Quote:
Originally Posted by BrooklynRangersFan
That's a pretty strong endorsement, Trjxw - and speaks to a more detailed familiarity with the player. Have you been watching his games? Talking to scouts? Not challenging you, but rather genuinely looking forward to hearing more.
(By the way, as one of the posters who is limited to small glimpses from YouTube highlights, I will say that I noticed that all 3 of his goals the other night were scored from right at the doorstep, rather than deking around hopelessly overmatched 16 year olds. And while the latter are prettier, the former are more indicative of the maturing, high IQ game you referenced.)
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I've seen about a dozen of his games this year, and I have a family friend who follow spent some time as an amateur scout but gave up on it to move to Minnesota to be closer to his wife's family. He now follows the CHL in his spare time and really loves Minn-HS prospecting as well. Back in '08 on the 2nd day of the draft he texted me after we called Stepan's name: "That's a future 75pt captain in the making." He's been incredibly good at picking out gems, so I trust him quite a bit.
He's also very high on Fogarty's ceiling. Said he was more impressive at times than Bjugstad was during his draft year, but needs a lot of development time.
One thing that pains me about our current Rangers team is the lack of offensive creativity. They skate the puck into the zone and if they don't immediately rim it around the boards, they pull up and have one of those "Crap, what do I do now?" moments. Kids like MSC see the game differently than the Dubi's and Callahan's of the world. Not only do they see the passing lanes that are there, but they also see the ones that
will be there as the play develops. He's like a chess player where he can see what the play will look like two or three moves down the line. I recall watching a game where he made some seemingly innocuous flip pass into open ice, but before I could even say "Who are you passing to?" he had sprung his teammate on a semi-breakaway. It's those kind of moments where you really start to be impressed with the kid.
I don't want to say he's the next Marc Savard, because he certainly has a long way to go, but at the same time the numbers he is putting up aren't simply because he's weaving in and out of 16 year olds either. He's shown very well against some very good WHL d-men. He he can get a bit stronger, and work on his explosiveness and his stride, he could be the real deal.