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S30 Draft Class First Look - Printable Version

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- Noble - 04-24-2016

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<div align="center">Oh, the SMJHL draft. How does one begin to talk about the future of this great league? For starters, you must go straight to the roots of each player. Scrutinize their builds, the people, and the general atmosphere of the person themselves. It seems each new season introduces a fresh crop of young faces eager to make their name in the big leagues, and the numbers only grow each season. In recent years they're has been a bountiful pool of first generation players who are on the road to stardom. Today we'll be recognizing a few of them, as well as a few of the player's who will fill that role in the future. So without further ado, onto our main event!

[Image: kaapo_kahkonen_finland_110912.jpg]
Kimmo Lokinen

User: Nate the Great
Name: Lokinen, Kimmo
Position: Goaltender
Shoots: Left
Jersey #: 30
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 205 lbs.
Birthplace: Espoo, Finland
Strengths: Reaction Time, Rebound Control, Hand Speed
Weakness: Agility

Lokinen is a very promising young goaltender, who comes from domestic roots in the city of Espoo in Finland. A major player for his youth team the Kitchener Rangers, Lokinen is ready to take joining the harder SMJHL in stride as a high potential young player. Some strong areas of his game include his ability to control his rebounds, his reaction time, and his speed with his glove. One area he could work on is his agility, which will allow him to move around easier in the net.

[Image: jacob_trouba.jpg]
Ty Justice

User: Justice
Name: Justice, Ty
Position: Defenseman
Shoots: Right
Jersey Number: 42
Height: 6'2
Weight: 190lbs
Birthplace: Edmonton, Canada
Strengths: Passing, Defense, Checking
Weakness: Puck Handling

Justice is an exceptional young player who grew up in the northern reaches of Canada in the city of Edmonton. Justice excels at both end of the ice, with offensive and defensive talent as well as utility mixed into his overall kit. Justice excels in three immediate areas, which are most notably; his passing, his exceptional defense, and his strong ability to play the puck and do it physically. He might need to put some practice into his puck handling as well as his scoring prowess if he wants to truly be recognized as a top two way defender.

[Image: Nikolaj_Ehlers.jpg]
Jason Forbrook

User: akegs
Name: Forbrook, Jason
Position: Right Wing
Shoots: Right
Jersey Number: 19
Height: 6’ 4”
Weight: 218 lbs
Birthplace: Duluth, United States
Strengths: Checking, Strength, Puckhandling
Weakness: Skating

The player type that is rarely seen nowadays that we know as the power forward has risen once again in the form of Jason Forbrook of Minnesota. His skill in multiple areas allows him to have a very strong defensive presence on the ice. Some key areas of his game are his checking, strength, and the soft hands that have made his name a well known one in his home state. But, if he wants be a top player all throughout his career then he'll need to pay special attention to his defense, skating, and scoring in order to bring them up to par with the rest of the league.

[Image: jonathan_drouin.jpg]
Joey DiNino

User: jdinino
Name: DiNino, Joey
Position: Centerman
Shoots: Left
Jersey Number: 9
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 185
Birthplace: Hartford, United States
Strengths: Passing, Faceoffs, Skating
Weakness:Checking

Mr. DiNino is the second American born forward of our crop of young talent so far, and might take the ring as the top one of the two. DiNino is your stereotypical playmaking centerman, in what seems to be a very common trend. He does however also have skill at face-offs... oh wait.... they all do....

Jokes aside, DiNino is pretty much average, but he does seem to stress being a utility forward more than a lot of "playmaking centerman" we've seen recently. His strengths at passing, face-offs, and skating will make him a powerplay and penalty kill catalyst, but his weakness in checking will set him at a major disadvantage.

[Image: o_CONNOR_MCDAVID_facebook.jpg]
Sigmund Feist

User: hockeynerd67
Name: Feist, Sigmund
Position: Centerman
Shoots: Right
Jersey Number: 84
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 225 lbs.
Birthplace: Wels, Austria
Strengths: Passing, Defense, Checking
Weakness: Puck Handling

This Austrian native is one of the most intriguing players so far in the class, and is another centerman. Feist excels at both ends of the ice, but so far his game seems to lean a lot more to the defensive end. This is great news for SMJHL GM's, because they are always looking for player's who can shore their team up defensively. Feist has a couple major strengths, which include his passing, defense, and checking. That combination will make him very strong when his team is defending. But... his puck handling might need some help if he wants to be truly rounded out.


Now to move on to the player's who have already made themselves names in the SHL or SMJHL from each draft class. We'll be looking at three players today, one from each of the last three SMJHL drafts.

[Image: Darth_Vader_6bda9114_jpeg_region_0_23_1400_785_w.jpg]
S26 - Lord Vader

User: hockeyis66
Name: Vader, Lord
Position: Defenseman
Shoots: Right
Jersey Number: 5
Height: 6'8"
Weight: 200
Birthplace: Netherlands
Strengths: Defense, Strength, Passing
Weakness: Scoring

Vader is the ultimate defensive defenseman. If you're looking for someone with superb talent in his own end, go for this black clothed superstar from an undisclosed spot in the Netherlands. Vader shows special talent in (the dark side of the force Blink ) his defense, strength, and passing. But even gods have weaknesses, and Vader probably could use some offensive help in areas like scoring.

[Image: draisaitl.jpg]
S27 - Quinn Stevenson

User: Quinn's in the Bin
Name: Stevenson, Quinn
Position: Defenseman
Shoots: Left
Jersey Number: 19
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 185 lbs.
Birthplace: Saskatoon, Canada
Strengths: Scoring, Defense, and Endurance
Weakness: Strength

Stevenson, or more commonly known as Pancake around the league, is one of the biggest surprise players from last year's draft class. The strong defender is of great young potential, and his prowess to continue growth shows in every aspect of his game. With a very heavily developed defensive and physical category, Stevenson also has strength in his scoring game while being able to play heavy minutes. What's interesting as well is that Stevenson made the jump to the SHL at only 17, but 1 year after being drafted.

[Image: image.jpg]
S28 - Harry Hans

User: Harry Hans
Name: Hans, Harry
Position: Left Wing
Shoots: Right
Jersey Number: 28
Height: 6'1
Weight: 181
Birthplace: Surrey, Canada
Player Type: Sniper
Strengths: Scoring, Puck Handling, Skating
Weakness: Checking

WOW! A left wing sniper from Canada! Never seen those before. Just kidding, Hans is actually a very strong prospect who every single SHL team best be looking at to be the next big name in hockey. Some key aspects of his game are his scoring, puck handling, and skating, which make him the supreme commander on the offensive side of the game. But in order to be the real king of the ice, he'll need to put some more effort into his checking and defense.


Thanks for tuning into today's article! We hope you enjoyed this spotlight on some of the fresh faces in both the SHL and the SMJHL. As well, we hope you learned something about you're favorite up and coming SMJHL prospects today. See you later!</div>

- Harry Hans - 04-24-2016

Great Article, also thanks for the mention quinn

- Bishop - 04-25-2016

Good start to the season's draft class!