THN Future Watch 2013 - Top-50 prospects:
1 - Vladimir Tarasenko
2 - Justin Schultz
3 - Evgeny Kuznetsov
4 - Dougie Hamilton
5 - Nail Yakupov
6 - Alex Galchenyuk 7 - Mikael Granlund
8 - Jonathan Huberdeau
9 - Ryan Murray
10 - Jacob Trouba
... 34 - Teuvo Teräväinen
40 - Olli Määttä
43 - Joel Armia
Team top-10's:
Sami Vatanen (7th) - Anaheim Ducks
Joel Armia (2nd) - Buffalo Sabres
Markus Granlund (7th) - Calgary Flames
Teuvo Teräväinen (2nd) - Chicago Blackhawks
Sami Aittokallio (6th) - Colorado Avalanche
Joonas Korpisalo (9th) - Columbus Blue Jackets
Teemu Hartikainen (4th) - Edmonton Oilers
Mikael Granlund (1st) - Minnesota Wild
Miikka Salomäki (6th) - Nashville Predators
Harri Pesonen (9th) - New Jersey Devils
Ville Pokka (5th) - New York Islanders
Olli Määttä (1st) - Pittsburgh Penguins
Petteri Lindbohm (10th) - St.Louis Blues
Harri Säteri (8th) - San Jose Sharks
THN ranking got me thinking about what the combined ranking of Finns might look like at the moment. I included players born between 90' and 96'. The ranking is naturally entirely subjective and not the most well-informed, so feel free to express your own view as well.
Overall ranking ('90 to '96 born):
1. CE - Aleksander Barkov -95 (Tappara)
2. CE/W - Mikael Granlund -92 (Minnesota Wild)
3. D - Rasmus Ristolainen -94 (TPS)
4. CE/W - Teuvo Teräväinen -94 (Jokerit)
5. D - Olli Määttä -94 (London Knights)
6. RW - Joel Armia -93 (Ässät)
7. D - Sami Vatanen -91 (Anaheim Ducks)
8. LW - Teemu Hartikainen -90 (Edmonton Oilers)
9. D - Ville Pokka -94 (Kärpät)
10. W - Artturi Lehkonen -95 (KalPa)
11. W - Kasperi Kapanen -96 (KalPa)
12. GK - Sami Aittokallio -92 (Lake Erie Monsters)
13. CE/W - Miikka Salomäki -93 (Kärpät)
14. GK - Joonas Korpisalo -94 (Jokerit)
15. CE/W - Markus Granlund -93 (HIFK)
16. LW/CE - Erik Haula -91 (Minnesota Golden Gophers)
17. GK - Henri Kiviaho -94 (KalPa)
18. RW/CE - Juuso Ikonen -95 (Blues)
19. GK - Kaapo Kähkönen -96 (Blues)
20. D - Esa Lindell -94 (Jokerit)
Aleksi Saarela has been getting a lot of attention lately, where would you personally rank him among these prospects at the moment?
I think your list needs more Juuse Saros. Saarela is still so young that I have a hard time giving any kind of an evaluation on him, but right now I'd rank him close to the same range with Kapanen. Great physical tools combined with skill, and from what I've heard, Saarela's feet are planted firmly on the ground, which may not be the case with Kapanen Jr.
I would have Haula above of Granlund, and probably Salomäki lower. But it's tough to combine drafted and younger kids in one list. And even though Pulkkinen isn't in Detroit's top-10, it doesn't mean he shouldn't be in the top-20 for Finns. Detroit just happens to have a very good & deep prospect pool.
After a tough start (22 games, 3+3), Pulkkinen has 27 points in 32 games with "only" 15:19 icetime per game. And other than the points, I think he has developed his overall game substantially.
Ideal height for a modern goalie is said to be between 6'1'' and 6'2'', Saros is well below that. I haven't checked the current situation in NHL, but maybe 2 out of 60 goalies are under 6'0''. Saros is maybe 5'10'', so I have my doubts about his upside as a NHL goalie. Talented kid though, no denying it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ChadS
I would have Haula above of Granlund, and probably Salomäki lower. But it's tough to combine drafted and younger kids in one list.
Haula might play a more hardnosed style of game than Ma.Granlund, so I understand your view, I was actually wavering how to rank those two. Decided to go with Granlund, mostly due to his slightly better puck skills. We haven't seen much of Haula during the last two years (after the 2011 WJC's), so it's hard to judge his current talent level. With the lack of recent viewings, the fact that he hasn't been ranked to Wild's top-10 in any of the recent Future Watch issues also affected his placing a bit.
I see Salomäki having a better chance of developing into a NHL player than Ma.Granlund, so that's why I placed him slightly higher on the list. Lesser puck skills, but better two-way game and superior tools for contact situations.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ChadS
And even though Pulkkinen isn't in Detroit's top-10, it doesn't mean he shouldn't be in the top-20 for Finns. Detroit just happens to have a very good & deep prospect pool.
Pulkkinen was one of the many players that I considered for the backend of the list. This time I decided to go with prospects that had more untapped potential. Pulkkinen might one day be a EHT level player, but personally I've been very skeptical about his chances of turning into a NHL regular.
Since you seem to follow Jokerit a lot, do you think there's a big gap between Pulkkinen and Teemu Eronen as prospects? Eronen is one of the guys born in the nineties that have played EHT hockey this season, so I guess he should've been a candidate for this list. The others are Jere Sallinen, Kristian Näkyvä and Joni Ortio.
Pulkkinen was one of the many players that I considered for the backend of the list. This time I decided to go with prospects that had more untapped potential. Pulkkinen might one day be a EHT level player, but personally I've been very skeptical about his chances of turning into a NHL regular.
Since you seem to follow Jokerit a lot, do you think there's a big gap between Pulkkinen and Teemu Eronen as prospects? Eronen is one of the guys born in the nineties that have played EHT hockey this season, so I guess he should've been a candidate for this list. The others are Jere Sallinen, Kristian Näkyvä and Joni Ortio.
As NHL prospects I think they are quite similar, and they both have clear weaknesses in size and physical play. Eronen's skating is always praised but I personally find it a bit overrated, at least in terms of speed. His defensive coverage is okay and he clearly has hockey sense but lacks strenght and rarely plays the body. He makes a couple too many mistakes in his own end with the puck but that amount has decreased compared to last year. His shot has developed a bit from last year and on the PP he can move the puck quite well. I've also heard that he's got great leadership skills.
With Pulkkinen I am not going to make any conclusions before I see him play in the AHL next year. That should show how his style fits the NA game and if he can work on his skating some more, although it has developed lately.
Who is this kid? He's 95 born defenseman now playing for Ilves senior team. Has good size at 6'2, 190 lbs. Somehow I feel like the fact that he's playing with the mens team is mostly because of the desperate situation Ilves is in, since there's no talk about him and he's not one of the top defensmen of the u18 team
All-stars:
GK - Ville Ruokonen, SaiPa (top goalie)
D - Juuso Välimäki, Ilves (top defenseman)
D - Tarmo Reunanen, TPS
F - Jesse Puljujärvi, Kärpät (top forward + MVP)
F - Otto Mäkinen, Tappara
F - Tino Siren, TPS
National team candidates:
GK - Severi Isokangas, He-Ki
GK - Daniel Ketonen, TPS
GK - Leevi Laakso, KalPa
GK - Ville Ruokonen, SaiPa
--------------------------
D - Niklas Almari, Blues
D - Oliver Felixson, HIFK
D - Juuso Järviö, HPK
D - Kalle Kaunisvaara, Roki
D - Jani Kluuskeri, TPS
D - Jesper Kokkila, Kärpät
D - Kasper Kotkasalo, Blues
D - Urho Lensu, JYP
D - Markus Niemeläinen, HPK
D - Eetu Pylkkänen, Blues Ak
D - Jarkko Pynnönen, Pelicans
D - Tarmo Reunanen, TPS
D - Robin Salo, Sport
D - Vili Simonen, KooKoo
D - Antti Virtanen, RoKi
D - Juuso Välimäki, Ilves
--------------------------
F - Roope Hirvonen, Jokerit
F - Janne Hämäläinen, HIFK
F - Erno Hänninen, Blues
F - Juha Jääskä, HIFK
F - Ilmari Karhapää, Blues
F - Konsta Keteli, JYP
F - Paavo Kilponen, Ilves
F - Niko Kuiri, Jokipojat
F - Janne Kuokkanen, K-Laser
F - Juuso Könönen, KalPa
F - Jesper Larinmaa, TuTo
F - Otto Mäkinen, Tappara
F - Pete Niemi, Tappara
F - Aleksi Nousiainen, Kärpät
F - Niklas Nousiainen, Ässät
F - Emil Oksanen, Blues
F - Jesse Puljujärvi, Kärpät
F - Turkka Pumpanen, RoKi
F - Tino Siren, TPS
F - Anton Stråka, JYP
F - Artturi Toivola, HPK
F - Juho Topi-Hulmi, TPS
F - Eetu Tuulola, HPK
F - Oskari Uomala, Blues
Olli Juolevi, Aapeli Räsänen, Markus Nurmi and Jarkko Aalto were among the 14 that admitted trying snus, and therefore got kicked out of the camp. Another interesting point is that Patrik Laine's name is missing from the NT candidate list.
Oh for crying out loud... I understand their stance in this, because we're talking about 14-year-old kids here, but how long are they going to be 'blacklisted' and therefore not eligible for to play in international tournaments?
Oh for crying out loud... I understand their stance in this, because we're talking about 14-year-old kids here, but how long are they going to be 'blacklisted' and therefore not eligible for to play in international tournaments?
If I understood right what Ahokas said, they could be back at next selections. (u16)
Has anyone seen Linus Nyman and Sami Moilanen play? They seem be producing a lot together in the C2 league. And Nyman chosen as the most promising -99 forward, is he that good?
The case is that team Coach Ahokas dont like him .
Doesn't like his attitude or is it more about how he performs on the ice? Or perhaps both?
Laine is an offensively minded player. From what I've seen he can sometimes spend too much time behind the play and doesn't show enough effort defensively. In addition he likes taking risks with the puck, this can cause a few too many turnovers. I can understand that he's not a coaches favorite player, but dropping him from the national team won't help him become a more well-rounded player.
If it's an attitude problem, then I can perhaps better understand the approach of leaving him out of the national team for now.
Doesn't like his attitude or is it more about how he performs on the ice? Or perhaps both?
Laine is an offensively minded player. From what I've seen he can sometimes spend too much time behind the play and doesn't show enough effort defensively. In addition he likes taking risks with the puck, this can cause a few too many turnovers. I can understand that he's not a coaches favorite player, but dropping him from the national team won't help him become a more well-rounded player.
If it's an attitude problem, then I can perhaps better understand the approach of leaving him out of the national team for now.
"Huge winger with a heavy shot, has the ability to pull off highlight reel moves and score really nice goals when the conditions favour him. Some nice stretch passes, but suffers a bit from tunnel vision when concentrates heavily on deking. Tries different moves and passes, his success ratio needs to improve, too many turnovers. Has a huge reach advantage in comparison to most of his opponents. Frustrates easily, floats, not the most active backcheker, isn’t defensively that responsible. An opportunistic player, might run into trouble when the pace of the game gets higher, needs to spend more time inside the game. Generates good speed on a straight line, pivots need some work. Can be a tough player to play against when he sets his mind to it, some good hits as well."
Someone might say that on some nights Laine and a young Teemu Pulkkinen have a similar approach to the defensive side of the game: It doesn't interest them.
"Huge winger with a heavy shot, has the ability to pull off highlight reel moves and score really nice goals when the conditions favour him. Some nice stretch passes, but suffers a bit from tunnel vision when concentrates heavily on deking. Tries different moves and passes, his success ratio needs to improve, too many turnovers. Has a huge reach advantage in comparison to most of his opponents. Frustrates easily, floats, not the most active backcheker, isn’t defensively that responsible. An opportunistic player, might run into trouble when the pace of the game gets higher, needs to spend more time inside the game. Generates good speed on a straight line, pivots need some work. Can be a tough player to play against when he sets his mind to it, some good hits as well."
Someone might say that on some nights Laine and a young Teemu Pulkkinen have a similar approach to the defensive side of the game: It doesn't interest them.
I assume you mean younger because the current Pulkkinen is very defensively responsible.
And it's good remember that Laine is still young boy.When he plays B junior ,he plays very well.I'm sure that Tappara invest this junior.I think that after next summer he can be quite good and surprise many people.He is such a boy that people either loves or hates him and how he plays.
My first post here on HF! So here it goes..
Do you guys see any potential in some of TPS young prospects, such as Rasmus Kulmala, Santtu Huhtala and some of the younger ones like Krister Mähönen, Jesper Lindsten(who used to play as a Dman, but have played as a RW/C/LW this year) and Mikko Rantanen. Can any of those be a NHLer one day? Yeah I left Ristolainen out, because he seems to be quite obvious NHLer in couple of years.
My first post here on HF! So here it goes..
Do you guys see any potential in some of TPS young prospects, such as Rasmus Kulmala, Santtu Huhtala and some of the younger ones like Krister Mähönen, Jesper Lindsten(who used to play as a Dman, but have played as a RW/C/LW this year) and Mikko Rantanen. Can any of those be a NHLer one day? Yeah I left Ristolainen out, because he seems to be quite obvious NHLer in couple of years.
Hi and welcome to the boards!
Kulmala is talented kid but i see slim changes for him to be in NHL some day.
Mikko Rantanen has better change to get there some day cause there's a bigger change for him to get drafted
