THN's Future Watch Issue is out. The results?

by Bald Pollack on Mar 2, 2009 6:42 PM EST

...The Caps are rated 9th in the League, up last year from 12th. Their rankings for the top 10 prospects (and money quotes) are as follows:

1. Simeon Varlamov (12th ranked overall out of the THN 50): "He's a promising butterfly specialist with good hands, quick reflexes and confidence. But Varlamov has to better defend low shots, check his ego and accept the occasional off game."

2. Jon Carlson (27th ranked): "He projects as a sturdy, two-way defender who can create offense as well as control his own zone. [Carlson] can also quarterback the power play or solidify the penalty kill, which gives him the opportunity to show his speed and intuition."

3. Anton Gustafsson: "Gustafsson controls the puck, passes well and is comfortable as a playmaker, but he needs to work on his acceleration and shooting. His defensive responsibility fits well with Washington's current system."

4: Oskar Osala: "Unlike some lean and lanky wingers, he's not a defensive liability, using his skating ability and huge wingspan to his advantage, but he's still learning to make the most of his large frame. For someone so large, Osala could be more assertive with the puck; sometimes a big guy's deadliest weapon is the mere threat of a shot."

5. Michal Neuvirth: "When playing, Neuvirth displays a calm demeanor and big-save heroics that ratchet up his confidence. But he's prone to sluggish starts and gives up too many rebounds, problems that need to be corrected."

6. Francois Bouchard: "Scoring winger plays position Washington needs. Still growing and learning."

7. Braden Holtby: "Workhorse shot-blocker will need a refined game to beat top netminding prospects."

8. Josh Godfrey

9. Stefan Della Rovere

10. Joe Finley

If this FanPost is written by someone other than one of the blog's editors, the opinions expressed in it do not necessarily reflect those of this blog or SB Nation.

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Re: Bouchard

If they are saying the Caps need a scoring winger I’m a tad confused about what they are looking at. If they are saying the Caps need a RW then I guess I buy it but I expect a little better insight from TSN. Also, why no Alzner, has he played too many NHL games to qualify for their prospect lists?

by Rob Parker on Mar 2, 2009 8:26 PM EST reply actions

THN.

I think I agree that the Caps don’t have a top-six winger in the system. I’m not convinced on the Qers.

Modern Art Notes

by TylerG on Mar 2, 2009 9:38 PM EST up reply actions

I think prospect rating is deceptive when the rating organization doesn’t look at the big club. Can you really knock the Caps for not having a stud LW in the system? At most we need a 2LW but if we lock up Semin then we don’t even need that. The Qers will take some time to pan out but between 3 Q guys (Bouchard, Perreault, Cougarchef) and Osala I think we should get at least one of those guys to pan out as a top 6 W. I’m a little surprised Finley is ranked higher than Perreault, seems like a pre-lockout ranking. Finley is big and has mobility questions while MP is small, fast, quick and skilled. Given MP’s production in Hershey this year, against grown men, I don’t understand why he’s not getting more love. Granted, I haven’t watched a single Hershey game this year but for the last two months he’s been on the Hershey score sheets much more consistently than Osala and Bouchard.

by Rob Parker on Mar 3, 2009 12:02 AM EST up reply actions

It’s all about size. Scouts LOVE size. In their view, Perrault is close to maxing out right now, whereas Osala and Bouchard can keep developing into their frames. I’m not saying I agree with it, but there’s the logic. It’s the same reason nobody looked at Brian Gionta or Marty St. Louis.

by D'ohboy on Mar 3, 2009 11:10 AM EST up reply actions

Both of those guys were drafted/signed in the old NHL. You would think the success of both of them (even in the old NHL), Danielle ’Spiere, Zack Parise, and others would make scouts realize that small guys can get it done. We will see.

by Rob Parker on Mar 3, 2009 12:52 PM EST up reply actions

In addition to the size factor, there’s also the fact that Perrault only has nine goals and four of those have been on the powerplay.

by David Getz on Mar 3, 2009 1:14 PM EST up reply actions

He’s a play maker though. That fact would concern me if he was supposed to be a goal scorer but he always has been a guy that put up a ton of A’s. Nobody knocks Marc Savard for being small and not scoring a ton of goals.

by Rob Parker on Mar 3, 2009 1:27 PM EST up reply actions

I mean, personally I’m pretty happy with the way Perrault has produced but I think someone like THN might see his numbers, see that he’s scoring on the PP and racking up assists on a great team, and figure he’s riding other people’s coattails.

by David Getz on Mar 3, 2009 1:35 PM EST up reply actions

Ditto, and that’s why the scoring emergence of Fehr and Fleischman needs to accelerate a little, especially if you get to the point where the rug won’t be brought back to tie the room together anymore.

"Good crowd out there tonight, boys, let's really try to win this one."

by Bald Pollack on Mar 3, 2009 7:47 AM EST up reply actions

To stipulate, Top 10 prospects and 21 & Under NHLers (Alzner & Backstrom in the Caps case) were figured in. The 8 higher teams are:

8. Pittsburgh
7. Chicago
6. Boston
5. St. Louis
4. Columbus
3. Montreal
2. Phoenix
1. LA

Top 10 (+1) Prospects are:

1. Filatov LW (CLB)
2. Hodgson C (VAN)
3. Markstrom G (FLA)
4. Wilson D (NSH)
5. Pietrangelo D (STL)
6. van Riemsdyk LW (PHI)
7. Karlsson D (OTT)
8. Giroux RW (PHI)
9. Myers D (BUF)
10. Pacioretty LW (MON)
11. Rask G (BOS)

"Good crowd out there tonight, boys, let's really try to win this one."

by Bald Pollack on Mar 2, 2009 8:53 PM EST reply actions

8. Giroux RW (PHI)

i think he’s going to be a real good player within a few years. wouldn’t mind having him on the roster.

by ns on Mar 3, 2009 8:46 AM EST up reply actions

If I have to take one guy from that list, it’s van Riemsdyk. He gets less publicity because he’s American and playing in college, but when I watched the World Juniors, he was among the best players out there by far. Only an officiating snow-job against the Canadians and an unbelievable performance by the Slovak goalie kept the Americans out of the medals.

This kid could be in the Tkaczuk/Leclair/Bobby Ryan mold of American power forwards.

by D'ohboy on Mar 3, 2009 11:04 AM EST up reply actions

Not sure what you were watching but team USA looked pretty bad from my vantage point. USA can’t blame the refs for melting down v. Canada, they just blew it. Then again against the Slovaks. JVR was underwhelming for the most part, I thought. I think the PHI scouts agree since they were allegedly using him as bait for Lehtinen.

by Rob Parker on Mar 3, 2009 12:54 PM EST up reply actions

I tend to agree. WIth JVR’s performance at the Juniors and his unwillingless to leave college for junior (as Philly has asked him) his stock has been dropping. Not much, but not as high as he is rated.

by CapsFanSince1979 on Mar 9, 2009 7:18 AM EDT up reply actions

Great stuff, BP – thanks.

Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world

by J.P. on Mar 2, 2009 9:41 PM EST reply actions

You’re more than welcome sir.

"Good crowd out there tonight, boys, let's really try to win this one."

by Bald Pollack on Mar 3, 2009 7:44 AM EST up reply actions

Link

Do you have the link to the entire article? Thanks

by Bonzai on Mar 3, 2009 8:02 AM EST reply actions

It’s on my laptop at home, but it’s a Zinio(sp?) Reader file. That said, if anyone wants to peruse it (or break it down into a more widely read format) is more than welcome to do so. Holla yo!

"Good crowd out there tonight, boys, let's really try to win this one."

by Bald Pollack on Mar 3, 2009 8:20 AM EST up reply actions

I too am a little surprised Perreault didn’t crack their top 10. He looked good at the Bears game I went to on Sat.

by Sombrero Guy on Mar 3, 2009 10:35 AM EST reply actions

These lists are always skewed depending on who they count as prospects. For example, a similar list over at Hockeysfuture.com puts the Penguins at 29th. Perhaps THN was including Eric Tangradi, but I doubt it.

Joel Broda’s absence is a little puzzling, but since I’ve never seen him play I can’t really comment.

by D'ohboy on Mar 3, 2009 11:07 AM EST reply actions

Hockeysfuture.com has no clue what they are doing (IMO). I think this list is much better then what they produce. The only comment I could make on Broda is maybe his “talent” is not anywhere close to his production. For Hockeysfuture he did not even make the honorable mention list that was put out for the top 20 prospects of the WHL (http://www.hockeysfuture.com/articles/10964/whl_top20_prospects_drafted_and_undrafted/). I personally find this to be a head scratcher because he was drafted last year in the 5th round and does have 50 goals with a strong plus/minus – even when he was on the worst team in the WHL. He should have been on the Notables list.

Now on to this top 10. I do not agree with 9 and 10. I know everyone loves DR, but he takes alot of really dumb penalties, is not that talented and has really not been good since about November. Not that this guy should make the top 10, but Justin Taylor is a much better overall NHL prospect then DR as he can play at both ends of the ice and I could see him as a third line center. DR is more of a 4th line winger at his best. My #9 and #10 would probably be Kugryshev (top scoring rookie in the Q) and probably a toss up between Finley or Seabrook. I could even see Broda or Taylor fight for that #10 spot as both have 3rd line potential. I believe they went with Finley as he does have shut down abilities as a big defenseman and could move quickly up this list when in the AHL/ECHL next year.

by CapsFanSince1979 on Mar 9, 2009 7:33 AM EDT up reply actions

Two things I dislike about Hockeysfuture.com. They underrate Washington prospects because they never have a writer for the Caps, therefore no one is fighting for their prospects when they make the big lists. I have argued for a couple years that Varlamov is a top 50 player. I did the math before, but even after two great years in Russia he was not even rated in the top 10 goaltenders overall. Second, they overrate guys just draft in the first round. I will use Gustafsson as an example. They rated Gustafsson ahead of Varlamov. Why? Both were first round picks and Varlamov had completed two strong professional seasons in Russia where Gustafsson had not even produced in the 2nd league in Sweden. Makes no sense other then Gustafsson was just drafted in the first round.

by CapsFanSince1979 on Mar 9, 2009 7:50 AM EDT up reply actions

I think the thing that’s key to remember about hockeysfuture is that it isn’t a site of full timers – it’s a collection of people who write there in their spare time. For that reason, I think the site is great for getting names but not so great for figuring out what the talent levels of those players is.

by David Getz on Mar 10, 2009 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions

I’m surprised (pleasantly) that Carlson is 27th overall…I mean I know he impressed this past summer, but 27th in hockey is pretty damn impressive. You all have any thoughts/predictions on his chances of being up in DC at some point next year? Or does he get a year or two of grooming in chocolate town?

/thanks for tracking down the update

by Yoshietree on Mar 3, 2009 11:42 AM EST reply actions

He won’t go to Hershey until his JR. eligibility is up. I’m not positive that the rules apply to American and European players but NHL teams cannot send Canadian Jrs. players to the AHL until their CHL eligibility is up.

by Rob Parker on Mar 3, 2009 12:55 PM EST up reply actions

I have seen Carlson play many times this year and this rating does not surprise me. He is a super stud. They guy controls the games more than any player in the OHL (that I have seen). He does everything. He covers the other teams best player, he plays the point on the PP, is the primary PK defenseman, he is very physical…he does it all. If the 2008 draft was redone I bet he would be a top 10 pick. I doubt he will be in the NHL next year. Most likely he will be back in the OHL for some more seasoning as the Caps still have to find a way to get Alzner into the NHL. Guys like Collins, Sloan, Lepisto, and McNeil will probably be in the AHL. I cannot imagine Godfrey not being in the AHL. Then they have to make decisions on Dovgen and Pokey. Then what happens with Seabrook (ECHL?) and Finley (AHL/ECHL?)

by CapsFanSince1979 on Mar 9, 2009 7:39 AM EDT up reply actions

I think Lepisto moves this offseason.

by David Getz on Mar 10, 2009 10:49 AM EDT up reply actions

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