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Budgie · 07-31-2019, 10:57 PM

Ian Venables – A Showcase Disappointment

By Janet Scoop

Going into the S49 Prospect Showcase in Denver Colorado, Ian Venables was highly touted as one of the most talented goaltending prospects. After thirteen days where his Vipers managed to lose six out of their ten games, I for one am extremely disappointed with his performance. Despite making 20 saves and posting a 0.952 save percentage in a 5-1 victory over the Stingrays today, he has been aggressively mediocre these past couple weeks. Far more indicative of his overall performance is the Vipers’ 5-3 loss to the Breakers on Day 10 where Venables let in 5 goals on only 14 shots. In that game, Venables kicked out 6 dangerous rebounds, and were it not for the brilliant defensive core in Braden Kilner (@jxryft ), Franklin Aklus (@Frankaklus ), Ricky Runlope (@Yyzyvr ), and Stacy Jefferson Jr. (@Cbott81 ) present to clear the front of the net, it is likely all 6 of those rebounds would have gone in.

The Vipers defense have blocked a combined 40 shots over the course of the Showcase, led by Aklus and Jefferson who blocked a whopping 13 shots each. Such defensive shot blocking prowess led to the Vipers having the lowest shots against average in the Showcase by 1.5 (19.4 average shots per game). For reference, the mean shots against average in the Showcase is 22.96.

Ranked by overall showcase save percentage, Venables is 5th among his peers, with a disappointing 0.839 SV%. With goalie prospects vying for 3 confirmed spots in the SMJHL (as reported by Perd Hapley in his recent article), that is not nearly good enough. Leading the goaltending prospects in the Showcase is Rob Blake (@jakeepoo ), who has provided an outstanding performance, and no doubt rocketing to the top of the draft boards. Using his massive frame and athletic prowess Blake has managed to secure three shutouts and a stunning 2.86 goals against average.

I caught up with Venables after the game. At least he seemed aware of his biggest flaws. “Rebound control is something I’ve struggled with my whole life,” he said. “My dad always used to tell me that the best goalies never need to make the flashy saves in the first place, and all that starts with the rebounds. If you can control where the shots come from, you can make sure you’re always in position.”

Lofty words from someone who is clearly a naive idealist, but knowing something is different than being able to perform under pressure. “I’m having trouble adjusting to the speed of the play,” Ian said, when confronted with that fact. “There’s a lot of talent out here, and I guess it’s taking me longer than I would have liked to get used to the higher pace. But I know my game, and I know that if I trust my instincts, I’ll bounce back like I always do. I played a good game today, and that’s the kind of game you can expect from me going forward. It’s a long Showcase, and there’s no doubt in my mind that I can prove myself to the scouts and general managers watching.”

He’s right that the Showcase is long, but he’s wrong that he will be able to turn it around in time to impress anyone. With Venables’ lackluster stats, he will be lucky if he gets drafted into the SMJHL at all. And frankly, after seeing him give his best effort in the Prospect Showcase, I think he should hang up the pads and save himself further embarrassment. But that’s just one reporter’s opinion.

*638 words, x2 Draft Media*