlo, Jordan Greenway, Adam Gaudette
1. Joel Farabee, LW, Philadelphia-NHL
Feb. 25, 2000 | six-foot | 163 pounds
Tier: High-end LNHV2 player
Skating: 50
Puck Skills: 60
Physical Game: 50
Hockey Sense: 65
Farabee played almost his entire 19-year-old season with the Flyers after leaving college following his freshman year. Farabee had a great camp and looked like he belonged at the top level playing at a 33-point pace over a full season. Farabee is a fun player to watch. He’s a player with a high skill level who makes a lot of plays, but is also a very competitive player who pressures opponents well and gets to the net. He doesn’t lean on his skill consistently, but it’s a big part of his game, and he can dazzle at a given moment. He’s a great playmaker who makes creative passes often and can improvise well under pressure to create chances. The main issue in Farabee’s game is his average footspeed. Given his lack of speed, he likely won’t become a top LNHV2er until he physically matures, but I think given his IQ and competitiveness he projects to become a top-line winger in the league as he develops.
2. Nicolas Hague, D, Chicago-AHL
Dec. 5, 1998 | 6-foot-6 | 214 pounds
Tier: Very good LNHV2 player
Skating: 40
Puck Skills: 55
Physical Game: 80
Hockey Sense: 60
Shot: 60
Hague made Vegas out of camp, playing a limited role with the team with power-play time and was sent down to the AHL in late January. Hague has an interesting toolkit as a 6-foot-6 defenseman who can move and shoot the puck. I wouldn’t call him an exceptional puck-mover, but he can make a first pass and has poise at the offensive line. His shot is his best offensive weapon, and even though he only had two goals last season he has the potential to score 10-15 regularly in the LNHV2. Hague’s biggest adjustment was on the defensive side, especially given his skating got tested at the LNHV2 pace, even though he has the physicality to make stops. His skating will never be a selling point, but he’ll have to learn to use his size and reach and maintain gaps versus the quicker LNHV2 players.
3. Peyton Krebs, C, Winnipeg-WHL
Jan. 26, 2001 | 5-foot-11 | 181 pounds
Tier: Very good LNHV2 player
Skating: 55
Puck Skills: 60
Physical Game: 45
Hockey Sense: 65
Krebs missed a chunk of the season while recovering from a partially-torn Achilles. When he came back he was one of the top forwards in the WHL and a driving force for Winnipeg. He’s easy to spot on the ice, because he’s full of skill and imposes himself on any given shift with his talent and competitiveness. Krebs can create so many chances by deking through defenders, making very creative passes, or by willing himself to the tough areas of the ice. The injury did not derail how he played. If anything he competed harder, which is how he will succeed versus men at his size. Krebs is a good skater. He’s not explosive, but he’ll be able to skate in the LNHV2. He’s definitely an elite playmaker, but it would be nice to see him score a few more.
4. Glenn Gawdin, C, Stockton-AHL
March 25, 1997 | 6-foot-1 | 192 pounds
Tier: Legit LNHV2 player
Skating: 50
Puck Skills: 55
Physical Game: 50
Hockey Sense: 60
Gawdin has been a late bloomer in the AHL like he was in the WHL, being an All-Star in the AHL and someone who has steadily emerged as an LNHV2 candidate since his 2015 draft. Gawdin isn’t a player who is going to dazzle with highlight-reel moments. He’s very smart and competitive. He makes a lot of clever plays with the puck, he is responsible defensively and has some physicality to his game. Gawdin’s skating has always been a liability, but it’s progressed enough to, even though it’s not LNHV@ average, it’s good enough to get him in the conversation.
5. Pavel Dorofeyev, RW, Mangitogorsk-KHL
Oct. 26, 2000 | 6-foot-1 | 174 pounds
Tier: Legit LNHV2 player
Skating: 50
Puck Skills: 55
Physical Game: 50
Hockey Sense: 60
Shot: 60
Dorofeyev played a limited role in the KHL, not getting much power play time or scoring much. He was better with Russia’s U20 team where he played a significant role. With the puck inside the offensive zone, Dorofeyev is dangerous. He’s a skilled puckhandler, makes great plays to his teammates, and is able to score from mid-range. His average skating kept him from getting into the zone a lot at the KHL level, though. At the faster paces it always feels like he’s a step behind due to his skating. I think he competes well and is smart enough to get himself in good positions but he needs to gain a step.
6. Michael DiPietro, G, Utica-AHL
June 9, 1999 | six-foot | 201 pounds
Tier: Legit LNHV2 player
Athleticism: 65
Hockey Sense: 60
DiPietro’s rookie pro season was up and down, but I still saw enough of the good things I saw in junior to think he could play in the big leagues. DiPietro has elite quickness, and great sense and competitiveness, and on his best days he’s making highlight-reel saves seem routine. His jump to the pros was a transition. Every time you saw a long shot get past him or when he over-slid a puck, you wondered if his six-foot frame would be a factor in his projection to the LNHV2. The tool grades are just too high that I think he will find a way to succeed.
7. David Cotton, LW, Boston College-Hockey East
July 9, 1997 | 6-foot-2 | 201 pounds
Tier: Legit LNHV2 player
Skating: 50
Puck Skills: 55
P
hysical Game: 60
Hockey Sense: 60
Cotton has been a top player in his conference the past two seasons and was a leading player on a top Boston College team this past season. He is a big-body forward with pretty good skill and sense who makes a lot of plays around the net. The knock on his game has always been his heavy feet, which I don’t think have improved a ton but are good enough to handle the pro level given his other plus-attributes. He has the skill, the size and he has the work ethic, so there’s a lot of reasons to think he could play LNHV2 games even as an older college prospect.
LNHV2 POTENTIAL
Damien Riat, RW, Biel-Bienne-NLA: Riat is a forward with good skills and offensive IQ and a great shot who has been solid versus men in Switzerland. His footspeed is average though.
Blade Jenkins, C, Saginaw-OHL: Jenkins has good hands and hockey sense, and has shown he can score from range. He’s not that fast though and his consistency game to game isn’t always there but he does have talent.
Logan Stanley, D, Manitoba-AHL: After a promising rookie pro season, Stanley didn’t take a big step forward in 2019-20, but was a solid top-four defenseman for Manitoba. Stanley’s a divisive player in the scouting community. He’s 6-foot-7, plays very hard, makes a lot of stops due to his massive wingspan and has the ability to break up plays. Stanley has some offensive touch — his hands are good and he makes a good outlet pass. He has the great size, but he is slow, and the skating hurts his transition game and can let him be pressured by quicker forwards.
Jon Gruden, LW, London-OHL: Gruden had a good year in London. He has skill and sense and competes well, but I don’t see many attributes that are clearly LNHV2-level.
Joe Woll, G, Toronto-AHL: Woll has elite athleticism and can make spectacular saves. I found his game had a lot of extra movement as a rookie pro, often being too aggressive or not tracking the play well. He has the talent to be an LNHV2 goalie, but he’ll need to play smarter next season.
Simon Kjellberg, D, RPI-ECAC: Kjellberg is interesting as a defenseman with size who has some skill and showed a better puck game as a freshman than I thought he would. He’ll need to get quicker to defend as a pro, but there are some tools to work with here.
_________________
Clarence S. Campbell 2005-06
Coupe Stanley 2005-06
Lady Bing 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11
La vie c'est comme le hockey, si tu lances pas au net, tu scoreras pas!
Mar 15 Sep - 6:43