For the Upcoming JSHL 82 Draft, GMs will be looking for the top prospects to pick up for their teams. Some of these players may include, Bartholomew Aittokallio Lorequavious, Jonas Gray, Wal Rus, Koen Boekbinder just to name a few. GMs around the league will be hard at work this week to get some interviews in before the draft this Saturday. But out of all these players theres one that stands out, Mathew Pano.

Background
Mathew Pano was born in Buffalo, NY 2006 being one of the younger players to join the JHL. He has been a long time Buffalo Stampede fan and has never thought any different. Through the wins and the loses he has been a loyal fan. Ever since the first time hes been to a Stampede game he has been dead set on player for the Buffalo Stampede. Starting out young in an Under 10 league and working his way up to AAA Hockey he has never stopped working. Ever since his first game you could tell this guy is a goal scorer. The way he positions himself to get open for the puck and rips it right at the net. If it'll go in well hes working on his accuracy but he'll shoot that puck as hard as he can every time. In a recent interview when asked about his early days of hockey he responded with "Im not sure why I just always felt I needed to shoot it as hard as I could. If it went in then great but if it didn't well then I guess I have to shoot it harder next time." His accuracy is up for question but he says hes working every day to improve on it.

Early Leadership
Ever since he was a kid Mathew has wanted to lead. His parents tell stories about how in school he always wanted to be the first, it didnt matter what it was for but he wanted to be the example. He wanted to be the leader. And that shows through his early hockey career. During his very first season on his AAA team, The Buffalo Regals, he was elected Captain by his team. What a great honor and responsibility to hold at such an early point in his career. He held this title for the next 3 years and now hes ready for the JHL. When we interviewed his team the resounding answers we got were positive. When asking Dylan Buvet, Center, about Mathew's leadership he said "He always wanted the puck when he didnt have it. Whenever he had the puck he wanted to give it away, either to another player or into the net. He always brought us together. On and off the ice." Sounds like a great guy so far, a great leader any JHL team would be lucky to have. 

Pre Draft
Now that we know a little bit about him lets look at what General Managers will be looking at for most, his stats. Coming in at 5 foot 6 inches at 215lbs he's on the shorter side of the league with many players being over 6 foot. Now dont let that scare you because in his games he has been known to use his body to get the puck by any means necessary. A right week with a right handed shot for all those GMs out there looking to fill up their wings. He is not a Defensive player he has made that abundantly clear. The best defense he plays he claims is "Scoring more than the other team." So an offensive weapon for sure but definitely not a defense guy. He'll run someone over for that puck but you better bet hes going straight to the net. With a total TPE currently at 188 he is at the middle of the road for the draft. The top prospects for this league have 200+ TPE so why is Mathew any different or even better than these guys? Well lets look where his points lie. Screening, Getting Open, Passing and Puck Handling all at 12 for a great all around offensive pass game but what shines through is his Shooting Accuracy at a staggering 15 points. Combined with a Shooting Range of 11 this guy will be rifling that puck from any place above the blue line. And finally with an Offensive Read of 9 it seems he has a pretty well rounded Offensive Stat collection. How about his physical stats. Well we start off strong with his Speed and Stamina being at a whopping 14 TPE each. That just goes to show this guy is gonna be going fast for as long as he can. 2 minute shifts are a breeze to him. He would play the whole game if he could. This is a 1 man army. His Acceleration is at 11 and his Balance at a 10 which is pretty good for just a starting player. With Strength at 10 and Agility at 9 he seems to be a very well rounded player. 

Closing Statements
Its no wonder Mathew has gotten offers from teams just hours after he hit the draft roster. This guy will be making plays within the JHL and even bigger ones in the SHL. I wouldnt be surprised if he becomes a top 10 JHL Rookie his starting season. But we will see. If you are a GM and you are interested in drafting him you can contact him on discord, PeskyPerch. He says that he is "Open to any team that wants to win." With a mindset like that I would pick up this guy as soon as I could. With that being said I cant wait to see what he does this season in the JHL. He wants to end the seaon with 30 goals, 30 assists and 70 points which to me is an insane goal but shoot for the starts dude.