This is the photo finish for number 1 in the final ranking of TSN in the NHL Draft for 2022 and with the smallest difference is Juraj Slafkovski over Shane Wright.
Five of the 10 scouts polled by TSN ranked 6-foot and 4 Slovak left wing number 1, while four scouts placed the center of Kingston Frontenac in first place.
The title will be that this is the first time this season – this includes pre-season charts in September; mid-season standings in January; project ranking of the lottery edition in April; and now the final ranking in June – that someone other than Wright is number one.
Slafkowski was ranked №5 in the middle of the season, but used two international star appearances, at the Olympics and the Men’s World Championships, to climb to TSN’s №1 spot, heading for the draft in Montreal on July 7-8.
However, there are two points that are worth noting.
First, if you had to explore another group of 10 scouts, you could very well end up with the same 5-4 division, but in Wright’s favor. It really is so narrow in the eyes of so many scouts.
Second, this consensus ranking has nothing to do with the preferences of the team – the Montreal Canadiens – which chooses first overall. The club draft selection order is not a factor in our scout survey and TSN player rankings.
“It’s a special year in the draft,” said one of the NHL’s top scouts. “None of them [Slafkovsky or Wright] are locks to be first line players in the NHL. I’m not saying that one or the other could not become first players, both are good prospects, but unlike many years, this draft does not have great prospects. No helmet dunks. There are things I like about both boys, but I also have some reservations. ”
The five scouts who put Slafkovski at No. 1 on their rosters really believe he has the best chance of being promoted from a confident striker in the top 6 to a winger in the NHL’s top line.
“What sets Slafkowski apart from Wright for me is that he is bigger, he played harder, he was more consistent with his competitiveness and he stepped up to produce on big stages. [Olympics and world championship]”Said another NHL chief scout. “I think he has the best chance of being a first-line striker in the NHL.”
Nine of our 10 scouts ranked Slafkovski first or second. One had it at number 4.
Wright’s game made some scouts want more from him, especially in terms of competitiveness and scoring. However, it is believed that he has a more mature, well-rounded game than Slavkovski. He is also a better skater.
The scouts, who had Wright at No. 1 on their rosters, said he had received extra marks for playing first-class (center) and was still scoring 94 points in 63 games in what many would admit was a disappointing season. Disappointing, compared to his brilliant season for rookies in the OHL 2019-20 (39 goals and 66 points in 58 games) and exceptional performance in the U-18 World Cup in 2021. This tournament was the only hockey that Wright played in 2020-21 because of COVID-19.
Eight of our 10 scouts ranked Wright at № 1 or № 2, but two scouts ranked him at № 3.
A club CEO summed up the dilemma in choosing between Slavkovski and Wright.
“Teams that rank Slafkovsky as No. 1 are struggling to make Wright’s draft year so average. [compared to prior seasons]”he said.” Teams that like Wright as No. 1 can’t forget what they saw in Wright’s first season in the OHL and the 2021 U-18 World Cup. “
There are many things to distinguish on both sides of the equation.
“These [Wright’s first OHL season and U-18 performance] it seems so long ago, “said another scout.
“Slafkovski was great at the Olympics and the worlds, but scored only five goals [Finland’s] League this season and went through some really long stretches without scoring a goal at all, “said another scout.
Many scouts have freely acknowledged that in five years’ time, the best player in the 2022 draft could be someone other than Slafkowski or Wright. Some of them said that they were not necessarily convinced that the first two selected in the draft would be Slavkovski and Wright or vice versa.
To this end, here are miniature sketches of the other eight potential customers in TSN’s Top 10:
3. Logan Cooley: The center of the US U-18 national team was the only prospect besides Slavkovski and Wright to get a vote № 1 from our group of scouts, but also got a few votes at number 2. At 5 feet- 10 1/2 , the skilled pivot has some dynamic attacking ability, especially in terms of his one-on-one play and desire to go into difficult areas of the ice to score goals. Most scouts design it as a high-end second-class center in the NHL with a chance to develop into 1C. The size and inconsistent use of his teammates for maximum efficiency are two things that could prevent this from happening.
4. Simon Nemek: The 6-foot, 199-pound Slovak is a smooth-skilled, intelligent defender who is a highly effective moving puck with solid two-sided play. He has no elite or wow factor offensive abilities and is not a punishing physical defender, but his skating and intelligence allow him to be No. 2 or No. 3 Blueliner in the NHL. He was 2nd and 7th in our scout survey.
5. Cutter Gauthier: The striker of the U-18 national team of the USA has dimensions in the NHL (6 feet 2 1/2 and 200 pounds), speed and nose of a goal scorer for the net, which means that he has the necessary tools to be top -6, two-way NHL striker. Although Gauthier is playing center this season, most scouts seem to think he envisages more as a professional winger. In our scout survey, Gauthier was in 3rd place and 10th.
6. David Jiricek: The Czech missed much of this season with a knee injury sustained at the World Junior Championships, but the 6-foot 3 blueliner has the size, the bite and the physical tools to play the role of exclusion. Some scouts see him as a limited attacker, but in a project full of puck under 6 feet, Jiricek’s size and physical approach stand out. His skates are good, but not great, and he presents himself as a solid defender in the foursome, who, like Nemek, can be 2-3. He was ranked highest as № 5 and lowest as № 12 in our scout survey.
7. Joachim Kemel: The small (5 feet 9-1 / 2) Finn is a goal-scoring attacking winger who plays a dynamic, energetic, albeit inconsistent game. Some scouts see him as a legitimate threat to break the top five – it ranged from 4 to 14 in our study – and one suggested he was a candidate to develop into the best player in the entire draft due to the high ceiling of the offensive. He is projected to be the top six in the NHL, scoring ahead.
8. Jonathan Lekerimaki: The somewhat low (5 ft-10-1 / 2) Swedish winger has a great shot and ability to finish high-end and performed at a high level at the 2022 U-18 World Cup. it doesn’t have the same offensive picism as Kemel, but it still projects itself as a top 6, noting ahead. Our scout survey ranked him up to № 4 and up to № 17.
9. Matt Savoie: The 5-foot, 9-foot Winnipeg Ice Center is fast, talented and skilled, albeit small, offensive, who can score goals and play. Some NHL scouts see him more as a winger than as a center, but his high-class intelligence and skills make him a striker in the top 6 striker in the pros. It was ranked up to № 6 and up to № 15 in our study.
10. Marco Casper: The Austrian center with a height of 6 feet and 1 can play all three positions forward and in general his game is as mature and complete as it is versatile. The critical question is: what is his offensive? Those who believe he has significant offensive potential say he is a threat to enter the top five prospects in this draft. Those who consider him more offensively limited leave him out of the top 10. His range in our study was up to №5 and up to 21. But most all agree that he is mature on and off the ice and is one of the best comprehensive perspectives with a high character and work ethic. At best, he designs like 2C; in the worst 3C.
It seems that this year’s project can see a lot of movement from these consensus rankings. This means that players placed from № 6 to 10 can be taken a few places higher, but can also go half a dozen seats later.
If it’s extremely tight at the top of the draft with Slafkovsky and Wright, and it is, that’s also true for most of the first round. This year there is simply not as much division and less specific levels of talent than others.
Players ranked 11th to 13th on TSN’s list – Seattle Thunderbird defender Kevin Korczynski, Saginaw Spirit defender Pavel Mintyukov and Winnipeg Ice Center center Conor Geekie – are all considered legitimate threats to move someone into the top 10.
Many of the players ranked 33 to about 50 on TSN’s list received enough attention as selected by scouts in the first round to move into the Top 32.
Some other notes on the TSN ranking in the first round:
– There are no goalkeepers in the Top 32. In fact, the highest goalkeeper is Prince George Cougar, Tyler Brennan, who is ranked No. 62 in TSN’s Top 100. The only other goalkeeper ranked by TSN is Finland’s Topias Leinonen, who is ranked No. 71.
– It doesn’t look like a significant year for Canadians in the draft. TSN ranked only two Canadians in the top 10 – Wright in №2 and Savoy in №9 – and only nine in the top 32. The nationality distribution for TSN’s Top 32 is as follows: Canada (nine); USA (eight); Sweden, Russia and Slovakia (three each); Czech Republic and Finland (two each); and Austria and Switzerland (one each).
– One of the main storylines to follow will be how the 32 NHL clubs will cope with the Russian prospects. The war with Ukraine and the ensuing sanctions make some NHL clubs unsure how to proceed with Russia’s prospects, …
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