I watched almost all the game and will say that Kevin Hayes didn't really do a whole lot for me out there. He was pretty good on the dot from what I noticed and is certainly a big body. He doesn't really seem to use space very well to me though, granted it was only one game. He had a VERY nice feed to the front of the goal from behind the net, tossing it backwards right to a fellow line mate who, unfortunately, didn't bury it. His actual assist was a decent pass but the real reason it was a goal was the spectacular moves and finish by the player who did score.
All in all Kevin was mostly invisible out there and I spent a large portion of the game looking for him.
The game was very sloppy in the 1st, the 2nd was mostly play in the neutral zone with not many great chances. The 3rd is where it opened up more and I really thought Ferris State would tie it at some point but in the end BC's skill took over. Not really a great game but oh well.
Just a note about what I meant on him not using space all that well. He seems very anxious to get the puck off his stick and more often than not it was to pass, not shoot even though when he did shoot I thought he had a pretty decent shot. Would love to see him develop positionally more and to use his body (he did go to the front of the net a bit) but he doesn't seem to use it with the puck very much. I would almost describe his game with the puck as passive which is not what I'd like to see froma guy like him.
Maybe someone else who saw the game could comment (or someone who watched more of his games in general, romersworld I think watches a lot).
Saginaw just beat London 5-2 tonight, with Brandon Saad getting 2g 1a and first star. Saginaw was the only team to score an even strength goal, as well as a shorthanded goal. Looks like he's back in business.
Saginaw just beat London 5-2 tonight, with Brandon Saad getting 2g 1a and first star. Saginaw was the only team to score an even strength goal, as well as a shorthanded goal. Looks like he's back in business.
No offense to London fans but.... SWEET. Much different results with Saginaw playing at home.
Another nice game from Saad. Set up 2 of 3 goals for Fine including the GWG. I didn't really expect Saginaw to get ahead in this series but Saad has been dominant in games 2 & 3. He's currently #1 in the OHL postseason, with 8 goals 9 assists and +5 in 9 games played.
still laugh about ALL GMs in the NHL for not taking him higher. This inclueds Bowman who passed on him twice when you consider the rankings and projections
No, what's really funny about Saad is just how wrong the scouts were about him in their reports after the 2010-11 season. The first half of his season was very good, and then he suffered a groin injury that kept him out for a good while, and he was never 100% when he finally did come back. That's what kept him from the hard physical play for most of the year, but the scouts never caught on to this. This last season, he was very physically dominant, and ended with the highest point-per-game average in the OHL, despite being injured again after taking a slap shot to the left hand, and playing in the World Juniors.
Here's one of the scouting reports on him from 2010-11, that had him ranked at 11th before dropping him to 40th at the end of the year:
Quote:
40. LW Brandon Saad – Saginaw Spirit (OHL)
DOB: Oct. 27/92 | Shoots: L | Height: 6.01 | Weight: 196lbs
Midterm Rank: 11 | League Rank: 11th OHL | Country Rank: 9th USA
Suffice to say, TSR’s thoughts on Saad have plummeted as the 2010/2011 season progressed. We had very high expectations for Saad this year; his first in the OHL, but have never seen the type of game that warrants the pre-season hype. Saad is a big winger with good speed, a hard shot, and a fairly good head for the game, but he lacks the drive you need to be a top line player at the next level. Saad shies away from contact despite being a big player and never really uses his body to his advantage. He doesn’t drive the front of the net enough and just isn’t willing to pay the price. All is not lost with Saad, as he does have goal scoring talent, but he needs to show a lot more if he wants to have that opportunity in the NHL.
BTW, NHL Central Scouting had Saad ranked at #2 in the OHL behind Gabriel Landeskog before the season, so there was considerable hype surrounding him heading into that year. Had he not been injured, I think he would have been taken in the top-10, and we never would have had a shot at him. To get him at #43, in the second round, was an absolute steal.
still laugh about ALL GMs in the NHL for not taking him higher. This inclueds Bowman who passed on him twice when you consider the rankings and projections
Actually Bowman passed on him 3 times. He took McNeill, Danault and Clendening before Saad.
Went to the JLC for the game last night.. it was a good game but London seemed really flat. Saad had a solid game, hit the crossbar on a nice backhand after driving the net out of the corner and I believe he had 3 assists last night but wasn't credited with his final one on the Fine hattrick goal.
Either way, Saginaw played a solid game and Jake Patterson, their goaltender, was outstanding.
I saw the highlights, Patterson made some nutso saves. I'm thinking about streaming tomorrow's game, seven bucks is a lot though.
He was nutso. We were sitting in Paterson's end 2/3 periods and he was making alot of big saves.
Like I said, London was a bit flat.. they weren't shooting when they should've and their passes weren't really connecting.. but Patterson was the reason Saginaw wasn't down going into the 2nd period and he carried that play throughout the night.
He may be worth a look in the later rounds of the 2012 draft.
still laugh about ALL GMs in the NHL for not taking him higher. This inclueds Bowman who passed on him twice when you consider the rankings and projections
BCHockeyBlog1 is reporting that Kevin Hayes will be leaving Boston College to turn Pro next year. RossyYoungblood is also reporting that the Sarnia Sting have hinted to Ludvig Rensfeldt turning Pro next season aswell.. both via Twitter.
Now, I'm not close to confident in the BCHockeyBlog1 tweeter.. but I do believe RossYoungblood to be a reliable source.
IMO, neither player is ready to join the AHL. Ludvig Rensfeldt can return to Sarnia next year as an overager and Kevin, obviously, has 2 years left of eligibility in College.
You'd like to see Hayes join Rockford.. after just completing a 7 goal NCAA campaign? I have faith in Kevin.. but 7 goals in 44 games? Come on.. the guy still has things to work on before he turns Pro. He's very much a project at this point.
As for Rensfeldt.. it was his first year in NA and he played on a team that didn't really have any consistent secondary scoring. He has a good shot, he's s decent skater and he has solid hockey sense. He needs to fill out though.. he's too lanky and he'd be manhandled in the AHL.
K. Hayes can go pound sand. He might bounce back, but the K. Beach pick looks wise compared to Hayes.
Numbers don't tell the whole story, but Hayes numbers were so bad that hopefully he was playing with a broken foot and wrist and just trying to get through it.
K. Hayes can go pound sand. He might bounce back, but the K. Beach pick looks wise compared to Hayes.
Numbers don't tell the whole story, but Hayes numbers were so bad that hopefully he was playing with a broken foot and wrist and just trying to get through it.
Hayes was a very good player throughout BC's season, including their Beanpot Championship and their NCAA title.
He wasn't the biggest difference maker on the team. That's difficult when you have some of the best players in the NCAA next to you (Kreider, Dumolin), but he was easily one of their better players.
But I want him back at BC. There's no need to rush him. I want him to be "the man" under York before he makes the jump to the pros.
Hawks' 2010 7th rounder goalie Mac Carruth is looking very good in Portland right now. He's 7-0-0 with a 2.14 GAA and .935 SV% and 1 shutout, and the Winterhawks are 1 win away from sweeping their first two series in the playoffs. They defeated Kelowna in 4 and are 3-0 versus Kamloops with game 4 being played tonight. Carruth is 20 right now, so he'll be pro next year, either in Toledo or Rockford.
