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*Jayba1t* · 08-23-2021, 02:28 PM

Raptors Draft Recap

Now that I am not a rookie anymore, it is time for me to recap and review the Raptors Season 61 SMJHL draft. We made 5 picks in the end, and hopefully selected 5 more cornerstone pieces for the future of the franchise. Colorado ended up taking Vin-Bangsa Wamy, Zayne Dangle, Shoyo Hinata, Recently Tired and Sanjuro Tsubaki. Here, I will give a review of all 5 rookies, cover some strengths and weaknesses, and look at their player as a whole.

With the 10th overall selection, Colorado selected talented Left Winger Vin-Bangsa Wamy, from user Phillesphan96. Wamy is a 6 foot 6, 235-pound skater with a tall and sturdy frame. He has an excellent combination of the famed “size, strength and skating combo,” being a real clean and fast skater while having the body to get physical with opponents. Wamy’s shot and speed currently highlight his game. He uses his quick feet to accelerate to reach his brisk speed, and get to different areas of the offensive zone, ready to take shots. The righty uses his strength to lean in and let a few shots rip, while adding his hands and leg kick to empower it even further. This shot is well developed, and while his passes and puck control are not the best yet, Vin-Bangsa Wamy overall displays a good skillset offensively. He also shows the makings for a gifted scorer or sniper in the future. On the other hand, the Austrian definitely needs to put in some work defensively. He does not use his stick to defend well and must use his bigger frame to body and block off opponents more. Wamy does not read the puck thoroughly at times though he can usually put himself in a good spot to defend if he can. Wamy, however, does have good physical attributes, as mentioned before, his skating is extremely smooth, he has decent strength and balance along with solid stamina. At 10th overall, Colorado made a really nice pick here, and if Wamy continues to improve, he projects to be a potent offensive forward that can carry the scoring for a team. He will develop that already decent shot into an even better one, making him a lethal sniper who knows how to pick their spots.

In the 2nd round, Colorado decided to look for another candidate to anchor their blueline for years to come. Hopefully, they have found that in Zayne Dangle, native of the Czech Republic. Another skater who is physically strong, Dangle checks in at 6’4, 218 pounds. Probably not related to Rinky McDangle, Dangle here is another balanced defenseman, who focuses and works in both ends of the ice. He has some well progressed attributes which will play well in his future role. Dangle has a mature defensive game at his age and skill level right now, along with the prospect of being a good offensive contributor right now. His shutdown game displays his ability to get opponents of the puck, use his stick to poke check or pick off the puck while doing a fantastic job at putting himself in favorable situations. Dangle has a bold and aggressive personality that he uses to body off opponents or fight in certain cases. He is not afraid to get down and get physical to achieve his primary goal, which is to defend. Along with the burst of physicality, Zayne Dangle is also an intelligent player on the ice. He will use his energy and efforts efficiently and effectively, in the right scenarios. Although Dangle is a bit more defensively focused, there are still parts of his offensive game to get excited about. He uses that intelligence, plus smart reads to make decisive and precise passes, while being an exceptionally good puck mover. Dangle will most likely rack up those assists! Dangle is an exceedingly high floor player, with solid and safe all-around play. This is a defender to watch out for in the future: Dangle can eventually be one of the most feared two-way threats in his prime. For now, he will be asked to step into an important role, filling out the Raptor blueline.

Next, at selection 36, the Raptors picked Shoyo Hinata, native of Miyagi, Japan. Quite contrary to what the previous two picks were, Hinata is a slightly undersized, smaller right winger who is about 5’7 and a lean 165 pounds. However, like with many undersized players, do not let that deceive you from their true talent and skill. Hinata has a flair for scoring and offense: his shot, pass, IQ, and puck handling are all attributes that are already at an elevated level. He has polished all these crucial aspects of the game and can be an impactful player the minute he steps into the lineup. Hinata engages all his body when he shoots and can do so proficiently at a surprisingly long range. From the point, he can almost hit his targets. His passes generally make it to their destination, and with his soft and nimble hands, he controls the puck well to dodge opponents when moving. On top of that, Hinata has a very good IQ to read any plays that his team is going to make. Although for a smaller player, who are known to be able to get in near the net and behind the opponents, Hinata does not screen very well. Aside from screening, Colorado gets a speedy and versatile forward who can put the puck in net or set up a high percentage scoring chance. Physically, though not tall or strong, Hinata is a very agile and light-footed skater on the ice. He dodges and maneuvers around others wise ease and can quickly get into places where there is no coverage. Like most rookies and prospects, Shoyo Hinata’s defense has some room for improvement, as he tends to struggle while keeping opponents away from their end. All his defensive tools are still a work in progress, though with a little more work, he can become at least a serviceable skater at his own end. Like Wamy, Hinata already has some advanced tools for his age, and with a little finer tuning in other aspects of the game, Shoyo Hinata will be a real flexible offensive contributor.

4 picks later, still in Round 3, the Raptors took goaltender, Recently Tired. After Senji Seteki was dealt, and Zhen Roza was acquired, Colorado was still in need of a backup goalie, and an apparent heir to the net. Tired, now looks to be part of the long-term vision in Colorado. A recreate by Beaver, Tired has dedicated his training and energy to mostly improving his reflexes, his rebound control, and his positioning in net, some of the more important goalie attributes. With a quick reaction time to shots faced, his ability to quickly gather up pucks after an unsuccessful stoppage, and his good movement in net, Tired has already built a solid foundation to becoming a scary netminder. His recovery from other shots and awkward positions is also decent, so as you add all that up, that equates to a strong goalie build. These are some of his biggest strengths while stopping the puck. In the other areas, he is average, but not bad with his hands, skating and stick. His blocker and stick usage are alright, and while mental toughness and poke check aren’t the most important, Tired still has those stats in a good place. He sometimes can’t handle and save low shots, but obviously, Tired is still super young has tons of room to grow and progress these areas. In the future, Tired easily has the potential to be the next goalie superstar. He will be the deciding factor in certain close games and will be able to steal a game or two. For Colorado, they make a good pick here, filling out another roster need.

Finally, with the last pick of the day, Colorado takes Sanjuro Tsubaki, another Japanese native, this time of Sapporo. The Left Winger is another versatile yet flexible player on the wing that Colorado can plug into the lineup. Like his fellow countryman Hinata, Tsubaki is an even more balanced offensive skater, who has already developed a complete package for the scoring and assisting. Across the board, Tsubaki is a Swiss knife, able to contribute and play in any role needed. He screens and blocks other goalie’s vision with confidence and uses his also swift speed to do so. With his clean footwork, Tsubaki also sneakily gets into open spots on the ice, ready to receive a saucer from his teammate. As he awaits the right moment, he will snipe that puck past the net. Alongside his accurate shots, Tsubaki smartly sets up and creates some high danger scoring chances, with his accurate passes, he supports his teammates and can be a great playmaker. Overall, the Raptors selected a highly skilled, high potential winger here who kills it offensively. Tsubaki looks to be a high point total player, hitting it off the charts on all categories. However, like with Hinata, defensively, Tsubaki is far from perfect. Nothing looks very promising right now, but again, with a little work, he will be fine. His checking of other players is ok, but otherwise his stick work, positioning and defensive IQ are all well below average and need some training. In the end, I think we got terrific value for a 4th rounder, finding an exceedingly high potential, versatile skater, and scorer in the same person. You can expect Tsubaki to be a real threat and apply pressure in all scoring departments.

After this, Colorado had no picks left, so this is where we end. I cannot wait to see these rookies in action as we are near the start of Season 61. With the added boost of players, Colorado continues to further improve the depth, the pipeline and system for the future seasons to come, while also focusing on winning now with now graduated Season 60 rookies plus the regular roster members. This balance will ensure tons of success for the Raptors franchise, hopefully winning a championship one day. The next wave of Baby Dinos has arrived. Let us do this. The future is real bright! GO RAPTORS!

@Philliesphan96 @Vaxlare @"FormuleUn" @Beaver @theZinator

1700 words, 2x media

***micool132*** · 08-23-2021, 02:49 PM

*Jayba1t* · 08-23-2021, 03:40 PM

New studs in the making! Go raps Raptors

LordBirdman · 08-23-2021, 03:54 PM

Jumbobone19 · 08-23-2021, 04:53 PM

Go Raptors

Philliesphan96 · 08-24-2021, 02:13 AM

Wooo!!! Go Raptors!!!

theZinator · 08-25-2021, 12:43 PM

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