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mastersheep · 03-12-2020, 07:14 PM

4354 words - ready for grading

The 53rd SHL Draft is just around the corner and the junior prospects are excited to learn about their future clubs. The hard work these players have been putting in now have them jostling for top honors as they continue the next step in their early careers. So just who are these players? We take a look at our top 30 picks and more.

Top 30 Prospects

Ambacas Cuddles
Defense
Land of Gumba
SMJHL Team: Carolina Kraken Kraken

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 15th Overall

While there are many defensemen highly touted in this year’s draft, Cuddles is clearly the prize out of all of them. He makes solid decisions, better than many in his class and is the epitome of the stay at home defenseman. Cuddles had 1 goal and 20 assists in his rookie season with the Carolina Kraken and then followed that up with 2 goals and 5 assists in the playoffs, more than any other defenseman on the team. He has tremendous upside and looks to be a lock for one of the top draft selections.

Rocco Berni
Center
Switzerland
SMJHL Team: Kelowna Knights Knights

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 9th Overall

This playmaking center made a name for himself last season with the Knights moving up the ranks quickly and could potentially make it to the top line as soon as this season. While he may struggle to knock the opponents off the puck, he makes up for it with his smooth hands and will confuse the opposing defenses with his deceptive play. Berni had a slow start in Kelowna, but picked it up midway through the season and ended up with 6 goals and 16 assists for the team. He saw some powerplay time in the regular season, but none in the playoffs as he went on to score just 1 goal and 5 assists. We see this as more of an anomaly and don’t see this hurting his draft stock at all. Expect a great career out of him.

Jaska Seppälä
Left Wing
Finland
SMJHL Team: Kelowna Knights Knights

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 3rd Round, 23rd Overall

When all is said and done, this player could be one of the biggest steals of the SMJHL draft last season. This speedy winger just loves to score goals. His play away from the puck may be a bit of an issue and need to be refined, but if you are looking for a pure sniper you can’t go wrong here. He scored 4 goals and had 4 assists during the regular season, but followed it up with a tremendous playoffs as the top scoring rookie on the team with 3 goals and 4 assists in 13 games. With the departure of a couple of top wingers, look for Seppälä to get a chance to crack the scoring lines in Kelowna and see plenty of time on the powerplay. We easily see this player going in the top five.

Erben Kasius
Defense
Netherlands
SMJHL Team: St. Louis Scarecrows

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 16th Overall

Kasius is a puck moving defenseman who is always a threat to score. He has quick feet and his quick thinking allows him to make the right play. He may be a little suspect in his own end and could use some rounding out in his overall game, but he is a great choice for the team that selects him. While on the Scarecrows last season, Kasius made a name for himself scoring 10 goals and 15 assists. Those 25 points were the most of all rookie defensemen and good for second on the team by a defenseman. In the playoffs, he scored two goals and had 7 helpers to once again be second on the team for all defensemen. Kasius saw extensive special teams time and should remain part of the top four on the team that came so close to winning it all.

Jack Kanoff
Defense
Canada
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 18th Overall by the Halifax Raiders

Here we have an offensive defenseman who was traded early in the season from Halifax to Detroit. Detroit gave up two second round picks and the rights to Joakim Ohlund for Kanoff and a third round pick. Kanoff went on to be one of the best rookies on Detroit on a team absolutely loaded with talented rookies, scoring 7 goals and 13 assists as part of the best offense in the league. In the playoffs, he scored 4 goals and 4 assists in 10 games as the team fell just short in the semi-finals. Kanoff’s biggest strength is his cannon of a shot and he will use it from anywhere on the ice. Expect him to be one of the contenders for the top pairing for Detroit.

Jimmy Wagner
Right Wing
Austria
SMJHL Team: Carolina Kraken Kraken

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 6th Overall

Out of all of the rookie prospects, Wagner might just be the fastest one. He has great speed and can dangle around the opposition with ease. While his overall offensive game could use a bit more polishing, he reads the play well, doesn’t get pushed around, and that allows him to get in on the forecheck and beat defenders to the puck. Wagner had 6 goals and 8 assists for the Kraken last season, but followed that up with what has to be a disappointing showing in the playoffs by only scoring 1 assist in 11 games. Look for him to get back on track as part of Carolina’s top six forward group.

Magnus Liljeström
Defense
Sweden
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 2nd Overall

Here is a two-way defenseman who has great hands and strong passing. He has a big frame, but doesn’t seem to want to use his body to make the big hit. Liljestrom scored 4 goals and had 13 assists in his first year with the Falcons. He then followed that up with an incredible postseason that saw him score twice and put up 8 assists in 10 games, good for third in scoring on the team while also leading the team with 18 hits. Along with Kanoff, he will continue to be a big scoring threat on Detroit’s blue line in the immediate future.

Edward Williams
Center
Great Britain
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 11th Overall

Our first power forward on the list is a young center that has no regard for human life on the ice, delivering punishing checks in order to help retrieve the puck and score goals. Williams should put up plenty of goals and a substantial number penalty minutes with his style of play, but has some question marks about his overall vision and positioning on the ice. With the Falcons, he put up 14 goals and 18 assists, leading the league among all rookies with his 32 points in the regular season. While his playoff performance was a bit underwhelming with only 3 assists in 10 games, he should develop into a solid player and compete for the top line next season in Detroit.

Ethan Duncan
Center
United States
SMJHL Team: Kelowna Knights Knights

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 5th Round, 46th Overall

One of the biggest surprises of last year’s draft has been Ethan Duncan. He is a defensive minded center who needs a bit of work on his shooting skills if he hopes to break into the SHL. Without the puck, he is excellent at tracking the opposition and breaking up plays and so much so that he has been tapped to play defense for the USA in the World Junior Championships this year. Last season he played on the fourth line for the Knights and scored 3 goals and 5 assists, but is expected to rise with the departure of Ryan Shepard. In the playoffs, he had 3 goals and 1 assist in 13 games and notably won 60.0% of the faceoffs. Duncan has surprised many before. Can he do it again this draft?

Steve Harrington
Left Wing
Germany
SMJHL Team: Newfoundland Berserkers

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 4th Overall

Harrington is a smooth skating winger who can play a ton of minutes and doesn’t break a sweat. He is the type of player that will get the puck and dangle through the opposing defense with ease and is not a liability in his own end. He has vocal leadership that locker rooms can always use, but could use a bit of work on his decision making with the puck. Harrington had a strong regular season with 7 goals and 10 assists last season, but was held to one goal and one assist in the playoffs. He should compete for the top line for the Berserkers this upcoming year and has a lot of potential for greatness in this league.

Jukka Timonen
Defense
Finland
SMJHL Team: Newfoundland Berserkers

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 17th Overall

Timonen is a two-way defenseman who shoots the puck very well. He had 10 goals and 11 assists in the regular season for Newfoundland and followed that up with a strong 4 goal and 3 assist performance over 10 games in the playoffs, the most by a Berserker rookie. While Timonen has a great scoring touch, he has some serious drawbacks in his own end and that could be an issue for some GMs. Regardless, Timonen will be on the top pairing for Newfoundland for a few seasons and expects to be a solid pick in the draft with a lengthy career ahead.

Reid Sutherland
Center
United States
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 3rd Round, 24th Overall

While Sutherland has been overshadowed a bit by some of the other Detroit rookies, this playmaking center has all the makings of a great selection by the GM that picks him. He excels at the dot and he has exceptional passing ability. He will need some work in strength and conditioning in order to keep up with the opposition later in games. He scored a modest 6 goals and 10 assists for the Falcons last season and had 2 goals and 2 assists in the postseason. Sutherland should slot in on the third line next season, but will definitely compete for anywhere in the top six and should see plenty of penalty kill time once again after leading the team in minutes played on the PK.

Burlok Sulfurgold
Right Wing
Germany
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 3rd Round, 22nd Overall

This power forward type winger has a bit of a mean streak in him. He’s a pass first player who has good footwork and is a great forechecker. He sticks up for his teammates, which can sometimes land him in hot water, but overall is a great pick for any team. Like Sutherland, Sulfurgold was eclipsed by some of the other rookies in Detroit, putting up 5 goals and 7 assists in the regular season. Notably, he was second on the team with 71 hits, which is excellent for a player who mostly played with the bottom six forward group. Sulfurgold had a goal and a couple helpers for his team in the postseason in 10 games.

Zoltan Topalo
Left Wing
United States
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 3rd Round, 30th Overall

Topalo is yet another Falcons player who has great draft stock heading into this offseason. This winger has a nose for the net and is strong on the puck. He’s a bit slow to get back on defense and may have issues late in games, but a bit of conditioning should round out this player quite well. He scored 10 goals and had 20 assists for the Falcons, finishing third in scoring among all rookies behind Williams and Danny White last season. He had a respectable postseason as well, notching a goal and 7 assists in 10 games. Topalo is a bit more of a wildcard than some of the other prospects, but should easily be taken in the first or second round.

Bradley Barkov
Defense
Finland
SMJHL Team: Colorado Raptors Raptors

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 14th Overall

This puck moving defenseman is one of the more skilled defensemen in the draft, but has some real question marks in his own end. He finished with 2 goals and 8 assists last season with the Raptors, but was last in +/- with a -14 rating. In Colorado’s short postseason, he seemed to turn it around and scored 2 goals and had 3 assists, leading the team along with Denver Wolfe. It’s unfortunate that the playoffs ended so quickly for the Raptors if only to silence the doubters about small sample sizes. Barkov would be a fine choice for any team looking for a defenseman who looks to put their team on the board first.

Sven Svenson
Left Wing
Sweden
SMJHL Team: Colorado Raptors Raptors

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 4th Round, 34th Overall

Svenson is a speedy winger who has great technical skills and will shoot from just about anywhere. He’s not too bad in his own end and will be difficult to knock off of the puck if you can even catch him. His biggest issue is backchecking and getting into the tough areas of the ice without fear. Last season with the Raptors, Svenson scored 6 goals and 11 assists. He had extensive powerplay time and this continued into the playoffs where he scored 2 goals and had an assist in 6 games. Svenson should be on Colorado’s top six forward group next year. While he is low on this list, don’t be surprised if he ends up being a middle to late first round pick.

William Hartmann
Left Wing
Switzerland
SMJHL Team: Vancouver Whalers Whalers

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 7th Overall

This winger likes to intercept the play and move the puck up ice quickly. His biggest issue may be keeping up with the play itself, but he should develop into a terrific player. Hartmann scored 4 goals and 3 assists on the Whalers and put up a goal and an assist in a six game playoff series against Anaheim. With the departure of so many players on the Whalers, Hartmann will get a chance to excel early and should get lots of minutes to speed along his development.

Eric Hudson
Left Wing
United States
SMJHL Team: St. Louis Scarecrows

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 4th Round, 35th Overall

Hudson is not your typical two-way forward, but he has incredible vision. He does have trouble shooting and may get knocked off the puck one times too many, but he is never fooled and always knows what is coming next. Like Duncan, Hudson has been tapped to play defense in the upcoming WJC for the USA. He scored 7 goals and 5 assists for the Scarecrows in his rookie campaign and helped his team reach the finals with 2 goals and 4 assists and also had a +9 rating in the playoffs. Hudson worked on the third line, but should move up the depth chart with the loss of Aron Hernadivic to the SHL.

Frederick Wanesly
Left Wing
Great Britain
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 12th Overall

This is an all-around solid player and you couldn’t go wrong with this selection. Wanesley is a two-way forward with few weaknesses. He is a pass first player who may struggle a little to find his scoring touch at first, but he should be able to advance into a great player. Wanesley had 6 goals and 10 assists on a stacked Detroit team and then had a postseason where he didn’t score, but had 5 assists. All of this came with minimal time on special teams, something he will certainly get a chance at soon.

Valentin Kalashnikov
Defense
Russia
SMJHL Team: Halifax Raiders/Maine Timber raiders

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 5th Overall

Kalashnikov happens to be the only Russian on our list and also the only player from the former Halifax franchise. He is a punishing defenseman who will not hesitate to drop the gloves. While you may not get much offense from him, he can be a game changer who is tough to knock down and will tire out the opposing forwards. He scored 4 goals and 11 assists last year for the Raiders and had 4 assists in the playoffs before his team bowed out in six games at the hands of Kelowna. Kalashnikov and the rest of the team are looking forward to the move to Maine where he will play top minutes yet again for the newly rebranded Timber.

Toki Wartooth
Defense
Norway
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 5th Round, 42nd Overall

Wartooth is yet another hard-nosed defenseman who has high hopes in the SHL. He will body the opposing forwards, push them around, and you can’t sleep on his passing skills either or you will be burned. He scored a goal and had 13 assists for the Falcons last year, but struggled to stay on the ice and out of the box leading the team with 64 PIM. With so many young players on Detroit’s blueline, there will be a lot of competition to get minutes, so I don’t expect Wartooth’s workload will increase just yet.

Chris Cerullo
Center
Norway
SMJHL Team: Colorado Raptors Raptors

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 1st Overall

If you are surprised to see Cerullo so far down this list, let this be a reminder of how deep this draft is. The former first overall pick in last year’s draft is a two-way center with slick skating and good positioning on the ice. He had 10 goals and 8 assists last season in Colorado, leading all rookies on the team. The postseason was short for the Raptors, but he managed to score a couple of goals and get an assist in six games for the club. He will likely remain on the second line and be a significant part of the powerplay in season 53.

Chris de Siren
Left Wing
United States
SMJHL Team: Anchorage Armada Armada

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 19th Overall

This sniper loves to shoot the puck from absolutely anywhere. De Siren always has one goal in mind: to score as much as possible. He’s not very responsible without the puck or in his own end, but what does that matter if you can just outscore your opponent? He scored 12 goals and 5 assists as a rookie last year for the Armada, but was a dismal -29 as well. In the postseason he received top line minutes, but could not score, putting up only one assist in the six game series against Newfoundland. Hopefully de Siren will be able to get back on track and reach his true potential next year.

Hiroshi Ohira
Right Wing
Japan
SMJHL Team: Colorado Raptors Raptors

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 3rd Overall

Ohira is primarily an offensive winger who has well rounded skills. He can skate with the best of them and gets plenty of shots on goal for his restricted playing time. Last season he put up 3 goals and 2 assists for the Raptors. Unfortunately, he failed to produce in the postseason from the second line, but he is likely a safe second round pick.

Ziggy Tambo
Left Wing
Australia
SMJHL Team: Anaheim Outlaws Outlaws

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 5th Round, 41st Overall

Tambo is a playmaking winger for the S52 champion Outlaws who has a knack for finding the open man and connecting. This is a player who has few weaknesses in his game while he has the puck, but has some question marks regarding his play without it. Last year, he scored 8 goals and 10 assists for Anaheim. He had limited minutes in the playoffs, but still came up with 3 goals and 4 assists en route to a Four Star Cup win.

Jerry Huuveri
Goalie
Finland
SMJHL Team: Colorado Raptors Raptors

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 6th Round, 54th Overall

We finally reach the first goalie in our list. Huuveri is great at getting square to the shooter and if he doesn’t get there in time can make up for it with cat like reflexes. He isn’t very mobile though and will often remain in net when the puck is dumped into the zone rather than play it himself. Huuveri was the backup goaltender for the Raptors last season so he didn’t get a lot of playing time and none in the playoffs. During the regular season he had a 2.71 GAA and a 0.863 Sv%, which are quite good for a rookie backup. Huuveri has a lot to prove, but he will have to wait until Samat Beibitzhanov moves on to the SHL before his time comes.

Ryuuji Minamino
Right Wing
Japan
SMJHL Team: Newfoundland Berserkers

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 6th Round, 56th Overall

Minamino is a power forward who bullies his way to the net, but doesn’t always make the right play in the offensive zone. He can move the puck quickly and will crush the opponents into the boards as they try to leave their zone. He played sheltered minutes and only put up 3 goals and 5 assists in the regular season for Newfoundland. Minamino then ended up with only one goal in the postseason. Having said all this, I expect him to surprise some folks this draft and be picked much earlier than this list suggests.

Taylor Johansson
Center
Sweden
SMJHL Team: Anaheim Outlaws Outlaws

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: Undrafted

The biggest question this draft is where will Taylor Johansson go? As one of two undrafted players on this list, he made a big name for himself on the season 52 champion Outlaws. He is a playmaking center with great hands and gets up to his top speed quickly. There are some question marks about his ability to backcheck and overall commitment to defense, but with his quick rise Johansson’s possibilities could be limitless. He scored 2 goals and had 5 assists for Anaheim last year and had a goal and 3 assists in 15 playoff games in a limited role for the club. He should get the chance to play in the top six forward group this year with Ivan Maximus heading up to the Renegades this season. Many mock drafts have him going late, but I suspect he gets selected in the first round early on.

Danny White
Center
Netherlands
SMJHL Team: Anchorage Armada Armada

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 10th Overall

White is a great goal scorer who can zip by opposing defensemen and go hard for the net. If you catch him, though, he is easy to knock off the puck and he’ll end up struggling to catch up. On the Armada last season, White had a great year in the scoring department, finishing with 14 goals and 18 assists. This tied him for the most points along with Williams among all rookies. His postseason individual performance was decent too as he scored 3 goals and an assist in the six game series with the Berserkers.

Santtu Rasanen
Center
Finland
SMJHL Team: Anchorage Armada Armada

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: Undrafted

Most lists don’t get to the undrafted players, but people really should take a closer look at Rasanen. This two-way Finnish center has very few holes in his game, but he doesn’t really do anything great. He handles the puck well, but often shies away from contact, preferring to let his stick do the work. Rasanen had 3 goals and 6 assists for the Armada last season, but was part of the third line that just did not seem to gel together and had a -28 rating as a result. In the postseason, he had a couple of assists in six games.

Other Prospects

Frans Eller
Goalie
Denmark
SMJHL Team: Carolina Kraken Kraken

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 2nd Round, 20th Overall

If Eller wasn’t already committed to the New England Wolfpack next season, he would likely be a surefire first rounder. He is easily the best rookie goaltender to come out of the SMJHL this season and will get his chance to shine next season with Mike Hroch’s move to the SHL. Eller backed up Hroch for the Kraken, but played in 12 games with 8 starts. He finished the year with a 3.08 GAA and 0.881 Sv%. New England will certainly be soon be set in goal for a long time with the Hroch-Eller tandem in a few seasons.

Axel Meszaros
Defense
Hungary
SMJHL Team: St. Louis Scarecrows

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 1st Round, 8th Overall

This player does a lot well and very little poorly. He will shoot the puck from distance and has the ability to find and connect with players driving to the net. He needs improvement in a few areas, but what two-way defenseman doesn’t? Meszaros will be signed to a contract by the Toronto North Stars after a terrific season on defense that almost ended with a Four Star Cup only to fall just short. Meszaros had 4 goals and 12 assists for the Scarecrows and found himself on the top pairing in a short amount of time.

Honorable Mentions

A Jobin
Goalie
United States
SMJHL Team: Detroit Falcons Falcons

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 4th Round, 32nd Overall

We couldn’t get through this list without mentioning the starting goaltender for Detroit this season. While they fell short of expectations in the postseason, Jobin had a respectable rookie campaign, starting 39 games for the Falcons and finishing with 21 wins, a 3.65 GAA, and 0.871 Sv%.

Lucas Hellquist

Right Wing
Norway
SMJHL Team: Halifax Raiders/Maine Timber raiders

S52 SMJHL Draft Selection: 3rd Round, 28th Overall

Hellquist is somewhat of an unsung hero, but he finished fourth among all rookies with 30 total points (9 goals, 21 assists) with extensive powerplay time for the former Raiders and that can’t be ignored in a draft this deep.

Disclaimer: The prospects above with the exception of the Other Prospects and Honorable Mentions were ordered by Total Points Earned as of March 8th and do not reflect an actual mock draft.