12-30-2020, 07:33 AM(This post was last modified: 12-30-2020, 03:54 PM by leafs1997.)
Deep Dive #2: SHL Season 58 Draft Nationalities
This is an overview of the nationalities of the players eligible for the Season 58 SHL Draft, to illustrate the international flavour of the SHL. Possibly the biggest surprise is that the hockey-mad nation of Finland does not have a single representative in the S58 draft class! There are many Finnish players in the league and at least a couple from the S59 class, just none for S58.
USA Unsurprisingly, the USA tops the list, with 20 players in the draft class. The Anchorage Armada’s Gregory Goode is one of the standouts for the USA representatives, he currently has 32 points (6G, 26A) thru 52 games from the blueline, an outstanding tally for a rookie defenceman! Pavel Jeziak of Detroit is also having an impressive rookie season. The right winger has 24 points (11G, 13A) thru 53 games, with an average ToI of 13:55, so definitely not top line minutes, although he is a part of the Detroit PP unit. And Kit Kirkstone looks like one of the, if not the, elite goaltenders of the whole S58 draft class, not just for the USA. Currently backing up Antonescu at St Louis, Kirkstone has played 15 games and currently has a GAA of 2.63 and a .918 Save%.
Canada Another unsurprising top entry, since hockey is essentially the national sport of Canada! Another Anchorage Armada product, Bean Beanman, has done some impressive offensive work from the blueline on the top pair in Alaska. He has over 100 SOG after 52 games and has scored 20 points (8G, 12A). Kermit Murphy of the Detroit Falcons will be a good pick for any team looking for a physical, forechecking centre. He is currently ranked third in the SMJHL with 181 hits. And nobody can ignore the star power carried by Kelowna’s unconventionally named #A-Rye Izzy. Son of Kelowna and Calgary legend Mike Izzy. Already following in his father’s footsteps with Kelowna, he is tipped to continue the Izzy name in Calgary.
Austria A strong showing from Austria in this draft class with 5 representatives, a fair drop from the leading pair. One of those 5 was mentioned under Canada, #A-Rye Izzy, as he has dual citizenship with Canada and Austria. The other 4 representatives are each having impressive seasons in their own right, with 2 of them (Binder and Von Murphenstein) having 20+ points, Hundertwasserd being named Alternate Captain for St Louis and Rotzbua putting up a punishing 91 hits.
Switzerland Another country with 5 representatives in the draft class, but with less spectacular results than the strong class of Austrians. The best numbers are currently from Detroit’s LW Yan Dolff, who currently has 19 points (9G, 10A) despite only getting bottom-6 minutes.
Norway One of 4 countries with 4 representatives in the S58 draft class. 2 defencemen are the standouts for Norway, Carolinas Ole Olson and QCC’s Bjorn Jakobsen. Olson currently has 24 points (4G, 20A), which is an excellent haul for a defenceman in an inconsistent Carolina team. Jakobsen plays for the team dominating the SMJHL, the Cittadelles, so his excellent production is less surprising, but 27 points (12G, 15A) is certainly a solid haul for a rookie blueliner.
Sweden Traditionally, a country that produces excellent hockey players, the Swedish contingent of 4 is led by the Kraken’s Thomas Lind and Kelowna’s Gerry Atrick, who both have 24 points, although Atrick has almost 4 Minutes less average ToI than Lind.
Japan Could Japan be an emerging hockey superpower? The 4 players in this draft class are mostly not playing very much hockey. The biggest name of the 4 is QCC’s Mew Two, who has only registered an average ToI of 8:56 over 54 games, but has impressed with a points haul of 13 (7G, 6A), despite the relatively short amount of ice time.
Great Britain and Ireland Apologies if lumping these 2 together is offensive to anyone, but it made more sense than having 3 brits and an Irishman. None of the 4 are playing top line minutes at the moment for their teams, but they all have significant upsides to their game.
France One of the best contingents for its size, the French representation in this draft class can all be expected to go early doors. S57 SMJHL draft 1st overall pick Jean-Locke Zidane has emerged as a top rookie defenceman, anchoring St Louis’ top defensive line alongside veteran Colin Lambert, while Blouin is doing similar work for Detroit! With 19 and 18 points respectively, they also both have decent offensive production from the blueline. The 3rd player is Colorado’s Blanchet, who has 22 points from the 2C position on the Raptors roster.
Germany There are 2 German representatives in the S58 Draft Class. Both are defencemen, Clocksberg Jr for Colorado and Fuchs for Anchorage. They are both playing 2nd line minutes and putting up decent numbers. Both players are members of their teams’ PK units too.
Latvia Both of the Latvian contingent have been plying thei trade in Vancouver this season. Nikolaj Boyle has had the better numbers, picking up 19 points (9G, 10A) playing 3rd line wing minutes, Ako Zile has been playing 4C, picking up 7 points (2G, 5A).
Denmark, Azerbaijan, Russia, Greece, Australia These 5 countries each have a single representative in the draft class. Australia’s Charlesworth And Greece’s Athanasios look to be the best of this bunch, with 16 and 17 points respectively. The others in this group are all playing 4th line minutes and would be decent depth options. It is a surprise that Russia has only 1 representative, it is a country, similar to Finland, where hockey is very popular and widely played.
As you can see, we have a geographically diverse draft class for the S58 SHL Draft, some interesting conclusions to be drawn from this. Good luck to all draftees, I’ll see you in the SHL!
Urq660![[Image: A3AlstA.png]](https://i.imgur.com/A3AlstA.png)
![[Image: OnGNB1G.gif]](https://i.imgur.com/OnGNB1G.gif)
![[Image: cgv4vCv.png]](http://i.imgur.com/cgv4vCv.png)
![[Image: 95lCCDx.png]](http://i.imgur.com/95lCCDx.png)
![[Image: KgwtJeY.png]](https://i.imgur.com/KgwtJeY.png)
|
|
