Hockey's Future says he skates fairly well for his size, has that improved any?
He moves very well to all direction, Good stride and technically his skating looks good. He could add some accerelation like someone posted but his top speed is good for his size. All he needs is bit leg strength.
Boy is this guy tearing it up! He is avg just about 2 points per game and is averaging a goal a game at this point in the season! I know he is still young but it looks like the Blues definitely made a good pick when they selected Ty. Can't wait to see him in a Blues jersey within the next couple years!
I've always been a big Iginla fan but he is 34 years old and off to a slow start. He's on pace for a 23g, 40 point season. He had a big year last year but it is a legit question - are his best years behind him?
A slow night for NA prospects. Schwartz and McRae scoreless, Rattie with 1 assist. Tesink didn't play last night(injured?) Moose Jaw plays tonight and tomorrow.(Beach & Edmundson)
Yannick Veilleux has 13 goals in 24 games. Beach is averaging over a point a game with a boatload of PIM.
Rattie had 1 goal and 4 assists in his 2 games this weekend (1 goal and 3 assists last night). He still holds 3rd place in WHL scoring (points), and is tied for first with Etem in goals (28 goals).
If he keeps up this pace, he'll have a decent shot at the WHL scoring title (and the goal title). The leader (Stone) has 61 points in 30 games. Rattie has 55 in 29 games.
I called for Rattie to be our #3 prospect during the ranking process on these boards and now people are really starting to see why.
The kid has so much natural raw scoring ability, I don't know how anyone put him outside of our top 5. Glad to see the Blues have such a talented prospect pool now for the first time in a long while. Our fowards seem to be overcrowded with talent and that is a great feeling!
Good call on your part but it's tough to rate a second round draft pick that high with the other talent the Blues had going into this season. It is exciting how Rattie is playing while knowing that he still needs to add some muscle. If he continues this exceptional strong season he could move up to #2 behind Tarasenko.
Good call on your part but it's tough to rate a second round draft pick that high with the other talent the Blues had going into this season. It is exciting how Rattie is playing while knowing that he still needs to add some muscle. If he continues this exceptional strong season he could move up to #2 behind Tarasenko.
Not while Schwartz is still a prospect. Rattie's having a very good season but he's still a good couple of notches below Schwartz IMO.
Schwartz has the stuff to become a "special" player. Rattie just just has the makings of a very good player. He might creep up to a lower-tier First Line player. Schwartz may possibly become a perennial All Star (if things go well).
If Rattie can push a prospect like Schwartz for your #2 prospect position what does that say about the depth of your organization. I love it personally!
Alot of Canadians are clamoring for the possibility of Schwartz playing with Rattie on the WJC's 2nd line. The way Ty's playing right now, Why wouldn't he? I'd be really excited to watch some team Canada games.
I called for Rattie to be our #3 prospect during the ranking process on these boards and now people are really starting to see why.
The kid has so much natural raw scoring ability, I don't know how anyone put him outside of our top 5. Glad to see the Blues have such a talented prospect pool now for the first time in a long while. Our fowards seem to be overcrowded with talent and that is a great feeling!
I'd still have him outside the top-5...scoring in junior hockey doesn't do a whole lot for me. How he projects to the pro game is much more of a question mark than how he produces against teenagers. He's got nice hands and vision for sure...but it's going to take a lot more than that if he's going to be a full-time NHL'er. With the depth this organization has, Rattie looks more like a spare-part that can be used to shore up other areas than a future Blue...at least in my eyes. Let's see him play a year or two in the AHL before declaring him a great find at the top of the 2nd round...as he's far from a sure thing at this point.
I'd still have him outside the top-5...scoring in junior hockey doesn't do a whole lot for me. How he projects to the pro game is much more of a question mark than how he produces against teenagers. He's got nice hands and vision for sure...but it's going to take a lot more than that if he's going to be a full-time NHL'er. With the depth this organization has, Rattie looks more like a spare-part that can be used to shore up other areas than a future Blue...at least in my eyes. Let's see him play a year or two in the AHL before declaring him a great find at the top of the 2nd round...as he's far from a sure thing at this point.
He was at #4 for me before the season started, and that's where I still have him.
What part of his game specifically are you questioning translating to the pros? Personally, I don't see him as having the potential of a true top line guy unless his skating hits an unexpected development bump (it seems about average right now, from what I've seen), but everything else about his skill-set and abilities fairly screams offense production at the NHL level to me.
The physical development will come in time, and be the true limiting factor for how long it takes for him to make the show. I think the skating development will define his upside, and his positional/defensive play development will round out his usefulness/overall value to the team. I don't see any glaring physical or skill weaknesses that make me worry he might bust.
He was at #4 for me before the season started, and that's where I still have him.
What part of his game specifically are you questioning translating to the pros? Personally, I don't see him as having the potential of a true top line guy unless his skating hits an unexpected development bump (it seems about average right now, from what I've seen), but everything else about his skill-set and abilities fairly screams offense production at the NHL level to me.
The physical development will come in time, and be the true limiting factor for how long it takes for him to make the show. I think the skating development will define his upside, and his positional/defensive play development will round out his usefulness/overall value to the team. I don't see any glaring physical or skill weaknesses that make me worry he might bust.
He just doesn't seem like he's got that one or two special elements to his game that will allow him to seperate himself and become more than 'just a guy'. He's got offense... but hundreds of junior kids have had that before and couldn't become NHL'ers...is his skillset so outstanding that it will make up for weaknesses in other areas? The coaching staff obviously thought highly of his offense during training camp...but he's not going to make it as a one-trick pony...unless that one trick is Brett Hull-like.
I just dont get excited about junior hockey stats because I've seen enough kids fail to develop the rest of their game and instead hang their hopes of stardom on scoring...and when they bring their game up a notch against full-grown men who can actually skate backwards and play defense or try to score against a goalie who actually knows what he's doing, more often than not it's not as easy as it was in junior hockey.
It's not that I want Rattie to fail...it's just that I don't see the all-world hands of a Perron...or combination of tenacity and two-way skill like an Oshie or Backes. Both of those guys had NHLer written on them in college, because even if their offense didnt translate to the bigs, other elements of their game would allow them to be successful. If Rattie can beat up on AHL defenses, then I'll move him up in my rankings...but until then he's behind Schwartz, Tarasenko, Cole, Allen, McRae, Lehtera, Jaskin (who resembles a raw Backes to me...according to the scouting reports) and maybe Fairchild/Cundari (who are having success in the pros). Give him time, he may be worthy of a top-5 ranking at some point...but I think it's a little premature at this point to vault him into the upper echelon of prospects based on his play against guys whom 90% of have no future in the sport.
He just doesn't seem like he's got that one or two special elements to his game that will allow him to seperate himself and become more than 'just a guy'. He's got offense... but hundreds of junior kids have had that before and couldn't become NHL'ers...is his skillset so outstanding that it will make up for weaknesses in other areas? The coaching staff obviously thought highly of his offense during training camp...but he's not going to make it as a one-trick pony...unless that one trick is Brett Hull-like.
I just dont get excited about junior hockey stats because I've seen enough kids fail to develop the rest of their game and instead hang their hopes of stardom on scoring...and when they bring their game up a notch against full-grown men who can actually skate backwards and play defense or try to score against a goalie who actually knows what he's doing, more often than not it's not as easy as it was in junior hockey.
I'm getting the impression that you haven't seen much of his play. His offensive talents aren't what I would consider "ordinary", nor are they really recent developments (i.e. a product of relative age, or a possible fluke). He's had very notable offensive talents for quite some time. (He was drafted #2 behind Nugent-Hopkins in the 2008 Bantam draft). I think he's a small step below Schwartz overall in that area, but that's mostly because Schwartz's hockey IQ and vision are better...not because Schwartz has the higher skill level. IMO Rattie has true "plus" puck skills, and above average passing, shooting, and vision. I haven't seen him enough to nail down exactly what I think of his hockey IQ though. Sometimes it looks great, and sometimes it looks like he's trying to force a bit too much. It's hard to tell if that's going to be a chronic "problem" down the road, or if he's simply pushing boundaries when he thinks he can get away with it with the intention of simplifying his game appropriately as the quality of competition increases. He seems like an intelligent kid, so I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for now.
The only real "weaknesses" to his game that I see are universal to almost every prospect. He needs to develop physically, which he'll do as long as he puts in the time and has the desire, and he needs to work on his play without the puck. Usually, that's also simply a question of time and desire. For what it's worth, I've never heard anything that questions his work ethic, but I don't have any firsthand knowledge of that either.
I understand why you're not willing to give him much credit for his accomplishments to this point, but I'm fairly confident that he'll be moving up your personal rankings smartly as time goes on.
