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EricC11 · 06-21-2020, 05:19 PM

S55 SMJHL Entry Draft
Oliver Setzinger
Graz99ers (EBEL)
[Image: B1E6225C-1EA0-4553-931B-A4381261C5F5_v0_h.jpg]

Profile
Position: Right Defense
Shoots: Right
Height/Weight: 6'0, 160 lbs
Born: July 11th, 2001 | Horn, AUT
Nation: Austria

Past Season Stats
S52 - Graz99ers (EBEL) - 53GP - 16G - 35A - 51PTS - 55PIM - +3
S53 - Graz99ers (EBEL) - 53GP - 20G - 41A - 61PTS - 48PIM - +17
S54 - Graz99ers (EBEL) - 37GP - 6G - 40A - 46PTS - 28PIM - +7

Scouting Report
Oliver is an accomplished offensive defenseman with smart defensive awareness at the same time. He has a distinguished vision for hockey at both ends of the ice and can make you pay whether you are skating forward or backward. Setzinger has the capability to rise to the occasion and take the team on his shoulders if the situation arises. Oliver is looking to be the third Austrian-born player in the last four SMJHL drafts to be selected in the first round, alongside the likes of Theo Kondos (6th OA to Anchorage in S54) and Jimmy Wagner (6th OA to Carolina in S52).

While there are many standout attributes in Setzinger's game that set him apart from the rest of his draft class, it is his mental characteristics that shine brightest. His competitive-drive to win, willingness to put his team-needs above his own, and his persistence in pursuit of the puck are examples of his psychological fortitude. Oliver excels at identifying and playing to the strengths of his linemates instead of making himself the center of attention. Most pundits describe the strongest aspect of his game to be his elite skating ability, which allows him to carry the puck through the neutral zone and gain the blue-line before finding a teammate and creating a lethal scoring chance. If you need a comparable look no further than Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks.

On the other hand, when you look at strengths you must also acknowledge weaknesses and the most prominent one in Oliver's game is his hesitance to use the body. Whether it be in the defensive end, in transition, or engaging in puck battles in the offensive corner, the one thing that he must improve on as an SMJHL player is his physical play all over the ice. Aside from that, Setzinger is an elite all-around player, going forward he is able to find tight passing windows, or stickhandle out of danger, or even let loose his cannon of a shot from the blueline. On the defensive end, he keeps an active yet disciplined stick that is able to quell a significant portion of the opposition's advances. Oliver has also shown begun to show improvement in being in the right place as well as willing to block shots with any part of his body to support his goaltender.

Oliver is likely one of the most SMJHL ready players of the S55 draft class so far, however, there is still plenty of time left in S54 and for other prospects to close the gap. He will have the opportunity to solidify his place as a top prospect moving forward as it seems that he will be transferred from the Graz99ers to the SMJHL's Anchorage Armada for an undisclosed fee, as they look to fill some of the gaps left behind by the trading away of franchise legends Stan Hanson and more importantly Ulrik Bergstrom who Setzinger will be replacing directly.

In his first three seasons as a professional hockey player, Oliver surprised many as he was able to hold his own in a league comprised mostly of adults with much more experience, and more importantly weight than the young right defenseman out of Horn, Austria. Setzinger made a significant impact on the Graz99ers organization, changing them from a losers stage team in his first season where he mustered nearly a point per game but scoring a career-low in goals and assists, into a promotion level team in the next two seasons where he set career-highs in both goals (20) and assists (41) during his sophomore campaign. Finally, in his penultimate season in Austria, Setzinger was on pace to surpass his assist-total from the previous season, and the team was poised to make their second straight promotion (playoff) appearance alongside powerhouses Salzburg and the Vienna Capitals who had dominated the EBEL for the last decade. Without him, the Graz99ers will likely fail to benefit from the momentum that Oliver created for them, but Anchorage is heading into the home-stretch of their own season and we will be on the lookout for what kind of impact Setzinger can have as they go for their organization's sixth championship.

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