Best and worst case NHL Draft prospect scenarios

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Athletic Hockey Show – Prospect Series

Episode: Best and Worst Case NHL Draft Prospect Scenarios

Date: May 8, 2026
Hosts/Panelists: Max Bultman, Scott Wheeler, Corey Pronman (The Athletic), Chris Peters (Flow Hockey)

Episode Overview

This episode dives into the 2026 NHL Draft landscape, focusing on the best and worst case scenarios for top draft prospects, what makes this draft especially unpredictable at the top, and how organizational needs and prospect tiers are shaping both mock drafts and team strategies. The group draws from Scott Wheeler’s fresh new mock draft and Corey Pronman’s recent “best/worst case” article to debate specific player fits, especially for teams picking at the very top (notably Toronto and San Jose), and discuss which prospects could rise or fall on draft day.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Early Draft Unpredictability and Mock Draft Challenges

• Difficult Range: Wheeler notes that after a consistent top-4, things get "more dynamic, more interesting" starting at pick 5 (NY Rangers):

  “It felt to me like Gavin McKenna, Ivar Stenberg, Caleb Malhotra and Chase Reed were kind of the top four guys … Things started to get more dynamic, more interesting at number five.” (Chris Peters, 02:56)

• Late-first Surprises: The late-first is viewed as especially volatile, with more defensemen likely to creep in than anticipated, plus surprising omissions (e.g., Mathis Preston, The Ruck Twins):

  "I didn't have guys like Jacob Vanichek, who I think has a very real chance to sneak into the first round as well.” (Chris Peters, 02:56)

2. Evaluating Defensemen vs Forwards at the Top

• Similarities and Debates: The value contrast between high-skill wingers (McKenna, Stenberg) and strong defense prospects (Reed, Verhoff, Smiths, Carols) dominates. The group invokes historical analogies (Moritz Seider, Shane Wright) and notes how perception and positional "premium" can tilt decisions:

  “If you come down where you think like the offense is just average, … they’re more like five to ten … But … if you think Smith and Verhoff do have offense who will be second power play, fringe first power play … [they] have them like two or three on their list.” (Corey Pronman, 06:36) “It’s not a draft with major distinctions between all these prospects.” (Corey Pronman, 22:26)

3. Toronto Maple Leafs – Who to Take at No. 1?

The case for Gavin McKenna (F):

• Immediate Impact + Star Power:

  “He helps to sell Auston Matthews ... And then as a player, I believe that Gavin is the most talented player in this draft ... He has the highest ceiling ... He’s one of one in this draft class.” (Chris Peters, 15:58)

• Market Pressure:

  “From a fan base and navigating … Toronto right now, people want … Gavin. That … they won’t be able to ignore.” (Chris Peters, 15:58)

The case for a defenseman:

• Premium Position:

  “You got to take the guy who you think is the best player. … The premium position element of it would, would sway me a little bit.” (Corey Pronman, 20:26)

• Long-Term Team Needs:

  “They built a team with super forwards and it didn’t work … What lessons do you take from that?” (Max Bultman, 24:22)

• Reality Check:

  “They were dead last in coursey percentage … the worst 5v5 team in the league … This seems like more than one player away.” (Corey Pronman, 26:36)

Comparison to Montreal’s Shane Wright–Slafkovsky draft:

• “Wright didn’t have a great season … Whereas I think McKenna has had that monster season … Now, he’s not a 6’3” physical centerman, he’s a 5’11” not physical winger.” (Corey Pronman, 19:05)

4. San Jose Sharks – Best Use of Top Pick

• Blunt Organizational Need:

  “That is the pick I’m looking at ... This is a team that should draft for need really high ... Celebrini, Smith, Misa, Chair … they have the forward system to completely justify the D pick.” (Scott Wheeler, 28:30)

• Scenario if Toronto Takes Reed:

  “What if the Maple Leafs take Chase Reed? Then where do you go from there if you feel this intense need to add D?” (Chris Peters, 32:58)

• Depth Perception:

  “The gap between like 3 to 10 on my list is like almost nothing … It’s very reasonable to look at needs.” (Corey Pronman, 30:05)

5. Core Prospect Debates – Best/Worst Case Scenarios

Caleb Malhotra

• Best-case: First-line center in NHL (think: Matty Beniers)
• Worst-case: Middle-six two-way center
• On his late rise:

  “There’s some minority opinions in the league that have him at one … I think 2,3,4 he’s definitely in play.” (Corey Pronman, 40:49)

• Comparisons:

  “My comp for him is Beniers … His trajectory is similar to Beckett Sennecke's a couple years ago.” (Corey Pronman, 41:09)

• On comparables:

  “Malhotra does it with more pace than Denoye … that's the separator.” (Chris Peters, 42:38)

Viggo Bjork (5’9” C)

• High public love, size risk:

  “I think Bjork does feel like he’s still gonna slot in as a really likable player in the NHL … But if teams don’t think it’s high, high upside for these 5’9” guys, it can be hard for them to get into the top 10.” (Scott Wheeler, 43:29)

• The Point–Savoy Conundrum:

  “The concern with Bjork, you want Brayden Point, but you’re worried about Savoy and Rossi, who both went top 10.” (Corey Pronman, 44:08)

• Ceiling/Risk spectrum:

  “I’ve had teams say, don’t be surprised if he goes 5 and don’t be surprised if he goes 15.” (Corey Pronman, 44:52)

• Defensive prowess & role:

  “I think he’s got a real chance to win a Selke … he’s already driving results at a very high level on a good team.” (Chris Peters, 47:09)

Ethan Belches (6’5” W)

• Best-case: Top-10 “horse,” possible Matthew Knies/Slafkovsky type
• Downsides: Inconsistent production and skating may limit ceiling
• Draft range volatility:

  “There’s real chance … this is like a 60 point power winger … but concerns over his pace … the big physical winger, there’s been a couple of guys who’ve emerged who can compete for that.” (Corey Pronman, 50:23)

• Historical context:

  “Initially there were scouts I talked to earlier who said he’s going top five all day. Then as you’re going … maybe top 10 … now … I don’t know if he’s even a guarantee to go in the top 15, although I think … he’s still probably gonna go there because … it’s so hard to find players like this.” (Corey Pronman, 50:23–51:56)

• Wheeler:

  “I mean, there was a time here where … we used the name Slafkovsky talking about the best case scenario for Belches. He doesn’t skate like Slafkovsky..." (Scott Wheeler, 52:08)

• Peters:

  “Both times leaving the rink, I ran into people talking about him as a top five stud … that was October, November.” (Chris Peters, 52:18)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On fan expectations and groupthink:

  “It doesn’t seem like fans have been engaged with the McKenna debate as much as we have. … it doesn’t seem like fans realize how close it is at the top of this draft.” (Max Bultman, 09:04)

• Historical reminders:

  “Wright didn’t have a great season. … McKenna has had that monster season. He had a great year in college hockey. … He’s a 5’11, not physical winger. So there’s some major distinctions there.” (Corey Pronman, 19:05)

• On team needs overriding BPA (Best Player Available):

  “If you look at these players … you think there’s a distinction here, you take the most talented player. ... Some wingers can be the most talented player—he could be, you know, if … McKenna could be Patrick Kane. Patrick Kane had a hell of an NHL career. You take Patrick Kane.” (Corey Pronman, 26:36)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:56 – The “dynamic” start of the draft after pick 4, late-1st round landmines
• 05:21 – Early draft fit discussions (Daxon Rudolph, Smits, Carols)
• 07:55 – Defenseman comps (Carl’s as McDonagh, Heskinen); diverging team tastes
• 09:04 – 12:39 – The gap between public discourse and team scouting, centers/D rising
• 15:22 – 22:36 – Toronto’s case: McKenna’s appeal, defenseman alternatives, historic parallels
• 24:22 – 28:30 – Team-building philosophy for the Leafs, defensive needs, what past strategies suggest
• 30:05 – 35:23 – San Jose’s situation: BPA vs dire need on D, what happens if top D isn’t available
• 40:21 – 53:13 – In-depth best/worst case prospect scenarios: Malhotra, Bjork, Belches

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Conclusion & Takeaways

• No Clear Chalk at the Top: This draft’s top 10–12 prospects are unusually tightly bunched—teams’ internal rankings will vary widely, and organizational “fit” will play a big role.
• Big Debate – Skill vs. Need: Especially for Toronto and San Jose, this draft is a test of “best player available” vs. “best fit for what we lack,” especially as patience for long builds runs thin.
• Prospect Ranges Are Wide: Even top prospects like Bjork and Belches could go much earlier or later than public boards expect, due to size, team taste, and late-season surges.
• Watch for Draft Night Surprises: With defensemen likely to go higher than early mocks project, expect late jumps and drops, and possibly trade-up or trade-down strategies if a coveted player disappears early.

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For the full episode, find The Athletic Hockey Show – Prospect Series at your favorite podcast platform.

Transcript

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[Max Boltman]

This is the athletic hockey show prospect series.

[Corey Pronman]

Foreign.

[Scott Wheeler]

Hey everybody, Max Boltman here alongside the Athletics Scott Wheeler and Corey Promman and Flow Hockey's Chris Peters for another episode of the Athletic Hockey Show Prospect Series. We've had a couple days now, guys, to digest the draft lottery we had. I thought the reactions that you guys had on Tuesday night I think are still going to be the big topics at the very top of the draft, but we're going to come back to those after a little bit of time to think on it. We're going to talk about kind of the best and worst case scenarios for the top group of, you know, 10 to 12 prospects there. Corey had a great article on that this week on the Athletic, but I actually want to start, Scott with your mock draft that just came out today. It's a fresh mock draft. You. You saw our staff mock before you were. I mean, before this one came out, obviously. But I wonder what the hardest spots you found yourself at in this draft were. It does feel like there's a. There's a cluster of names that, you know, go through right about 10 to 12 that. That are the group. I wonder difficulties in there. Did it start after there? Like what were the hardest spots of putting this together?

[Chris Peters]

I think there were sort of two ranges, if you will, that that's where things got a little trickier. The first was starting at five for me. I think those first four names on my list are going to be the first four names picked. I think there's a chance that Chase Reid isn't the first D taken and that you see a Carson Carls sort of go in that range potentially. But when I started texting around with people immediately after the lottery, uh, it. It felt to me like Gavin McKenna, Ivar Stenberg, Caleb Malhotra and Chase Reed were kind of the top four guys and that the. Things started to get more dynamic, more interesting. At number five with the Rangers, I had the Rangers taking Keaton Verhoff, but I. They're a tricky one. Like they need just about everything, so there isn't a clear angle. Angle there. And when I started texting around with people about some of those names, whether it's people around the kids or sort of scouts with other teams and that kind of thing. As I began to finalize how. How my sort of mock was going to take shape, they were. They felt to. Not just to me, but to other people, like the. The start of where it gets interesting. And then it's always tricky later like the. The. The. The 20s and 30s. There are a couple of big demand that I know are going to go in that range. The centers are going to go higher like the commands and the. Those sort of pieces in the second half of the first round are going to go earlier than people maybe expect. And then you're going to see some of those. Like you guys probably noticed there was no Mathis Preston. No, neither of the Ruck twins were. In my first round. I had guys like Ignatovicius and others that people were telling me like these are the names that are going to go in the first round and. And inevitably there's going to be more D in the first round than people expect too. And I didn't have guys like Jacob Vanichek, who I think has a very real chance to sneak into the first round as well. So that sort of finding out who the names were that teams felt were going to go late in the first round was a part. Was it a tricky part of it? Because there are. Is some. Some sort of divergence from my list There and then at the top, it really felt like the Rangers at five is where things get interesting. And with the way that Daxon Rudolph is playing, he was another player that I dug in on a lot because it does. It is feeling to me like Daxon is very much in that group with, with Smits, with Carols, with. With Verhoff in terms of those d around that 5 to 78 range.

[Scott Wheeler]

I know when we did the staff mock like I was assigned to pick for Florida and Smiths was the guy who you have going to Florida. He was the guy that I was hoping would, would make it to my pick because I think he's a great fit there. But I, I'm surprised that for a player who played at the Olympics, who we're going to see again at the World Championships, who's had a lot of success versus men. Like, I know it's a, it's a heavy D class and everyone's kind of got their flavor, but that was a name I was surprised to see hang around that long.

[Chris Peters]

Yeah, I wonder a little bit about a bump at the end of the year. Like Daxton has definitely had a bump bump from the way that he has played with Prince Albert. I wonder the same thing with Alberts. Like is he going to get that sort of Moritz Sider bump? Moritz Sider kind of went from a top 10, top 15 guy that everybody really liked and he was great in the Del playoffs and similar line to draw between the Del playoffs. Although I don't think Smits was as impressive as Cider was in his DEL playoffs that year. But it it that that bump could matter like if he plays well at Men's Worlds and, and him and Rudolph are kind of the hot names, especially now that Mal. Everybody's high on Malhotra, but Malhotra playing into the MEM Cup I think would have even strengthened his case. We're going to see, I think, a little bit of a bump for Rudolph and for Smiths if they play well late in the season here just because they're the last guys that everybody's going to have eyes on.

[Corey Pronman]

The conversations I've had with teams about Smits is very similar to the conversation I've had with teams about Keaton Verhoff. And you know, everyone likes the size, everyone likes the skating, the projection there with, you know, the tools. I think with both of them, the question comes down to how smart they are and how much offense you think they're actually going to have in the NHL or the NHL power play guys, which you could argue is very similar to the cider debates about six years ago. And I think if you come down where you think like the offense is just average, they think them, they're more like five to 10, six to 10. But there are people who think Smith and Verhoff do have offense who will be second power play, fringe first power play. If, if you got to put them in a, put them in a pinch and those people have them like two or three on their list.

[Scott Wheeler]

I think there's a few different cases in this draft and really every draft where you get players who have kind of a couple similar traits and, and I look at Carl's and Smith's as kind of having just excellent athletes on the left side. Carl's skating, I think, is, is really, really good and Smith's is, is good. But I don't know if it's quite Carl's level. But those two, I think could be one that if one of them goes four or five, then the other could, you know, they could kind of trade places at any point here.

[Corey Pronman]

That's fair.

[Chris Peters]

I, I think there's a scenario where Carl's goes like 2, 3, 4, 2. Like, I, I think he's, he's in that. I know he's in that mix for some people.

[Scott Wheeler]

Who's your comp for him? Because as I've, as I've watched him, I was thinking like a lot of the guys, I feel like I want to compare him to like a sanderson or even, you know, hey, skin in on. On the high end. I think still have more natural offense than I've seen from him.

[Corey Pronman]

The one I've heard that I liked as McDonough.

[Scott Wheeler]

And he's a better skater than McDonough.

[Chris Peters]

Right.

[Scott Wheeler]

Maybe I'm, maybe I'm thinking of old McDonough too much.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah, no, McDonough skating was pretty prolific when he was a teenager.

[Max Boltman]

Yeah.

[Scott Wheeler]

Okay, so that's a good one then. And he certainly can play in those tough minute situations and that's an appealing. Going to be an appealing player for teams very high in this draft. Were there any other spots of this mock Corey or Chris, as you saw Scott's mock this morning, where that really stood out to you either as a. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense or that's an interesting name there.

[Corey Pronman]

I feel like Gustafson has some helium behind him. I think Scott has him going around 15. It wouldn't surprise me if he gets up closer to 10 once we get through the combine process and stuff like that. I just feel like a 6 4D who I know goal your won best defenseman at the U18s, but I feel like Gustafson was probably better there. Like, I feel like there's going to be a lot of talk for, for him going these next few weeks.

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[Max Boltman]

So the one that I've noticed just more in terms of audience, audience involvement, if you will, is the, the pushing back of Stenberg slipping to four, which I don't think is out of the question. And that's where I mocked him as well, Scott, on my early one. And that to me, like, the question is, it's not really about, you know, the. Everybody agrees, I think, that the player is pretty exceptional and that there's a lot of great things. And the question is, is really, you know, is he going to be a top two pick? You know, everybody. At least the public consensus seems to be that at least if my mentions are to be believed, which is never a good metric for, for this kind of thing, but it helps tell a story about what fans think this draft looks like. And I think there's a couple of things that I'm noticing is that it doesn't seem like fans have been engaged with the McKenna debate as much as we have. And secondly, they don't realize how close it is at the top of this draft. And, and that, to me, is really the difference here. And so I don't have a. I take zero issue with where Scott mocked him because I mocked him in the same spot. I'm just saying it seems that the public discourse is quite different from the kind of conversations we've been having over the course of the whole year. So basically what I'm saying is people should listen to this podcast.

[Chris Peters]

I think because the group is, is such a big group this year, it has been harder for the, the casual fan to keep tabs. Like, everybody knows the two Wings and Keaton Verhoff, that, that felt like the starting point for the average fan. And I don't know whether people are as in tune with where Chase Reed is at, where, where Carson Carrolls is at, where Daxon Rudolph is at. In previous drafts, we had Will Smith and Adam Fantilli and Leo Carlson, and there were, there were four names you had to know in this draft. There might be 10 or 11 names that, that you need to know at the top of the draft. So I do think that we're, we're going to have to sort of introduce people to, to names 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 here in the coming weeks because it does feel, especially with Chase Reed like I, I just don't think people realize the kind of talent that Chase Reed is maybe quite yet.

[Max Boltman]

Yeah.

[Chris Peters]

And, and so there's a bit of catch up happening it feels like in

[Corey Pronman]

with our readers to Scott, Sorry to Max's point. I had one team reach out to me within the last week about Stenberg and he, you know he made an the team source made an analogy to William Eklund and his draft year where everybody, every mock draft had him 2, 3, 4 essentially in those final few weeks and he gets to the Sharks was at nine where he, where he eventually went, you know. And now Stenberg has a much better track record of scoring than Eklund did. But you argue Eklund's better skater. But I feel like that's, you know, it's not a novel take to say that when, when it's closed, centers and defensemen tend to rise. And I think we all agree that this top group is close. So I don't think it should surprise anybody if a center or defense bid or multiple go ahead of one or both of those wingers. I'm not saying it's the likely scenario. I still think we all kind of agree McKenna's the odds on favor to go one. But history has shown that that doesn't usually that 511 wingers don't go 1, 2, 1. So I don't think we should be surprised if that's not the case.

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[Scott Wheeler]

well, while we're talking about the top of the draft, let's, let's go back there. Now that we've had a couple days to sit on this, to think about the Maple Leafs, the San Jose Sharks, specific to Toronto. I think most of our conversation centered around Gavin McKenna. Chris, I know you kind of raised the point toward the end about the idea of going for a defenseman here, but after a couple days to think about it, I mean I, I kind of would almost like each of you to to make the affirmative case for one of the options here, McKe Stenberg or a defenseman. And I guess we're lumping all the defensemen into one, so that's maybe the field option. But Scott, why don't you start us out? Do you want to make like the affirmative case for Gavin McKenna on the Toronto Maple Leafs?

[Chris Peters]

I think the case for McKenna is, is layered. Like there's there it's multi pronged if you will. The on one hand I think he helps to sell Auston Matthews and that is a part of this conversation for the Leafs, like where they're at as an organization, the age of their core. We touched on it on our live reaction. Austin's going to be 29 in September. Willie is already 30. John Tavares is on the other side of 35. They, they care deeply about these next two years and selling Auston Matthews, I think and you can probably put Stenberg into this category as well. But the wingers, the fact that they're going to both play in the NHL next year and in McKenna's case playing on the power play with Austin, that immediate guy for Austin to to be drawn to potentially as a linemate, even if he's not as a linemate, the idea of him as a future linemate, I think that is a calculus for Toronto. I think the fame and star power is a part of the calculus. Whether anybody's willing to admit it. Who Gavin McKenna is as, as a person in the hockey world already at an early age, I think is a part of it. And then as a player, I believe that Gavin is the most talented player in this draft and that from a pure upside, a pure offense standpoint that he has the highest ceiling to reach for in this draft, I think it's going to be a struggle for him early on, but I have issues and flaws and nitpicks with all of the top guys in this class. And I think in Gavin, the ability to make plays, the ability to pull you out of your seat, the ability to immediately inject something onto a PP1 at the NHL level that is unique to him. And Stenberg's a very, very, very high end talent in his own right. But from a pure vision playmaking pick you apart from the perimeter of the ice skill level standpoint, he is one of one in this draft class and I think that's the case is just take, take the ultimate skill guy and on top of that he's Gavin McKenna and he, he might help you with the pitch to Auston Matthews. I think that makes a pretty compelling case. If you're the Leafs. And it's hard. It's also hard like say what you will, even if you like some of those other players from a perception standpoint like it, it would take stones not to take Gavin at 1. It's different if you move back. It also takes tones to move back when you have the first overall pick, which is why it never happens. But from a, from a pure fan base and navigating where how hot the market is in Toronto right now, people want. You can already tell people want it to be Gavin. And that is. That's a layer here, too, whether. Whether the Leafs in their brass would ever admit to that. I think that's a very real layer that they won't be able to ignore.

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[Scott Wheeler]

Not the first time we've heard that sentiment, though, right? I mean, especially in a major Canadian market.

[Corey Pronman]

Corey. Yeah, we heard. We showed up to the draft in 22. I think what was like a third of the stadium was filled with Montreal Shane Wright jerseys. Now, the distinct. And this is going to come up in this conversation where I think the distinction is between right, and McKenna is. Wright didn't have a great season.

[Scott Wheeler]

Yeah.

[Corey Pronman]

And there were real issues with him going into his draft, just like there's issues with McKenna. But I feel like he played his way out of the first pick. It's not like Slafkovsky had this absolute monster season. He had monster stretches, but he didn't have a monster season. Whereas I think McKenna has had that monster season. He had a great year in college hockey. He did what Fantilly did in college hockey. Now, he's not a 63 physical centerman. He's a 5' 11, not physical winger. So there's some major distinctions there in the. In the profile. But, I mean, there's. All this guy has done over his entire life is score. He scored at the world juniors, he scored in college. He scored at prolific levels in junior. Yeah, I mean, I. I think there's a really good case to take him as a player, but I also think that if you look at the history in Toronto, no matter what you do, you're going to get fired. You know, every GM gets fired within a couple of years. I would be more concerned with making the right pick than the perception pick, because odds are if you don't win a Stanley cup in Toronto in the next five years to get to the Finals in the next five years, you're going to get fired anyways.

[Scott Wheeler]

All right, So I said I wanted each of you to kind of make it an affirmative case for someone.

[Max Boltman]

Do you.

[Scott Wheeler]

Is there someone who you would like to make an affirmative case for? For the Toronto Maple Leafs? Be it Stenberg via Reed? Anyone? Anyone?

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah. My lean is to take a defenseman here, and I'm still struggling with which. Who that defenseman is. I kind of have. I basically have all these guys, like, in a really tight group right now, and the three names I'm really struggling with are Reed and Verhoff and Smiths. Like, I said, I think that McKenna and Stenberg play next year. I actually think Smiths could play next year. I think, and I think there's some people in the league. I think Smith will be in the league, could be in the league next year. It might be a little aggressive. He might need a year in the American League. Kind of like how cider did, for example, since we've been using the cider example. But like I said, I think you got to take the guy, I think you got to take the guy who you think is the best player. And I think just the premium position element of it would, would sway me a little bit. And I agree with everything Scott said. I think McKenna is the most talented player in the draft. He has the best hands in the draft. He has the best hockey sense in the draft. He's really, he's really talented. I think it's basically a tie. So I'm, I wouldn't, I would praise Toronto for taking McKenna. I take, I praise him for taking Stenberg. I think they're all great players. This is not a draft with major distinctions between all these prospects. But for. I tend to agree with how teams have tended to do this, that when it's close, you take the premium position guys. And I just think it's close. And I think that's really where the discussion is going to go with us over these next few weeks is we mentioned this on the show a couple days ago. You know, you look at Scott's last list, he has Stenberg and McKenna and then there's a tear break to Reed and to Malhotra into Carl's, etc. I think distinguishing why there's a tear gap is more interesting than picking the name because if I just say it's close and Scott says it's not close, okay, well, that's the end of the conversation. But I feel like if we get into why we think it's not close, it's more interesting. I think it's close. I would take a defenseman, I would rather. And I don't think Auston Matthews is going to care whether you get a 40 point winger or a 50 point winger for one season. I think Reid and Verhoff and Smiths and Carlos, they're all going to be in the league a year from now. And if you think they're the best player, they'll be just as good if not better than the wingers by year two, year three.

[Chris Peters]

I don't know that that's true with the struggles that we've seen. Defensemen like we're seeing tons of top five top ten pick defensemen. Take two. Three. Obviously, Schaefer's an exception. I don't think we, any of us think that any of these players are Schaefer. Lane Hudson and Simon Edmondson might be a little bit of an exception, but it took Simon Edmondson a couple of years too. Outside of those guys, like, we've been through the list, but Steve Boyam, Sam Dickinson, Zane Parek, they all get into the league and they have a really tough go initially. So I do think there is something to the fact that it might. You might see earlier success from a Stenberg or. And maybe that's the case. Like if we're making an affirmative case for Stenberg, maybe it is that he is closer to ready to make an impact than, than even Gavin is potentially. And, and then the D and then the D man are. But it's, it's. I, like, I, I don't think it's a guarantee that any of those defensemen are any good a year from now in the NHL or two years from now. And I'm not even convinced that some of those D man like Chase Reed shouldn't spend two years in college instead of one year in college, which really pushes it down the line. So that, that part of it, like there's risk with some of those D that you're waiting three, four years for them to figure it out.

[Corey Pronman]

Am I crazy or did I think that Reed was just as good as McKenna or Stenberg was at the World Juniors, like when they were on the same ice? I thought he was just as impactful at even.

[Scott Wheeler]

He was very noticeable, very nice.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah.

[Max Boltman]

Yeah.

[Corey Pronman]

I just have a hard time saying that these two, these two are going to be good in the NHL in two years, but Chase needs two years of college. I just, I don't know. I'm not saying that there's not a gap there. I don't know if the gap is that wide.

[Chris Peters]

I just think it's harder for defensemen in general. It's less a commentary on Chase and more about.

[Max Boltman]

I mean, let's also, let's also. Let's also recall about Chase Reed. This is a guy that started in the North American League two years ago or a year and a, you know, last year. And so there's still a lot of Runway for him. I do think, like, he's on a path. Maybe it's one year, but he's got to go. He's. He can't go into the league next year. But I do think if you're if you're the Toronto Maple Leafs, these are all of the discussions you have to have. You can't rubber stamp this. You have to have these conversations. You have to think about the things that, that matter and quite frankly, what have they been searching for for so long? What have they been? What, what has been the core? You built a team with super forwards and it didn't work. And that's, and that's the thing that, you know, you kind of, what lessons do you take from that? There isn't a defenseman out there that I think they can trade for or get in free agency that is going to significantly improve their long term outlook on the blue line. Yeah, that's. And now that. So they're faced with an opportunity here to potentially do that. Is Gavin McKenna the flashier, more exciting, possibly more pro ready of the options? Absolutely he is. But making that pick without addressing one of your most significant long term needs. And I'm not saying you address needs with the number one pick because you don't. But at the same time there's an opportunity here in a draft year where it is close and now you have to make that decision. What is going to be the best thing for us down the road? Is it going to be the, you know, a highly skilled winger or is it going to be a potential and not, certainly not a guaranteed but a potential top pairing defenseman?

[Chris Peters]

You, you have to go back to Boreas allming really to find a number one D in Toronto like Thomas Caberley wasn't a true number one. McCabe wasn't a true number one. Morgan Riley wasn't a true number one. So there is something to that in the market like that craving and John Chaika talked in his opening remarks about needing to remake this back end and in Toronto and no, there is for sure there's something to the premium and the scarcity of that. That top end right shot D if it's Carl's or the left shot D or left shot D if it's Carl's, right shot D if it's Reed. Those guys, there is something to how hard those guys are to find.

[Corey Pronman]

I, I guess I buy that. If you think McKenna or Stenberg are better. Yeah, take them because they need everything for sure they're not good, they're not a good team. Take if you think there's a distinction, again, if you think like you look at these players, I kind of. How Scott did you think there's a distinction here? You take the most talented player, you know, like that's Some wingers can be the most talented player he could be. You know, if you, some people think that McKenna could be Patrick Kane. Patrick Kane had a hell of an NHL career. You take Patrick Kane. I guess where I've seen like this discussion go Toronto like oh, you got to sell Auston Matthews. You got to get the more NHL ready guy. I mean I, I admit I didn't watch as much Toronto games as I thought I was going to last year just because they, other than cow not a lot of young guys on that team but they were awful like this past season. Art word. I just looked it up like they were dead last in in course he percentage this this past season. They were the worst 5v5 team in the league this past season. Like this seems like more than one player away from. Okay, it's all solved. We're back on track here.

[Scott Wheeler]

Like, yeah, good point.

[Corey Pronman]

Like, like I don't know if I

[Chris Peters]

would but they don't, they don't have a choice. Like the way that ownership and, and the new management group has already talked about it. They feel like they, they don't have a choice but to try to be better. And I think that's a real pressure point on them.

[Corey Pronman]

They want to be better.

[Chris Peters]

They have, but they, they can't commit to, to the long term at this stage. They don't have their next round picks, they don't have their first round pick for the next two years. They need to try to remake that blue line and get better. And we are only in Toronto a year removed from 105 points or whatever it was. Right. Like it's, they, I think they still believe that with better health and, and better goaltending from two good goalies that they can not, not necessarily that they're going to be 105 point team next year, but that they can get back into the playoff picture.

[Scott Wheeler]

I just want to add one thing which is that even if we're talking about this on the Auston Matthews scale, and I think that those are related conversations, one of the reasons Toronto needs to try to get better in year or two is very similar to Edmonton to kind of make that case to Matthews. But I will say, like, I think you can completely justify taking Gavin McKenna at one, even if you think Austin Matthews is going to leave and maybe that is part of why he makes sense at one, if Matthews leaves is because I wouldn't want to have made a pick that was, you know, predicated on the idea of okay, we gotta, you know, build this around Matthews and then all of A sudden I don't have Matthews. Now, granted, I get he's a winger and you're probably not trying to build your team around a skilled winger. There's very few teams that are built around that player type. But I think he, because of what we've talked about with the upside, that's actually a case that even if Matthews goes, McKenna could be the very right pick because at least you still have that 100 point player or upside of 100 point player in your system. So I, I think that's part of the, the Toronto conversation too there. I do want to shift this to San Jose though, because especially as we talk about needs, like that is the pick that I'm looking at and saying this is a team that should draft for need really high in the draft. That's how big I think the D need is for them. And just what they have at forward is so good. Celebrini Smith Misa Chair. You get the great surprise there at a player picked. I think he was like 33, 32, 33, and he looks like a potential top six forward. Like they, they have the forward system, I think to completely justify the D pick. But there's a question, Corey. What if they really, really like Stenberg or let's say McKenna doesn't go one or McKenna, is that a pick you would still endorse for them, given what they have at Ford and what they

[Max Boltman]

don't have, a D?

[Corey Pronman]

I think the analysis is pretty similar to the Toronto situation. It comes down to your evaluation of the player. I mean, if you think like this is close or it's kind of close, you know, I think sometimes we don't always kind of properly illustrate to our readers or listeners just how really tight a lot of these talent groups are. You know, ultimately you have to make a pick. You got to have a list and you put the names in order. But like, for me, the gap between like 3 to 10 on my list is like almost nothing. Now I realize in five years that will not be the case. Some players will be way better than others. But as things stand right now, a lot of times it's, it's, it is very close. And I think it's very reasonable to look at needs. And I think in the case of San Jose, there's diminishing returns a little bit because you, you don't know for sure how someone, especially like Chernyshev, who has only so limited NHL games, is going to pan out. We still don't really know what Michael Misa is ultimately going to be in the NHL. Is he going to be a first power play guy? Is he going to be a, like a high, high end offensive contributor? But you've invested, you know, three top four picks now in forwards and celebrity, who obviously is a superstar, and Will Smith, who's looked promising in the NHL in what he does, and then Michael Misa, who had a good second half. And you got to imagine long term that those three are part of your top power play, that that's the crux of how you're going to score goals. And if you draft another, you know, forward, a 511 wing and McKenna or Stenberg, it kind of neuters like Will Smith in a little bit. Right. Or Neuter is one of them because you're not probably putting them in the best position to succeed. You're probably putting one of them in like a bumper or a net front roll the power play as opposed to you draft someone like Chase Reed and he very seamlessly fits into that organization and the way they're building. Sam Dickinson's not the power play guy in that organization long term. And like I said, now, if you get through your meetings and you say, well, Stenberg's like, way better than Reed, like, there's a, there's a, there's a, there's a gap here. It's like, dang it, you suck it up and you, you figure it out because you can't. If you leave value on the table, that's long term. That's where things tend to bite you. But I think it's close. I, I don't. Chris, you haven't really weighed in on how close you think all this is. I know Scott doesn't think it's as close kind of thing, but I, Yeah,

[Max Boltman]

I mean, I think it's, I mean. Freezer. Yeah, go ahead, Scott.

[Chris Peters]

No, I was. They are like, they're 2 and 3 on my list, so there's a tier, tier gap between the two of them, but they're still back to back on my list. So it's not as though I'm going to be calling them losers on draft night or that kind of a thing, which we tend.

[Corey Pronman]

Would you take. Which would you take, Rita, too, if you were them given the tier gap, probably.

[Chris Peters]

He, he'd certainly be a part of a, part of the conversation with where they're at.

[Max Boltman]

Yeah. So, and, and for me, yes, it's, it's so tight, you know, on my working list right now, which is in public, Reid is number two for me. And that was, I've Been going back and forth between the two of them for a while. You know, I even flirted with the idea of Reed being number one. I just, I couldn't get there. But, you know, I think that what, what San Jose needs, and I talked about this a bit the other day, what San Jose needs is, is really they have zero right shot defenseman outside of Eric Polecamp who they just signed out of college. You know, they, they have guys that are, are pending free agents that are right shot D like John Klingberg and, But they have nothing in their system really beyond that. Matthias Havillet, if you want, you know, put him in there. The rest are left shot defenseman. Chase Reed, you know, obviously fills a significant need within the system. I think he plays the style that the Sharks are going to play or need defensemen to play to push the pace offensively. They need guys that can move the pocket. Think Eric Polkamp can do that too. And down, down the stretch, but a little further down their lineup. So, you know, I think that there's a strong, just a very strong case here that they should be thinking D. What makes it interesting to me is what happens if the Maple Leafs take Chase Reed. Then where do you go from there if you feel this intense need to add D? And who's the next guy on your list? Is it Carl's, another left shot guy? You know, like that, that's, that's the, that's the interesting dynamic is what if the decision's taken out of their hands, which I don't think it will be, but, but at the same time, that's, that's to me is, is the scenario where the Sharks can come away from this draft feeling like they've added something of significant value to them in particular. Whereas if they were to add on a Stenberg or you know, a Kayla Malhotra or something of that nature, like, oh, okay, another forward for the Warches. We just talked about the Toronto Maple Leafs building through their forward group and look at how well that turned out. You know, we're now talking about is this a rebuild? Is it not? What are we doing? You know, Mitch Marner's gone. Like, what is next? I think that, you know, really it's not just a need based pick for me. This is, you know, BPA very well could be Chase Reed.

[Corey Pronman]

I'm not, I don't think there's very likely it's going to happen, but I'm kind of chuckling at the idea of like a top line of San Jose of like celebrating between like McKenna and Will Smith.

[Scott Wheeler]

I think Smith's one of McKenna's comps, to be honest. I think he's very much on the continuum for McKenna.

[Corey Pronman]

No, he's like, just like. Just like celebrating. Has to win every puck battle, essentially.

[Max Boltman]

Just funnel the pucks to Mac and just. Just get out of the way.

[Scott Wheeler]

So, yeah, we're way too early in the draft cycle for me to be throwing stuff like this out, but I'm going to do it anyway. If Reed does go one. Chris, would you like. Would Chicago entertain this?

[Max Boltman]

Would.

[Scott Wheeler]

Would you entertain this as San Jose? Would you call Chicago and say, I'll give you the second pick for Artem Levshinov and you can take one of the D that you see fit and you can come up and get one of your forwards.

[Max Boltman]

Oh, man, I didn't. I did not anticipate that curveball from Max Boltman. I. I think it's a conversation, you know, I think it's certainly a conversation. I think those deals are very, very hard. They're rare, very rare, hard to make, you know, and I think Levshinov. There's probably enough, you know, seeds of doubt at this point, based on his play over the last season where it's like, I don't know if I would, you know, necessarily make that, but I still think Artie's going to be a heck of a player and there's plenty of time for him to.

[Scott Wheeler]

To get better.

[Max Boltman]

But, yeah, that'd be a.

[Corey Pronman]

Also. Also a good example for Scott's point earlier, given I kind of think there's a lot of analogies between Chase Reed and Lev Shov at the same age.

[Max Boltman]

Yes.

[Scott Wheeler]

That's why I brought him up. Is like the comp that we have that. Corey, you have the comp on. On Reed as Dobson. That was the comp I think we had on Lev was Dobson.

[Corey Pronman]

I've changed it lately. I've been leaning more Seth Jones, but Jones took a while, too, to get going. But although he was. He was pretty good year one.

[Max Boltman]

He was good year one.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah.

[Scott Wheeler]

I actually like the one you put in the pessimistic and optimistic cases to John Carlson. I think that's another one that's very much in play for Chase Reed, and I think that was a very sharp one. So just. Just something to consider. I don't know that it needs to be Chicago that needs to be left enough.

[Corey Pronman]

I just.

[Scott Wheeler]

I'm interested in the idea that. I really feel like San Jose needs a D, and if they can't get the guy they want at 2 I wonder if you could use 2 to find the guy somewhere else. Just, just kind of something I've thought about.

[Corey Pronman]

I keep making the same point over and over again, but it comes down to player evaluation. If they think that Verhoff or Smiths or Carl's can run a first power play, then it changes the conversation. If they don't, then you're kind of like gritting your teeth there a little bit saying we're probably getting like a 2, 3 defenseman here at. At 2. Like that's not.

[Chris Peters]

Which is ultimately kind of what you have in Sam Dickinson.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah, like it's, it might be a good. The fine pick but like, you know, you mentioned about Will Smith, McKenna. I feel like I could see Stenberg flowing in with their team a little bit better. I still think because I think Stenberg has more skill than Michael Misa. I don't think it's a guarantee that Misa is like a 70, 80 point guy in the NHL. Top power play guy in the NHL. He might be this. Oh well, he's going to be the 2C on behind Mackley. But I just mean in terms of like his actual impact, like I think there's. He's an excellent player. I would still have him two in a redraft, but I think, you know, you're still one. I think you could see Stenberg get to 80 points in some years. I'm not sure if Misa is going to get there like consistently.

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[Corey Pronman]

all right,

[Scott Wheeler]

I mentioned the pessimistic and optimistic takes article that you had this week on the athletic quarry. I want there's three players in particular I want to zero in on and I'd love Chris and and Scott's opinions too here on on these pessimistic and optimistic cases as we go, but one of them is Caleb Balhotra who I we think could go what, as high as 3? I, I don't necessarily see him going 2, but who knows, I mean he could go very, very high in this draft. What do you see as kind of the swing for, for what this could look like in either direction?

[Corey Pronman]

Corey yeah, obviously he's the hot name of late right now after his great OHL playoff that just, that just ended. You know, there's some minority opinions in the league that have him about one. Like I don't think he's going one, but that's kind of like where the conversation is right now. Like hey, this guy has at least a chance, not a likely chance, but at least a chance to become a first line center. Which obviously gets people really excited. And we haven't really had a guy in that conversation for most of this season. Lawrence was there to start the year a little bit, but obviously he's faded hard the second half. You know, I think people see the six two centerman, the skating, the skill, the two way play and the offense was a question. Became less of a question the last couple of weeks here and they think like there's a path here for him to come really good. Maybe he's a, maybe he's a, maybe he's I don't think people think like he's a hard one. Like, like I can like, like we think like a top 10 center in the league but he could be like a below average one. Like I thought a bit My comp for him is veneers and veneers is Seattle's first line center. I'll be it on a. Not a great team. He has. He is you know could be a really good two and his trajectory is kind of similar to Beckett Seneca's a couple years ago where not a tremendous year but he played really big minutes on a great team, great postseason. You know he's not 64 like Seneca. He's not as dynamic as Seneca but like that's kind of the trajectory and I think there's a. Like I. There's not really a spot that I'd be shocked. Like I think one would drop some rattlesn people a little bit. But like I think 2, 3, 4, he's definitely in play.

[Scott Wheeler]

You like him more or less than Denoye similar profile a year ago.

[Corey Pronman]

Personally I think it's. They're nearly the same. I think they're very, very similar players. But I don't think the league views it that way.

[Chris Peters]

I think Caleb does it with with more pace than or they're both Caleb. I think Malhotra does it with more pace than. Than Denoyer and yeah and I think that that will be the separator there. Like I think he just thinks it a little little quicker plays with a little more pace, a little bit faster. But I mean Danway was the QMGHL playoffs MVP a year ago. Right. Like it is a similar path in terms of the product if you. If you match their production side by side combine their regular season and playoffs. Obviously the OHL is a different league than the qmjhl but there are they both played on top teams. They both went on deep runs same size two way. There's some. Some lines to draw there for sure.

[Corey Pronman]

In a few weeks I'll do my article comparing the top of the 26 to the top of the 25 draft and they're basically back to back.

[Max Boltman]

All right.

[Scott Wheeler]

Another player actually on the other side of the size spectrum here is Viggo Bjork. Because I think this is going to be one of the most popular players in this class among the public. I love him. I think all of you guys love him. The question is our NHL teams gonna love him because he's a 59 center. They certainly would love the the optimistic case you made Corey, which included the name Braden Point. But I, I do want like to me Bjork does feel like he's still gonna slot in as a really likable player in the NHL because of how hard he plays because of how smart he is. But we see time and again, if. If teams don't think it's high, high upside for these five, nine guys, it can be hard for them to. To get into the top 10, which is where I think he belongs on talent.

[Corey Pronman]

So there was a player four years ago who was five, nine, who skated pretty well, who's really skilled, who had a history of really great production, who everybody liked, how feisty and competitive he is, and he went top 10. Name is Matthew Savoy. Didn't really work. And I think that's the concern with Bjork, is you want Braden point, but you're worried about Savoy and Rossi, who both went in the top 10. And I think that's going to be the risk reward. The teams are going to measure. I think, you know, you saw Nazar win 13. Probably goes a little higher than 13. Probably got underrated there.

[Chris Peters]

Like, Benson goes higher.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah, Benson goes higher. Like, different levels of skating there. But I get what you're saying. Like, it's.

[Scott Wheeler]

But he's also a better skater than Rossi.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah. Yeah. And that's why I think of. So I think Savoy is the MO on point one. But that's. But obviously he's a center versus a wing pro experience, world junior experience. That was senior men's team experience. Like, he. He's got to have one of the widest ranges for me in terms of when I do mock drafts. Like, I've had teams say, don't be surprised if he goes five and don't be surprised if he goes 15. Yeah, like, I mean, Cole Coffee will win 15. Like, I think you probably.

[Chris Peters]

I think you probably split the difference. Like, I think it'll be Caleb, those wings, a bunch of the D. And then I think that's where the conversation really picks up for. For vgo. For most teams when push comes to shove.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah, I agree. It's.

[Chris Peters]

It's probably around 10.

[Max Boltman]

Do we think Vigo will go ahead of Tyne and Lawrence?

[Chris Peters]

I think there's a very real chance of that now.

[Max Boltman]

I do, too. And. And, yeah, he's interesting.

[Chris Peters]

But they're. They're gonna. I bet you they're drafted within three picks of each other. Like, probably.

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah. I think the concern on Vigo, which I kind of said in the article, is obviously, he's Bray in point. You're jumping up and down. He's a stud. And like. And he very well could be. I mean, I've watched him when I watched. Obviously we watched with the world juniors, I think we thought we could agree he was Just as good if not better than Stenberg.

[Max Boltman]

Yeah.

[Corey Pronman]

At that event. The two times I've watched him play against Frolanda, one was on video in one was, I was actually live at that game overseas. He played better than Stenberg in those two SHL games. Like he's, he's a sick player. You could be a really, really good NHL player, but the issue is if you're 5, 9 and you don't a really high level a coach is going to bury you. Like Matt Savoy is only playing right now on Edmonton because they have nothing else. Like if he was on a team with actual deep, deep forward group, he would be a healthy scratch, fourth liner right now kind of thing. So it's, it's tough and then that, that's the risk reward that teams are going to have to assess with this kind of players. If you really believe in him, then he deserves to go as high as 5 or 6.

[Scott Wheeler]

I like Scott's Benson point. I mean Zach Benson plays a huge role for Buffalo right now. It might be third line but he's a key player.

[Corey Pronman]

Was he good last night?

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[Chris Peters]

I think he's got a real chance to win a Selkie. I told this to Dom the other day. I like, I think he's got a chance to win a Selkie. Like defensively he's already driving results at a very high level on a good team. The points are maybe not quite there to win a Selkie at this stage, but if he can become a 50, 60 point guy and the defense holds, I think you're, you're talking about all of a sudden talking about that sort of Seth Jarvis player that, that's an excellent, excellent defensive player on top of chipping in top six offense. And I think that's a, that's a real path for Zach. He's, I, I, I love Zach. Zach's a dog.

[Max Boltman]

Like he's, and he, and that show and that showed too. Like in his draft year, like that was like he was probably one of the, if not the most competitive player in his draft class. And it was just like this guy is going to find a way. And I think with Vigo, every time I watch him play this every single time and I've seen even games where he wasn't that good. I was like, this guy's going to play. He is going to play. He knows how to play the sport. He knows how to play the game at a high level. Watching him in the playoffs this year, there were games where he was better than Frontal. Like there Were like there were games where he was better than older players

[Chris Peters]

and that they were using him as a matchup center. Yes, it's SHL top lines.

[Max Boltman]

I mean they couldn't put them out there enough at the World Juniors. He was their number one center at the World Juniors. As an underager, he's a rare talent in that there are exceptions to the rule. To Corey's point, the risk remains because of the size. But I do feel like he has enough of the variables that make him an exception. Where you will see a 5, 9 center go potentially in the top 10.

[Corey Pronman]

Devil's Advocate argument is as good as he looked when I watched him in the shl, as good as he looked at the World Juniors. His actual production this year in the SHL was fine.

[Chris Peters]

Like it wasn't, it was literally, it was literally half of Stenberg's, I think, right?

[Corey Pronman]

Yeah, yeah.

[Scott Wheeler]

Even at the World Juniors I remember us talking about a game where he missed on like six breakaways in one game. He got over breakaways but he wasn't finishing them.

[Corey Pronman]

Like, like for a guy who needs to point and point a lot to be a top six guy, like, I think you gotta at least mention that even if we think like, yeah, he creates a lot of chances. He's around the puck all the time. He's so competitive, yada yada, like, you know, that's something I at least think about. Like, okay, is this good offense or is it elite offense?

[Scott Wheeler]

Yeah, we got about five minutes left here. But Corey, there's one more player who I want to talk to you about on this list. And it's a player who I don't think is really going to get the chance to make a closing or is not going to get the chance to make a closing statement. But I think might have been a player who were they healthy, might have risen up draft boards at this time of year. That's Ethan Belch's in Windsor. Look, the profile here is one that NHL teams are going to fall in love with. Six foot five power winger with a big shot. I think there's real offense in his game. There's a, there's a real chance, I think that this is like a 60 point power winger which goes top 10 all day, but offense was up and down at times in Windsor. Like, and it's, you know, because he didn't get to have the on paper production, the closing statement, like where, where do you see Ethan Belch's range being?

[Corey Pronman]

I think it's closer to like 10 to 16 right now. And that's for two reasons. One is not the great year. Concerns over his pace. I mean, he had. He produced, but like he was fine. Not amazing production. And also his major events, his Hlinka Gretzky, his CHL NTP games were average at best, if not below average. That's the first variable. The second one is that player type, the big physical winger. There's been a couple of guys who've emerged who can compete for that. I think there's a lot of interest in NHL and Oscar Hemming right now. The, the Finnish winger at Boston College. He's not as big as Belches, but he skates better. Same thing for Glip Pugachev in Russia. Like, I think those are two guys who are like mean, physical, big wingers. And I think they're all kind of gonna go like in like the top 20 to 20ish range. But that's, I think, the issue on Belches. And also only so many wingers are going to go like top 20. Eventually these centers and these defensemen are going to work their way into the mix too. So, you know, it's tough. I think there's a lot of people who love this player. Initially there were scouts I talked to earlier who said he's going top five all day. Then as you're going, okay, maybe he's like top 10, like top eight. And now as. As the draft has unfolded and we've seen the rises of guys like Gustafson and White, Cullen and Heming to an extent, I don't know if he's even a guarantee to go in the top 15, although I think there's. He's still probably gonna go there because even if the offense isn't great and

[Scott Wheeler]

his state is so hard to find players like this, like, like, like you

[Corey Pronman]

look at pro, the Protus brothers, like, like even that, they're not great skaters, but they could still find a way to impact a game. And with the physicality and the skill and the size, it's still a really good player.

[Scott Wheeler]

I mean, there was a time here where we were. I mean, I think we use the name Slavkovsky. Talking about the best case scenario for Belches. He doesn't skate like Slavkovsky, but I left the rink.

[Chris Peters]

I saw him live once in late October and then once a week later in a different city in early November. And both of those times leaving the rink, I ran into people who were talking about him. Him as a top five stud at that. At. At that. That was October, November. That was the conversation.

[Scott Wheeler]

We get new data I get it. But like even, even in your most recent ranking, Scott, I think the name Matthew Nyes is somewhere in that somewhere in that write up there. So that was what he could be. I think a lot of teams would absolutely love a chance at a player like that.

[Chris Peters]

I do wonder if he has has that sort of competitive consistency that Nice had. Like. I don't think it's a huge issue in the way that it is for Rubrik or Marcus Nord Mark or those types of guys where the competitiveness is a huge red flag. But it there were games this year where he disappointed people with, with his impact and at that size in the ohl, you should be a horse.

[Scott Wheeler]

Yeah, Everything all right? That's going to do it for us. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Athletic Hockey Show Prospect series. Remember, you can catch more of Chris over at Flow Hockey and on his podcast called up. We'll talk to you soon.

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